Greek word · G236

ἀλλάσσω

allassō

to change

To change, alter; to exchange one thing for another (Rom 1:23, "exchanged the glory"); to change customs (Acts 6:14); to change one's tone (Gal 4:20). Here it means to be transformed into a different state.

Appears 6 times in 6 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἀλλάσσω

(ἄλλος), [in LXX chiefly for חָלַף, מוּר hi., etc. ;]

1. to change: Acts 6:14, Galatians 4:20.

2. to transform: 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, Hebrews 1:12.

3. to exchange: with accusative, before ἐν (= בְּ, Psalms 106:20) instead of simple genitive (Bl., § 36, 8), Romans 1:23

(cf. ἀπ-, δι-, κατ-, ἀπο-κατ-, μετ-, συν-αλλάσσω; see 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 1 Corinthians 15:51

Range of meaning

To change, alter; to exchange one thing for another (Rom 1:23, "exchanged the glory"); to change customs (Acts 6:14); to change one's tone (Gal 4:20). Here it means to be transformed into a different state.

Against the English

"Changed" is accurate but faint. In modern English "you'll be changed" often suggests an inner or moral change, or a change of mind. Paul means a change in the whole mode of bodily existence: perishable becoming imperishable, mortal becoming immortal (15:42–44, 53–54).

How it drifted

No real drift in the dictionary sense. The loss is in thinness: "changed" does not carry the exchange-of-garments picture the context builds.

Used elsewhere in the period

Psalm 102:26–27 (LXX 101:27): God will roll up heaven and earth "like a garment, and they will be changed (ἀλλαγήσονται)". Hebrews 1:12 quotes this. Jewish end-time writing pictures the righteous being changed into glory at the end: 2 Baruch 49–51, written later in the first century, speaks of the living being "changed" into the splendour of angels. In Greek, the related noun ἀλλαγή can mean a change of clothing.

From the study of Hebrews 1:12

Range of meaning

To change, alter, exchange one thing for another. It is used for changing clothes, exchanging goods, and transformation.

Against the English

'Be changed' is accurate. A modern reader may hear gradual alteration or improvement. With clothing, the natural sense is swapping an old garment for a new one.

Used elsewhere in the period

Genesis 35:2 and 41:14 LXX use it for changing garments. In the NT: Acts 6:14 (change customs), Romans 1:23 (exchange glory), 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 ('we shall all be changed'). The Hebrew of Psalm 102:26 plays on one root: taḥalifem we-yaḥalofu, 'you change them, and they pass away/are changed.'

From the study of Romans 1:23

Range of meaning

To make something other than it was, to change; with an object and a word marking the thing received, to exchange or trade one thing for another. In Romans 1 it is paired with the stronger compound metallassō ('exchange') in vv. 25 and 26.

Against the English

KJV and YLT 'changed … into' can sound as though people altered God's glory or turned it into something. BSB, NIV, ESV and NASB use 'exchanged' and WEB uses 'traded.' These capture the idea of a swap, where one thing is given up and another taken in its place.

How it drifted

The KJV's 'changed … into' followed the Latin Vulgate ('mutaverunt … in'). In older English 'change' could mean exchange, as in 'changing money,' but today it mostly means 'alter.'

Used elsewhere in the period

Psalm 105:20 in the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament; Ps 106:20 in English Bibles), on the golden calf: kai ēllaxanto tēn doxan autōn en homoiōmati moschou, 'they exchanged their glory for the likeness of a calf eating grass.' Jeremiah 2:11 in the Septuagint: 'my people have exchanged their glory for what will not profit.' In both, the construction translates the Hebrew hēmîr ('to exchange') with the preposition b-, which marks the price.

Where it appears

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 6:14 ἀλλάξει will change

    For we have heard him say that Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.”

    Here: Future tense: 'will alter, exchange'. To change what was handed down from Moses was to tamper with something people took to be fixed by God.

Romans · 1

  1. Romans 1:23 ἤλλαξαν they changed

    and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images of mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

    Here: 'They exchanged, swapped.' The word is about trading one thing for another, not about changing God himself. The past tense tells the event as a single act, a summary of what humanity did. It is the first of three 'exchanges' in the passage (vv. 23, 25, 26).

1 Corinthians · 2

  1. 1 Corinthians 15:51 ἀλλαγησόμεθα we will be changed —

    Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—

    Here: "We will be changed". The passive means something is done to them, and the unstated doer is God. It means a change in the kind of body and existence, from perishable to imperishable (15:50, 53). Verses 53–54 picture it as a change of clothing.

  2. 1 Corinthians 15:52 ἀλλαγησόμεθα. will be changed.

    in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

    Here: 'We will be changed', by God (passive). The verb was used for changing clothes, which sets up the 'put on' clothing image in v.53. The living do not die first; their bodies are transformed on the spot.

Galatians · 1

  1. Galatians 4:20 ἀλλάξαι to change

    how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you.

Hebrews · 1

  1. Hebrews 1:12 ἀλλαγήσονται· they will be changed;

    You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed; but You remain the same, and Your years will never end.”

    Here: Future passive: 'they will be changed.' God is the one acting. The picture is changing clothes: the old outfit is taken off and replaced, not slowly improved.

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