Greek word · G676
ἀπρόσιτος
aprositos
unapproachable
Unapproachable, inaccessible, not able to be come near (from a-, 'not' + proseimi, 'go toward'). It is used of places or persons that cannot or may not be reached, such as steep heights, fortresses and the presence of a powerful ruler.
Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
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 1 Timothy 6:16
- Range of meaning
Unapproachable, inaccessible, not able to be come near (from a-, 'not' + proseimi, 'go toward'). It is used of places or persons that cannot or may not be reached, such as steep heights, fortresses and the presence of a powerful ruler.
- Against the English
KJV, 'the light which no man can approach unto,' is accurate. NLT's 'light so brilliant that no human can approach him' adds an explanation (brightness) that the Greek leaves unstated. The Greek is about access, not intensity alone.
- Used elsewhere in the period
It appears only here in the NT and not in the canonical LXX. BDAG cites it in Philo and Josephus. Josephus (Antiquities 3.76) describes Sinai as untouchable and not to be approached, which is the same image. The thought is biblical: Exod 19:12–13 (the boundary around Sinai), Exod 33:20 ('no one may see me and live'), Ps 104:2 ('wrapping yourself in light as a garment'), Dan 2:22 ('light dwells with him'). 1 Enoch 14:21 says none of the angels could enter the throne-house or look on the face of the Great Glory.
Where it appears
1 Timothy · 1
-
1 Timothy 6:16 ἀπρόσιτον, unapproachable,
He alone is immortal and dwells in unapproachable light. No one has ever seen Him, nor can anyone see Him. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.
Here: 'Not able to be come near.' It is the language of a sacred perimeter that no one may cross, like the fence around Sinai or the curtain of the Most Holy Place.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.