Greek word · G2932

κτάομαι

ktaomai

to posses

To acquire, procure, get for oneself, gain possession of. It is often used with a price ("acquire for money"). The perfect form means "to possess."

Appears 7 times in 7 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

κτάομαι, -ῶμαι

[in LXX chiefly for קָנָה ;]

in pres., impf., fut. and aor., to procure for oneself, get, gain, acquire (the pf. and plpf., to have acquired, hence to possess, do not occur in NT): with accusative of thing(s), Matthew 10:9, Luke 18:12, Acts 8:20; with genitive pret., Acts 22:28; ἐκ with genitive pret., Acts 1:18; τ,ψυχὰς ὑμῶν (MM, xvi), Luke 21:19; τ. ἑαυτοῦ σκεῦος κτᾶσθαι, 1 Thessalonians 4:4 (where if σ. = body, κ. must = pf., κέκτημαι; see MM, xvi; M, Th., in l; Field, Notes, 72 f. But σ. is most frequently taken as = wife; see Thayer, see word; Lft., Notes, 53 ff.; ICC, in l).†

(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 Acts 1:18

Range of meaning

To acquire, procure, get for oneself, gain possession of. It is often used with a price ("acquire for money"). The perfect form means "to possess."

Against the English

KJV "purchased," BSB/NIV "bought" make it a direct transaction by Judas. ESV/NASB "acquired" and WEB/ASV-style "obtained" leave room for less direct means.

How it drifted

Not drift so much as narrowing. "Bought" commits to one way of getting the land that the Greek leaves open.

Used elsewhere in the period

Acts 8:20 (Simon thought to "obtain" God's gift with money), Acts 22:28 ("I acquired this citizenship for a large sum"), Luke 18:12 ("all that I get"). The LXX uses it for buying land (e.g., Jer 32 [39 LXX]).

From the study of Luke 21:19

Range of meaning

To acquire, procure, get, gain for oneself, often by effort or payment. In classical Greek the present and aorist forms mean "get" or "acquire". Only the perfect form (κέκτημαι) means "have acquired", that is, "possess". BDAG's main sense is "to gain possession of, procure for oneself, acquire, get".

Against the English

KJV and YLT have "possess ye", which suggests keeping hold of what you already have. BSB, ESV and NASB have "gain". WEB, NIV and NLT have "win". "Gain" and "win" are closer to the Greek.

How it drifted

The KJV's "possess" follows the Latin possidebitis ("you will possess"). Latin possidere can mean "come into possession of", but in English "possess" sounds like a settled state. "Possess your souls" then came to be heard as "keep self-command" or "stay composed".

Used elsewhere in the period

Elsewhere in Luke–Acts: "I give a tenth of all I get [κτῶμαι]" (Luke 18:12). Judas "acquired a field" (Acts 1:18). Simon thought he could "obtain" God's gift with money (Acts 8:20). The tribune "acquired" citizenship for a large sum (Acts 22:28). Jesus' instruction "Do not acquire gold or silver" (Matt 10:9). In the Septuagint: "Get [κτῆσαι] wisdom, get understanding" (Prov 4:5), and Eve's "I have gotten a man" (Gen 4:1).

From the study of 1 Thessalonians 4:4

Range of meaning

To acquire, procure, get for oneself (Matt 10:9 'do not acquire gold'; Acts 22:28 'I acquired this citizenship'; Luke 18:12 'all that I get'). The perfect tense (kektēmai) means 'to have acquired,' so 'to possess.' Some argue that the present can mean 'to gain mastery over,' citing Luke 21:19 ('by your endurance you will gain your lives').

Against the English

KJV, NASB and the Vulgate (possidere) say 'possess.' BSB, WEB, ESV, NIV and NLT say 'control.' RSV said 'take (a wife).' 'Control' is not the basic meaning of the verb. It comes from reading it as 'gain control of' with 'body' as its object.

How it drifted

'Possess' in the KJV reflects the Latin possidere and a looser Greek usage. 'Control' is an interpretive smoothing that comes from the body reading.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX Ruth 4:10: Boaz says of Ruth, 'I have acquired (ektēsamēn) for myself as wife.' Sirach 36:24 (36:29 in some numbering): 'he who acquires (ho ktōmenos) a wife gets his best possession.' Xenophon, Symposium 2.10, uses the same verb for getting a wife. These are the strongest evidence for the 'wife' reading. Against them, there are few clear examples of ktasthai with an object meaning 'master one's own body,' and that is a weakness of the body reading.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 10:9 κτήσησθε may take along

    Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts.

Luke · 2

  1. Luke 18:12 κτῶμαι.¶ I gain.

    I fast twice a week and pay tithes of all that I acquire.’

    Here: Present tense: 'I acquire', 'I get' (in Greek, 'possess' would normally use the perfect form, kektēmai). He means all that comes into his hands, whether harvested, earned or bought, not all that he owns. This probably includes produce bought from others that might not have been tithed already.

  2. Luke 21:19 κτήσασθε do you gain yourselves

    By your patient endurance you will gain your souls.

    Here: This is a one-time command in the middle voice (the form for acting on one's own behalf): "gain for yourselves" or "win". It means coming to have something, not keeping something you already hold. Many manuscripts instead read the future "you will gain", which turns the command into a promise (see the variants).

Acts · 3

  1. Acts 1:18 ἐκτήσατο acquired

    (Now with the reward for his wickedness Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong and burst open in the middle, and all his intestines spilled out.

    Here: "He acquired, came to possess." The word is about ending up with something, often by paying for it (compare Acts 8:20 and 22:28). It does not have to mean he bought it with his own hands. This matters for comparing Acts with Matthew 27:7.

  2. Acts 8:20 κτᾶσθαι. to be obtained!

    But Peter replied, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money!

    Here: 'To acquire for yourself.' The verb used for buying in Acts (1:18; 22:28). It puts the gift in the category of something you could own by purchase.

  3. Acts 22:28 ἐκτησάμην. bought.

    “I paid a high price for my citizenship,” said the commander. “But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied.

1 Thessalonians · 1

  1. 1 Thessalonians 4:4 κτᾶσθαι to control

    each of you must know how to control his own body in holiness and honor,

    Here: Normally 'to acquire, get for oneself.' The present tense can carry the sense 'to be gaining, to get hold of,' which is why many translators render it 'control' or 'gain mastery over.' The usual Greek for 'possess' is a different tense of the same verb (kektēmai).

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