Greek word · G459

ἄνομος

anomos

lawless

(1) Literally 'without law', meaning outside the Torah, i.e. Gentiles. (2) Lawless in the moral sense: wicked, criminal. Jewish writers often merged the two senses, since Gentiles were thought of as people who did not keep God's law.

Appears 9 times in 6 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἄ-νομος, -ον

(ἀ. neg., νόμος), [in LXX for עָוֺן, פָּשַׁע, רֶשַׁע, etc. ;]

1. lawless, wicked: Mark 15:28, Luke 22:37, Acts 2:23, 1 Timothy 1:9, 2 Peter 2:8; ὁ ἄ., 2 Thessalonians 2:8 (= ὁ ἄνθρωπος τῆς ἀνομίας, 2 Thessalonians 2:3).

2. without law (= οἱ μὴ ὑπὸ νόμον, Romans 2:14): 1 Corinthians 9:21 (MM, VGT, see word).

† SYN.: see: ἄθεσμος (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 Acts 2:23

Range of meaning

(1) Literally 'without law', meaning outside the Torah, i.e. Gentiles. (2) Lawless in the moral sense: wicked, criminal. Jewish writers often merged the two senses, since Gentiles were thought of as people who did not keep God's law.

Against the English

KJV 'wicked hands', NIV 'wicked men' and NASB 'godless men' take sense (2). ESV, BSB, WEB and YLT keep 'lawless'. NLT, as I understand its wording, makes sense (1) explicit by calling them Gentiles.

How it drifted

In English 'wicked' or 'godless' is purely moral and points to no particular group. Hearers then lose the reference to the Romans, the people outside the Law who did the crucifying.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Cor 9:21: Paul becomes 'to those without law (τοῖς ἀνόμοις) as one without law', plainly meaning Gentiles. Isa 53:12 LXX, 'he was counted among the ἄνομοι', is quoted of Jesus in Luke 22:37. In 1 Maccabees and the Psalms of Solomon, 'lawless' is a stock label for Gentile oppressors and for Jews who sided with them.

From the study of 2 Thessalonians 2:8

Range of meaning

Literally 'without law'. It can mean (1) outside the Jewish law, a common Jewish way of describing Gentiles (as in 1 Cor 9:21, 'to those without the law'), or (2) actively lawless, contemptuous of God's law: wicked, criminal. In Jewish writing about the end times, 'lawlessness' (anomia) is the mark of rebellion against God himself.

Against the English

KJV 'that Wicked' makes it general wickedness. Modern versions keep 'lawless one'. That is more exact and keeps the link with 'the mystery of lawlessness' (v. 7) and 'the man of lawlessness' (v. 3).

How it drifted

In KJV English 'wicked' was a broad moral word, and it hides the Greek wordplay running through verses 3–8: lawlessness, then the lawless one.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) uses anomos for the godless who defy the Torah. Psalms of Solomon 17 (1st century BC) describes the hoped-for Messiah destroying 'lawless nations'. Daniel 7:25 and 11:36 (the king who 'changes times and law' and exalts himself above every god) were read of Antiochus IV and became the model for later figures of this kind.

From the study of Luke 22:37

Range of meaning

'Without law' (a-nomos). It can mean (1) lawless, criminal, wicked; (2) outside the Jewish Law, i.e. Gentile (1 Cor 9:21). In Jewish usage it often means the godless and the transgressor.

Against the English

English versions say 'transgressors', following the Hebrew of Isaiah (posh'im). NLT has 'rebels'. YLT keeps the Greek: 'lawless ones'.

How it drifted

'Transgressors' is now a churchy, abstract word. Readers tend to hear 'sinners in general'. Here it names a social and legal class: outlaws, criminals, the kind of people the authorities execute.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Septuagint of Isaiah 53:12 has 'kai en tois anomois elogisthē' ('and among the lawless he was reckoned'). The Hebrew posh'im (HALOT: 'rebels, those who break with an overlord') describes people who revolt against authority. Acts 2:23 says Jesus was killed 'by the hands of lawless men' (anomōn), the Roman executioners.

Similar words

Where it appears

Luke · 1

  1. Luke 22:37 ἀνόμων [the] lawless

    For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in Me: ‘And He was numbered with the transgressors.’ For what is written about Me is reaching its fulfillment.”

    Here: Literally people 'without law': outlaws, criminals, people who put themselves outside God's law. Here it points to the company of bandits and convicts Jesus will be treated as one of.

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 2:23 ἀνόμων lawless

    He was delivered up by God’s set plan and foreknowledge, and you, by the hands of the lawless, put Him to death by nailing Him to the cross.

    Here: Literally 'law-less ones': people outside the Torah, meaning Gentiles. Here that is the Roman governor and soldiers who actually carried out the crucifixion. The word can also mean simply 'wicked', and Jewish usage often blended the two senses.

1 Corinthians · 4

  1. 1 Corinthians 9:21 ἀνόμοις ἄνομος, ἄνομος ἀνόμους. outside [the] Law, outside [the] Law —, outside [the] law, outside [the] Law.

    To those without the law I became like one without the law (though I am not outside the law of God but am under the law of Christ), to win those without the law.

    Here: 'Those without the law', meaning non-Jews (Gentiles), who did not have the Law of Moses. Jews used this as a label for Gentiles. Here it describes a group of people, not a verdict on their morals.

2 Thessalonians · 1

  1. 2 Thessalonians 2:8 ἄνομος lawless [one]

    And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival.

    Here: 'The lawless one': not just a wicked person, but someone defined by open defiance of God's law and order. This is the full form of the 'mystery of lawlessness' already at work (v. 7).

1 Timothy · 1

  1. 1 Timothy 1:9 ἀνόμοις for [the] lawless

    We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers,

    Here: 'Those without law' in the sense of people who ignore or defy it. It is a wordplay on nomos ('law') and on nomimōs ('lawfully') in verse 8.

2 Peter · 1

  1. 2 Peter 2:8 ἀνόμοις with [their] lawless

    (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)—

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