τέκνον, τέκνου, τό (τίκτω, τεκεῖν), from Homer down, the Sept. chiefly for בֵּן, sometimes for יֶלֶד, offspring; plural children;
a. properly,
α. universally and without regard to sex, child: Mark 13:12; Luke 1:7; Acts 7:5; Revelation 12:4; plural, Matthew 7:11; Matthew 10:21; Matthew 15:26; Mark 7:27; Mark 12:19; Luke 1:17; Luke 14:26; Acts 21:5; 2 Corinthians 12:14; Ephesians 6:1; Colossians 3:20; 1 Thessalonians 2:7, 11; 1 Timothy 3:4; Titus 1:6; 2 John 1:1, 4, 13, and often; with emphasis: to be regarded as true, genuine children, Romans 9:7; τέκνα ἐπαγγελίας, children begotten by virtue of the divine promise, Romans 9:8; accounted as children begotten by virtue of God's promise, Galatians 4:28; τά τέκνα τῆς σαρκός, children by natural descent, Romans 9:8. in a broader sense (like the Hebrew בָּנִים), posterity: Matthew 2:18; Matthew 3:9; Luke 3:8; Acts 2:39; Acts 13:33(32). with emphasis: genuine posterity, true offspring, John 8:39; (of women) to be regarded as children, 1 Peter 3:6.
β. specifically, a male child, a son: Matthew 21:28; Acts 21:21; Revelation 12:5; in the vocative, in kindly address, Matthew 21:28; Luke 2:48; Luke 15:31.
b. metaphorically, the name is transferred to that intimate and reciprocal relationship formed between men by the bonds of love, friendship, trust, just as between parents and children;
α. in affectionate address, such as patrons, helpers, teachers, and the like, employ; vocative child (son), my child, children. (Latin fili, mi fili, etc., for carissime, etc.): Matthew 9:2; Mark 2:5; Mark 10:24 (here Lachmann τεκνία, which see).
β. just as in Hebrew, Syriac, Arabic, Persian, so in the N. T., pupils or disciples are called children of their teachers, because the latter by their instruction nourish the minds of their pupils and mould their characters (see γεννάω, 2 b.): Philemon 1:10; 2 Timothy 1:2; 3 John 1:4; in affectionate address, Galatians 4:19 L text T Tr WH marginal reading; 1 Timothy 1:18; 2 Timothy 2:1; with ἐν κυρίῳ added, 1 Corinthians 4:17; ἐν πίστει, 1 Timothy 1:2; κατά κοινήν πίστιν, Titus 1:4 (הַגְּבִיאִים בְּנֵי, sons i. e. disciples of the prophets, 1 Kings 21:35 (1 Kings 20:35); 2 Kings 2:3, 5, 7; among the Persians, 'sons of the Magi,' i. e. their pupils).
γ. τέκνα τοῦ Θεοῦ, children of God —in the O. T. of 'the people of Israel' as especially dear to God: Isaiah 30:1; Wis. 16:21; — in the N. T., in Paul's writings, all who are animated by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14) and thus are closely related to God: Romans 8:16f, 21; Ephesians 5:1; Philippians 2:15; those to whom, as dearly beloved of God, he has appointed salvation by Christ, Romans 9:8; in the writings of John, all who ἐκ Θεοῦ ἐγεννήθησαν (have been begotten of God, see γεννάω, 2 d.): John 1:12; 1 John 3:1f, 10; 1 John 5:2; those whom God knows to be qualified to obtain the nature and dignity of his children, John 11:52. (Cf. Westcott on the Epistles of St. John, pp. 94, 120; "In St. Paul the expressions 'sons of God', 'children of God', mostly convey the idea of liberty (see however Philippians 2:15), in St. John of guilelessness and love; in accordance with this distinction St. Paul uses υἱοί as well as τέκνα, St. John τέκνα only" (Lightfoot); cf. υἱός τοῦ Θεοῦ, 4.)
δ. τέκνα τοῦ διαβόλου, those who in thought and action are prompted by the devil, and so reflect his character: 1 John 3:10.
c. metaphorically, and Hebraistically, one is called τέκνον, of anything who depends upon it, is possessed by a desire or affection for it, is addicted to it; or who is liable to any fate; thus in the N. T. we find
α. children of a city, i. e. its citizens, inhabitants (Jeremiah 2:30; Joel 2:23; 1 Macc. 1:38; υἱοί Σιών, Psalm 149:2): Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34; Luke 19:44; Galatians 4:25.
β. τέκνα τῆς σοφίας, the votaries of wisdom, those whose souls have, as it were, been nurtured and moulded by wisdom: Matthew 11:19 (where T Tr text WH have hastily adopted ἔργων for τέκνων; cf. Keim, ii, p. 369 (English translation, iv., p. 43f; per contra, see Tdf.s note and WH's Appendix at the passage)); Luke 7:35; τέκνα ὑπακοῆς, those actuated by a desire to obey, obedient, 1 Peter 1:14; τοῦ φωτός, both illumined by the light and loving the light, Ephesians 5:8.
γ. κατάρας τέκνα, exposed to cursing, 2 Peter 2:14; τῆς ὀργῆς, doomed to God's wrath or penalty, Ephesians 2:3; cf. Steiger on 1 Peter 1:14; Winers Grammar, 238 (223); (Buttmann, 161 (141)). In the same way ἔκγονος is used sometimes in Greek writings; as, ἔκγονος ἀδικίας, δειλίας, Plato, legg. 3, p. 691 c.; 10, p. 901 e.
[SYNONYMS: τέκνον, υἱός: τέκνον and υἱός while concurring in pointing to parentage, differ in that τέκνον gives prominence to the physical and outward aspects, υἱός to the inward, ethical, legal. Cf. b. γ. above; υἱός τοῦ Θεοῦ, at the end; παῖς, at the end and references (especially that to Höhne).]

BLB Scripture Index of Thayer's