Strong (loud, mighty, severe, strong man) (ischuros from ischuo = to be able) is an adjective which means strong, powerful, mighty (usually referring to inherent physical strength), able, forcible. Strong, having moral power. Inherently strong.
Ischuros can describe
(1) People - spoken of the powers both of body and mind, physical and moral (Mt. 3:11; Mk 1:7; Lk 3:16). In Heb 11:34, "mighty in war" meaning able to overcome.
(2) Angels (Rev 5:2; 10:1; 18:21)
(3) God (Rev. 18:8; In the Lxx Dt. 10:17; Neh. 1:5; 9:32). John the Baptist uses ischuros of Jesus in Mt 3:11, Mk 1:7, Lk 3:16.
(4) Things: strong wind (Mt 14:30 - NAS drops the adjective "strong" for some reason), a severe famine (Lk 15:14), or loud (strong) cries of Jesus when on earth as the God-Man (Heb 5:7). The loud (strong) cry of the angel at the fall of Babylon (Rev 18:2). Strong or loud (mighty peals) of thunder (Rev 19.6). Strong encouragement (Heb 6.18).
(5) Satan - strong man in Mt 12:29; Mk 3:27.
Ischuros is used figuratively in 1Cor 1:27 to convey the sense of strong in influence and authority, mighty, honorable
Paul's letters were strong, "powerful" (serious, impressive, weighty, forceful) (2Cor 10:10). The strong man (Satan) must be bound before his house can be plundered. Jesus accomplished the "binding" of the Evil One (Mt 12:29; Mk 3:27.).
God demonstrated His strength in the "weakness" of the Cross, and for this reason His weakness is "mightier" than men's strength (1Cor 1:25), and His weakness puts to shame the "mighty things" of this life (1Cor 1: 27: cf. Rev 6:15).
Wuest - Ischuros speaks of indwelling strength embodied or put forth either aggressively or as an obstacle to resistance, as an army or a fortress.
Ischuros (see ischus) is one of four great power words in the NT = (1) Exousia = delegated authority (2) Ischuros = great strength (especially physical); (3) Kratos, dominion authority. (4) Dunamis means energy, power, might, great force, great ability, strength
Young men are described as "strong", presumably referring to their faith (1John 2:14).
Ischuros in Classic Greek - Described the quality of being "strong, powerful, mighty," especially persons. Could describe a "strong" taste or odor, a loud sound, or the "power" of the government. The picture of "Intensity" is a key thought conveyed by ischuros. Thus a "violent" wind described an intense wind. An army's "force" reflected the intensity of the force.
Webster's 1828 Definition of mighty:
1. Having great bodily strength or physical power; very strong or vigorous; as a mighty arm.
2. Very strong; valiant; bold; as a mighty man of valor. Jdg 6.
3. Very powerful; having great command. - Cush begat Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one on the earth. Ge 10:9.
4. Very strong in numbers; as a mighty nation. Ge 18.
5. Very strong or great in corporeal power; very able.
Woe to them that are mighty to drink wine. Isa 5:11, 22.
6. Violent; very loud; as mighty thunderings. Ex 9. Ps. 68.
7. Vehement; rushing with violence; as a mighty wind or tempest. Ex. 10. Rev. 6.
8. Very great; vast; as mighty waters. Neh. 9.
9. Very great or strong; as mighty power. 2Chr. 26.
10. Very forcible; efficacious; as, great is truth and mighty. Esdras.
11. Very great or eminent in intellect or acquirements; as the mighty Scaliger and Selden. Echard.
12. Great; wonderful; performed with great power; as mighty works
13. Very severe and distressing; as a mighty famine. Luke 15:12.
14. Very great, large or populous; as a mighty city. Rev. 18.
15. Important; momentous.
I'll sing of heroes and of kings, In mighty numbers mighty things. Cowley.
Ischuros - 29x in 27v - NAS Usage: loud(1), mightier(3), mighty(3), mighty men(1), severe(1), strong(13), strong man(1), strong man's(1), strong man's(1), stronger(3). KJV Usage - mighty 10, strong 9, strong man 5, boisterous 1, powerful 1, valiant 1
Matthew 3:11 "As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
Matthew 12:29 "Or how can anyone enter the strong man's house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
Comment: In Mt 12:28 Jesus declared the kingdom of God had come, because He had displayed His sovereign rule and power over even the strong man (Satan) and his demonic hordes! Jesus is stronger, beloved. In fact, there is simply no comparison because one is the Creator and the other the created creature!
Matthew 14:30 But seeing the (strong) wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!"
Mark 1:7 And he was preaching, and saying, "After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals.
Mark 3:27 "But no one can enter the strong man's house and plunder his property unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.
MacArthur Study Bible - One must be stronger than Satan in order to enter his domain ("strong man's house"), bind him (restrain his action), and free ("plunder") people ("his property") from his control. Only Jesus had such power over the devil. Cf. Ro 16:20; Heb 2:14, 15.
Luke 3:16 John answered and said to them all, "As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
Luke 11:21 "When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed. 22 "But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder.
Luke 15:14 "Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.
1 Corinthians 1:25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Comment: The idea is that the more one looks to himself and depends on himself, the worse his spiritual situation becomes. As his dependence on his his strength increases, so do his problems. His great need is "the weakness of God" because even if God could possess a weakness (which in my opinion, He does not possess), this weakness would still be stronger than the greatest strength a man could muster. As John MacArthur says "God's power is real power, power that means something and accomplishes something. It is not of men but it is offered for men. It is the power of salvation from sin, of deliverance from Satan, of life in God's very presence for all eternity." (1 Corinthians Commentary. Chicago: Moody Press)
1 Corinthians 1:27 but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong,
1 Corinthians 4:10 We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor.
1 Corinthians 10:22 Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? We are not stronger than He, are we?
2 Corinthians 10:10 For they say, "His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible."
Hebrews 5:7 In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety.
Hebrews 6:18 so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.
Wuest - Ischuros speaks of indwelling strength embodied or put forth either aggressively or as an obstacle to resistance, as an army or a fortress. Thus the encouragement which God's promise and God's oath afford is a strong army or a fortress against doubt and discouragement. God's promise and God's oath should keep these Jews from apostatizing through the encouragement they give.
Hebrews 11:34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.
1 John 2:14 I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
Revelation 5:2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?"
Revelation 6:15 Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains;
Comment: Ischuros here probably refers to political and/or military status which was great in the world's eyes (but not God's!)
Revelation 10:1 I saw another strong angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud; and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire;
Revelation 18:2 And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird.
Revelation 18:8 "For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong.
Revelation 18:10 standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.'
Revelation 18:21 Then a strong angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, "So will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down with violence, and will not be found any longer.
Revelation 19:6 Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
Revelation 19:18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great."
Ischuros - 17" class="scriptRef">7.3" class="scriptRef">37.18" class="scriptRef">18" class="scriptRef">18v in the non-apocryphal Septuagint - 9.14" class="scriptRef">14.5" class="scriptRef">Ge 14:5; 31" class="scriptRef">41:31; 11.37" class="scriptRef">37.10" class="scriptRef">10" class="scriptRef">50:10; Ex 19:19; Nu 13:18, 31; 20.20" class="scriptRef">20:20; 24.21" class="scriptRef">24:21; Dt 4:38; 7.1" class="scriptRef">7:1; 9:1, 14; 10:17; 11" class="scriptRef">11.23" class="scriptRef">11:23; Josh 4:24; 6:20; 10:2; 23:9; Jdg 5:13, 22; 6:12; 9:51; 14:14, 18; 2Sa 15:12; 2Sa 22:31-33, 48; 23:5; 1Kgs 11:28; 2Kgs 24:15; 1Chr 5:24; 7:2, 4-5, 7, 9,11, 40" class="scriptRef">40; 8:40; 9:13; 12:8; Ezra 4:20; Neh 1:5; 9:31-32; Job 22:13; Job 33:29; 34:31; 36:22, 26; 37:5, 10, 18; Ps 7:11; Pr 6:2; 8:28-29; 16.32" class="scriptRef">16:32; 21:14; 24:5; 27:27; 30.26" class="scriptRef">30:26, 30; Eccl 6:10; Isa 8:7, 11; 21:17; Isa 27:1, 3; 28:2; 33:16; 43:16-17; 53:12; Jer 5:16; 9:23; 30:21; 32:18;33:3; 46:5-6; 48:14; 49:22; 50:34; Lam 1:15; Ezek 30:22; 34:4, 16, 20; Da 1:15; 2:37, 40, 42; 3:20; 4:3; 6:20; 7:7; 8:9, 24; 9:4; 10:1, 7; 11:23-25, 37, 39, 44; Joel 1:6; 2:2, 5, 11; Amos 2:9; 5:12; Mic 4:3,7;
Septuagint Usage: Ischuros occurs quite commonly in the Septuagint where it translates as many as 25 Hebrew words or phrases. The diversity of definition found in classical sources continues in the Septuagint. Thus it can describe a "severe" famine (Ge 41:31) or "bitter" weeping (Ge 50:10). The comparative form is used of "stronger" military forces (Nu 13:31; cf. Dt 2:10; 1Chr 7:4). "The strong" equals the lion in Samson's riddle (Jdg 14:14). "Mighty things" include the promise of God to come and heal and save His people (the Jews) and to return them from captivity and into the Land of Israel (Jer 33:3). (Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary)
"Copy and paste the address below into your web browser in order to go to the original page which will allow you to access live links related to the material on this page - these links include Scriptures (which can be read in context), Scripture pop-ups on mouse over, and a variety of related resources such as Bible dictionary articles, commentaries, sermon notes and theological journal articles related to the topic under discussion."
http://preceptaustin.org/1john_212-14_commentary.htm#s
Be the first to react on this!
Greek Word Studies ( - )
Read freely Greek Word Studies from the Austin Precept text commentary of the Bible in text and pdf format. Precept Austin is an online free dynamic bible commentary similar to wikipedia with updated content and many links to excellent biblical resources around the world. You can browse the entire collection of Commentaries by Verse on the Precept Austin website.We have been "bought with a price" to be "ambassadors for Christ" and our "salvation is nearer to us than when we believed" so let us "cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" "so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming." (1Cor 6:20, 2Cor 5:20, Ro 13:11, 2Cor 7:1, 1Jn 2:28)