Greek word · G187

ἀκμάζω

akmazō

to ripen

To be at the akmē, the high point: in the prime of life, at full strength, at full bloom. Said of crops, to be fully ripe.

Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἀκμάζω

(ἀκμήν), [in LXX: 4Ma.2:3 * ;]

to be at the prime; of produce of the ground, to be ripe (Thuc.): Revelation 14:18 (MM, VGT, see word).†

(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 Revelation 14:18

Range of meaning

To be at the akmē, the high point: in the prime of life, at full strength, at full bloom. Said of crops, to be fully ripe.

Against the English

'Ripe' (BSB, ESV) is accurate but flat. KJV/WEB 'fully ripe' and YLT 'come to perfection' better catch the idea of a peak that has been reached.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in classical and Hellenistic Greek for people 'in their prime' and for things at their height. This is its only New Testament occurrence (BDAG s.v.). It is parallel to 14:15, where the grain harvest 'has dried' (exēranthē), meaning it is ready to cut.

Where it appears

Revelation · 1

  1. Revelation 14:18 ἤκμασαν fully ripened

    Still another angel, with authority over the fire, came from the altar and called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vine of the earth, because its grapes are ripe.”

    Here: 'They have reached their peak'. It comes from akmē, 'high point' (English 'acme'). This is the only use in the New Testament. The grapes are as ripe as they will ever be: ready, and past waiting.

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