Lexicon :: Strong's G2309 - thelō

θέλω (only in this form in the N. T.; in Greek authors also ἐθέλω (Veitch, under the word; Lob. ad Phryn., p. 7; Buttmann, 57 (49))); imperfect ἤθελον; (future 3 person singular θελήσει, Revelation 11:5 WH marginal reading); 1 aorist ἠθέλησα; (derived apparently from ἑλεῖν with a fuller aspiration, so that it means properly, to seize with the mind; but Curtius, p. 726, edition 5, regards its root as uncertain (he inclines, however, to the view of Pott, Fick, Vanicek, and others, which connects it with a root meaning to hold to)); the Sept. for אָבָה and חָפֵץ; to will (have in mind) intend; i. e.:
1. to be resolved or determined, to purpose: absolutely, ὁ θέλων, Romans 9:16; τοῦ Θεοῦ θέλοντος if God will, Acts 18:21; ἐάν ὁ κύριος θελήσῃ. (in Attic ἐάν θεός θέλῃ, ἦν οἱ Θεοί θέλωσιν (cf. Lob. as above)), 1 Corinthians 4:19; James 4:15; καθώς ἠθέλησε, 1 Corinthians 12:18; 1 Corinthians 15:38; τί, Romans 7:15f, 19; 1 Corinthians 7:36; Galatians 5:17; with the aorist infinitive, Matthew 20:14; Matthew 26:15; John 6:21 (where the meaning is, they were willing to receive him into the ship, but that was unnecessary, because unexpectedly the ship was nearing the land; cf. Lücke, B-Crusius, Ewald (Godet), others at the passage; Winers Grammar, § 54, 4; (Buttmann, 375 (321))); John 12:44; Acts 25:9; Colossians 1:27; 1 Thessalonians 2:18; Revelation 11:5, etc.; with the present infinitive, Luke 10:29 R G; John 6:67; John 12:17; John 8:44; Acts 24:6 (Rec.); Romans 7:21; Galatians 4:9 (here T Tr text WH text 1 aorist infinitive); with an infinitive suggested by the context, John 5:21 (οὕς θέλει, namely, ζοωποιησαι); Matthew 8:2; Mark 3:13; Mark 6:22; Romans 9:18; Revelation 11:6, etc. οὐ θέλω to be unwilling: with the aorist infinitive, Matthew 2:18; Matthew 15:32; Matthew 22:3; Mark 6:26; Luke 15:28; John 5:40; Acts 7:39; 1 Corinthians 16:7; Revelation 2:21 (not Rec.), etc.; with the present infinitive, John 7:1; Acts 14:13; Acts 17:18; 2 Thessalonians 3:10, etc.; with the infinitive omitted and to be gathered from the context, Matthew 18:30; Matthew 21:29; Luke 18:4, etc.; θέλω and οὐ θέλω followed by the accusative with an infinitive, Luke 1:62; 1 Corinthians 10:20; on the Pauline phrase οὐ θέλω ὑμᾶς ἀγνοεῖν, see ἀγνοέω, a.; corresponding to θέλω ὑμᾶς εἰδέναι, 1 Corinthians 11:3; Colossians 2:1. θέλειν, used of a purpose or resolution, is contrasted with the carrying out of the purpose into act: opposed to ποιεῖν, πράσσειν, Romans 7:15, 19; 2 Corinthians 8:10f (on which latter passage cf. DeWette and Meyer; Winer's Grammar, § 61, 7b.); to ἐνεργεῖν, Philippians 2:13, cf. Mark 6:19; John 7:44. One is said also θέλειν that which he is on the point of doing: Mark 6:48; John 1:43 (44); and it is used thus also of things that tend or point to some conclusion (cf. Winers Grammar, § 42, 1 b.; Buttmann, 254 (219)): Acts 2:12; Acts 17:20. λανθάνει αὐτούς τοῦτο θέλοντας this (viz., what follows, ὅτι etc.) escapes them of their own will, i. e. they are purposely, wilfully, ignorant, 2 Peter 3:5, where others interpret as follows: this (viz. what has been said previously) desiring (i. e. holding as their opinion (for examples of this sense see Sophocles Lexicon, under the word, 4)), they are ignorant etc.; but cf. DeWette at the passage and Winers Grammar, § 54, 4 note; (Buttmann, § 150, 8 Rem.). τάς ἐπιθυμίας τοῦ πατρός ὑμῶν θέλετε ποιεῖν it is your purpose to fulfil the lusts of your father, i. e. ye are actuated by him of your own free knowledge and choice, John 8:44 (Winers Grammar, as above; Buttmann, 375 (321)).
2. equivalent to to desire, to wish: τί, Matthew 20:21; Mark 14:36; Luke 5:39 (but WH in brackets); John 15:7; 1 Corinthians 4:21; 2 Corinthians 11:12; followed by the aorist infinitive, Matthew 5:40; Matthew 12:38; Matthew 16:25; Matthew 19:17; Mark 10:43; Luke 8:20; Luke 13:8; John 5:6, 35 (ye were desirous of rejoicing); John 12:21; Galatians 3:2; James 2:20; 1 Peter 3:10; followed by the present infinitive, John 9:27; Galatians 4:20 (ἤθελον I could wish, on which imperfect see εὔχομαι, 2); the infinitive is lacking and to be supplied from the neighboring verb, Matthew 17:12; Matthew 27:15; Mark 9:13; John 21:18; followed by the accusative and infinitive, Mark 7:24; Luke 1:62; John 21:22; Romans 16:19; 1 Corinthians 7:7, 32; 1 Corinthians 14:5; Galatians 6:13; οὐ θέλω to be unwilling (desire not): followed by the aorist infinitive, Matthew 23:4; Luke 19:14, 27; 1 Corinthians 10:20; followed by ἵνα, Matthew 7:12; Mark 6:25; Mark 9:30; Mark 10:35; Luke 6:31; John 17:24; cf. Winers Grammar, § 44, 8 b.; (Buttmann, § 139, 46); followed by the deliberative subjunctive (aorist): θέλεις συλλέξωμεν αὐτά (cf. the German willstdu,sollenwirzusammenlesen? (Goodwin § 88)), Matthew 13:28; add, Matthew 20:32 (where L brackets adds ἵνα); Matthew 26:17; 27:17,21; Mark 10:51; Mark 14:12; Mark 15:9, 12 (Tr brackets θέλεις); Luke 9:54; Luke 18:41; Luke 22:9 (cf. Winers Grammar, § 41 a. 4 b.; Buttmann, § 139, 2); followed by εἰ, Luke 12:49 (see εἰ, I. 4); followed by ἤ, to prefer, 1 Corinthians 14:19 (see ἤ, 3 d.).
3. equivalent to to love; followed by an infinitive, to like to do a thing, be fond of doing: Mark 12:38; Luke 20:46; cf. Winers Grammar, § 54, 4; (Buttmann, § 150, 8).
4. in imitation of the Hebrew חָפֵץ, to take delight, have pleasure (opposite by Buttmann, § 150, 8 Rem.; cf. Winer's Grammar, § 33, a.; but see examples below): ἐν τίνι, in a thing, Colossians 2:18 (ἐν καλῷ, to delight in goodness, Test xii. Patr., p. 688 (test. Ash. 1; (cf. εἰς ζωήν, p. 635, test. Zeb. 3); Psalm 111:1 (Ps. 112:1); Psalm 146:10 (Ps. 147:10)); ἐν τίνι, the dative of the person, 1 Samuel 18:22; 2 Samuel 15:26; (1 Kings 10:9); 2 Chronicles 9:8; for בְּ רָצָה, 1 Chronicles 28:4). τινα, to love one: Matthew 27:43 (Psalm 21:9 (Ps. 22:9); (Psalm 17:20 (Ps. 18:20); Psalm 40:12 (Ps. 41:12); Ezekiel 18:32, cf. Ezekiel 18:23; Tobit 13:6; epp. to μισεῖν, Ignatius ad Rom. 8, 3 [ET]; θεληθῆναι is used of those who find favor, ibid. 8, 1). τί, Matthew 9:13 and Matthew 12:7 (from Hosea 6:6); Hebrews 10:5, 8 (fr. Psalm 39:7 (Ps. 40:7)). As respects the distinction between βούλομαι and θέλω, the former seems to designate the will which follows deliberation, the latter the will which proceeds from inclination. This appears not only from Matthew 1:19, but also from the fact that the Sept. express the idea of pleasure, delight, by the verb θέλειν (see just above). The reverse of this distinction is laid down by Alexander Buttmann (1873) Lexil. i., p. 26 (English translation, p. 194); Delitzsch on Hebrews 6:17. According to Tittmann (Syn., i., p. 124) θέλειν denotes mere volition, βούλεσθαι inclination; (cf. Whiston on Demosthenes 9, 5; 124, 13). (Philip Buttmanns statement of the distinction between the two words is quoted with approval by Schmidt (Syn., iii., chapter 146), who adduces in confirmation (besides many examples) the assumed relationship between βούλομαι and Φελπις, ἐλπίς; the use of θέλω in the sense of 'resolve' in such passages as Thucydides 5, 9; of θέλων equivalent to ἡδέως in the poets; of βούλομαι as parallel to ἐπιθυμέω in Demosthenes 29, 45, etc.; and passages in which the two words occur together and βούλομαι is apparently equivalent to 'wish' while θέλω stands for 'will' as Xenophon, an. 4, 4, 5; Euripides, Alc. 281, etc., etc. At the same time it must be confessed that scholars are far from harmonious on the subject. Many agree with Prof. Grimm that θέλω gives prominence to the emotive element, βούλομαι emphasizes the rational and volitive; that θέλω signifies the choice, while βούλομαι marks the choice as deliberate and intelligent; yet they acknowledge that the words are sometimes used indiscriminately, and especially that θέλω as the less sharply-defined term is put where βούλομαι would be proper; see Ellendt, Lex. Sophocles; Pape, Handwörterb.; Seiler, Wörterb. d. Homer, under the word βούλομαι; Suhle und Schneidewin, Handwörterb.; Crosby, Lex. to Xenophon, an., under the word ἐθέλω; (Arnold's) Pillon, Greek Syn. § 129; Webster, Synt. and Syn. of the Greek Testament, p. 197; Wilke, Clavis N. T., edition 2, 2:603; Schleusner, N. T. Lex. see under the word, βούλομαι; Munthe, Observations, phil. in N. T. ex Diodorus Siculus, etc., p. 3; Valckenaer, Scholia etc. ii. 23; Westermann on Demosthenes 20, 111; the commentators generally on Matt. as above; Lightfoot on Philemon 1:13, 14; Riddle in Schaff's Lange on Eph., p. 42; this seems to be roughly intended by Ammonius also: βούλεσθαι μέν ἐπί μόνου λεκτεον τοῦ λογικου. τό δέ θέλειν καί ἐπί ἀλογου ζοωυ; (and Eustathius on Iliad 1, 112, p. 61, 2, says ὀυχ' ἁπλῶς θέλω, ἀλλά βούλομαι, ὅπερ ἐπίτασις τοῦ θέλειν ἐστιν). On the other hand, Liddell and Scott (under the word ἐθέλω); Passow, edition 5; Rost, Wörterb. edition 4; Schenkl, Schulwörterb.; Donaldson, Crat. § 463f; Wahl; Clay. Apocrypha, under the word βούλομαι; Cremer, under the words, βούλομαι and θέλω; especially Stallb. on Platos de repub. 4, 13, p. 437 b. (cf. too Cope on Aristotle, rhet. 2, 19, 19); Franke on Demosthenes 1, 1, substantially reverse the distinction, as does Ellicott on 1 Timothy 5:14; Wordsworth on 1 Thessalonians 2:18. Although the latter opinion may seem to be favored by that view of the derivation of the words which allies βούλομαι with voluptas (Curtius, § 659, compare p. 726), and makes θέλω signify 'to hold to something,' 'form a fixed resolve' (see above, at the beginning), yet the predominant usage of the N. T. will be evident to one who looks up the passages referred to above (Fritzsche's explanation of Matthew 1:19 is hardly natural); to which may be added such as Matthew 2:18; Matthew 9:13; Matthew 12:38; Matthew 15:28; Matthew 17:4 (Matthew 20:21,32); Matthew 26:15,39 (cf. Luke 22:42); Mark 6:19; Mark 7:24; Mark 9:30; Mark 10:35; Mark 12:38; Mark 15:9 (cf. John 18:39), Mark 15:15 (where R. V. wishing is questionable; cf. Luke 23:20); Luke 10:24; Luke 15:28; Luke 16:26; John 5:6; John 6:11; John 12:21; Acts 10:10; Acts 18:15; Romans 7:19 (cf. Romans 7:15, its opposed to μισῶ, and indeed the use of θέλω throughout this chapter); 1 Corinthians 7:36, 39; 1 Corinthians 14:35; Ephesians 1:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:10, etc. Such passages as 1 Timothy 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9 will be ranged now on one side, now on the other; cf. 1 Corinthians 12:11, 18. θέλω occurs in the N. T. about five times as often as βούλομαι (on the relative use of the words in classic writers see Tycho Mommsen in Rutherford, New Phryn., p. 415f). The usage of the Sept. (beyond the particular specified by Prof. Grimm) seems to afford little light; see e. g. Genesis 24:5, 8; Deuteronomy 25:7; Psalm 39:7, 9 (Ps. 40:7,9), etc. In modern Greek θέλω seems to have nearly driven βούλομαι out of use; on θέλω as an auxiliary cf. Jebb in Vincent and Dickson's Handbook, Appendix §§ 60, 64. For examples of the associated use of the words in classic Greek, see Stephanus' Thesaurus under the word βούλομαι, p. 366 d.; Lightfoot, Cremer, and especially Schmidt, as above.)

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