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Bible Lexicons

Old & New Testament Greek Lexical DictionaryGreek Lexicon

Strong's #1992 - ἐπιστολή

Transliteration

epistolḗ

Phonetics

ep-is-tol-ay'

Root Word (Etymology)

from (G1989)

Parts of Speech

Noun Feminine

TDNT

7:593,1074

Definition

Thayer
Strong
Mounce

Thayer's

a letter, epistle

Hebrew Equivalent Words:

Strong #: 104 ‑ אִגְּרָה (ig‑er‑aw'); 107 ‑ אִגֶּרֶת (ig‑eh'‑reth); 3627 ‑ כְּלִי (kel‑ee'); 3791 ‑ כְּתָב (kaw‑thawb'); 5612 ‑ סִפְרָה (say'‑fer, sif‑raw'); 7855 ‑ שִׂטְנָה (sit‑naw');

Frequency Lists

Book
Word
Parsing

Verse Results

KJV (24)

Acts 5

Romans 1

1 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 8

Colossians 1

1 Thessalonians 1

2 Thessalonians 4

2 Peter 2

NAS (24)

Acts 5

Romans 1

1 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 8

Colossians 1

1 Thessalonians 1

2 Thessalonians 4

2 Peter 2

HCS (24)

Acts 5

Romans 1

1 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 8

Colossians 1

1 Thessalonians 1

2 Thessalonians 4

2 Peter 2

BSB (24)

Acts 5

Romans 1

1 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 8

Colossians 1

1 Thessalonians 1

2 Thessalonians 4

2 Peter 2

ESV (23)

Acts 5

Romans 1

1 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 7

Colossians 1

1 Thessalonians 1

2 Thessalonians 4

2 Peter 2

WEB (22)

Acts 5

Romans 1

1 Corinthians 2

2 Corinthians 6

Colossians 1

1 Thessalonians 1

2 Thessalonians 4

2 Peter 2

KJV (24)

epistle 13

epistles 2

letter 3

letters 5

NAS (24)

letter 16

letters 8

HCS (24)

a letter 3

letter 13

letters 7

of our letters 1

BSB (24)

[our] letters 1

a letter 1

letter 15

letters 7

ESV (23)

letter 18

letters 5

WEB (22)

a letter 2

by letter 1

for letters 1

letter 7

letters 3

my letter 2

my letters 1

of his letters 1

the letter 3

this letter 1

RAH

N-APF 7

N-ASF 7

N-DSF 1

N-GPF 1

N-GSF 7

N-NPF 1

ANT

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 4

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 3

BEZ

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

BGB

N-AFP 2

N-AFS 6

N-DFP 1

N-DFS 3

N-GFP 4

N-GFS 3

N-NFP 1

N-NFS 4

BMT

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

BYZ

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

ELZ

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 2

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 5

NA26

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

SBL

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

SCV

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 2

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 5

STV

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 2

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 5

TIS

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

N-APF 2

N-ASF 6

N-DPF 1

N-DSF 3

N-GPF 4

N-GSF 3

N-NPF 1

N-NSF 4

Liddell-Scott-Jones Definitions

ἐπιστολ-ή, ἡ, (ἐπιστέλλω)

1.anything sent by a messenger, message, order, commission, whether verbal or in writing, Hdt. 4.10, Th. 8.45, etc.; ἐξ ἐπιστολῆς by command, Hdt. 6.50: used by Trag. always in pl., A. Proverbs 3:1-35, Pers. 783, Supp. 1012, S. Aj. 781, OC 1601, etc.; Πενθέως ἐπιστολαῖς by his commands, E. Ba. 442; τέκνων ἐπιστολὰς ἔγραψεν commands about her children, Id. Hipp. 858.

2.. letter, ἐ. διαπέμπειν, ἀποδοῦναι, Th. 1.129, 7.10; λύειν Id. 1.132; ἐ. ἔδωκεν ἀποδοῦναι Lys. 20.27; πέμπειν τινί E. IT 589 (pl.): in pl. of one letter, like γράμματα, Lat. litterae, Id. IA 111, 314, Th. 1.132, etc.; ὁ ἐπὶ τῶν ἐπιστολῶν.. τοῦ Ὄθωνος, Lat. ab epistulis Othoni, his secretary, Plu. Oth. 9; νομογραφικὴ ἐ. BGU 1135.7 (i B.C.).

Thayer's Expanded Definition

ἐπιστολή, ἐπιστολῆς, ἡ (ἐπιστέλλω), a letter, epistle: Acts 15:30; Romans 16:22; 1 Corinthians 5:9, etc.; plural, Acts 9:2; 2 Corinthians 10:10, etc.; ἐπιστολαί συστατικαι, letters of commendation, 2 Corinthians 3:1 (Winers Grammar, 176 (165). On the possible use of the plural of this word interchangeably with the singular (cf. Thomas Magister, Ritschl edition, p. 113, 8), see Lightfoot and Meyer on Philippians 3:1. (Euripides, Thucydides, others)).

Abbott-Smith Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament

ἐπι -στολή , -ῆς , ἡ

(< ἐπιατέλλω ),

[in LXX for H107, etc.; freq. in Mac;]

1. a message.

2. a letter, an epistle: Acts 9:2, 1 Corinthians 5:9, al.; pl., Acts 22:5, 1 Corinthians 16:3, al.; ἐ . σνστατικαί , 2 Corinthians 3:1 (cf. Milligan, NTD, 254 f.). (On the NT ἐπιστολαί , cf. Milligan, Th., 121 ff.; NTD, 85 ff.; Deiss., BS, 3 ff.; St. Paul, 8 ff.)

Abbott-Smith Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament.
Copyright © 1922 by G. Abbott-Smith, D.D., D.C.L.. T & T Clarke, London.

Vocabulary of the Greek NT

Preisigke in his Fachwörter, p. 90, has classified various more or less technical usages of this common word. Thus in P Amh II. 64.10 (A.D. 107) the copy of an official letter addressed to the strategus with reference to the public baths of Hermopolis is headed—ἀντίγραφον ἐπιστολῆς, and in P Hamb I. 18ii. 6 (A.D. 222) a συνκολ (λήσιμον) is mentioned αὐθ (εντικ ̣ῶν) ἐπιστολ (ῶν) καὶ βιβλ (ιδίων) ὑποκεκολ (λημένων). In BGU IV. 1046ii. 5 (not before A.D. 166) (= Chrest. I. p. 315) we learn that the persons selected for certain public duties were appointed by the epistrategus—δι᾽ ἐπιστολ (ῆς) κομισθ (είσης) καὶ προγρα (φείσης) (";openly placarded up";); while in Chrest. I. 26.16 (A.D. 135) a petition, instead of being lodged in the usual way as a ὑπόμνημα, takes the form of an ἐπιστολή : see Wilcken’s note ad l. In BGU IV. 1135.7 (prob. B.C. 10) κατὰ ] νομογραφικὴν ἐπιστ ̣[ολήν, the word is = ";despatch,"; and in the business letter P Giss I. 105.20 (V/A.D.) λήμψῃς ἐπιστολάς it is = ";receipt."; The range of the word was thus wide, and its official usage in the above-noted instances may serve as a needed corrective to the over-emphasis which Deissmann (BS, p. 3 ff., LAE, p. 217 ff.) is inclined to lay upon the ";popular"; character of the Pauline ἐπιστολαί : see Milligan Documents, p. 94 f.

We may further cite BGU III. 827.20 (undated) ἰδοὺ δ ̣[ὴ ] τρίτην ἐπιστολήν σοι γράφω, which recalls 2 Peter 3:1 with an opening like 2 Corinthians 12:14, and P Oxy XII. 1409.2 (A.D. 278) τῆς γραφείσης ἐπιστολῆς εἰς κοινὸν ἡμῖν στρατη [γοῖς καὶ δε ]καπρώτοις, with reference to a ";circular letter"; addressed to the strategi and δεκάπρωτοι of the Heptanomia and Arsinoïte nome by the diœcetes. For the diminutive it is enough to refer to the soldier’s letter to his mother, ib. 1481.3 (early ii/A.D.), in which he explains the reason why he has been so long in sending her an ἐπιστόλιον —διότι ἐν παρεμβολῇ ἠμι κ ̣α ̣ι ̣, οὐ δι᾽ ἀσθένε [ι ]αν, ὥστε μὴ λοιπο ̣υ ̣̑, ";that I am in camp, and not that I am ill; so do not grieve about me"; (Edd.), and P Par 45.4 (B.C. 153) ἀπόντος μου πεφρόντικα ὑπέρ σου χρήσιμα τῶν σῶν πραγμάτων ἅ σ [οι ] δεδύνημαι διασαφῆσαι διὰ τοῦ ἐπιστολίου, cf. 2 Corinthians 10:11.

List of Word Forms

επιστολαι επιστολαί ἐπιστολαὶ επιστολαις επιστολαίς ἐπιστολαῖς επιστολας επιστολάς ἐπιστολὰς επιστολη επιστολή ἐπιστολή ἐπιστολὴ ἐπιστολῇ επιστολην επιστολήν ἐπιστολήν ἐπιστολὴν επιστολης επιστολής ἐπιστολῆς επιστολων επιστολών ἐπιστολῶν epistolai epistolaì epistolais epistolaîs epistolas epistolàs epistole epistolē epistolḗ epistolḕ epistolêi epistolē̂i epistolen epistolēn epistolḗn epistolḕn epistoles epistolês epistolēs epistolē̂s epistolon epistolôn epistolōn epistolō̂n