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ἐκλανθάνομαι

eklanthánomai

G1585 verb

SILEX Entry

Definition

To forget completely, to lose memory of something entirely, to be oblivious to or unaware of; occurs with an emphatic nuance, indicating thorough or total forgetfulness. The middle voice expresses the subject's direct involvement in the experience of forgetting, often with a sense of resulting disconnection or failure to recall.

Semantic Range

to forget utterly, to lose memory entirely, to become oblivious, to let slip from memory, to neglect to remember

Root / Etymology

From the preposition ἐκ ('out of') combined with the verb λανθάνω ('to escape notice, to be hidden'). The prefix ἐκ- intensifies the verb, indicating complete or thorough action; thus, ἐκλανθάνομαι means 'to forget out of (mind)', i.e., to be utterly oblivious of something. Middle voice formation is standard in verbs of perception and memory in Koine Greek.

Historical & Contextual Notes

Attested primarily in later Greek, including the Septuagint and occasionally in Hellenistic writers, but not common in classical sources. In the Septuagint, the verb often translates Hebrew terms like שָׁכַח (shakhach, 'to forget'), especially in the context of forgetting covenants, laws, or personal obligations. In the New Testament, usage is rare or absent; its appearance is mostly restricted to Jewish-Greek and Hellenistic contexts. The verb expresses a stronger sense than the simple λανθάνομαι or mere 'forgetting'—it conveys a sense of complete, even culpable, oblivion. English translations often render it as 'forget' or 'be utterly oblivious,' but these may not capture the full intensity implied by the compound in Greek. The middle voice emphasizes the subject's role or experience in the forgetting process, typical of emotion or perception verbs in Koine Greek.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

middle voice from ἐκ and λανθάνω; to be utterly oblivious of:--forget.

Root Family

ἐκλανθάνομαι (eklanthanomai) — to forget utterly, to be hidden, to escape notice, to become oblivious

Root λανθ- to forget, to be hidden, to escape notice

Word Forms

1 distinct form

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G1585-01 ἐκλέλησθε eklelesthe V PRF MID IND 2P PL you have forgotten you have utterly forgotten you have utterly forgotten 1

Occurrences in Scripture

1 occurrence

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G1585-01 Hebrews 12:5 ἐκλέλησθε eklelesthe V PRF MID IND 2P PL you have forgotten you have utterly forgotten you have utterly forgotten
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