Greek word · G4758

στρατολογέω

stratologeō

to enlist

To gather soldiers, raise an army, enlist recruits. Hellenistic historians use it of commanders raising troops.

Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

στρατολογέω, -ῶ

(στρατός, λέγω),

to levy a troop, enlist soldiers: 2 Timothy 2:4 (Diod., Plut., al.).†

(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 2 Timothy 2:4

Range of meaning

To gather soldiers, raise an army, enlist recruits. Hellenistic historians use it of commanders raising troops.

Against the English

"Enlisted him" (BSB, ESV) is exact. KJV "hath chosen him to be a soldier" and WEB "enrolled him as a soldier" are also fine. The NIV's "commanding officer" turns the action into a title and loses the point that this person recruited him personally.

Used elsewhere in the period

Used only here in the New Testament. BDAG gives "gather an army, enlist soldiers".

Where it appears

2 Timothy · 1

  1. 2 Timothy 2:4 στρατολογήσαντι having enlisted him

    A soldier refrains from entangling himself in civilian affairs, in order to please the one who enlisted him.

    Here: "The one who enlisted him": the commander who signed him up, now his superior. The tense points back to a completed act of enlistment. After verse 3's "soldier of Christ Jesus", this is clearly Christ.

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