2319. theostugés

Lexical Summary

theostugés: God-hating, hateful to God

Original Word: θεοστυγής
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: theostugés
Pronunciation: theh-os-too-GACE
Phonetic Spelling: (theh-os-too-gace')
KJV: hater of God
NASB: haters of God
Word Origin: [from G2316 (θεός - God) and the base of G4767 (στυγνητός - hateful)]

1. hateful to God, i.e. impious

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

hater of God.

From theos and the base of stugnetos; hateful to God, i.e. Impious -- hater of God.

see GREEK theos

see GREEK stugnetos

HELPS Word-studies

2319 theostygḗs(a substantival adjective, derived from 2316 /theós, "God" and stygeō, "abhor") – properly, to abhor God (His will). This rare term refers to people who totally turn against the Lord (used only in Ro 1:30).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from theos and the same as stugétos
Definition
hating God
NASB Translation
haters of God (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 2319: θεοστυγής

θεοστυγής, θεοστυγες (Θεός and στυγέω; cf. θεομισής, θεομυσής, and the substantive, θεοστυγία, omitted in the lexamples, Clement of Rome, 1 Cor. 35, 5 [ET]), hateful to God, exceptionally impious and wicked; (Vulg.deoodibilis): Romans 1:30 (Euripides, Troad. 1213 and Cyclop. 396, 602; joined with ἄδικοι in Clement. hom. 1, 12, where just before occurs οἱ Θεόν μισοῦντες). Cf. the full discussion of the word by Fritzsche, Commentary on Romans, i., p. 84ff; (and see Winer's Grammar, 53f (53)).

Topical Lexicon

The Word in Romans 1:30

Romans 1 unfolds the tragic panorama of humanity’s descent when God “gave them over” to their own desires. Among twenty-one vices listed, Paul names people who are “θεοστυγεῖς,” rendered in the Berean Standard Bible as “God-haters” (Romans 1:30). The term appears nowhere else in the New Testament, indicating that Paul chose a rare word to sharpen the indictment: this is not casual indifference but active loathing of the Divine.

Biblical-Theological Context

1. Cosmic Rebellion
• Romans 1:18-32 shows the downward spiral from knowing God (verse 21) to exchanging His glory (verse 23) and finally to hating Him (verse 30). “God-hatred” is therefore the culmination of suppressing truth and worshiping the creature.
• Old Testament law already warns against those who “hate Me” (Deuteronomy 5:9). Paul echoes this covenant language, affirming continuity between Testaments: hatred of God is covenantal treason.

2. Moral Darkness as Judgment
• The progression from idolatry to moral chaos shows that divine wrath is often expressed by letting sin run its course. Hatred of God is both the cause and the fruit of that judgment.
• Romans 8:7 parallels the thought: “the mind of the flesh is hostile to God.” Thus θεοστυγεῖς captures an inner disposition that makes reconciliation impossible apart from grace.

Historical and Cultural Resonance

In Greco-Roman literature, hatred of the gods (misotheia) was shorthand for impiety worthy of severe punishment. By employing a cognate adjective, Paul speaks a language his audience would understand, yet he redirects the focus: the true crime is not violating civic religion but rejecting the one true God revealed in creation and Scripture.

Pastoral and Ministry Significance

1. Diagnosis of the Human Heart
• Evangelism must move beyond surface behaviors to expose heart-level enmity toward God (Ephesians 2:1-3).
• Counseling encounters often reveal masked hostility—anger at divine providence, refusal to submit to biblical authority—that mirrors the attitude denounced in Romans 1:30.

2. Proclamation of the Gospel
• Only the reconciling work of Christ can transform “enemies” into children (Romans 5:10).
• The enormity of “God-hatred” magnifies the glory of forgiveness; grace triumphs over the worst conceivable posture toward God.

3. Worship and Discipleship
• Believers are called to the opposite disposition: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart” (Matthew 22:37). The presence of “God-haters” in the world heightens the church’s witness as a community of God-lovers.
• Teaching on Romans 1 should cultivate gratitude for redemption and vigilance against subtle forms of antipathy toward God, such as grumbling (Philippians 2:14) or friendship with the world (James 4:4).

Contemporary Relevance

Modern secularism often shifts from indifference to overt hostility toward biblical truth. Romans 1:30 equips the church to recognize this trajectory, respond with compassionate apologetics (1 Peter 3:15), and pray for hearts to be turned from hatred to love (Acts 26:18).

Related Concepts for Further Study

• Enmity with God – Genesis 3:15; Colossians 1:21
• Hardness of Heart – Exodus 8:15; Hebrews 3:13
• Reconciliation Through Christ – 2 Corinthians 5:18-20; Colossians 1:22

Summary

θεοστυγεῖς exposes the deepest strata of human fallenness—a willful abhorrence of the Creator. Its single appearance in Romans 1:30 is sufficient to reveal the seriousness of sin, the necessity of divine intervention, and the breathtaking scope of the gospel that can turn God-haters into God-worshipers.

Forms and Transliterations

θεοστυγεις θεοστυγείς θεοστυγεῖς theostugeis theostygeis theostygeîs

Englishman's Concordance

Romans 1:30 Adj-AMP
GRK: καταλάλους θεοστυγεῖς ὑβριστάς ὑπερηφάνους
NAS: slanderers, haters of God, insolent,
KJV: Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful,
INT: slanderers hateful to God insolent arrogant

Strong's Greek 2319
1 Occurrence

θεοστυγεῖς — 1 Occ.