Greek word · G3432

μοιχός

moichos

adulterer

An adulterer: someone who violates a marriage. In Greek, Roman and Old Testament law the term centered on sex with another man's wife. A married man's affairs with slaves or prostitutes often did not legally count.

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

μοιχός, -οῦ, ὁ

[in LXX for נָאַף ;]

an adulterer: Luke 18:11, 1 Corinthians 6:9, Hebrews 13:4.†

(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 Hebrews 13:4

Range of meaning

An adulterer: someone who violates a marriage. In Greek, Roman and Old Testament law the term centered on sex with another man's wife. A married man's affairs with slaves or prostitutes often did not legally count. Jesus' teaching (Mark 10:11, 'commits adultery against her') extended the wrong to a husband's unfaithfulness toward his own wife.

Against the English

'Adulterer' is accurate. The thing to notice is that the early Christian standard applied it to husbands and wives equally, which Roman custom did not.

Used elsewhere in the period

Luke 18:11; 1 Cor 6:9; Jas 4:4. In the Septuagint, Lev 20:10 and Prov 6:32. Under Augustus' adultery law (the lex Iulia, around 18 BC), adultery was a crime defined mainly by a wife's unfaithfulness.

Where it appears

Luke · 1

  1. Luke 18:11 μοιχοί, adulterers —

    The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—swindlers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.

    Here: Men who violate marriage. Together with the two words before it, this is a standard list of serious sins (the same three appear in 1 Cor 6:9–10).

1 Corinthians · 1

  1. 1 Corinthians 6:9 μοιχοὶ adulterers

    Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts,

    Here: In ancient usage this was mainly a man who has sex with another man's wife, breaking the marriage bond. It is one of the four items new to this list compared with 5:10–11.

Hebrews · 1

  1. Hebrews 13:4 μοιχοὺς adulterers

    Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.

    Here: Someone who breaks a marriage covenant by sleeping with someone else's spouse, or with someone other than their own. It is the direct opposite of the 'undefiled bed'.

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