[Greek] συγχέω (sygcheō), [Latin] confundere, [Latin] confusus, [Latin] concitare,[French] meler, [French] exciter: to confuse, to stir up, to throw into disorder, to blur; Acts 2:6, Acts 9:22, Acts 19:32, Acts 21:27,31
Background information:
Greek Hellenism: This term means to confuse, to pour together, to throw into confusion, to bewilder, to stir up, to cause disorder, and to blur.
Euripides’ Bacchae 349: “Let someone go quickly to the seat where he watches the flight of birds, upset and overturn it with levers, turning it upside down.”
Polybius’ Histories 1.40.13: “They turned and bore down upon them and throwing their own lives into utter disorder and confusion.”
Homer’s Odyssey 8.139: “For to my mind there is naught worse than the sea to confound a man, be never so strong.”
Euripides’ Medea 1005: “Ah, why are you standing in distress when your fortune is good?” (Euripides, as a non-Christian, may have unknowingly realized that one cannot be truly happy even with earthly riches.)
Old Testament: This term means to confound, to make uneasy, to make embarrassed, to startle, and to displease.
Tower of Babel: The whole world had spoken the same language. In their arrogance, the people had built up a tower to reach up into the heavens. In response, the Lord confused (multiplied) their language so that no one would understand each other. God responds to human ignorance by humbling them (Tower of Babel). Interestingly, this will be later contrasted with Pentecost.
New Testament: This term means to confuse, to confound, to stir up, and to be in an uproar.
Scripture:
Acts 2:6: “At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd, but they were confused because each one heard them speaking in his own language.” (At Pentecost speaking in foreign tongues alludes to the worldwide mission of the Church. Because of the Holy Spirit, Jews from every nation was confused because they heard others speaking in their own language. This alludes to the inhabitants’ wicked and prideful actions in building the Tower of Babel. This derives from the Hebrew Bab-ili (gate of god).
Acts 9:22: “But Saul grew all the stronger and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus, proving that this is the Messiah.” (The Jews were confused because they had only previously known Saul as the rabid Pharisee who had persecuted the Christians. Paul stirred up the crowd.)
Acts 19:32: “Meanwhile, some were shouting one thing, others something else; the assembly was in chaos, and most of the people had no idea why they had come together. (Paul claimed that these hand-made gods are not gods at all. The silversmiths were alarmed that Saul was going to destroy their livelihood. Although the larger crowd had not clue for the disturbance, a few had known the cause. According the silversmith, Paul was engaging in “dis-information.”)
Acts 21:27: “When the seven days were nearly completed, the Jews from the province of Asia noticed him [Paul] in the temple, stirred up the crowd, and laid hands on him.” (The Jews claimed that Paul, like Stephen, was opposing Moses and his laws. The Jews thought that Paul, now a follower of Christ, was “defiling” the temple.)
Acts 21:31: “While they were trying to kill him [Paul], a report reached the cohort commander that all Jerusalem was rioting.” (The soldier took possession and arrested Paul. The cohort brought Paul to the compound. Yet the crowd remained disruptive.)
Etymology: The Greek verb sugcheo means to pour (-cheo) together (sug-). The Latin verb confundere means to pour together, to combine, and to blur. A melee is a confused conflict among many persons.
Conclusion:
Confound, confounding, confusion, confused, melee, excite