νουθετέω

From the study of 1 Thessalonians 5:12

Range of meaning

From nous (mind) + tithēmi (to put): 'to put in mind', and so to warn, admonish, correct or instruct about conduct. It is corrective, aimed at changing behavior, and it is usually done by someone with a caring relationship to the person: a parent, teacher or friend.

Against the English

'Admonish' (KJV, BSB, ESV, WEB) is accurate but sounds formal. NASB 'give you instruction' and NLT 'spiritual guidance' soften the corrective edge. The Greek involves warning, not just teaching.

Used elsewhere in the period

In 1 Cor 4:14 Paul says 'not to shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved children.' Wisdom of Solomon 11:10 (Septuagint) describes God testing Israel 'as a father admonishing'. In 1 Thess 5:14, just two verses later, the whole congregation is told to 'admonish the disorderly' (ataktoi).

From the study of 1 Thessalonians 5:14

Range of meaning

From nous (mind) + tithēmi (to put): to put sense into someone's mind, warn, admonish, correct by instruction. It is used of parents with children, teachers with pupils, and friends with friends. It is corrective but personal, not punitive.

Against the English

"Admonish" (BSB, WEB, YLT, ESV, NASB) is accurate though old-fashioned. "Warn" (KJV, NIV, NLT) catches the urgency but can sound like a threat. The Greek implies direct, caring correction aimed at changing how someone thinks.

Used elsewhere in the period

Wisdom of Solomon 11:10: God tested Israel "like a father admonishing". Josephus and Plutarch use it of parental and moral correction. Paul uses it of himself as a father correcting "my beloved children" (1 Cor 4:14), and of believers correcting one another (Rom 15:14; Col 3:16). In 2 Thess 3:15 the disorderly person is to be admonished "as a brother", not treated as an enemy.

From the study of 1 Corinthians 4:14

Range of meaning

From νοῦς ("mind") and τίθημι ("to put"): to put something into someone's mind. It means to admonish, warn, instruct or correct, usually by appealing to someone's understanding when their behavior is going wrong. It often carries both a warning and real care, and it was the classic word for a father's or teacher's correction.

Against the English

"Warn" (BSB, KJV, NIV, NLT) can make it sound like a threat of consequences. "Admonish" (WEB, ESV, NASB) is closer but sounds old-fashioned and scolding to modern ears. The Greek word is closer to "set you straight" or "talk sense into you, as a parent would."

How it drifted

"Warn" has narrowed in modern English toward alerting someone to danger. "Admonish" has become formal and rare. Neither carries the mix of teaching and family affection that the Greek word has.

Used elsewhere in the period

Greek Old Testament: 1 Sam 3:13 (1 Kingdoms 3:13 LXX), where Eli fails to restrain his sons (οὐκ ἐνουθέτει, "he did not admonish them"); Wisdom 11:10, where God tests Israel "as a father admonishing" (ὡς πατὴρ νουθετῶν). The word appears several times in Job. Josephus and the moral philosophers use it for corrective instruction. Plutarch's essay How to Tell a Flatterer from a Friend discusses how a friend's frank correction should be given without humiliating the person. Paul uses it elsewhere in Rom 15:14, Col 1:28; 3:16, 1 Thess 5:12, 14, and the related noun νουθεσία in Eph 6:4, where it is part of fathers' child-rearing.