ἐξαγοράζω
exagorázō
G1805 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To purchase completely or secure through payment; specifically, to buy out of a situation or condition (often involving danger, slavery, or obligation). In broader usage, to liberate, rescue, or deliver by payment or decisive action. The verb can also mean to take advantage of an opportunity, making use of a situation by 'buying it up'.
Semantic Range
to buy out (free from marketplace or obligation), to ransom or liberate (esp. from slavery or danger), to rescue or deliver, to make the most of an opportunity (figurative: 'redeem the time')
Root / Etymology
ἐκ ('out of') + ἀγοράζω ('to buy in the marketplace'); thus, literally, 'to buy out of'. The term is a compound verb formed from a prepositional prefix and a commercial verb, emphasizing removal or liberation from a previous state or location.
Historical & Contextual Notes
The verb ἐξαγοράζω appears primarily in later Hellenistic and Koine Greek, attested rarely before the New Testament period. Its concrete usage refers to purchasing something so thoroughly that it is removed from the marketplace (the sense: 'to buy something out of circulation', for instance, a slave being bought out of a market or contract). In the Septuagint and New Testament, the term develops a figurative sense: liberation from bondage, obligation, or difficult circumstance, often by means of payment or some decisive intervention. In non-biblical Koine sources, the word may convey a general sense of ransoming or freeing. In certain New Testament contexts (e.g., Galatians 3:13; 4:5), it is used with respect to liberation from the 'curse of the law', reflecting a transfer from one status to another. In Colossians 4:5 and Ephesians 5:16, the phrase 'redeeming the time' (ἀγοράζεσθε τὸν καιρόν) uses the commercial metaphor to convey the idea of 'making the most of opportunities', i.e., actively seizing or rescuing situations for positive use. English translations often render the term as 'redeem', but its commercial, liberating, and opportunistic nuances can be obscured by theological translation traditions. Cognate with ἀγοράζω but distinguished by the intensive prepositional prefix, stressing the completeness or finality of the action.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from ἐκ and ἀγοράζω; to buy up, i.e. ransom; figuratively, to rescue from loss (improve opportunity):--redeem.
Root Family
ἀγορ- (exagorázō) — to buy, to purchase, to ransom, to redeem
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| G58 | ἀγορά | to the public assembly square |
| G59 | ἀγοράζω | to purchase |
| G60 | ἀγοραῖος | marketplace men |
Word Forms
3 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G1805-02 |
ἐξαγοραζόμενοι | exagorazomenoi | V PRS MID PTCP NOM M PL |
redeeming | buying out for yourselves | buying out for yourselves | 2 |
G1805-01 |
ἐξαγοράσῃ | exagorase | V AOR ACT SUBJ 3P SG |
He might redeem | might buy out | might redeem | 1 |
G1805-03 |
ἐξηγόρασεν | exegorasen | V AOR ACT IND 3P SG |
redeemed | he bought out | he bought out | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
4 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G1805-03 |
Galatians 3:13 | ἐξηγόρασεν | exegorasen | V AOR ACT IND 3P SG |
redeemed | he bought out | he bought out |
G1805-01 |
Galatians 4:5 | ἐξαγοράσῃ | exagorase | V AOR ACT SUBJ 3P SG |
He might redeem | might buy out | might redeem |
G1805-02 |
Ephesians 5:16 | ἐξαγοραζόμενοι | exagorazomenoi | V PRS MID PTCP NOM M PL |
redeeming | buying out for yourselves | buying out for yourselves |
G1805-02 |
Colossians 4:5 | ἐξαγοραζόμενοι | exagorazomenoi | V PRS MID PTCP NOM M PL |
redeeming | buying out for yourselves | taking advantage |