φιλαδελφία

From the study of 2 Peter 1:7

Range of meaning

Literally 'love of brothers/sisters'. In ordinary Greek it meant the affection and loyalty between blood siblings. Plutarch wrote a whole essay On Brotherly Love (Peri philadelphias) about it. Early Christians applied it to fellow believers, whom they treated as siblings in God's family.

Against the English

KJV/BSB 'brotherly kindness' makes it sound like general niceness. ESV/WEB 'brotherly affection' is closer. NIV 'mutual affection' keeps the reciprocity but drops the family picture. 'Brotherly' should not be read as men only: the plural 'brothers' (adelphoi) covered sisters too.

How it drifted

'Kindness' in modern English means pleasant, considerate behaviour toward anyone. The Greek word is a kinship term with specific loyalties attached.

Used elsewhere in the period

Plutarch, De fraterno amore. 4 Maccabees 13:23, 26 and 14:1 praise the philadelphia of the seven martyred brothers. In the NT: Romans 12:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; Hebrews 13:1; 1 Peter 1:22; compare 1 Peter 3:8 (philadelphoi).

From the study of 1 Peter 1:22

Range of meaning

In ordinary Greek, the love and loyalty between biological brothers and sisters. Christians applied it to fellow believers as members of one family.

Against the English

"Brotherly love" in modern English has become general goodwill toward people (as in Philadelphia, "the City of Brotherly Love"). The Greek is narrower and stronger: the duty-bound, lifelong solidarity of siblings who share one father and one inheritance.

How it drifted

As the image of the family faded, the phrase came to mean general kindness to anyone. Its kinship logic dropped away.

Used elsewhere in the period

Plutarch wrote a whole treatise on it (Peri philadelphias, "On Brotherly Love"), urging siblings to share property, defend each other's honor and settle quarrels. 4 Maccabees 13:21–14:1 praises the philadelphia of the seven martyred brothers raised from the same womb. In the New Testament it appears in Rom 12:10, 1 Thess 4:9, Heb 13:1 and 2 Pet 1:7, and 1 Pet 3:8 urges believers to be philadelphoi.

From the study of Hebrews 13:1

Range of meaning

Literally "love of a brother or sister." In ordinary Greek it named the affection, loyalty and mutual duty between blood siblings: sharing an inheritance without quarrelling, defending each other's honour, supporting each other in need, and not competing. Siblings were thought of as the most lasting bond in the ancient family, more permanent than marriage, which could be dissolved. Jewish writers stretched the word to cover love for fellow members of the people of Israel. Early Christians used it for love among believers, who saw themselves as one family under one Father.

Against the English

"Brotherly love" (KJV, ESV, BSB, WEB) is accurate, but today it can sound like general goodwill toward all people, or like male camaraderie. NIV and NLT's "as brothers and sisters" brings out that the sibling group includes women, which matches how the plural adelphoi was used. NRSV's "mutual love" removes gender-specific wording but loses the family picture, which is the heart of the word.

How it drifted

In modern English "brotherly love" has become a civic and humanitarian ideal ("the brotherhood of man", Philadelphia as "the City of Brotherly Love"). In that use it means kindness to everyone, not the specific loyalty owed within a family. The New Testament word is narrower and more demanding.

Used elsewhere in the period

• Plutarch wrote a whole essay Peri philadelphias ("On Brotherly Love", Moralia 478–492) about how real brothers should share property, bear with each other's faults, and avoid rivalry.
• 4 Maccabees 13:23, 26 and 14:1 uses the word for the bond among the seven martyred brothers.
• 2 Maccabees 15:14 calls the prophet Jeremiah philadelphos, "lover of his brothers", meaning his fellow Jews.
• It was also a royal title: Ptolemy II "Philadelphus" and Attalus II "Philadelphus". The city of Philadelphia in Asia Minor (Revelation 3:7) was named after Attalus, famed for his loyalty to his brother Eumenes.
• New Testament: Romans 12:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; 1 Peter 1:22; 2 Peter 1:7; Hebrews 13:1. The related adjective appears in 1 Peter 3:8. In every case it describes love within the community of believers. 2 Peter 1:7 lists it as a separate step before agapē ("love") in general.