3449. mochthos
Lexical Summary
mochthos: Toil, labor, hardship, trouble

Original Word: μόχθος
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: mochthos
Pronunciation: MOKH-thos
Phonetic Spelling: (mokh'-thos)
KJV: painfulness, travail
NASB: hardship
Word Origin: [from the base of G3425 (μόγις - Hardly)]

1. toil
2. (by implication) sadness

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
painfulness, travail.

From the base of mogis; toil, i.e. (by implication) sadness -- painfulness, travail.

see GREEK mogis

HELPS Word-studies

3449 móxthos (from mogos, "laborious toil") – wearisome, difficult effort (psychologically or physically); hard work, "implying unusual exertion of energy and effort" (L & N, 1, 42.48).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
akin to mogis
Definition
toil, hardship
NASB Translation
hardship (3).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 3449: μόχθος

μόχθος, μόχθου, , hard and difficult labor, toil, travail; hardship, distress: 2 Corinthians 11:27; 1 Thessalonians 2:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:8; see κόπος, 3 b. (Hesiod scut. 306; Pindar, Tragg., Xenophon, others; the Sept. chiefly for עָמָל.) (Synonym: see κόπος, at the end.)

Topical Lexicon
Meaning and Context

The word points to strenuous, wearying effort that drains strength yet accomplishes a needed task. It pictures work done under pressure, often accompanied by deprivation, and always undertaken for a worthy purpose rather than personal gain.

Occurrences in the New Testament

Paul alone employs the term, and each usage appears in letters where he defends the authenticity of his ministry:

2 Corinthians 11:27 – “in labor and toil and often without sleep, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.”
1 Thessalonians 2:9 – “Surely you recall, brothers and sisters, our labor and toil. We worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.”
2 Thessalonians 3:8 – “nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but we worked night and day, laboring and toiling, so that we would not be a burden to any of you.”

In each instance Paul pairs the word with “labor” (kopos) or closely related expressions, stressing not the activity itself but the sacrificial cost of fulfilling his commission.

Paul’s Apostolic Example

1. Self-supporting ministry. Paul undertook manual work (Acts 18:3) to avoid financial dependency on new believers. His toil safeguarded the gospel from suspicion of profiteering and modeled generosity (Acts 20:33-35).
2. Authenticating suffering. Hardship confirmed that his message, not personal comfort, drove him (2 Corinthians 6:3-10; 11:23-28).
3. Instructional value. To the Thessalonians he made his lifestyle a rule: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10). The same toil that funded his ministry trained converts in diligence and responsibility.

Theological Emphases

• Creation and fall. Work preceded sin (Genesis 2:15) but became painful after it (Genesis 3:17-19). Paul’s use of the term acknowledges the fallen condition yet redeems toil by linking it to gospel advance.
• Christ’s pattern. Jesus “grew weary from the journey” (John 4:6) and ultimately poured out His life (Mark 10:45). Apostolic hardship participates in that same self-giving trajectory (Colossians 1:24-29).
• Eschatological reversal. Present toil is temporary; “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord…their deeds will follow them” (Revelation 14:13). Future rest dignifies present exertion.

Relationship to the Biblical Work Ethic

Proverbs commends diligent hands; Ecclesiastes laments toil without eternal perspective; Paul integrates both motifs—work is necessary and noble, yet only worthwhile when subordinated to the kingdom (1 Corinthians 15:58). His use of the word underlines that gospel ministry is not exempt from the ordinary duty to labor but infuses it with everlasting significance.

Practical Ministry Applications

1. Bivocational service remains a strategic option where resources are scarce or testimony demands independence.
2. Congregations should honor leaders who labor physically or mentally for their sake (1 Timothy 5:17-18).
3. Believers facing exhausting circumstances can view their effort as partnership in the apostolic pattern, not evidence of divine displeasure.

Christological and Eschatological Perspective

The Savior who carried a cross calls His followers to tiring paths (Luke 9:23). Yet resurrection guarantees their toil “in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). Paul’s use of the term therefore bridges present hardship and future glory, encouraging steadfast, self-sacrificial service until the Master returns.

Forms and Transliterations
εμόχθησα εμόχθησας εμόχθησεν μοχθεί μοχθείς μοχθήση μόχθοι μόχθοις μοχθον μόχθον μόχθος μόχθου μόχθους μοχθω μοχθώ μόχθω μόχθῳ μοχλοί μοχλός μοχλούς μοχλώ μοχλών mochtho mochthō móchthoi móchthōi mochthon móchthon
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
2 Corinthians 11:27 N-DMS
GRK: κόπῳ καὶ μόχθῳ ἐν ἀγρυπνίαις
NAS: [I have been] in labor and hardship, through
KJV: and painfulness, in
INT: labor and toil in watchings

1 Thessalonians 2:9 N-AMS
GRK: καὶ τὸν μόχθον νυκτὸς καὶ
NAS: our labor and hardship, [how] working
KJV: labour and travail: for labouring
INT: and the toil for night and

2 Thessalonians 3:8 N-DMS
GRK: κόπῳ καὶ μόχθῳ νυκτὸς καὶ
NAS: for it, but with labor and hardship we [kept] working
KJV: labour and travail night and
INT: labor and toil night and

Strong's Greek 3449
3 Occurrences


μόχθῳ — 2 Occ.
μόχθον — 1 Occ.

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