πρόσκαιρος

From the study of 2 Corinthians 4:18

Range of meaning

From pros ('for') + kairos ('season, time'): lasting for a time, temporary, transient, short-lived. It describes duration, not the material or 'worldly' sphere.

Against the English

BSB/NIV 'temporary', ESV 'transient' and YLT 'temporary' are exact. KJV/WEB 'temporal' meant the same in 1611 (Latin temporalis, 'for a time'), but today it usually means 'relating to time' or 'worldly, secular' (as in 'temporal power' versus spiritual power).

How it drifted

'Temporal' came into English Bibles through the Vulgate's temporalia and the Tyndale/KJV tradition. In later English its main meaning moved to 'secular, of this world' as opposed to 'spiritual', which invites a matter-versus-spirit reading the Greek word does not carry.

Used elsewhere in the period

NT: the shallow-rooted hearer who 'lasts only a short time' (Matt 13:21; Mark 4:17); Moses choosing hardship over 'the fleeting pleasures of sin' (Heb 11:25). 4 Maccabees 15:2–3, a Jewish martyr text from roughly Paul's era, gives a close parallel: the mother of seven martyrs, faced with 'the temporary (proskairos) safety of her sons', chose the piety 'that preserves to eternal (aiōnios) life'. The same pairing of temporary and eternal is used there for enduring persecution (see also 15:8, 15:23). In the papyri the word is ordinary language for things that are temporary or provisional.

From the study of Hebrews 11:25

Range of meaning

"For a time, temporary, transitory": lasting only for a set period (kairos, a season or time), as opposed to permanent or eternal.

Against the English

KJV's "for a season" is accurate, but to modern ears it is idiomatic and soft. "Fleeting" (BSB, NIV, ESV, NLT) and "passing" (NASB) get the sense well. The Greek describes the enjoyment ("a temporary enjoyment"), where KJV attaches the time phrase to the verb.

How it drifted

"Season" once commonly meant simply "a period of time". Today it suggests a recurring time of year or a "stage of life", which can blur the point that this enjoyment ends for good.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the NT: Matthew 13:21 and Mark 4:17 (the rootless hearer who "lasts only for a time" and falls away under persecution), and 2 Corinthians 4:18 ("the things seen are temporary, the things unseen eternal"). 4 Maccabees uses it three times for the "temporary safety" the mother refuses for the sake of eternal life (15:2, 8, 23).

From the study of Matthew 13:21

Range of meaning

'For a season, for the time being': temporary, fleeting, lasting only for an occasion (from pros, 'for', + kairos, 'season, time').

Against the English

KJV 'dureth for a while' and ESV 'endures for a while' make it a verb about lasting. NASB 'is only temporary' keeps the adjective, which describes the person himself. BSB 'remains for only a season' keeps the 'season' image that fits a farming parable.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used for what is passing as opposed to what lasts: 2 Cor 4:18 ('what is seen is temporary, what is unseen is eternal'), Heb 11:25 ('the fleeting pleasures of sin'). In 4 Maccabees (15:2, 8, 23) it describes 'temporary' bodily life that martyrs set against lasting life, in a setting of persecution very like this one.