Greek word · G2129

εὐλογία

eulogia

praise

Literally 'good speaking'. In ordinary Greek it means praise or fine speech. In Jewish Greek it takes on the range of Hebrew berakah: (1) a blessing spoken by God or a person; (2) the good things that blessing brings; (3) a gift given as a blessing, a present or bounty.

Appears 16 times in 14 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

εὐλογία, -ας, ἡ

[in LXX chiefly for בְּרָכָה ;]

1. fair speaking, flattering speech: χρηστολογίας καὶ εὐ., Romans 16:18.

2. praise: of God (as in late Inscr.; LS, see word) and Christ, Revelation 5:12-13 7:12

3. In LXX and NT: blessing, benediction;

(a) the act of blessing: 1 Corinthians 10:16, Hebrews 12:17, James 3:10;

(b) concrete, a blessing: Romans 15:29, 2 Corinthians 9:5-6, Galatians 3:14, Ephesians 1:3, Hebrews 6:7, 1 Peter 3:9 (cf. Deuteronomy 11:26, Sirach 7:32, al.).†

(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 Corinthians 9:6

Range of meaning

Literally 'good speaking'. In ordinary Greek it means praise or fine speech. In Jewish Greek it takes on the range of Hebrew berakah: (1) a blessing spoken by God or a person; (2) the good things that blessing brings; (3) a gift given as a blessing, a present or bounty. BDAG lists 'generous gift, bounty' as a separate sense and cites 2 Cor 9:5. The phrase ep' eulogiais is usually rendered 'bountifully'. Taken more literally it means 'on the basis of / in the way of blessings'.

Against the English

BSB and NIV say 'generously'; KJV, WEB, ESV and NASB say 'bountifully'. Both describe the size of the gift. YLT ('in blessings') and the Latin Vulgate (in benedictionibus) keep the actual word. So the English loses the wordplay that runs through verses 5–6: the gift is a 'blessing', the giving is done 'in blessings', and the harvest comes 'in blessings'.

How it drifted

The translations are not wrong, since 'bounty' is a real sense of the word. But no single English word carries both 'generous gift' and 'blessing', so translators choose one. The other half of the meaning, that the gift is an act of blessing which God answers with blessing, disappears.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Greek Old Testament (LXX) uses eulogia for a gift: Jacob urges Esau to 'take my blessing', meaning his present of livestock (Gen 33:11). Abigail calls her provisions for David a 'blessing' (1 Sam 25:27). Naaman offers Elisha 'a blessing' (2 Kgs 5:15). Proverbs 11:25 LXX says 'every generous soul is blessed' (psychē eulogoumenē). In 2 Cor 9:5 the word appears twice for the collection, set against pleonexia ('greed, grasping, extortion').

From the study of 1 Corinthians 10:16

Range of meaning

Literally 'good word'. It can mean:

  • praise
  • a blessing spoken over someone or something
  • a gift or bounty (2 Corinthians 9:5)

In Jewish Greek it translates Hebrew berakhah, the set prayer form 'Blessed are you, LORD...'. The verb eulogeō (G2127) means to speak such a blessing: to praise God, or to bless a thing by giving thanks to God over it.

Against the English

'Cup of blessing' can sound like a cup that gives blessings, a source of benefit. In the underlying Jewish phrase (Hebrew kos shel berakhah), it is the cup over which God is blessed. The NIV's 'cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks' brings out the prayer, but it blurs the difference from eucharistia ('thanksgiving'), the word Paul uses in 11:24.

How it drifted

Modern English 'bless' mostly means God giving favour to people, or a priest making something holy. The Jewish sense, where people bless God by praising him, has faded from ordinary speech.

Used elsewhere in the period
  • Mishnah: tractate Berakhot 6–8 regulates the blessing said over wine and the grace after meals.
  • Talmud: b. Berakhot 51a uses the phrase 'cup of blessing' directly. Rabbinic texts are later than Paul, but they preserve the custom.
  • Passover: in later Passover practice the third cup, drunk after the meal, is the cup of blessing. This fits Luke 22:20 and 1 Corinthians 11:25, 'after supper... the cup'.
  • Joseph and Aseneth (8:5, 9), a Jewish story roughly contemporary with Paul, speaks of 'blessed bread of life' and a 'blessed cup of immortality'.
  • Gospels: Jesus 'blessed' (eulogēsas) over the bread (Mark 14:22).

From the study of Galatians 3:14

Range of meaning

In ordinary Greek it means 'fine speaking' or 'praise'. In the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament) it usually translates Hebrew berakah: a blessing spoken by God or by a person with authority, which gives life, fruitfulness, protection and favour. It can also mean the good things that result, or a gift (2 Cor 9:5).

Against the English

Modern English 'blessing' often means a pleasant extra, good luck, or something material. The biblical word is the effective opposite of 'curse' (katara). It means being under God's favour rather than under his judgment.

How it drifted

In everyday speech 'blessing' has been weakened into general good fortune. Some popular teaching narrows 'the blessing of Abraham' to material prosperity, because Abraham was rich (Gen 13:2; 24:35).

Used elsewhere in the period

Gen 12:2–3 LXX: 'you shall be a blessing (eulogētos)… in you all the tribes of the earth will be blessed'. Deut 27–28 contrasts blessings and curses. Isa 44:3 LXX sets the two side by side: 'I will put my Spirit on your seed and my blessings (eulogias) on your children'. Sirach 44:21 says God swore to Abraham 'that the nations would be blessed through his offspring'.

Where it appears

Romans · 2

  1. Romans 15:29 εὐλογίας of the blessing

    I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.

  2. Romans 16:18 εὐλογίας flattery

    For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

    Here: Literally 'well-speaking'. Here it means polished, complimentary or pious-sounding words, close to flattery. Paul's readers usually met this word as 'blessing', so the irony is sharp: the words sound like a blessing but they trap.

1 Corinthians · 1

  1. 1 Corinthians 10:16 εὐλογίας of blessing

    Is not the cup of blessing that we bless a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?

    Here: In Greek this is a ready-made Jewish phrase: the 'cup of blessing' was the cup of wine over which the closing thanksgiving to God was said at a meal. The point is that God is blessed over this cup. It is not mainly a cup that hands out blessings.

2 Corinthians · 4

  1. 2 Corinthians 9:5 εὐλογίαν εὐλογίαν blessing, a blessing

    So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you beforehand and make arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. This way, your gift will be prepared generously and not begrudgingly.

    Here: Literally 'blessing', but here it is a concrete gift of money. In the Greek Old Testament, as in Hebrew usage, a 'blessing' could be a present given out of goodwill. The word carries a sense of generous bounty.

  2. 2 Corinthians 9:6 εὐλογίαις εὐλογίαις blessings

    Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

    Here: Plural 'blessings'. In verse 5 the same word means 'the generous gift' and is set against grasping greed. So it carries both the generous gift and the idea of blessing, and English 'generously' keeps only the first.

Galatians · 1

  1. Galatians 3:14 εὐλογία blessing

    He redeemed us in order that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

    Here: God's spoken favour that gives life and well-being, the opposite of the 'curse' in 3:10 and 3:13. Paul has already said what this blessing is: God declaring the nations righteous by faith (3:8–9).

Ephesians · 1

  1. Ephesians 1:3 εὐλογίᾳ blessing

    Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms.

    Here: Third use of the same root in one breath (blessed... having blessed... blessing). God's gift of good, and the cause of the praise.

Hebrews · 2

  1. Hebrews 6:7 εὐλογίας of blessing

    For land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is tended receives the blessing of God.

    Here: God's blessing in the biblical sense of fruitfulness and life given by God, set against the 'curse' (katara) of verse 8. The supplied gloss 'praise' is a different sense of the word that does not fit here.

  2. Hebrews 12:17 εὐλογίαν blessing

    For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected. He could find no ground for repentance, though he sought the blessing with tears.

    Here: The father's solemn spoken blessing, which handed on the family's future and God's promise to Abraham. It was a binding act, not a kind wish.

James · 1

  1. James 3:10 εὐλογία blessing

    Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, this should not be!

    Here: Literally 'good word'. After v. 9 ('we bless the Lord and Father') it means first of all speaking well of God in praise, the 'Blessed be…' language of Jewish prayer.

1 Peter · 1

  1. 1 Peter 3:9 εὐλογίαν blessing

    Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

    Here: The noun matches the verb eulogountes: those who give blessing will receive blessing. Here it is God's final good, the blessing promised to Abraham's heirs, already called the "inheritance" in 1:4.

Revelation · 3

  1. Revelation 5:12 εὐλογίαν. blessing!

    In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!”

    Here: Literally 'good speaking': the spoken praise that rises to the Lamb. It completes the list of seven.

  2. Revelation 5:13 εὐλογία blessing

    And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever!”

    Here: Speaking well of someone. When creatures "bless" God they praise him and thank him; they do not give him something he lacks.

  3. Revelation 7:12 εὐλογία Blessing

    saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

    Here: Literally 'good speaking'. When creatures direct it to God it means praise: saying 'Blessed be God!' It is something given to God, not a benefit received from him.

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