Bible Lexicons

This noun, which in the NT occurs only in Ephesians 4:14; Ephesians 6:11, in the sense of ";scheming,"; ";craftiness,"; is said by Grimm-Thayer to occur ";neither in the O.T. nor in prof, auth."; It is found, however, in late papyri in the more primary sense of ";method,"; e.g. P Oxy VIII. 1134.9 (A.D. 421) where certain rents are said to have been collected πρὸς τὴν μεθοδίαν ἀκολούθως τῷ δοθέντι ὑπὸ σοῦ λόγῳ τοῦ τε λήμματος καὶ τοῦ ἐξωδιασμοῦ, ";in method corresponding to the account given by you of receipt and expenditure"; (Ed.), ib. I. 136.18 (A.D. 583) τὴν μεθοδίαν τρέψαι, ";to conduct my dealings,"; ib..24 ἣν ἐ [ν ]δείκνυμι μεθοδίαν περὶ τὴν εἴσπραξιν, ";the method of collection adopted by me"; (Edd.), and P Amh II. 149.15 (vi/A.D.) τῷ κυρίως ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς τὴν μεθοδίαν κατ᾽ ἐμοῦ ποιουμένῳ, with reference to a loan to be repaid to the person lawfully demanding it. For the verb see P Leid Wxvi. 17 (ii/iii A.D.) (= II. p. 137) ἐρώτα, ἵνα αὐτὸς ἀπολί (= εί)ψῃ ἢ μεθοδεύσῃ (altera ratione iterum tractet) : δύναται γὰρ πάντα ὁ θεὸς οὖτος. Cf. MGr ἡ μέθοδο, ";method."; According to Thumb (Handbook, p. 58) ";the pl. is rarely used, yet a pl. οἱ μέθοδες may be formed for the word ἡ μέθοδο taken from the literary language.";