3290

Lexical Summary

(Not Used): (Not Used)

(Not Used)
Part of Speech:
Transliteration: (Not Used)
(Not Used)

Topical Lexicon

Definition and Etymology

Strong’s Greek 3290 denotes a person who has been removed from his homeland and now resides as a foreigner elsewhere—a resident alien, immigrant, or deportee. Although the word is absent from the Greek New Testament, it appears in the Septuagint to translate Hebrew terms for “exile” or “captivity,” capturing the lived reality of God’s covenant people when they were uprooted and replanted among the nations.

Old Testament Usage (Septuagint)

1. Political deportations: 2 Kings 24:14; 2 Kings 25:11; 2 Chronicles 36:20.
2. Prophetic literature: Jeremiah 29:1–7; Ezekiel 11:24–25.
3. Narratives of return: Ezra 2:1; Nehemiah 7:6.

In every case the focus rests on people whose normal social, legal, and spiritual framework has been disrupted by divine discipline, yet who remain under Yahweh’s covenant care.

Exegetical Themes

Deportation as judgment and mercy: Exile fulfils covenant curses (Deuteronomy 28:36) while simultaneously preserving a remnant and setting the stage for restoration (Jeremiah 29:10; Isaiah 40:1–2).

Identity reshaped in displacement: Stripped of temple, monarchy, and land, Israel’s faith becomes word-centered, fostering synagogue worship and fresh attention to the Scriptures.

Mission among the nations: “Seek the prosperity of the city to which I have sent you in exile” (Jeremiah 29:7) anticipates Israel’s witness in foreign contexts and foreshadows the church’s Great Commission posture.

Historical Significance: The Babylonian Deportation

The Babylonian Captivity (586 BC) is the decisive historical backdrop for the term. Families, craftsmen, priests, and nobility are called “exiles” (μέτοικοι) in the LXX. Their seventy-year sojourn reoriented Israel’s hopes toward a future Messiah and a restored Zion. Post-exilic reforms under Ezra and Nehemiah emerged directly from lessons learned in captivity.

Implications for New Covenant Believers

1. Spiritual sojourning: “Beloved, I urge you as foreigners and exiles to abstain from the desires of the flesh” (1 Peter 2:11). Though 3290 itself is not used, its concept lies behind terms such as παρεπίδημος and πάροικος, underscoring that Christians live between two worlds.
2. Heavenly citizenship: “Our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20); “They acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth” (Hebrews 11:13).
3. Holiness under pressure: Life in a foreign environment calls for loyalty to God over surrounding culture (Daniel 1; Romans 12:2).
4. Gospel hope of homecoming: As Israel returned from Babylon, so believers await “new heavens and a new earth” (2 Peter 3:13).

Pastoral and Missional Applications

• Hospitality to migrants mirrors God’s care for the displaced (Leviticus 19:34; Matthew 25:35).
• Churches situated in secular cultures learn to flourish in exile by practicing truth, sacrificial love, and hopeful endurance.
• Ministry among diaspora communities often finds prepared hearts, echoing how Judah’s exiles nurtured renewed devotion while away from Jerusalem.

Summary

Strong’s Greek 3290, though absent from the New Testament text, frames a rich biblical theology of exile. It testifies that God disciplines yet sustains His people, turning forced displacement into occasions for purification, witness, and anticipation of ultimate restoration in Christ.

Englishman's Concordance

μελῶν — 2 Occ.
μέλος — 5 Occ.
Μελχὶ — 2 Occ.
Μελχισεδέκ — 8 Occ.
ἔμελεν — 2 Occ.
μέλει — 7 Occ.
μελέτω — 1 Occ.
μεμβράνας — 1 Occ.
μέμφεται — 1 Occ.
μεμφόμενος — 1 Occ.
μὲν — 182 Occ.
Μενοῦν — 1 Occ.
μενοῦνγε — 2 Occ.
μέντοι — 8 Occ.
ἐμείναμεν — 2 Occ.
ἔμειναν — 2 Occ.
ἔμεινεν — 10 Occ.
ἔμενεν — 3 Occ.
ἔμενον — 1 Occ.
μεῖναι — 6 Occ.