Greek word · G1203

δεσπότης

despotēs

master

Master or owner, especially of slaves or a household. More broadly, an absolute ruler or sovereign. In Jewish prayer it was used for God as sovereign Lord of all.

Appears 10 times in 10 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

δεσπότης, -ου, ὁ

[in LXX chiefly for אָדוֹן, אֲדֹנָי; in Jdth.9:17, δ. τ. οὐρανῶν κ. τ. γῆς];

a master, lord, correlative of δοῦλος, οἰκέτης: 1 Timothy 6:1, 2, 2 Timothy 2:21, Titus 2:9, 1 Peter 2:18; as title of God, voc., δέσποτα (so usually in LXX), Luke 2:29, Acts 4:24; ὁ δ. = voc. δέσποτα (cf. B1., § 33, 4), Revelation 6:10; of Christ, 2 Peter 2:1, Jude 1:4, R, txt. (but cf. mg.).†

SYN.: κύριος (which see), implying limitation of authority and a more general relation than δ., which "denoted absolute ownership and uncontrolled power" (Thayer). (AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Jude 1:4

Range of meaning

Master or owner, especially of slaves or a household. More broadly, an absolute ruler or sovereign. In Jewish prayer it was used for God as sovereign Lord of all.

Against the English

KJV renders it 'Lord' (and, with the added 'God', 'the only Lord God'). BSB, ESV and WEB 'Master' and NIV 'Sovereign' keep the sense of ownership and authority.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used of God in the Greek Old Testament and in prayer (Acts 4:24, 'Sovereign Lord'). Josephus (Antiquities 18.23) says the Jewish revolutionary movement held 'God alone as leader and master (despotēs)'. 2 Peter 2:1 has the parallel 'denying the Master who bought them'.

From the study of 2 Peter 2:1

Range of meaning

Master or owner, especially of household slaves, with complete authority. It was applied to God as absolute Sovereign. It is stronger and more concrete than kyrios ('lord, sir, master'), which was the common title for God and Christ.

Against the English

KJV 'the Lord' makes it sound like the usual divine title and loses the slave-owner picture. BSB, ESV, NASB and WEB have 'Master'. NIV's 'sovereign Lord' keeps the authority but not as clearly the ownership.

How it drifted

Modern 'Lord' works almost only as a religious title. Its everyday sense of someone who owns and commands others has faded.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used of slave-owners in 1 Tim 6:1–2, Titus 2:9 and 1 Pet 2:18. Used of God in Luke 2:29 ('Now, Master, you let your servant go'), Acts 4:24 and Rev 6:10. In the Septuagint it is used for God, as in Gen 15:2 and Jonah 4:3. Jude 4, the close parallel, has 'denying our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ'.

From the study of 1 Timothy 6:1

Range of meaning

Owner or master with absolute authority, especially over slaves and a household. It is also used reverently of God as sovereign Lord (Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; Rev 6:10) and of Christ (2 Pet 2:1; Jude 4).

Against the English

All major versions say "masters." English "despot" comes from this word, but its tyrannical sense is later and political. In Greek, despotēs was the normal legal word for a slave-owner and was not insulting.

How it drifted

English "despot" has picked up a meaning of oppressive ruler that the Greek did not necessarily carry. Readers should not treat the Greek word as a judgment on these masters.

Used elsewhere in the period

It is common in papyri and in household-management writings (Aristotle, Xenophon's Oikonomikos) for the head of house in relation to slaves. The Pastoral Letters use it for owners of slaves (1 Tim 6:1–2; Titus 2:9) and once for Christ as the master of the house whose vessels are "useful to the master" (2 Tim 2:21).

Where it appears

Luke · 1

  1. Luke 2:29 δέσποτα, Lord,

    “Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You now dismiss Your servant in peace.

    Here: Addressing God directly ('Master!'). This is the ordinary word for the owner of a household's slaves, and it matches 'slave' exactly. It is rarer than the usual 'Lord' (kyrios) and stresses God's complete authority over his servant's life and death.

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 4:24 δέσποτα, Sovereign Lord,

    When the believers heard this, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “You made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them.

    Here: "Master!" This was the ordinary word for the owner of slaves and for a ruler with unchecked power. It sets up the believers' description of themselves in v. 29 as "your slaves" (δοῦλοι).

1 Timothy · 2

  1. 1 Timothy 6:1 δεσπότας masters

    All who are under the yoke of slavery should regard their masters as fully worthy of honor, so that God’s name and our teaching will not be discredited.

    Here: The owner with full legal power over the household and its slaves. It is a stronger word for ownership than kyrios ("lord").

  2. 1 Timothy 6:2 δεσπότας masters

    Those who have believing masters should not show disrespect because they are brothers, but should serve them all the more, since those receiving their good service are beloved believers. Teach and encourage these principles.

    Here: The legal owner of a slave, with near-total authority over the slave's body and household. It is the same word as in verse 1, and the source of English 'despot'.

2 Timothy · 1

  1. 2 Timothy 2:21 δεσπότῃ, Master,

    So if anyone cleanses himself of what is unfit, he will be a vessel for honor: sanctified, useful to the Master, and prepared for every good work.

    Here: The owner of the household, who has full rights over its goods and slaves. In the image he owns the great house. In the application he is the Lord (God or Christ).

Titus · 1

  1. Titus 2:9 δεσπόταις masters

    Slaves are to submit to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative,

    Here: The owner, the person with legal power over the household and the slaves in it. The word stresses ownership and control (English 'despot' comes from it). The Pastoral Letters use it for slave-owners instead of kyrios ('lord'), the word Ephesians and Colossians use.

1 Peter · 1

  1. 1 Peter 2:18 δεσπόταις, to masters,

    Servants, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but even to those who are unreasonable.

    Here: Owners with full legal power over their slaves. It is a stronger word for ownership than kyrios ("lord"), which Paul's parallel instructions use.

2 Peter · 1

  1. 2 Peter 2:1 δεσπότην Master

    Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.

    Here: The owner of a household and its slaves, someone with full rights over them. In context, and as in the parallel Jude 4, the Master is most likely Christ.

Jude · 1

  1. Jude 1:4 δεσπότην master

    For certain men have crept in among you unnoticed—ungodly ones who were designated long ago for condemnation. They turn the grace of our God into a license for immorality, and they deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

    Here: The owner of slaves, or the absolute ruler. Jude has called himself a 'slave of Jesus Christ' (v. 1). These people are slaves disowning their owner.

Revelation · 1

  1. Revelation 6:10 δεσπότης Lord

    And they cried out in a loud voice, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge those who dwell upon the earth and avenge our blood?”

    Here: The owner of a household and its slaves. The martyrs speak as slaves to their Master, and 6:11 calls them 'fellow slaves' (syndouloi). They appeal to the one who has full authority over them and whose household has been harmed.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.