ἐλπίς (sometimes written 
ἐλπίς; so 
WH in 
Romans 8:20; 
Tdf. in 
Acts 2:26; see (in 2 below, and) the references under the word 
ἀφειδον), 
ἐλπίδος, 
ἡ (
ἔλπω to make to hope), the 
Sept. for 
בֶּטַח and 
מִבְטַח, trust; 
מַחְסֶה that in which one confides or to which he flees for refuge; 
תִּקְוָה expectation, hope; in the classics a vox media, i. e. 
expectation whether of good or of ill; 
1. rarely in a bad sense, 
expectation of evil, fear; as, 
ἡ τῶν κακῶν ἐλπίς, 
Lucian, Tyrannic c. 3; 
τοῦ φοβοῦ ἐλπίς, 
Thucydides 7, 61; 
κακῇ ἐλπίς, 
Plato, rep. 1, p. 330 e. (cf. legg. 1, p. 644 c. at the end); 
πονηρά ἐλπίς Isaiah 28:19, the 
Sept. 
2. much more frequent in the classics, and always in the N. T., in a good sense: 
expectation of good, hope; and in the Christian sense, 
joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation: 
Acts 23:6; 
Acts 26:7; 
Romans 5:4; 
Romans 12:12; 
Romans 15:13; 
1 Corinthians 13:13; 
1 Peter 1:3; 
1 Peter 3:15; 
ἀγαθή ἐλπίς (often in secular authors, as 
Plato, Phaedo 67 c.; plural 
ἐλπίδες ἀγαθαί, legg. 1, p. 649 b.; 
Xenophon, Ages. 1, 27), 
2 Thessalonians 2:16; 
ἐλπίς βλεπομένη, hope whose object is seen, 
Romans 8:24; 
ὁ Θεός τῆς ἐλπίδος, God, the author of hope, 
Romans 15:13; 
ἡ πληροθορια τῆς ἐλπίδος, fullness, i. e. certainty and strength of hope, 
Hebrews 6:11; 
ἡ ὁμολογία τῆς ἐλπίδος, the confession of those things which we hope for, 
Hebrews 10:23; 
τό καύχημα τῆς ἐλπίδος hope wherein we glory, 
Hebrews 3:6; 
ἐπεισαγωγή κρείττονος ἐλπίδος, the bringing in of a better hope, 
Hebrews 7:19; 
ἐλπίς with the genitive of the subjunctive, 
Acts 28:20; 
2 Corinthians 1:7 (6); 
Philippians 1:20; with the genitive of the object, 
Acts 27:20; 
Romans 5:2; 
1 Corinthians 9:10; 
1 Thessalonians 5:8; 
Titus 3:7; with the genitive of the thing on which the hope depends, 
ἡ ἐλπίς τῆς ἐργασίας αὐτῶν, 
Acts 16:19; 
τῆς κλήσεως, 
Ephesians 1:18; 
Ephesians 4:4; 
τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, 
Colossians 1:23; with the genitive of the person in whom hope is reposed, 
1 Thessalonians 1:3 (cf. 
Buttmann, 155 (136)). 
ἐπ' (or 
ἐφ' — so 
Acts 2:26 L T; 
Romans 4:18 L; 
Rom 8:20 (
Rom 8:21) 
T WH; cf. 
Scrivener, Introduction, etc., p. 565; (but see above, at the beginning)) 
ἐλπίδι, relying 
on hope, having hope, in hope (
Euripides, Herc. fur. 804; 
Diodorus Siculus 13, 21; 
ἐπ' ἐλπίδι ἀγαθή, 
Xenophon, mem. 2, 1, 187 (
Winers Grammar, 394 (368), cf. 425 (396); 
Buttmann, 337 (290)): 
Acts 2:26 (of a return to life); 
Romans 4:18; with the genitive of the thing hoped for added: 
ζωῆς αἰωνίου, 
Titus 1:2; 
τοῦ μετέχειν, 
1 Corinthians 9:10 (
G L T Tr WH); 
in hope, followed by 
ὅτι, 
Romans 8:20 (21) (but 
Tdf. reads 
διότι); 
on account of the hope, for the hope (
Buttmann, 165 (144)), with the genitive of the thing on which the hope rests, 
Acts 26:6. 
παῥ ἐλπίδα, 
beyond, against, hope (
Winer's Grammar, 404 (377)): 
Romans 4:18 (i. e. where the laws of nature left no room for hope). 
ἔχειν ἐλπίδα (often in Greek writings): 
Romans 15:4; 
2 Corinthians 3:12; with an infinitive belonging to the person hoping, 
2 Corinthians 10:15; 
ἐλπίδα ἔχειν εἰς (
Tdf. πρός) 
Θεόν, followed by an accusative with an infinitive 
Acts 24:15 (
εἰς Χριστόν ἔχειν, 
τάς ἐλπίδας, Acta Thomae § 28; (
τήν ἐλπίδα εἰς τόν Ἰησοῦν ἐν τῷ πνεύματι ἔχοντες, the Epistle of Barnabas 11, 11 [ET])); 
ἐπί with the dative of person 
1 John 3:3; 
ἐλπίδα μή ἔχοντες (of the heathen) having no hope (of salvation), 
Ephesians 2:12; 
1 Thessalonians 4:13; 
ἤ ἐλπίς ἐστιν εἰς Θεόν, directed unto God, 
1 Peter 1:21. By metonymy, it denotes
a. the author of hope, or he who is its foundation, (often so in Greek authors, as 
Aeschylus choëph. 776; 
Thucydides 3, 57; (cf. 
Ignatius ad Eph. 21, 2 [ET]; ad Magn. 11 [ET] at the end; ad Philad. 11, 2 [ET]; ad Trall. inscr. and 2, 2 [ET], etc.)): 
1 Timothy 1:1; 
1 Thessalonians 2:19; with the genitive of object added, 
τῆς δόξης, 
Colossians 1:27. 
b. the thing hoped for: 
προσδέχεσθαι τήν μακαρίαν ἐλπίδα, 
Titus 2:13; 
ἐλπίδα δικαιοσύνης ἀπεκδέχεσθαι, the thing hoped for, which is righteousness (cf. Meyer edition Sieffert at the passage), 
Galatians 5:5 (
προσδοκῶν τάς ὑπό Θεοῦ ἐλπίδας, 2 Macc. 7:14); 
διά ἐλπίδα τήν ἀποκειμένην ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, 
Colossians 1:5; 
κρατῆσαι τῆς προκειμένης ἐλπίδος, 
Hebrews 6:18 (cf. Bleek at the passage). — Zöckler, De vi ac notlone vocis 
ἐλπίς in N. T. Gissae 1856. 
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