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Bible Lexicons
Old & New Testament Greek Lexical Dictionary Greek Lexicon
Strong's #1577 - ἐκκλησία
- Thayer
- Strong
- Mounce
- a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly
- an assembly of the people convened at the public place of the council for the purpose of deliberating
- the assembly of the Israelites
- any gathering or throng of men assembled by chance, tumultuously
- in a Christian sense
- an assembly of Christians gathered for worship in a religious meeting
- a company of Christian, or of those who, hoping for eternal salvation through Jesus Christ, observe their own religious rites, hold their own religious meetings, and manage their own affairs, according to regulations prescribed for the body for order's sake
- those who anywhere, in a city, village, constitute such a company and are united into one body
- the whole body of Christians scattered throughout the earth
- the assembly of faithful Christians already dead and received into heaven
- Book
- Word
- Parsing
did not use
this Strong's Number
ἐκκλησί-α, ἡ,
(ἔκκλητος)
I
1. assembly duly summoned, less general than σύλλογος, Th. 2.22, Pl. Grg. 456b, etc.; applied to the Homeric Assemblies, Arist. Pol. 1285a11; to the Samian Assembly, Hdt. 3.142; to the Spartan, Th. 1.87; to the meeting of the Amphictyons at Delphi, Aeschin. 3.124; at Athens, ἐ. κύριαι, opp. σύγκλητοι, Arist. Ath. 43.4; κυρία ἐ., at Amorgos, IG 12(7).237.46; ἐ. συναγείρειν, συνάγειν, συλλέγειν, ἀθροίζειν, call an assembly, Hdt. 3.142, Th. 2.60, 8.97, X. HG 1.6.8; ἐ. ποιεῖν Ar. Eq. 746, Th. 1.139,al.; ἐ. ποιεῖν τινί Ar. Ach. 169; διδόναι τινί Plb. 4.34.6; ἐ. γίγνεται an assembly is held, Th. 6.8; καταστάσης ἐ. Id. 1.31; ἦν ἐ. τοῖς στρατηγοῖς And. 1.2; ἐ. διαλύειν, ἀναστῆσαι, dissolve it, Th. 8.69 (Pass.), X. HG 2.4.42; ἀφιέναι Plu. TG 16; ἐ. ἀνεβλήθη was adjourned, Th. 5.45; ἐ. περί τινος Ar. Av. 1030, etc.
2. =Lat. Comitia, ἐ. λοχῖτις, φρατρική, = Comitia Centuriata, Curiata, D.H. 4.20.
3. = ψήφισμα, ἀναγιγνωσκομένης ἐ. Philostr. VS 2.1.11.
II
1. in LXX, the Jewish congregation, De. 31.30,al.
2. in NT, the Church, as a body of Christians, Matthew 16:18; 1 Corinthians 11:22; ἡ κατ' οἶκόν τινος ἐ. Romans 16:5; as a building, Cod.Just. 1.1.5 Intr., etc.
ἐκκλησία, ἐκκλεσιας, ἡ (from ἔκκλητος called out or forth, and this from ἐκκαλέω); properly, a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place; an assembly; so used
1. among the Greeks from Thucydides (cf. Herodotus 3, 142) down, an assembly of the people convened at the public place of council for the purpose of deliberating: Acts 19:39.
2. in the Sept. often equivalent to קָהָל, the assembly of the Israelites, Judges 21:8; 1 Chronicles 29:1, etc., especially when gathered for sacred purposes, Deuteronomy 31:30 (Deuteronomy 32:1); Joshua 8:35 (Joshua 9:8), etc.; in the N. T. thus in Acts 7:38; Hebrews 2:12.
3. any gathering or throng of men assembled by chance or tumultuously: Acts 19:32, 41.
4. in the Christian sense,
a. an assembly of Christians gathered for worship: ἐν ἐκκλησία, in the religious meeting, 1 Corinthians 14:19, 35; ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις, 1 Corinthians 14:34; συνέρχεσθαι ἐν ἐκκλησία, 1 Corinthians 11:18; cf. Winers Grammar, § 50, 4a.
b. a company of Christians, or of those who, hoping for eternal Salvation through Jesus Christ, observe their own religious rites, hold their own religious meetings, and manage their own affairs according to regulations prescribed for the body for order's sake; aa. those who anywhere, in city or village, constitute such a company and are united into one body: Acts 5:11; Acts 8:3; 1 Corinthians 4:17; 1 Corinthians 6:4; Philippians 4:15; 3 John 1:6 (cf. Winer's Grammar, 122 (116)); with specification of place, Acts 8:1; Acts 11:22; Romans 16:1; 1 Corinthians 4:17; 1 Corinthians 6:4; Revelation 2:1, 8, etc.; Θεσσαλονικέων, 1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:1; Λαοδικέων, Colossians 4:16; with the genitive of the possessor, τοῦ Θεοῦ (equivalent to יְהוָה קֲהַל, Numbers 16:3; Numbers 20:4), 1 Corinthians 11:22; and mention of the place, 1 Corinthians 1:2; 2 Corinthians 1:1. Plural, αἱ ἐκκλησίαι: Acts 15:41; 1 Corinthians 7:17; 2 Corinthians 8:19; Revelation 1:4; Revelation 3:6, etc.; with τοῦ Θεοῦ added, 1 Thessalonians 2:14; 2 Thessalonians 1:4; τοῦ Χριστοῦ, Romans 16:16; with mention of the place, as τῆς Ἀσίας, Γαλατίας, etc.: 1 Corinthians 16:1, 19; 2 Corinthians 8:1; Galatians 1:2; τῆς Ἰουδαίας ταῖς ἐν Χριστῷ, joined to Christ (see ἐν, I. 6b.), i. e. Christian assemblies, in contrast with those of the Jews, Galatians 1:22; ἐκκλησίαι τῶν ἐθνῶν, gathered from the Gentiles, Romans 16:4; τῶν ἁγίων, composed of the saints, 1 Corinthians 14:33. ἡ ἐκκλησία κατ' οἶκον τίνος, the church in one's house, i. e. the company of Christians belonging to a person's family; others less aptly understand the phrase of the Christians accustomed to meet for worship in the house of someone (for as appears from 1 Corinthians 14:23, the whole Corinthian church was accustomed to assemble in one and the same place; (but see Lightfoot on Colossians 4:15)): Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16:19; Colossians 4:15; Philemon 1:2. The name ἡ ἐκκλησία is used even by Christ while on earth of the company of his adherents in any city or village: Matthew 18:17. bb. the whole body of Christians scattered throughout the earth; collectively, all who worship and honor God and Christ in whatever place they may be: Matthew 16:18 (where perhaps the Evangelist employs τήν ἐκκλησίαν although Christ may have said τήν βασιλείαν μου); 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 1:22; Ephesians 3:10; Ephesians 5:23ff,27,29,32; Philippians 3:6; Colossians 1:18, 24; with the genitive of the possessor: τοῦ κυρίου, Acts 20:28 (R Tr marginal reading WH τοῦ Θεοῦ); τοῦ Θεοῦ, Galatians 1:13; 1 Corinthians 15:9; 1 Timothy 3:15. cc. the name is transferred to the assembly of faithful Christians already dead and received into heaven: Hebrews 12:23 (on this passage see in ἀπογράφω, b. and πρωτότοκος, at the end). (In general, see Trench, § 1, and B. D. under the word
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ἐκκλησία , -ας , ἡ
(< ἐκ -καλέω ),
[in LXX chiefly for H6951, otherwise for one of its cogn. forms;]
1. prop., an assembly of citizens regularly convened (in Thuc., ii, 22, opp. to σύλλογος , a concourse): Acts 19:32; Acts 19:39; Acts 19:41.
2. In LXX of the assembly, congregation, community of Israel (Deuteronomy 4:10; Deuteronomy 23:2, al.): Acts 7:38, Hebrews 2:12 (LXX).
3. In NT, esp. of an assembly or company of Christians, a (the) church;
(a) of gatherings for worship: 1 Corinthians 11:18; 1 Corinthians 14:19; 1 Corinthians 14:34-35;
(b) of local communities: Acts 8:3, 1 Corinthians 4:17; with name added, Acts 8:1, Romans 16:1, 1 Thessalonians 1:1, al.; pl., Acts 15:41, 1 Corinthians 7:17; τ . Χριστοῦ , Romans 16:16; τ . Ἀσίας , 1 Corinthians 16:19; τ . ἁγίων , 1 Corinthians 14:33; εἰπὸν τ . ἐκκλησία , Matthew 18:17 (but v. Hort, Ecclesia, 10); of a house-congregation (DB, i, 431a), Romans 16:5, 1 Corinthians 16:19, Colossians 4:15, Philemon 1:2;
(c) of the whole body of Christians: Matthew 16:18, 1 Corinthians 12:28, Ephesians 1:22, Philippians 3:6, al,; τ . θεοῦ , Acts 20:28 (Κυρίου , T, R, mg.), 1 Corinthians 15:9, Galatians 1:13, 1 Timothy 3:15; ἐ . προτοτόκων ἀπογεγραμμένων ἐν οὐρανοῖς , Hebrews 12:23.
SYN.: συναγωγή G4864, q.v. (v. Tr., Syn., § i; DB, i, 426; Hort, Ecclesia, esp. 4 ff., 107 ff.; Hamilton, People of God, ii, 37 ff.; reff. s.vv. " Church," "Congregation," in DB and DCG; Cremer, 332).
Copyright © 1922 by G. Abbott-Smith, D.D., D.C.L.. T & T Clarke, London.
For the Biblical history of the word ἐκκλησία, which meant originally any public assembly of citizens summoned by a herald, it is sufficient to refer to Hort, The Christian Ecclesia, p. 1 ff. It is the LXX term for the community of Israel, whether assembled or no. In the Gospels the word is confined to Matthew 16:18; Matthew 18:17, where it denotes Christ’s new ἐκκλησία, as distinguished from the old. Deissmann (LAE p. 112 ff.) has emphasized the significance of the fact that the Latin-speaking people of the West, to whom Christianity came, did not translate the word, but simply borrowed it, and cites an interesting bilingual inscr. of A.D. 103–4, found in the theatre of Ephesus, which refers to the gift by a Roman official of a silver image of Artemis (cf. Acts 19:24) and other statues—ἵνα τίθηνται κατ᾽ ἐκκλησίαν (cf. Acts 14:23) ἐν τῷ θεάτρῳ ἐπὶ τῶν βάσεων, or, in the parallel text, ita ut [om]n[i e]cclesia supra bases ponerentur. Other reff. to ἐκκλησίαι in the theatre at Ephesus will be found s.v. θέατρον. For the ";inclusive"; as distinguished from the ";exclusive"; character of the Greek ἐκκλησία (cf. Hicks CR i. p. 43), we may cite the case of an ἐκκλησία summoned at Apamea—ἀγομένης πανδήμου ἐκκλησίας, which the editor Cagnat (note on IV. 791.7) describes as ";concilium totius populi Apamensis, civium cum Graecorum, tum Romanorum"; : see also Ramsay C. and B. ii. p. 465, where the inscr. is dated as perhaps of the time of Vespasian and Titus. MGr ἐκκλησ (ι)ά.
Copyright © 1914, 1929, 1930 by James Hope Moulton and George Milligan. Hodder and Stoughton, London.
Derivative Copyright © 2015 by Allan Loder.
