Bible Lexicons

ἁρπαγμός occurs in the MS. of Vettius Valens, p. 122.1, ἐὰν Ἄρης κληρώσηται τὸν δαίμονα, Σελήνη δὲ τὸν γαμοστόλον, ἁρπαγμὸς ὁ γάμος ἔσται. Kroll says ";nempe ἁρπάγιμος,"; but why not render ";the marriage will be one of force,"; or perhaps ";will be a great catch";? The closely parallel ἅρπαγμα, which modern commentators generally regard as a practical synonym of the rare ἁρπαγμός in Philippians 2:6, may be cited from a magical text. The leaden tablet from Hadrumetum, printed with a commentary by Deissmann, BS pp. 274–300, and with slightly amended text by Wünsch AF no. 5, has in l. .34 δι᾽ ὃν ὁ λείων ἀφείησιν τὸ ἅρπαγμα, the noun denoting the lion’s ";prey"; as in LXX of Ezek 22.35. One apt though not exact literary parallel seems to have escaped Lightfoot’s net : Pindar Pyth 8.65 ἁρπαλέαν δόσιν ";a gift to be eagerly seized"; (Gildersleeve, who compares Phil l. c.), ";the keen-sought prize"; (Myers). This comes very near to the meaning res rapienda (rather than res rapta) by which ἁρπαγμόν seems best explained if really equivalent to ἅρπαγμα ";spoil, prize."; Against the solitary profane instance of ἁρπαγμός, in Plutarch 2. 12 A τὸν ἐκ Κρήτης καλούμενον ἁ., ";seizure, rape,"; may be set a very close parallel also quoted by Lightfoot, οὐκ ἐστὶν ἁρπαγμὸς ἡ τιμή (from a catena on Mark 10:41 ff.). Without discussing the crux interpretum, we might supply a list of the -μός nouns parallel to ἁρπαγμός in formation, as found in NT, such as may be cited to support the practical identity of ἁ. with ἅρπαγμα, and its distinctness from it, respectively, (1) Nouns which are or may be passive, like ἅρπαγμα = τὸ ἁρπακτόν or τὸ ἁρπακτέον : ὑπογραμμός, ψαλμός, θερισμός, ἱματισμός, ἐπισιτισμός, χρηματισμός. In these the abstract has become concrete, as our writing, clothing, warning have done, so that they are what the noun in -μα would have been. (Brugmann-Thumb pp. 218, 222, defines the -μός and -μή nouns and the -μα as ";verbal abstracts"; and ";nomina actionis"; respectively; but both ";partially pass into names of things.";) (2) By far the larger number, some forty or more, denote the action of the verb—βρυγμός ";gnashing,"; σεισμός ";shaking,"; which in concrete development produces ἀσπασμός ";a greeting,"; δεσμός ";chain,"; etc. The statement that Plut. Mor. p. 12 is ";the only instance of its use noted in prof. auth."; as a matter of fact overlooks an instance of the identical ἁρπασμός given in Wyttenbach’s index verborum—viz. p. 644 A (Symposiaca II. 10), where ὑφαίρεσις καὶ ἁρπασμὸς καὶ χειρῶν ἅμιλλα καὶ διαγκωνισμός are mentioned as conduct not tending to friendliness or convivial enjoyment; we may render ";snatching and grabbing, fisticuffs and elbowing."; Here again, therefore, the word is a nomen actionis, as in the other Plutarch passage.