the Week of Proper 25 / Ordinary 30
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Old & New Testament Greek Lexical Dictionary Greek Lexicon
Strong's #25 - ἀγαπάω
- Thayer
- Strong
- Mounce
- of persons
- to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly
- of things
- to be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing
- Book
- Word
- Parsing
did not use
this Strong's Number
ἀγαπάω
(Dor. ἀγανο-έω Archyt. ap. Stob. 3.1.110), aor. ἀγάπησα Od. 23.214: pf. ἠγάπηκα Isoc. 15.147, etc.
I.
1. I greet with affection (cf. foreg.), once in Hom., Od.l.c.: — in Trag. only show affection for the dead, ὅτ' ἠγάπα νεκρούς E. Supp. 764, cf. Hel. 937: — Pass., to be regarded with affection, ξένων εὐεργεσίαις ἀγαπᾶται Pi. I. 5(6).70: — generally, love, ὥσπερ.. οἱ ποιηταὶ τὰ αὑτῶν ποιήματα καὶ οἱ πατέρες τοὺς παῖδας ἀγαπῶσι Pl. R. 330c, cf. Lg. 928a; ὡς λύκοι ἄρν' ἀγαπῶσ' Poet. ap. Phdr. 241d; ἀ. τοὺς ἐπαινέτας ib. 257e; ἐπιστήμην, τὰ χρήματα, etc., Id. Phlb. 62d, al.; τούτους ἀγαπᾶ καὶ περὶ αὑτὸν ἔχει D. 2.19; ὁ μέγιστον ἀγαπῶν δι' ἐλάχιστ' ὀργίζεται Men. 659; esp. of children, αὐτὸν ἐτιθηνούμην ἀγαπῶσα Id. Sam. 32, etc.: — Pass., Pl. Plt. 301d, etc.; ὑπὸ τῶν θεῶν ἠγαπῆσθαι D. 61.9; ὑπὸ τοῦ φθᾶ OGI 90.4 (Rosetta, ii B. C.); so in LXX of the love of God for man and of man for God, Isaiah 41:8, Deuteronomy 11:1, al., cf. John 3:21, Romans 8:28 : — as dist. fr. φιλέω (q. v.) implying regard rather than affection, but the two are interchanged, cf. X. Mem. 2.7.9 and 12; φιλεῖσθαι defined as ἀγαπᾶσθαι αὐτὸν δι' αὑτόν Arist. Rh. 1371a21: — seldom of sexual love, for ἐράω, Arist. Fr. 76, Luc. JTr. 2; ἀ. ἑταίραν Anaxil. 22.1 (but ἀ. ἑταίρας to be fond of them, X. Mem. 1.5.4; ἐρωτικὴν μέμψιν ἡ ἀγαπωμένη λύει dub. in Democr. 271): — of brotherly love, Matthew 5:43, al.
2. persuade, entreat, LXX 2 Chronicles 18:2.
3. caress, pet, Plu. Per. 1.
II of things, to be fond of, prize, desire, Pl. Ly. 215a, 215b, etc.; τὰ χρήματα R. 330c; μᾶλλον τὸ σκότος ἢ τὸ φῶς John 3:19; prefer, τὰ Φιλίππου δῶρα ἀντὶ τῶν κοινῇ τοῖς Ἕλλησι συμφερόντων D. 18.109: — Pass., λιθίδια τὰ ἀγαπώμενα highly prized, precious stones, Pl. Phd. 110d.
III
1. to be well pleased, contented, once in Hom., οὐκ ἀγαπᾷς ὃ ἕκηλος.. μεθ' ἡμῖν δαίνυσαι; Od. 21.289; freq. in Att., ἀγαπᾶν ὅτι.. Th. 6.36; more commonly, ἀ. εἰ.. to be well content if.., Lys. 12.11, Pl. R. 450a, al.; ἐὰν.. ib. 330b, cf. Ar. V. 684, Pl. Grg. 483c, al.
2. c. part., ἀ. τιμώμενος Pl. R. 475b, cf. Isoc. 12.8, Antiph. 169: c. inf., οὐκ ἀ. τῶν ἴσων τυγχάνειν τοῖς ἄλλοις Isoc. 18.50, cf. D. 55.19, Hdn. 2.15.4, Alciphr. 3.61, Luc. DMort. 12.4, etc.
3. c. dat. rei, to be contented with, ἀ. τοῖς ὑπάρχουσιν ἀγαθοῖς Lys. 2.21; τοῖς πεπραγμένοις D. 1.14.
4. c. acc. rei, tolerate, put up with, μηκέτι τὴν ἐλευθερίαν ἀ. Isoc. 4.140; τὰ παρόντα D. 6.15; τὸ δίκαιον Pl. R. 359a (Pass.), cf. Arist. Rh. 1398a23.
5. rarely c. gen., ἵνα.. τῆς ἀξίας ἀγαπῶσιν may be content with the proper price, Alex. 125.7.
6. abs., to be content, ἀγαπήσαντες Lycurg. 73, cf. Luc. Nec. 17.
7. c. inf., to be fond of doing, wont to do, like φιλέω, τοὺς Λυκίους ἀγαπῶντας τὸ τρίχωμα φορεῖν Arist. Oec. 1348a29, cf. LXX Hosea 12:7.
ἀγαπάω, (ῶ; (imperfect ἠγάπων); future ἀγαπήσω; 1 aorist ἠγάπησα; perfect active (1 person plural ἠγαπήκαμεν, 1 John 4:10 WH text), participle ἠγαπηκῶς (2 Timothy 4:8); passive (present ἀγαπῶμαι); perfect participle ἠγαπημένος; 1 future ἀγαπηθήσομαι; (akin to ἄγαμαι (Fick, Part 4:12; see ἀγαθός, at the beginning)); to love, to be full of good-will and exhibit the same: Luke 7:47; 1 John 4:7f; with the accusative of the person, to have a preference for, wish well to, regard the welfare of: Matthew 5:43ff; Matthew 19:19; Luke 7:5; John 11:5; Romans 13:8; 2 Corinthians 11:11; 2 Corinthians 12:15; Galatians 5:14; Ephesians 5:25, 28; 1 Peter 1:22, and elsewhere; used often in the First Epistle of John of the love of Christians toward one another; of the benevolence which God, in providing salvation for men, has exhibited by sending his Son to them and giving him up to death, John 3:16; Romans 8:37; 2 Thessalonians 2:16; 1 John 4:11, 19; (noteworthy is Jude 1:1 L T Tr WH τοῖς ἐν Θεῷ πατρί ἠγαπημένοις; see ἐν, I. 4, and cf. Lightfoot on Colossians 3:12); of the love which led Christ, in procuring human salvation, to undergo sufferings and death, Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 5:2; of the love with which God regards Christ, John 3:35; (v.
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ἀγαπάω , -ῶ ,
[in LXX chiefly for H157;]
to love, to feel and exhibit esteem and goodwill to a person, to prize and delight in a thing.
1. Of human affection, to men: τ . πλησίον , Matthew 5:43; τ . ἐχθρούς , Matthew 5:44; to Christ, John 8:42; to God, Matthew 22:37; c. acc rei, Luke 11:43, John 12:43 Ephesians 5:25, 2 Timothy 4:8; 2 Timothy 4:10, Hebrews 1:9, 1 Peter 2:17, 1 Peter 3:10, 2 Peter 2:15, 1 John 2:15, Revelation 12:11.
2. Of divine love;
(a) God's love: to men, Romans 8:37; to Christ, John 3:35;
(b) Christ's love: to men, Mark 10:21; to God, John 14:31; c. cogn. acc, John 17:26, Ephesians 2:4.
SYN.: φιλέω G5368. From its supposed etymology (Thayer, LS; but v. also Boisacq) ἀ . is commonly understood properly to denote love based on esteem (diligo), as distinct from that expressed by φιλέω (amo), spontaneous natural affection, emotional and unreasoning. If this distinction holds, a. is fitly used in NT of Christian love to God and man, the spiritual affection which follows the direction of the will, and which, therefore, unlike that feeling which is instinctive and unreasoned, can be commanded as a duty. (Cf. ἀγάπη G26, and v. Tr., 12; Cremer, 9, 592; and esp. MM, VGT, s.v.)
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The Pauline phrase in 1 Thessalonians 1:4 ἀδελφοὶ ἠγαπημένοι ὑπὸ [τοῦ ] θεοῦ, which in this exact form is not found elsewhere in the NT (cf. in the LXX Sirach 45:1 ἠγαπημένον ὑπὸ (ἀπὸ א) θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων), is well illustrated by a similar use in connexion with Ptolemy on the Rosetta stone, OGIS 90.4 (B.C. 196) ἠγαπημένου ὑπὸ τοῦ Φθᾶ. Cf. a Munich papyrus in Chrest. I. 109.12 (end of iii/B.C.), where Wilcken restores [Πτολεμαῖ ]ος αἰωνόβιος ἠγα [πημένος ὑπὸ τῆς Ισιδος ]. It may be noted that in Mark 10:21 Field (Notes, p. 34) suggests the translation ";caressed"; for ἠγάπησεν, comparing Plut. Pericl. 1 : ξένους τινὰς ἐν Ῥώμῃ πλουσίους, κυνῶν τέκνα καὶ πιθήκων ἐν τοῖς κόλποις περιφέροντας καὶ ἀγαπῶντας (fondling) ἰδὼν ὁ Καῖσαρ. . . ἠρώτησεν εἰ παιδία παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς οὐ τίκτουσιν αἱ γυναῖκες. B. L. Gildersleeve (Justin Martyr, p. 135) suggests that ";the larger use of [ἀγαπᾶν ] in Christian writers is perhaps due to an avoidance of φιλεῖν in the sense of ‘kissing.’ "; He says Xenophon made the two words absolute synonyms, comparing Memorabilia ii. 7. 9 with 12; while he deprecates refinements in John 21:15-17, since ";the Evangelist himself did not see the point, as Augustin notes (Civ. Dei vii. 11)."; This seems undeniable in Xenophon l.c., though in so severely simple a writer as Jn it is extremely hard to reconcile ourselves to a meaningless use of synonyms, where the point would seem to lie in the identity of the word employed. Gildersleeve’s remark that ";ἀγαπᾶν is a colder word than φιλεῖν and less intimate"; will hold for ";profane"; Greek; but this is emphatically a case where the needs of a new subject take up a rather colourless word and indefinitely enrich it. In NT ἀγαπᾶν is purged of all coldness, and is deeper than φιλεῖν, though the latter remains more human. See R. H. Strachan’s references and discussion in Expos. VIII. vii. 263–7 (March 1914). A Christian metrical epitaph (Calder 69—after midd. iv/A.D.) has ἀ. with infin. as in Class. Grk : νῦν ἀγαπᾷς σὺ μαθεῖν τίς ἐγὼ ξένος ἢ πόθεν ἦλθα.
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