Greek word · G3697

ὁποῖος

hopoios

what sort

ὁποῖος means 'of what sort'. ποτε after a relative word can just widen the meaning ('whatsoever'). On its own it means 'once, formerly'. ἦσαν is past tense, 'they were'.

Appears 5 times in 5 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ὁποῖος, -οία, -οῖον

[in LXX: Song of Songs 5:10, 2Ma.11:37 * ;]

of what sort: 1 Corinthians 3:13, Galatians 2:6, 1 Thessalonians 1:9, James 1:24; τοιοῦτος ὁ., such as, Acts 26:29.†

(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 Galatians 2:6

Range of meaning

ὁποῖος means 'of what sort'. ποτε after a relative word can just widen the meaning ('whatsoever'). On its own it means 'once, formerly'. ἦσαν is past tense, 'they were'.

Against the English

BSB, KJV and WEB: 'whatever they were', which keeps it open. YLT adds 'then', and the supplied interlinear gloss is 'formerly'. Most modern versions do not show the possible time sense.

Used elsewhere in the period

Classical Greek uses ποτε to widen relatives (compare ὅστις ποτέ, 'whoever'). But Paul uses ποτε as 'formerly' twice in this same letter: 1:13 'my former way of life' and 1:23 'he who once persecuted us'. Lightfoot and several later commentators took it in that time sense here.

From the study of James 1:24

Range of meaning

'Of what sort, of what kind, what kind of'. It asks about quality or character, not just identity.

Against the English

BSB/NIV 'what he looks like' narrow it to appearance. KJV 'what manner of man he was', WEB 'what kind of man he was' and NASB 'what kind of person' keep the broader 'sort/kind' sense.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used elsewhere in the NT for character or quality: Acts 26:29, 1 Cor 3:13 ('of what sort each one's work is'), Gal 2:6, 1 Thess 1:9.

Where it appears

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 26:29 ὁποῖος as

    “Short time or long,” Paul replied, “I wish to God that not only you but all who hear me this day may become what I am, except for these chains.”

    Here: 'Of the kind that…': the comparison with Paul himself. Paul does not repeat Agrippa's label 'Christian'. He describes it by pointing to himself.

1 Corinthians · 1

  1. 1 Corinthians 3:13 ὁποῖόν what sort

    his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work.

    Here: "What kind" or "what quality". The test is about what the work is made of (gold or straw, verse 12), not how big it is or how impressive it looks.

Galatians · 1

  1. Galatians 2:6 ὁποῖοί whatsoever

    But as for the highly esteemed—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism—those leaders added nothing to me.

    Here: 'Of whatever kind' or 'whatever'. It points to their quality or standing, not just who they are.

1 Thessalonians · 1

  1. 1 Thessalonians 1:9 ὁποίαν what

    For they themselves report what kind of welcome you gave us, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God

    Here: Asks about quality: not simply that the missionaries came, but what kind of arrival it was.

James · 1

  1. James 1:24 ὁποῖος what like

    and after observing himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.

    Here: This asks about kind or character ('what sort'), not just outward look. In the picture it means his appearance, but the word leaves room for the point being applied: he forgets who he is.

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