Bible Lexicons

οἶκος, οἴκου, ὁ (cf. Latinvicus, English ending -wich; Curtius, § 95), from Homer down; the Sept. in numberless places for בַּיִת, also for הֵיכַל, a palace, אֹהֶל, a tent, etc.;

1. a house;

a. strictly, an inhabited house (differing thus from δόμος the building): Acts 2:2; Acts 19:16; τίνος, Matthew 9:6; Mark 2:11; Mark 5:38; Luke 1:23, 40, 56; Luke 8:39, 41, etc.; ἔρχεσθαι εἰς οἶκον, to come into a house (domurn venire), Mark 3:20 (19); εἰς τόν οἶκον, into the (i. e. his or their) house, home, Luke 7:10; Luke 15:6; ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ, in the (her) house, John 11:20; ἐν οἴκῳ, at home, 1 Corinthians 11:34; 1 Corinthians 14:35; οἱ εἰς τόν οἶκον(see εἰς, C. 2), Luke 9:61; κατ' οἶκον, opposed to ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ, in a household assembly, in private (R. V. at home; see κατά, II. 1 d.), Acts 2:46; Acts 5:42; κατ' οἴκους, opposed to δημοσίᾳ, in private houses (A. V. from house to house; see κατά, II. 3 a.), Acts 20:20; κατά τούς οἴκους εἰσπορευόμενος, entering house after house, Acts 8:3; ἡ κατ' οἶκον τίνος ἐκκλησία, see ἐκκλησία, 4 b. aa.

b. any building whatever: ἐμπορίου, John 2:16; προσευχῆς, Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46; τοῦ βασιλέως, τοῦ ἀρχιερέως, the palace of etc., Matthew 11:8; Luke 22:54 (here T Tr WH οἰκία); τοῦ Θεοῦ, the house where God was regarded as present — of the tabernacle, Matthew 12:4; Mark 2:26; Luke 6:4; of the temple at Jerusalem, Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46; John 2:16f, (Isaiah 56:5, 7); cf. Luke 11:51; Acts 7:47, 49; of the heavenly sanctuary, Hebrews 10:21 (οἶκος ἅγιος Θεοῦ, of heaven, Deuteronomy 26:15; Baruch 2:16); a body of Christians (a church), as pervaded by the Spirit and power of God, is called οἶκος πνευματικός, 1 Peter 2:5.

c. any dwelling-place: of the human body as the abode of demons that possess it, Matthew 12:44; Luke 11:24; (used in Greek authors also of tents and huts, and later, of the nests, stalls, lairs, of animals). universally, the place where one has fixed his residence, one's settled abode, domicile: οἶκος ὑμῶν, of the city of Jerusalem, Matthew 23:38; Luke 13:35.

2. by metonymy, the inmates of a house, all the persons forming one family, a household: Luke 10:5; Luke 11:17 (al: refer this to 1, and take ἐπί either locally (see ἐπί, C. I. 1), or of succession (see ἐπί, C. I. 2 c.)); ; Acts 7:10; Acts 10:2; Acts 11:14; Acts 16:31; Acts 18:8; 1 Corinthians 1:16; 1 Timothy 3:4; 1 Timothy 5:4; 2 Timothy 1:16; 2 Timothy 4:19; Hebrews 11:7; plural, 1 Timothy 3:12; Titus 1:11 (so also Genesis 7:1; Genesis 47:12, and often in Greek authors); metaphorically, and in a theocratic sense ὁ οἶκος τοῦ Θεοῦ, the family of God, of the Christian church, 1 Timothy 3:15; 1 Peter 4:17; of the church of the Old and New Testament, Hebrews 3:2, 5f (Numbers 12:7).

3. stock, race, descendants of one (A. V. house): ὁ οἶκος Δαυίδ, Luke 1:27, 69; Luke 2:4 (1 Kings 12:16); οἶκος Ἰσραήλ, Matthew 10:6; Matthew 15:24; Luke 1:33; Acts 2:36; Acts 7:42; ((ὁ οἶκος Ἰακώβ), 46 L T Tr marginal reading); Hebrews 8:8, 10 (Jeremiah 38:31 (); Exodus 6:14; Exodus 12:3; Exodus 19:3; 1 Samuel 2:30; (cf. ὁ σεβαστός οἶκος, Philo in Flac. § 4)). The word is not found in the Apocalypse. [SYNONYMS: οἶκος, οἰκία: in Attic (and especially legal) usage, οἶκος denotes one's household establishment, one's entire property, οἰκία, the dwelling itself; and in prose οἶκος is not used in the sense of οἰκία. In the sense of family οἶκος and οἰκία are alike employed; Schmidt vol. ii., chapter 80. In relation to distinctions (real or supposed) between οἶκος and οἰκία the following passages are of interest (cf. Valckenaer on Herodotus 7, 224): Xenophon, oecon. 1, 5 οἶκος δέ δή τί δοκεῖ ἡμῖν κειναι; ἄρα ὅπερ οἰκία, ἤ καί ὅσα τίς ἔξω τῆς οἰκίας κέκτηται, πάντα τοῦ οἴκου ταῦτα ἐστιν ... πάντα τοῦ ὀκου εἶναι ὅσα τίς κέκτηται. Aristotle, polit. 1, 2, p. 1252{b}, 9ff, ἐκ μέν οὖν τούτων τῶν δύο κοινωνιων (viz. of a man with wife and servant) οἰκία πρώτη, καί ὀρθῶς ἡσιοδος εἶπε ποιήσας "οἶκον μέν prootista] γυναῖκα τέ βοῦν τ' ἀροτηρα." ... ἡ μέν οὖν εἰς πᾶσαν ἡμέραν συνεστηκυια κοινωνία κατά φύσιν οἶκος ἐστιν. ibid. 3, p. 1253{b}, 2ff, πᾶσα πόλις ἐκ οἰκιῶν σύγκειται. οἰκίας δέ μέρη, ἐκ ὧν αὖθις οἰκία συνισταται. οἰκία δέ τέλειος ἐκ δούλων καί ἐλευθέρων ... πρῶτα δέ καί ἐλάχιστα μέρη οἰκίας δεσπότης καί δοῦλος καί πόσις καί ἄλοχος. πατήρ καί τέκνα, etc. Plutarch, de audiend. poetis § 6 καί γάρ οἶκον πότε μέν τήν οἰκίαν καλοῦσιν, "οἶκον ἐς ὑψοροφον." πότε δέ τήν οὐσίαν, "ἐσθίεται μοι οἶκος." (see οἰκία, c.) Hesychius' Lexicon, under the words οἰκία, οἶκοι, under the word οἶκος. ὀλίγη οἰκία ... καί μέρος τί τῆς οἰκίας ... καί τά ἐν τῇ οἰκία. In the N. T., although the words appear at times to be used with some discrimination (e. g. Luke 10:5, 6, 7; Acts 16:31, 32, 34; cf. John 14:2), yet other passages seem to show that no distinction can be insisted upon: e. g. Matthew 9:23; Mark 5:38; Luke 7:36, 37; Acts 10:17,(); ; (1 Corinthians 1:16; 1 Corinthians 16:15).]