Greek word · G3164
μάχομαι
machomai
to quarrel
To fight or do battle, as in war or hand-to-hand combat. Used figuratively for verbal fighting: to quarrel, wrangle, dispute angrily (John 6:52; Acts 7:26; Jas 4:2).
Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
μάχομαι
[in LXX chiefly for רִיב, also for נָצָה ni., etc. ;]
1. to fight: Acts 7:26.
2. to quarrel, dispute: 2 Timothy 2:24, James 4:2; πρὸς ἀλλήλους, John 6:52 (cf. δια-μάχομαι).†
(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 Timothy 2:24
- Range of meaning
To fight or do battle, as in war or hand-to-hand combat. Used figuratively for verbal fighting: to quarrel, wrangle, dispute angrily (John 6:52; Acts 7:26; Jas 4:2).
- Against the English
KJV "strive" meant "contend, quarrel" in 1611; today it usually means "try hard". BSB, NIV and ESV say "be quarrelsome", and WEB and NLT say "quarrel". These are accurate, though they lose the battle imagery.
- How it drifted
"Strive" shifted in English from "contend against" toward "make great effort", so the KJV wording can now be misheard.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Common in classical and Koine Greek for physical fighting. In this chapter it echoes v. 23, "speculations give birth to fights (machas)", and the "word-battles" (logomachein) of v. 14. Compare amachos, "not a fighter", among the overseer qualifications in 1 Tim 3:3 and Titus 3:2.
- Range of meaning
To fight, do battle; by extension to quarrel, wrangle or dispute fiercely. Its basic setting is physical combat: armies, brawling, fist-fights. Used of verbal conflict, it keeps the sense of hostility and heat (BDAG: 'to engage in heated dispute, quarrel, dispute').
- Against the English
BSB and NASB 'argue', ESV 'disputed' and WEB 'contended' make it sound like a debate. KJV and YLT 'strove' keep more of the force. NIV adds 'sharply' to show the heat. 'Argue' is not wrong, but it can suggest a calm exchange of views. The Greek describes a fight.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Only four times in the New Testament. In Acts 7:26 it describes two Israelites physically fighting, whom Moses tries to separate. In 2 Timothy 2:24 the Lord's servant 'must not quarrel'. In James 4:2: 'you fight and wage war'. In the Greek Old Testament (LXX) it is used for battles and for men brawling (e.g. Exodus 2:13; 21:22; Deuteronomy 25:11). In classical and Hellenistic Greek it is a standard battle verb.
Where it appears
John · 1
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John 6:52 Ἐμάχοντο Were arguing
At this, the Jews began to argue among themselves, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?”
Here: A combat word: 'they were fighting' with words. The tense pictures an ongoing quarrel, or one that broke out and kept going ('began to argue'). It is a clear step up from the 'grumbling' of 6:41 and 6:43.
Acts · 1
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Acts 7:26 μαχομένοις were quarreling
The next day he came upon two Israelites who were fighting, and he tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why are you mistreating each other?’
Here: "As they were fighting," with the present tense catching them in the middle of it. Exodus 2:13 shows this was physical, since one man was striking the other.
2 Timothy · 1
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2 Timothy 2:24 μάχεσθαι to quarrel
And a servant of the Lord must not be quarrelsome, but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, and forbearing.
Here: Literally "to do battle", used here of verbal combat. It picks up the "fights" (machas) of verse 23. The present tense points to being a fighter, someone who habitually gets into the fray.
James · 1
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James 4:2 μάχεσθε You quarrel
You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask.
Here: To fight or battle. It can mean physical combat or bitter quarrelling. It repeats the 'quarrels' (machai) of 4:1 in verb form: James is answering the question he asked there.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.