στάσις

From the study of 1 Enoch 12:4

Range of meaning

Hagiasma is "sanctuary, holy place" (the Greek Old Testament uses it for the tabernacle and temple, e.g. Exod 25:8; Ps 78:69; very often in 1 Maccabees). Stasis is "standing, station, assigned post." Tou aiōnos ("of the age") is a Semitic way of saying "eternal." The phrase means "the holy sanctuary where they were stationed forever."

Against the English

Charles (from the Ge'ez) has "the holy eternal place," which is accurate but loses two pictures. One is the temple (sanctuary). The other is the post where one stands on duty (station).

Used elsewhere in the period

Angels and priests are both described as those who "stand" before God: Deut 10:8; 18:7 (Levites "stand to minister"); Dan 7:10; Zech 3:7 ("I will give you access among those standing here"); 1 Enoch 14:22–23 ("the holy ones who are near him"). In 1 Enoch 14 Enoch ascends through a heavenly house built like the Jerusalem temple's courts, with God enthroned in the inner chamber.

From the study of Hebrews 9:8

Range of meaning

Basic sense: a standing, a place or position where something stands. From this come 'existence, continuance, validity'. Common separate senses are 'faction, strife, uprising' (Mark 15:7; Acts 19:40) and 'dispute' (Acts 15:2).

Against the English

KJV, BSB, WEB and ESV say 'standing'. NIV says 'functioning' and NLT 'in use'. 'Standing' is the most literal and keeps both physical and legal senses. 'Functioning' and 'in use' pick the sense of being valid and operating. The supplied gloss 'uprising' is a real sense of the word but not this one.

How it drifted

Modern readers tend to take 'still standing' to mean only 'not yet knocked down', as with a building after an earthquake. The Greek idiom 'to have standing' leans toward having a recognised place and force, much as English speaks of 'legal standing'.

Used elsewhere in the period

BDAG lists Heb 9:8 under the sense 'existence, standing', with echein stasin meaning 'to be in existence, to have a standing'. LSJ records similar uses of stasis for position or station in Hellenistic Greek, including in Polybius.

From the study of Acts 15:2

Range of meaning

Literally 'a standing' or 'position'. From there it came to mean 'taking a stand against', and so faction, civil strife, sedition, riot or uprising. In Greek political writing it is the standard word for a city tearing itself apart into rival parties.

Against the English

KJV and ESV 'dissension', WEB 'discord', NIV 'sharp dispute', BSB 'sharp debate'. All are acceptable, but 'debate' and 'dispute' make it sound like an argument between individuals. Stasis is about a community splitting into sides.

How it drifted

'Dissension' in modern English sounds like formal disagreement. The Greek word was heavier and carried overtones of disorder and civil unrest.

Used elsewhere in the period

Thucydides' famous account of civil war at Corcyra (3.82–83) is the classic study of stasis. Josephus uses the word repeatedly for the factional fighting in Jerusalem before AD 70. In Luke–Acts it describes Barabbas's insurrection (Luke 23:19, 25), the uproar at Ephesus (Acts 19:40), the Pharisee–Sadducee brawl in the Sanhedrin (23:7, 10), and the charge that Paul stirs up 'stasis' among Jews everywhere (24:5).