ἀπρόσκοπος

From the study of 1 Corinthians 10:32

Range of meaning

Built from the negative prefix a- and proskoptō, 'to strike (the foot) against, stumble.' The adjective works in two directions. (1) Passive: 'not stumbling, unhurt, without blame', as with a conscience 'clear of offence' (Acts 24:16) or believers who are 'blameless' for the day of Christ (Phil 1:10). (2) Active: 'not causing others to stumble, putting no obstacle in someone's way.' BDAG lists 1 Cor 10:32 under the active sense.

Against the English

KJV, ESV and NASB render it 'give (no/none) offence.' In 1611 'offence' still kept its Latin sense of 'a striking against, a stumbling-block.' Today 'offend' mostly means 'upset, insult, hurt someone's feelings.' BSB ('stumbling block'), WEB ('occasion for stumbling') and NIV ('cause anyone to stumble') keep the original picture.

How it drifted

In English, 'offence' moved from 'stumbling-block, cause of falling' toward 'displeasure, insult.' The older biblical sense survives mainly in church vocabulary, so readers now hear a social-feelings word where Paul used a path-and-obstacle word.

Used elsewhere in the period

Rare word. LXX Sirach 32:21 (numbering varies by edition) warns against overconfidence 'on an unobstructed road', which keeps the literal picture of a path with nothing to trip over. Per BDAG it also appears in papyri meaning 'unharmed.' The related nouns in this very discussion fix the sense: πρόσκομμα, a thing struck against (8:9: your freedom must not become a proskomma to the weak), and σκανδαλίζω, to cause to fall into sin (8:13).

From the study of Acts 24:16

Range of meaning

From a- ("not") + proskoptō ("to strike against, stumble"). Passive sense: not stumbling, not tripped up, unharmed, blameless. Active sense: not causing others to stumble, giving no offence. BDAG lists both senses and places this verse under "clear, without blame".

Against the English

KJV/WEB/YLT "void of offence" was literal in 1611, when "offence" still meant a stumbling or a wrong. Today it sounds like "not having upset anyone". BSB/NIV/ESV "clear" gives the meaning but loses the picture of stumbling. NASB "blameless" catches the legal tone.

How it drifted

The drift is in the English word "offence" (see drift), not in the Greek.

Used elsewhere in the period

Sirach 32:21 (numbering varies) speaks of a road "without obstacles" (ὁδὸς ἀπρόσκοπος), the literal picture. Paul uses the word actively in 1 Cor 10:32 ("give no offence to Jews or Greeks or the church of God") and passively or ambiguously in Phil 1:10 ("pure and blameless for the day of Christ"). Papyri use it for travel or affairs that are "without mishap".

From the study of Philippians 1:10

Range of meaning

From a- ('not') + proskoptō ('strike against, stumble'). Intransitive: 'not stumbling, unhurt, without fault'. Transitive: 'not causing others to stumble, giving no offence'.

Against the English

KJV/WEB 'without offence' is literal but now sounds like 'not hurting anyone's feelings'. BSB/NIV/ESV 'blameless' is clear but loses the path-and-obstacle picture and the possible concern for others.

How it drifted

English 'offence' shifted from 'a stumbling, a cause of falling' (the biblical 'stumbling-block' sense) to 'an insult or hurt feelings'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Acts 24:16, 'a conscience without offence', is intransitive. 1 Cor 10:32, 'give no offence [aproskopoi ginesthe] to Jews or Greeks or the church of God', is transitive. Sirach 32:21 (LXX) speaks of an 'unobstructed' road. Papyri use it for being unharmed.