ἄνομος
ánomos · G459 · Greek · 9 occurrences
Meanings
-
lawless
(Derivative of ἀνομία ‘to live lawlessly,’) Pertaining to living without regard to law, in the sense of refusing to obey laws
ExamplesLuke 22:37 “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me: ‘AND HE WAS COUNTED WITH WRONGDOERS’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.”
Acts 2:23 this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.
2 Thessalonians 2:8 Then that lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will eliminate with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
-
without the Law
Pertaining to being without the Law (specifically the first five books of the OT)
Examples1 Corinthians 9:21 to those who are without the Law, I became as one without the Law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might gain those who are without the Law.
-
Gentile, heathen, pagan
A non-Jew who lives completely without reference to the Jewish Law
Examples1 Corinthians 9:21 to those who are without the Law, I became as one without the Law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might gain those who are without the Law.
How it’s used In 6 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Whose, or of whatGenitive or possessive
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- θεόςGod 1
Named alongside itApposition
1 occurrences in 3 groups
- εἰμίto be 1
- καταργέωto abolish, to bring to an end 1
- ἀναιρέωto kill, to execute 1
What it doesIt is the subject
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- ἀποκαλύπτωto reveal, to disclose, to make fully known 1
What is done to itIt is the object
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- κερδαίνωto gain, to win 1
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- μετάwith, after 2
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- χείρhand 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
In the other Testament 3 words
- רָשָׁע râshâʻ · H7563 · wicked, evil, guilty, in the wrong
- ἄνομος (ánomos, G459) serves as the Greek rendering of רָשָׁע (râshâʻ, H7563) in LXX contexts where the Hebrew 'wicked/ungodly' concept is expressed through Greek 'lawless,' particularly emphasizing moral rebellion against divine law rather than mere ritual non-compliance; both terms denote active wickedness and guilt before God, with ἄνομος (ánomos, G459)'s 'lawless' nuance capturing the Torah-violation aspect inherent in רָשָׁע's condemnation sense.
- רֶשַׁע reshaʻ · H7562 · wicked deeds, wickedness
- ἄνομος (ánomos, G459) emphasizes lawlessness as the state of being outside or against law (particularly Jewish Torah), while רֶשַׁע (reshaʻ, H7562) emphasizes wickedness/iniquity as moral evil or unrighteousness; both denote the wicked/lawless person or their conduct, with the Greek term carrying a more explicit legal-framework orientation and the Hebrew term a broader moral-evil orientation.
- רִשְׁעָה rishʻâh · H7564 · wicked deeds, wickedness
- Greek ἄνομος emphasizes lawlessness as a state of being outside or against (divine/Mosaic) law, whereas Hebrew רִשְׁעָה denotes wickedness/fault as a moral quality or condition; the terms overlap in contexts where lawlessness manifests as wickedness, but רִשְׁעָה focuses on the ethical fault itself rather than the legal-relational category.
Semantic domains 3 entries
- Gentile, heathen, pagan11.42
- In Acts 2:23, Peter tells the crowd that Jesus was “delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men (anómōn) and put Him to death,” referring to the Gentile Roman authorities who carried out the execution.
- Without the Law33.57
- In 1 Corinthians 9:21, Paul explains that “to those who are without the Law (anómois), I became as one without the Law (ánomos), though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ,” describing his own relationship to the Mosaic Law relative to those who lacked it.
- Lawless88.140
- In 2 Thessalonians 2:8, Paul writes that “that lawless one (ho ánomos) will be revealed, whom the Lord will eliminate with the breath of His mouth,” naming a figure characterized by open defiance of God's law.
Word family 22 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon ἄνομον (νόμος); 1. destitute of (the Mosaic) law: used of Gentiles, 1 Cor 9:21, (without…
1. destitute of (the Mosaic) law: used of Gentiles, 1 Cor 9:21, (without any suggestion of 'iniquity'; just as in Additions to Esther 4:42 [Esther 4:374:17u], where ἄνομοι ἀπερίτμητοι and ἀλλότριοι are used together).
2. departing from the law, a violator of the law, lawless, wicked; (Vulg.iniquus; (alsoinjustus)): Mk 15:28 (R L Tr brackets); Lk 22:37; Acts 2:23 (so in Greek writings); opposed to ὁ δίκαιος, 1 Tim 1:9; ὁ ἄνομος (κατ' ἐξοχήν), he in whom all iniquity has as it were fixed its abode, 2 Thess 2:8; ἀνόμοις ἔργοις, unlawful deeds, 2 Pet 2:8; free from law, not subject to law (Vulg.sinelege): μή ὤν ἄνομος θεοῦ (Buttmann, 169 (147)) (Rec. θεῷ), 1 Cor 9:21. (Very often in the Sept.) (Synonym: see ἀνομία, at the end.)
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (1889), public domain
Topical studies with this word 3 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org.