Lexical Summary eleutheroó: To set free, to liberate Original Word: ἐλευθερόω Strong's Exhaustive Concordance deliver, make free. From eleutheros; to liberate, i.e. (figuratively) to exempt (from moral, ceremonial or mortal liability) -- deliver, make free. see GREEK eleutheros HELPS Word-studies Cognate: 1659 eleutheróō – properly, set free, release from bondage; (figuratively) to remove the restrictions of sin (darkness) because delivered by God into true spiritual liberty (growth). See 1658 (eleutheros). Jn 8:36: "So if the Son makes you free (1659 /eleutheróō), you will be free (1658 /eleútheros) indeed" (NASU). NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom eleutheros Definition to make free, fig. to exempt (from liability) NASB Translation freed (2), make...free (1), makes...free (1), set...free (2), set free (1). Thayer's Greek Lexicon STRONGS NT 1659: ἐλευθερόωἐλευθερόω, ἐλευθέρω: future ἐλευθερώσω; 1 aorist ἠλευθερωσα; passive, 1 aorist ἠλευθερωθην; 1 future ἐλευθερωθήσομαι; (ἐλεύθερος); (from Aeschylus down); to make free, set at liberty: from the dominion of sin, John 8:32, 36; τινα ἀπό τίνος, one from another's control (Winers Grammar, 196f (185); Buttmann, 157f (138)): ἀπό τοῦ νόμου τάς ἁμαρτίας καί τοῦ θανάτου (see νόμος, 1), Romans 8:2; ἀπό τάς ἁμαρτίας, from the dominion of sin, Romans 6:18, 22; ἀπό τάς δουλείας τῆς φθορᾶς εἰς τήν ἐλευθερίαν, to liberate from bondage (see δουλεία) and to bring (transfer) into etc. (see εἰς, C. 1), Romans 8:21; with a dative commodi, τῇ ἐλευθερία, that we might be possessors of liberty, Galatians 5:1; cf. Buttmann, § 133, 12 (and Lightfoot at the passage). Topical Lexicon Semantic Range and Theological Weight The verb describes an act of decisive release—rescue from an oppressive power into a state of unhindered life with God. Scripture applies it to liberation from sin’s mastery, from the condemning power of the Law, and ultimately from the corruption that infects the created order. Old Testament Background The Exodus stands behind the word’s New Testament usage. Just as the Lord brought Israel “out of the house of slavery,” the Son now brings His people out of the deeper slavery to sin. Jubilee statutes (Leviticus 25) foreshadow the complete emancipation that the Messiah secures. Freedom in the Ministry of Jesus In John 8 the Lord grounds true freedom in Himself and in revealed truth: “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32). The promise is personal: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). Here freedom is not mere independence but restored relationship—deliverance into the Father’s household. Pauline Theology of Liberation Romans 6:18,22 presents freedom as the pivot of conversion: “You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” Liberation immediately re-orients the believer’s allegiance; freedom from one master entails willing service to another. Romans 8:2 identifies the operative power: “For in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” The Spirit accomplishes what human effort never could—breaking the tyranny of sin and neutralizing death’s claim. Galatians 5:1 warns that the freedom secured by Christ must be guarded: “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.” Legalistic regression would nullify the experienced benefit of the cross. Experiential Freedom in the Believer’s Life Freedom is both objective and experiential. Objectively, the penalty of sin is removed; experientially, chains of habitual sin are loosed as the Spirit sanctifies. The believer is empowered to obey joyfully, not under coercion but as one whose will has been liberated (Philippians 2:13). Assurance of acceptance replaces fear of condemnation (Romans 8:1). Corporate and Eschatological Dimensions Romans 8:21 extends the verb to creation: “the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.” The individual’s emancipation is a firstfruits of a cosmic renewal. Final liberation will coincide with the revealing of the sons of God, when corruption, disease, and death are forever expelled. Implications for Church Ministry 1. Preaching: Proclaim Christ’s finished work as the ground of true freedom, contrasting it with false promises of autonomy or legalism. Historical Reception in the Early Church Early Christian writers celebrated baptism as the visible sign of liberation. The apostolic fathers linked deliverance from idols with moral transformation. During the Reformation the term undergirded teachings on justification by faith, opposing any notion that human works could contribute to release from guilt. Summary Strong’s Greek 1659 portrays Christ-wrought emancipation—from sin’s power, from the Law’s condemnation, and, in the future, from creation’s decay. This freedom is received by faith, lived out through the Spirit, guarded against legalism, and destined to culminate in the renewal of all things to the glory of God. Forms and Transliterations ελευθεροί ελευθερωθεντες ελευθερωθέντες ἐλευθερωθέντες ελευθερωθησεται ελευθερωθήσεται ἐλευθερωθήσεται ελευθερωσει ελευθερώσει ἐλευθερώσει ελευθερωση ἐλευθερώσῃ ηλευθέρωσέ ηλευθερωσεν ἠλευθέρωσεν ἠλευθέρωσέν eleutherose eleutherōsē eleutherosei eleutherōsei eleutherṓsei eleutherṓsēi eleutherosen eleuthérosen eleuthérosén ēleutherōsen ēleuthérōsen ēleuthérōsén eleutherothentes eleutherothéntes eleutherōthentes eleutherōthéntes eleutherothesetai eleutherothḗsetai eleutherōthēsetai eleutherōthḗsetaiLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance John 8:32 V-FIA-3SGRK: ἡ ἀλήθεια ἐλευθερώσει ὑμᾶς NAS: and the truth will make you free. KJV: shall make you free. INT: the truth will set free you John 8:36 V-ASA-3S Romans 6:18 V-APP-NMP Romans 6:22 V-APP-NMP Romans 8:2 V-AIA-3S Romans 8:21 V-FIP-3S Galatians 5:1 V-AIA-3S Strong's Greek 1659 |
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