Strong's Lexicon
oikodomé: Building, edification, structure
Original Word:οἰκοδομή
Part of Speech:Noun, Feminine
Transliteration:oikodomé
Pronunciation:oy-kod-om-ay'
Phonetic Spelling:(oy-kod-om-ay')
Definition:Building, edification, structure
Meaning:(a) the act of building, (b) a building, (c) met: spiritual advancement, edification.
Word Origin:From the Greek verb οἰκοδομέω (oikodomeó), meaning "to build" or "to construct."
Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries:The Hebrew equivalent often used in similar contexts is בָּנָה (banah), which means "to build" or "to construct."
Usage:The term "oikodomé" primarily refers to the act of building or constructing a physical structure. In the New Testament, it is often used metaphorically to describe the spiritual edification or building up of the church and individual believers. It emphasizes growth, strengthening, and development in faith and character.
Cultural and Historical Background:In the ancient Greco-Roman world, construction and architecture were significant aspects of daily life, with buildings serving as places of worship, commerce, and community gathering. The metaphor of building was a powerful image for early Christians, who saw the church as a spiritual house being built by God. This imagery would have resonated with a culture familiar with the importance of strong foundations and well-constructed edifices.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 3619oikodomḗ – properly, a building (edifice) serving as a home; (figuratively)constructive criticism and instruction thatbuilds a person up to be thesuitable dwelling place of God, i.e. where the Lord is "at home."See 3618 (oikodemeō).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
oikos and the same as
dómaDefinition(the act of) building, a building
NASB Translationbuilding (8), buildings (3), edification (5), edifying (1), upbuilding (1).
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 3619: οἰκοδομήοἰκοδομή,
οἰκοδομῆς,
ἡ (
οἶκος, and
δέμω to build), a later Greek word, condemned by Phryn., yet used by
Aristotle,
Theophrastus, ((but both these thought to be doubtful)),
Diodorus (1, 46),
Philo (vit. Moys. i. § 40; de monarch. ii. § 2),
Josephus,
Plutarch, the
Sept., and many others, for
οἰκοδόμημα and
οἰκοδόμησις; cf.
Lob. ad Phryn., p. 481ff, cf. p. 421; (
Winer's Grammar, 24);
1. (the act of)building, building up, equivalent toτόοἰκοδομεῖν; as,τῶντειχέων, 1 Macc. 16:23;τοῦοἴκουτοῦΘεοῦ,1 Chronicles 26:27; in the N. T. metaphorically, "edifying, edification, i. e. the act of one who promotes another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, holiness, happiness" (seeοἰκοδομέω, b.β'. (cf.Winer's Grammar, 35 (34))):Romans 14:19;Romans 15:2; (1 Corinthians 14:26);2 Corinthians 10:8 (see below);;Ephesians 4:29; with a genitive of the person whose growth is furthered,ὑμῶν,2 Corinthians 12:19 (cf. 10:8);ἑαυτοῦ (Tdf.αὐτοῦ),Ephesians 4:16;τοῦσώματοςτοῦΧριστοῦ,Ephesians 4:12;τῆςἐκκλησίας,1 Corinthians 14:12; equivalent toτόὀικοδομουν, what contributes to edification, or augments wisdom, etc.λαλεῖν,λαβεῖν,οἰκοδομήν,1 Corinthians 14:3, 5.2. equivalent toοἰκοδόμημα,a building (i. e. thing built, edifice):Mark 13:1f;τοῦἱεροῦ,Matthew 24:1; used of the heavenly body, the abode of the soul after death,2 Corinthians 5:1; tropically, ofa body of Christians, a Christian church (seeοἰκοδομέω, b.β'.),Ephesians 2:21 (cf.πᾶς, I. 1 c.); with a genitive of the owner or occupant,Θεοῦ,1 Corinthians 3:9.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
building, edificationFeminine (abstract) of a compound ofoikos and the base ofdoma; architecture, i.e. (concretely) a structure; figuratively, confirmation -- building, edify(-ication, -ing).
see GREEKoikos
see GREEKdoma
Forms and Transliterations
οικοδομαι οικοδομαί οἰκοδομαί οικοδομας οικοδομάς οἰκοδομάς οἰκοδομὰς οικοδομη οικοδομή οἰκοδομή οἰκοδομὴ οικοδομην οικοδομήν οἰκοδομήν οἰκοδομὴν οικοδομης οικοδομής οἰκοδομῆς oikodomai oikodomaí oikodomas oikodomás oikodomàs oikodome oikodomē oikodomḗ oikodomḕ oikodomen oikodomēn oikodomḗn oikodomḕn oikodomes oikodomês oikodomēs oikodomē̂sLinks
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