Greek word · G551
ἀπείραστος
apeirastos
untempted
Literally 'un-tested / un-tempted'. In the little Greek evidence we have, it can mean 'untried, not put to the test', 'without experience of', or 'incapable of being tempted'. With a genitive (here 'of evils') it is ambiguous between 'untempted by evils' and 'inexperienced in evils'.
Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
απείραστος, -ον
(πειράζω for cl. ἀπείρητος, πειράω),
untempted, untried, without experience: James 1:13 (see Hort, in l; MM, VGT, see word).†
(AS)
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
Literally 'un-tested / un-tempted'. In the little Greek evidence we have, it can mean 'untried, not put to the test', 'without experience of', or 'incapable of being tempted'. With a genitive (here 'of evils') it is ambiguous between 'untempted by evils' and 'inexperienced in evils'.
- Against the English
Most English versions turn it into an ability statement: 'cannot be tempted' (KJV, BSB, ESV, NIV, WEB). YLT's 'is not tempted' is closer to the bare adjective. NLT's 'is never tempted to do wrong' smooths over the ambiguity.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Only here in the New Testament and absent from the Septuagint. It is very rare in Greek before James, and much of its later use quotes or echoes this verse. Because the evidence is thin, lexicons and commentators (BDAG, Dibelius, Davids) disagree on the precise shade.
Where it appears
James · 1
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James 1:13 ἀπείραστός unable to be tempted
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone.
Here: A rare word, used only here in the New Testament: 'un-tested/un-tempt-able'. It is built on the same root as 'tempt', which makes a deliberate wordplay. God is outside the whole business of being tempted toward evil. Its exact shade is debated (see Debates).
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.