Greek word · G1597

ἔκπαλαι

ekpalai

of old

'From long ago, for a long time, of old.' It is a Hellenistic intensified form of palai ('long ago').

Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἔκ-παλαι

adv. (of a class of compound adverbs common in late Gk.; see Mayor on 2 Pe, l.with),

for a long time, from of old: 2 Peter 2:3 3:5.†

(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 2 Peter 3:5

Range of meaning

'From long ago, for a long time, of old.' It is a Hellenistic intensified form of palai ('long ago').

Against the English

'Of old' (KJV, WEB, YLT) and 'long ago' (BSB) are all accurate.

Used elsewhere in the period

Found in Hellenistic writers such as Philo and Josephus and in papyri. In the NT only at 2 Pet 2:3 (the judgment of false teachers 'long ago' pronounced) and here.

Where it appears

2 Peter · 2

  1. 2 Peter 2:3 ἔκπαλαι of long ago

    In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction does not sleep.

    Here: The verdict is not new. It was announced long ago, most likely in Scripture's warnings and in the examples of judgment that follow in verses 4–8.

  2. 2 Peter 3:5 ἔκπαλαι long ago

    But they deliberately overlook the fact that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water,

    Here: 'From of old, long since.' It reaches back to creation itself and answers the scoffers' 'from the beginning of creation' (v.4). In the NT it occurs only here and in 2:3.

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