166. aionios; from 165; agelong, eternal:—
eternal(66), eternity(1), forever(1).
Thomas, Robert L., Th.D., General Editor,
New American Standard Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries,
166 aionios-
1) without beginning and end, what has
always been and always will be
2) without beginning
3) without end, never to cease, everlasting
---Thayers
2. aionios [166] "describes
duration, either undefined but not endless, as in <Rom. 16:25; 2 Tim.
1:9; Titus 1:2>; or undefined because endless as in <Rom. 16:26>, and
the other sixty-six places in the NT.
"The predominant meaning of aionios,
that in which it is used everywhere in the NT, save the places noted above,
may be seen in <2 Cor. 4:18>, where it is set in contrast with proskairos,
lit., `for a season,' and in <Philem. 15>, where only in the NT it is
used without a noun. Moreover it is used of persons and things which are
in their nature endless, as, e. g., of God, <Rom. 16:26>; of His power,
<1 Tim. 6:16>, and of His glory, <1 Pet. 5:10>; of the Holy Spirit,
<Heb. 9:14>; of the redemption effected by Christ, <Heb. 9:12>, and
of the consequent salvation of men, <5:9>, as well as of His future
rule, <2 Pet. 1:11>, which is elsewhere declared to be without end,
<Luke 1:33>; of the life received by those who believe in Christ, <John
3:16>, concerning whom He said, `they shall never perish,' <10:28>,
and of the resurrection body, <2 Cor. 5:1>, elsewhere said to be `immortal,'
<1 Cor. 15:53>, in which that life will be finally realized, <Matt.
25:46; Titus 1:2>.
"Aionios is also used of the sin
that `hath never forgiveness,' <Mark 3:29>, and of the judgment of God,
from which there is no appeal, <Heb. 6:2>, and of the fire, which is
one of its instruments, <Matt. 18:8; 25:41; Jude 7>, and which is elsewhere
said to be `unquenchable,' <Mark 9:43>.
"The use of aionios here shows that
the punishment referred to in <2 Thes. 1:9>, is not temporary, but final,
and, accordingly, the phraseology shows that its purpose is not remedial
but retributive."
From Notes on Thessalonians, by
Hogg and Vine, pp 232, 233. (from Vine's Expository Dictionary of
Biblical Words)
(Copyright (C) 1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
67.96 aji>vdio", on; aijwvnio", on: pertaining to an unlimited duration of time - ‘eternal.’
aji>vdio"ò h{ te aji>vdio" aujtou` duvnami" kai; qeiovth" ‘his eternal power and divine nature’ Ro 1.20.
aijwvnio"ò blhqh`nai eij" to; pu`r
to; aijwvnion ‘be thrown into the eternal fire’ Mt 18.8; tou` aijwnivou
qeou` ‘of the eternal God’ Ro 16.26.
The most frequent use of aijwvnio" in
the NT is with zwhv ‘life,’ for example, i{na pa`" oJ pisteuvwn ejn aujtw/`
e[ch/ zwh;n aijwvnion ‘so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal
life’ Jn 3.15. In combination with zwhv there is evidently not only a temporal
element, but also a qualitative distinction. In such contexts, aijwvnio"
evidently carries certain implications associated with aijwvnio" in relationship
to divine and supernatural attributes. If one translates ‘eternal life’
as simply ‘never dying,’ there may be serious misunderstandings, since
persons may assume that ‘never dying’ refers only to physical existence
rather than to ‘spiritual death.’ Accordingly, some translators have rendered
‘eternal life’ as ‘unending real life,’ so as to introduce a qualitative
distinction.
Louw, Johannes P. and Nida, Eugene A.,
Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains, (New
York: United Bible Societies) 1988, 1989.
aionios. An adjective meaning “eternal,”
and found in the LXX in Pss. 24; 77:5; Gen. 21:33, aionios in the NT is
used 1. of God (Rom. 16:26), 2. of divine possessions and gifts (2 Cor.
4:18; Heb. 9:14; 1 Pet. 5:10; 1 Tim. 6:16; 2 Th. 2:16, and 3. of the eternal
kingdom (2 Pet. 1:11), inheritance (Heb. 9:15), body (2 Cor. 5:1), and
even judgment (Heb. 6:2, though cf. Mt. 18:8; 2 Th. 1:9, where the sense
is perhaps “unceasing”). For a more temporal use, see Rom. 16:25; Phlm.
15.
Kittel, Gerhard, and Friedrich, Gerhard,
Editors, The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One
Volume, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company)
1985.
aionios ", ov and a, ov, lasting for an
age (aion 3), Plat.: ever-lasting, eternal, Id.
Liddell, H. G., and Scott, Abridged Greek-English
Lexicon, (Oxford: Oxford University Press) 1992.
166 aionios { ahee-o’-nee-os}
from 165; TDNT - 1:208,31; adj
AV - eternal 42, everlasting 25, the world began + 5550 2, since the world began + 5550 1, for ever 1; 71
GK - 173 { aionios }
1) without beginning and end, that which
always has been and always will be
2) without beginning
3) without end, never to cease, everlasting
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon, (Oak Harbor,
WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1995.
CL The Gk. word aion, which is probably derived from aei, always, is distinguished from its Indo-European parallels (Lat. aevum and Eng. aye are cognate) in that it is thought of not so much from the point of view of an abstract period of time as from the point of view of the time in which one has lived. In Hom. aion is often parallel with psyche, soul, life (e.g. Il. 16, 453); in Hesiod (Frag. 161, 1) it denotes a life-span, and in Aeschylus (Sept. 742) a generation. Thence it can mean the time which one has already lived or will live, i.e. it can relate to past as to future. It thus appeared appropriate to later philosophers to use the word both for the dim and distant past, the beginning of the world, and for the far future, eternity (e.g. Plato, Tim. 37d).
In Plato the term is developed so as to represent a timeless, immeasurable and transcendent super-time, an idea of time in itself. Plutarch and the earlier Stoics appropriate this understanding, and from it the Mysteries of Aion, the god of eternity, could be celebrated in Alexandria, and gnosticism could undertake its own speculations on time.
(a) A long time, duration of time, where both a specifically limited period of time as well as an unlimited period can be meant; chiefly linked with a preposition. The meaning "eternity" is only appropriate with certain qualifications, in that the OT idea of time, which predominantly conditions the NT, does not regard eternity as the opposite of temporality.
(b) An age, epoch, era (of the world), especially in Matt. with reference to the end of the world (Matt. 13:39; 28:20). This denotes the course of world-events, world history. It is also used in the plural with this meaning (e.g. Heb. 9:26; 1 Cor. 10:11). The underlying idea is that the world runs its course in a series of successive ages.
(c) Occasionally there occurs the meaning of world in the spatial sense, probably going back to the influence of Jewish apocalyptic (e.g. Mk. 4:19; 1 Cor. 2:6; especially (plur.) Heb. 1:2; 11:3). NIDNTT Colin Brown
0166 aionios
without beginning or end,
eternal, everlasting
LEH lxx lexicon
UBS GNT Dict. # 169 (Str#166)
aionios eternal (of quality rather than
of time); unending, everlasting, for all time
aijwvnio" (iva Pla., Tim. 38b; Jer 39:40;
Ezk 37:26; 2 Th 2:16; Hb 9:12; as v.l. Ac 13:48; 2 Pt 1:11; Bl-D. §59,
2; Mlt.-H. 157), on eternal (since Hyperid. 6, 27; Pla.; inscr., pap.,
LXX; Ps.-Phoc. 112; Test. 12 Patr.; standing epithet for princely, esp.
imperial power: Dit., Or. Index VIII; BGU 176; 303; 309; Sb 7517, 5 [211/2
ad] kuvrio" aij.; al. in pap.; Jos., Ant. 7, 352).
1. without beginning crovnoi" aij. long
ages ago Ro 16:25; pro; crovnwn aij. before time began 2 Ti 1:9; Tit 1:2
(on crovno" aij. cf. Dit., Or. 248, 54; 383, 10).
2. without beginning or end; of God (Ps.-Pla.,
Tim. Locr. 96c qeo;n t. aijwvnion; Inscr. in the Brit. Mus. 894 aij. k.
ajqavnato"; Gen 21:33; Is 26:4; 40:28; Bar 4:8 al.; Philo, Plant. 8; 74;
Sib. Or., fgm. 3, 17 and 4; PGM 1, 309; 13, 280) Ro 16:26; of the Holy
Spirit in Christ Hb 9:14. qrovno" aij. 1 Cl 65:2 (cf. 1 Macc 2:57).
3. without end (Diod. S. 1, 1, 5; 5, 73,
1; 15, 66, 1 dovxa aij. everlasting fame; in Diod. S. 1, 93, 1 the Egyptian
dead are said to have passed to their aij. oi[khsi"; Arrian, Peripl. 1,
4 ej" mnhvmhn aij.; Jos., Bell. 4, 461 aij. cavri"=a gracious gift for
all future time; Dit., Or. 383, 10 [I bc] eij" crovnon aij.; ECEOwen, oi\ko"
aij.: JTS 38, ’37, 248-50) of the next life skhnai; aij. Lk 16:9 (cf. En.
39, 5). oijkiva, contrasted w. the oijkiva ejpivgeio", of the glorified
body 2 Cor 5:1. diaqhvkh (Gen 9:16; 17:7; Lev 24:8; 2 Km 23:5 al.) Hb 13:20.
eujaggevlion Rv 14:6; kravto" in a doxolog. formula (=eij" tou;" aijw`na")
1 Ti 6:16. paravklhsi" 2 Th 2:16. luvtrwsi" Hb 9:12. klhronomiva (Esth
4:17m) vs. 15; aij. ajpevcein tinav (opp. pro;" w{ran) keep someone forever
Phlm 15 (cf. Job 40:28). Very often of God’s judgment (Diod. S. 4, 63,
4 dia; th;n ajsevbeian ejn a{/dou diatelei`n timwriva" aijwnivou tugcavnonta;
similarly 4, 69, 5; Jer 23:40; Da 12:2; Ps 76:6; 4 Macc 9:9; 13:15) kovlasi"
aij. (Test. Reub. 5:5) Mt 25:46; 2 Cl 6:7; krivma aij. Hb 6:2; qavnato"
B 20:1. o[leqron (4 Macc 10:15) 2 Th 1:9. pu`r (4 Macc 12:12.—Sib. Or.
8, 401 fw`" aij.) Mt 18:8; 25:41; Jd 7; Dg 10:7 (IQS 2, 8). aJnavrthma
Mk 3:29 (v.l. krivsew" and aJmartiva"). On the other hand of eternal life
(Maximus Tyr. 6, 1d qeou` zwh; aij.; Diod. S. 8, 15, 3 life meta; to;n
qavnaton lasts eij" a{panta aijw`na; Da 12:2; 4 Macc 15:3; PsSol 3, 12;
Philo, Fuga 78; Jos., Bell. 1, 650; Sib. Or. 2, 336) in the Kingdom of
God: zwh; aij. Mt 19:16, 29; 25:46; Mk 10:17, 30; Lk 10:25; 18:18, 30;
Ac 13:46, 48; Ro 2:7; 5:21 al.; J 3:15f, 36; 4:14, 36 al.; 1J 1:2; 2:25
al.—D 10:3; 2 Cl 5:5; 8:4, 6; IEph 18:1; Hv 2, 3, 2; 3, 8, 4 al. Also basileiva
aij. 2 Pt 1:11 (cf. Da 4:3; 7:27; Philo, Somn. 2, 285; Dit., Or. 569, 24
uJpe;r th`" aijwnivou kai; ajfqavrtou basileiva" uJmw`n; Dssm. B 279f,
BS 363). Of the glory in the next life dovxa aij. 2 Ti 2:10 (cf. Wsd 10:14;
Jos., Ant. 15, 376.—Sib. Or. 8, 410). aijwvnion bavro" dovxh" 2 Cor 4:17;
swthriva aij. (Is 45:17; Ps.-Clem., Hom. 1, 19) Hb 5:9; short ending of
Mk. Of heavenly glory in contrast to the transitory world of the senses
ta; mh; blepovmena aijwvnia 2 Cor 4:18.—carav IPhld inscr.; doxavzesqai
aijwnivw/ e[rgw/ be glorified by an everlasting deed IPol 8:1. DHill, Gk.
Words and Hebr. Mngs. ’67, 186-201. M-M.
Bauer, Walter, Gingrich, F. Wilbur, and
Danker, Frederick W., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and
Other Early Christian Literature, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press)
1979.