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Bible Lexicons
Old & New Testament Greek Lexical Dictionary Greek Lexicon
Strong's #3155 - μάτην
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- in vain, fruitlessly
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μάτην,
1. Dor. μάτᾱν [μᾰ], Adv. in vain, h.Cer. 308, Pi. O. 1.83, etc.; μὴ πόνει μ. A. Pr. 44; βλέποντες ἔβλεπον μ. ib. 447; μ. ἐρεῖν ib. 1007; with a Noun, τὸ μ. ἄχθος the fruitless burden, Id. Ag. 165 (lyr.); Διὸς μ. ἄκοιτις his bedfellow to no good end, S. Tr. 1149: as predicate, μ. ὁ μόχθος A. Ch. 521.
2. at random, without reason, οὔ σε μ. τιμῶσι Thgn. 523; ὅρα μὴ μ. κόμπος ὁ λόγος ᾖ Hdt. 7.103, cf. E. Supp. 127; οὐ γὰρ δίκαιον.. τοὺς κακοὺς μ. χρηστοὺς νομίζειν S. OT 609; ἵνα μὴ μ. θαρρήσῃς Pl. Tht. 189d; ὁ νοσῶν μ., i.e. he that is mad, S. Aj. 635 (lyr.), cf. Ar. Pax 95 (anap.).
3. idly, falsely, λέγοντες εἴτ' ἀληθές, εἴτ' ἄρ' οὖν μ. S. Ph. 345; λόγῳ μάτην θνῄσκοντες Id. El. 63, cf. 1298; μ. βέβακεν, of a dream, A. Ag. 423 (lyr.). — Originally acc. of μάτη, and we find εἰς μάτην in Luc. Trag. 28,241, Aristid. Or. 33(51).3; ἐπὶ μ. POxy. 530.8 (ii A.D.).
μάτην (accusative (cf. Winers Grammar, 230 (216); Buttmann, § 131, 12) of μάτη, equivalent to ματία, a futile attempt, folly, fault), adverb, from Pindar, Aeschylus down, in vain, fruitlessly: Matthew 15:9 and Mark 7:7, after Isaiah 29:13 the Sept..
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For this adverb, ";in vain,"; ";to no purpose,"; cf. the illiterate P Amh II. 130.5 (A.D. 70) ἐξλῆθα (l. ἐξῆλθα ?) εὑρὼν ἓκξ (ἓξ) ἑπτὰ μάτιαν πολούτων (l. μάτην πωλοῦντας), ";I came away after finding six or seven offering in vain to sell (some barley)"; (Edd.), and P Oxy XII. 1417.22 (early iv/A.D.) μάτη ̣ν ̣ οὖν θέλω διὰ σοῦ τοῦ στρατηγοῦ, and for the interesting phrase ἐπὶ μάτην cf. ib. III. 530.8 (ii/A.D.) ἐπὶ μάτ ̣η ̣[ν ] δὲ τῶι τοῦ Παυσιρίωνος τοσοῦτον χρόνον προσκαπτερ [ῶ, ";and that I have so long been engaged with Pausirion’s business to no purpose"; (Edd.). Εἰς μάτην is similarly used by Lucian (Trag. 28, 241).
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