Greek word · G1724

ἐνάλιος

enalios

marine

Belonging to or living in the sea. It is mostly a poetic or literary adjective (Homer and the tragic poets). Used as a noun, "sea creatures".

Appears once in the Greek New Testament. · Updated October 30, 2026

What it means

ἐν-άλιος, -ον

(also -α, -ον; ἅλς, the sea),

of the sea: τὰ ἐ., marine creatures, James 3:7.†

(AS)

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

Range of meaning: Belonging to or living in the sea. It is mostly a poetic or literary adjective (Homer and the tragic poets). Used as a noun, "sea creatures".
Against the English: KJV "things in the sea" and BSB "creatures of the sea" are accurate. A paraphrase like "fish" narrows it.
Used elsewhere in the period: Found nowhere else in the NT. In the Genesis lists the fourth group is "fish of the sea" (ichthyes tēs thalassēs). James uses the more elevated word. This fits his polished Greek style.

James · 1

James 3:7 ἐναλίων things of the sea

All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man,

Here: "Things in the sea," a somewhat literary word found only here in the New Testament. It covers fish and every other sea creature.

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