2009. epitimia

Lexical Summary

epitimia: Punishment, penalty, censure

Original Word: ἐπιτιμία
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: epitimia
Pronunciation: eh-pee-tee-MEE-ah
Phonetic Spelling: (ep-ee-tee-mee'-ah)
KJV: punishment
NASB: punishment
Word Origin: [from a compound of G1909 (ἐπί - over) and G5092 (τιμή - honor)]

1. (properly) esteem, i.e. citizenship
2. used of a penalty
{(in the sense of G2008)}

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

punishment.

From a compound of epi and time; properly, esteem, i.e. Citizenship; used (in the sense of epitimao) of a penalty -- punishment.

see GREEK epi

see GREEK time

see GREEK epitimao

HELPS Word-studies

Cognate: 2009 epitimía (from 2008 /epitimáō, "to turn a situation in the right direction") – the fitting (appropriate) response necessary to turn someone in the right direction (used only in 2 Cor 2:6). See 2008 (epitimáō).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from epitimaó
Definition
punishment
NASB Translation
punishment (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 2009: ἐπιτιμία

ἐπιτιμία, ἐπιτιμιας, ἡ (ἐπιτιμάω), punishment (in Greek writings τό ἐπιτίμιον): 2 Corinthians 2:6; (Buttmann, § 147, 29). (Wis. 3:10; (others).)

STRONGS NT 2009a: ἐπιτοαυτό [ἐπιτοαυτό, Rec.st in Acts 1:15; Acts 2:1, etc.; see αὐτός, III. 1, and cf. Lipsius, Gramm. Unters., p. 125f]

Topical Lexicon

Overview

Strong’s Greek 2009 designates the formal, corrective action taken within the believing community to address serious sin and restore fellowship. In the New Testament it is found once, yet its theological weight radiates through the wider biblical teaching on loving, restorative discipline.

Scriptural Context: 2 Corinthians 2:6

“The punishment inflicted by the majority is sufficient for him.” (2 Corinthians 2:6)

Paul speaks to the church in Corinth concerning the offender first mentioned in 1 Corinthians 5. The congregation, having acted corporately, has now reached the limit of its corrective measure. The apostle’s words endorse two vital truths: (1) discipline belongs to the gathered body rather than to isolated individuals, and (2) its duration ends when repentance is evident.

Purpose and Theology of Church Discipline

1. Vindication of God’s holiness (Joshua 7:13; Acts 5:11).
2. Protection of the flock from leavening sin (1 Corinthians 5:6-7).
3. Restoration of the offender (Galatians 6:1).
4. Testimony to the watching world that the gospel transforms behavior (Matthew 5:16).

Discipline is never retributive vengeance; it is medicine, applied with grief and hope, reflecting the Father who “disciplines those He loves” (Hebrews 12:6).

Historical Background: Corinthian Case

The man who had taken his father’s wife was expelled “so that his spirit may be saved in the Day of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 5:5). By the time of 2 Corinthians he appears repentant. Paul therefore tells the church to halt further censure, forgive, comfort, and reaffirm love (2 Corinthians 2:7-8). The single occurrence of 2009 thus forms a hinge: discipline that accomplishes repentance must swiftly transition to restoration.

Practical Implications for Ministry

• Discipline must be congregationally approved (“by the majority”), guarding against authoritarian abuse.
• Clear communication of both offense and goal prevents gossip and factionalism.
• Restoration requires tangible acts of acceptance—public reaffirmation of love, re-inclusion at the Lord’s Table, and pastoral care.
• Leaders must monitor duration; lingering penalties risk despair and grant Satan an advantage (2 Corinthians 2:11).

Relationship to Old Testament Concepts

Old Covenant law mandated measured penalties proportionate to offense (Deuteronomy 25:2-3), always within covenant community. Prophets rebuked Israel for failing to carry out just correction (Jeremiah 5:3). New Covenant discipline continues this covenantal pattern, now centered in the local church under Christ’s headship.

Connection with Christ’s Disciplinary Authority

Jesus entrusted His church with the keys of the kingdom (Matthew 16:19) and outlined a graduated process of correction (Matthew 18:15-17). The final step, treating an impenitent brother “as a Gentile and a tax collector,” parallels the Corinthian removal. The occurrence of 2009 in 2 Corinthians 2:6 displays the same authority in action, tempered by Christ-like mercy once repentance surfaces.

Pastoral Applications

1. Before corporate action, private warnings and ample time for self-correction mirror Matthew 18:15-16.
2. Written documentation—minutes, letters—protects purity and transparency.
3. Public prayer accompanies both the censure and the welcome back, demonstrating unity of sorrow and joy.
4. Teaching on church membership prepares believers to receive discipline as a privilege of family, not a penalty of law.

Cautions and Boundaries

• Discipline aims at specific, verifiable sins, never personal preferences.
• It is proportionate: “Sufficient” means neither lax nor excessive.
• The oppressed, not the offender, must never be asked to bear the weight of premature restoration (Isaiah 1:17).
• Civil crimes are reported to authorities; ecclesial discipline does not replace the state’s God-ordained role (Romans 13:4).

Summary

Strong’s Greek 2009 captures the decisive moment when corrective action, carried out in love and majority consensus, has achieved its purpose and must give way to forgiveness. The single New Testament usage anchors a robust doctrine: biblical discipline protects holiness, rescues sinners, strengthens the church’s witness, and showcases the Father’s heart, who wounds to heal and chastens to restore.

Forms and Transliterations

επί επιτιμια επιτιμία ἐπιτιμία επιτοαυτό epitimia epitimía

Englishman's Concordance

2 Corinthians 2:6 N-NFS
GRK: τοιούτῳ ἡ ἐπιτιμία αὕτη ἡ
NAS: is this punishment which [was] [inflicted] by the majority,
KJV: [is] this punishment, which
INT: such a one [is] the punishment this which [is]

Strong's Greek 2009
1 Occurrence

ἐπιτιμία — 1 Occ.