1778. entalma

Lexical Summary

entalma: Commandment, ordinance, instruction

Original Word: ἐντολή
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Transliteration: entalma
Pronunciation: en-TAL-mah
Phonetic Spelling: (en'-tal-mah)
KJV: commandment
NASB: precepts, commandments
Word Origin: [from G1781 (ἐντέλλομαι - commanded)]

1. an injunction, i.e. religious precept

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

commandment.

From entellomai; an injunction, i.e. Religious precept -- commandment.

see GREEK entellomai

HELPS Word-studies

Cognate: 1778 éntalma (a neuter noun) – a command, focusing on the result of following the directive to its end (consummation), like the negative effects of following an ill-advised regulation. See 1785 (entolē).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from entellomai
Definition
an injunction, i.e. religious precept
NASB Translation
commandments (1), precepts (2).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 1778: ἔνταλμα

ἔνταλμα, ἐνταλματος, τό (ἐντέλλομαι (see ἐντέλλω)), a precept: plural, Matthew 15:9; Mark 7:7; Colossians 2:22. (Isaiah 29:13 διδάσκοντες ἐντάλματα ἀνθρώπων; (Job 23:11, 12). Not found in secular authors; (Winer's Grammar, 25).)

Topical Lexicon

Meaning and Background

The term designates an authoritative prescription, but in every New Testament occurrence it is identified as coming from humans rather than from God. It therefore draws a sharp line between what God has revealed and what people add.

Occurrences in the New Testament

• Matthew 15:9 and Mark 7:7 record Jesus quoting Isaiah 29:13 to expose the Pharisees’ elevation of “the precepts of men” above divine revelation.
• Colossians 2:22 shows Paul warning believers not to submit to rules that “are based on human commands and teachings,” for such regulations “will all perish with use.”

Old Testament Echo

Isaiah 29:13 declares, “This people draw near with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, yet their hearts are far from Me; their worship of Me is but rules taught by men.” By citing this verse, Jesus places the religious leaders of His day squarely under the same prophetic indictment, stressing the continuity of God’s concern that worship be grounded in His own word.

Historical and Cultural Context

Second-Temple Judaism treasured the oral tradition that eventually formed the Mishnah. Though intended to safeguard obedience, these layers of tradition often displaced the very commands they sought to protect. The rabbinic practice of fencing the Law fostered a culture in which human ordinances carried a binding force rivaling Scripture. Jesus and Paul confronted this tendency head-on.

Contrast with Divine Commandments (Entolai)

While divine commandments call for obedience flowing from love for God (Deuteronomy 6:5; John 14:15), the human prescriptions denoted by 1778 carry no intrinsic authority. They can masquerade as piety yet leave the heart untouched. The New Testament writers carefully preserve this distinction, refusing to lump God-given statutes together with man-made rules.

Doctrinal Significance

1. Authority of Scripture: Scripture alone defines the believer’s faith and practice. Adding human ordinances undermines the sufficiency of the written word.
2. Nature of True Worship: Authentic worship springs from a heart yielded to God’s revelation, not from external conformity to self-invented regulations.
3. Freedom in Christ: Paul insists that believers have died with Christ “to the elemental spiritual forces of the world” (Colossians 2:20), freeing them from bondage to mere ritual.

Warnings for Ministry

• Guard against elevating denominational traditions or cultural preferences to the level of divine mandate.
• Examine teaching and discipleship materials to ensure they derive directly from Scripture rather than conventional expectations.
• When counseling, distinguish clearly between biblical imperatives and prudent but non-binding advice.

Positive Applications

• Encourage congregations to weigh every practice—liturgy, music, dress codes, even outreach strategies—by the touchstone of God’s revealed word.
• Foster humility by welcoming corrective insight from Scripture, even when it challenges cherished customs.
• Model Berean discernment (Acts 17:11), testing all things against the written text.

Historical Lessons

Church history records seasons when human decrees obscured biblical truth—legalistic asceticism, medieval penitential systems, or more recent cultural moralism. Reform and revival have consistently come through returning to Scripture and casting off burdensome regulations.

Pastoral Encouragement

Because the human heart gravitates toward manageable external rules, pastors and teachers must keep the cross of Christ central. Only the gospel transforms motives; added rules cannot. Shepherds should therefore emphasize grace-driven obedience grounded in the Spirit’s power rather than in the entalma of men.

Summary

Strong’s Greek 1778 exposes the perennial danger of substituting human prescriptions for God’s authoritative word. Jesus condemns it, Paul rejects it, and believers today must remain vigilant, clinging to Scripture alone as the rule of faith and life.

Forms and Transliterations

ενετάγη ενέταξε εντάλμασιν ενταλματα εντάλματα εντάλματά ἐντάλματα ενταλμάτων ένταξον εντάσσω ενταύθα εντεταγμένη εντεταγμένον entalmata entálmata

Englishman's Concordance

Matthew 15:9 N-ANP
GRK: διδάσκοντες διδασκαλίας ἐντάλματα ἀνθρώπων
NAS: AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'
KJV: [for] doctrines the commandments of men.
INT: teaching [as] teachings [the] precepts of men

Mark 7:7 N-ANP
GRK: διδάσκοντες διδασκαλίας ἐντάλματα ἀνθρώπων
NAS: AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'
KJV: [for] doctrines the commandments of men.
INT: teaching [as] teachings precepts of men

Colossians 2:22 N-ANP
GRK: κατὰ τὰ ἐντάλματα καὶ διδασκαλίας
NAS: in accordance with the commandments and teachings
KJV: after the commandments and
INT: according to the precepts and teachings

Strong's Greek 1778
3 Occurrences

ἐντάλματα — 3 Occ.