3581. xenos
Lexical Summary
xenos: Stranger, foreigner, guest

Original Word: ξένος
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: xenos
Pronunciation: KSEH-nos
Phonetic Spelling: (xen'-os)
KJV: host, strange(-r)
NASB: strangers, stranger, strange, host, strange thing
Word Origin: [apparently a primary word]

1. foreign
2. (literally) alien
3. (figuratively) novel
4. (by implication, actively) a host
5. (by implication, passively) a guest

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
host, stranger.

Apparently a primary word; foreign (literally, alien, or figuratively, novel); by implication, a guest or (vice-versa) entertainer -- host, strange(-r).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
a prim. word
Definition
foreign, a foreigner, guest
NASB Translation
host (1), strange (2), strange thing (1), stranger (4), strangers (6).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 3581: ξένος

ξένος, ξένῃ, ξένον, from Homer down, masculine a guest-friend (Latinhopes (of parties bound by ties of hospitality)), i. e.:

1. a foreigner, stranger (opposed to ἐπιχώριος, Plato, Phaedo c. 2, p. 59 b.; Josephus, b. j. 5, 1, 3);

a. properly: Matthew 25:35, 38, 43; Matthew 27:7; 3 John 1:5; ξένοι καί παρεπίδημοί ἐπί τῆς γῆς, Hebrews 11:13; οἱ ἐπιδημοῦντες ξένοι, Acts 17:21; opposed to συμπολίτης, Ephesians 2:19; (the Sept. for אֹרֵחַ, a traveler, 2 Samuel 12:4, Alex. manuscript; for נֵר, Job 31:32; several times for נָכְרִי). (as adjective with) δαιμόνια, Acts 17:18.

b. tropically, α. alien (from a person or thing); without knowledge of, without a share in: with a genitive of the thing, τῶν διαθηκῶν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας, Ephesians 2:12 (cf. Winer's Grammar, § 30, 4, 6) (τοῦ λόγου, Sophocles O. T. 219). β. new, unheard of: διδαχαι, Hebrews 13:9; ξένον τί a strange, wonderful thing, 1 Peter 4:12 (Aeschylus Prom. 688; Diodorus 3, 15 and 52; others).

2. one echo receives and entertains another hospitably; with whom he stays or lodges, a host: ξένος μου, Romans 16:23, where καί τῆς ἐκκλησίας ὅλης is added, i. e. either 'who receives hospitably all the members of the church who cross his threshold,' or 'who kindly permits the church to worship in his house' (Fritzsche).

Topical Lexicon
Root Sense and Literary Color

Ξένος denotes one who is outside the familiar circle—an alien, guest, outsider, or something unexpected. The term can therefore point either to an excluded person needing welcome or to a doctrine/experience perceived as unfamiliar.

Greco-Roman and Jewish Contexts

In the Greek world, ξενία (hospitality) was a celebrated virtue binding hosts and guests in reciprocal loyalty. Jewish Scripture similarly commands, “You are to love the foreigner, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:19). Against this moral backdrop the New Testament employs ξένος to affirm God’s heart for outsiders and to caution against teaching that departs from apostolic truth.

Survey of New Testament Occurrences

Fourteen usages cluster around three themes:

1. Outsiders to the covenant community (Ephesians 2:12; 2:19; Hebrews 11:13).
2. Hospitality or treatment of literal strangers (Matthew 25:35-44; Romans 16:23; 3 John 5).
3. “Strange” doctrine or experience (Acts 17:18-21; Hebrews 13:9; 1 Peter 4:12).

Alienation from the Covenants (Ephesians 2:12)

“...strangers to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.” The word underscores the Gentile’s plight before Christ: no legal status, no claim on Israel’s promises, no access to God’s household.

Adoption into God’s Household (Ephesians 2:19)

“So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household.” In Christ the outsider is naturalized; the wall separating Jew and Gentile is demolished. The gospel therefore dismantles ethnic and ritual barriers, birthing one new humanity.

Pilgrim Identity of Faith (Hebrews 11:13; 13:9)

Patriarchs “confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.” Believers join them, living loosely to temporal structures while anchored in a better country. Hebrews 13:9 warns against being “carried away by all kinds of strange teachings,” reminding the pilgrim church to discern truth while journeying.

Hospitality to the Stranger (Matthew 25:35-44; Romans 16:23; 3 John 5-8)

Matthew 25 presents the eschatological weight of welcoming ξένος: “I was a stranger and you welcomed Me” (25:35). Refusing such hospitality draws the King’s indictment (25:43-44). Practical models follow: Gaius is Paul’s “host” (Romans 16:23), and the beloved in 3 John “show hospitality to the brothers, even though they are strangers to you” (verse 5). Embracing the outsider is therefore both a gospel sign and a test of discipleship.

“Foreign” Doctrine and Gospel Witness (Acts 17:18-21; 1 Peter 4:12)

Athenians label Paul’s message “strange doctrines” (Acts 17:18), yet Luke records their eager hearing. The gospel itself may sound foreign, but remains the power of God. Conversely, Peter cautions believers not to treat fiery ordeals as “something strange” (1 Peter 4:12); suffering for Christ is normal Christian experience.

Pastoral and Missional Applications

• Evangelism: Expect the message to appear foreign; present it with clarity and grace.
• Hospitality: Open homes and congregations to refugees, immigrants, itinerant servants, and the socially marginalized, reflecting the welcome believers received in Christ.
• Discipleship: Teach believers to hold lightly to earthly identities, embracing pilgrim status.
• Doctrine: Guard the flock from teachings that appear novel yet contradict apostolic truth.

Intertextual Links to the Old Testament

OT “sojourner” (גֵּר, gēr) legislation (Exodus 22:21; Leviticus 19:33-34) anticipates the church’s call. The Abrahamic covenant promised blessing to “all nations”; ξένος in Ephesians shows that promise realized. Prophetic visions of nations streaming to Zion (Isaiah 2:2-4) are already inaugurated as strangers become citizens.

Summary

Strong’s 3581 weaves together the Bible’s ethic of hospitality, the redemptive movement from alienation to belonging, and the need for doctrinal vigilance. The church, once “strangers to the covenants,” now extends Christ’s welcome to every ξένος while guarding the faith from every “strange teaching.”

Forms and Transliterations
ξεναις ξέναις ξένη ξενοι ξένοι ξενοις ξένοις ξενον ξένον ξενος ξενός ξένος ξενου ξένου ξενους ξένους ξένω Ξενων Ξένων xenais xénais xenoi xénoi xenois xénois xenon Xenōn xénon Xénōn xenos xénos xenou xénou xenous xénous
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Matthew 25:35 Adj-NMS
GRK: ἐποτίσατέ με ξένος ἤμην καὶ
NAS: and you gave Me [something] to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited
KJV: drink: I was a stranger, and ye took
INT: you gave to drink me a stranger I was and

Matthew 25:38 Adj-AMS
GRK: σε εἴδομεν ξένον καὶ συνηγάγομεν
NAS: did we see You a stranger, and invite
KJV: thee a stranger, and
INT: you saw we a stranger and took [you] in

Matthew 25:43 Adj-NMS
GRK: ξένος ἤμην καὶ
NAS: I was a stranger, and you did not invite
KJV: I was a stranger, and ye took
INT: a stranger I was and

Matthew 25:44 Adj-AMS
GRK: διψῶντα ἢ ξένον ἢ γυμνὸν
NAS: thirsty, or a stranger, or naked,
KJV: athirst, or a stranger, or naked,
INT: thirsting or a stranger or naked

Matthew 27:7 Adj-DMP
GRK: ταφὴν τοῖς ξένοις
NAS: Field as a burial place for strangers.
KJV: to bury strangers in.
INT: a burial place for the strangers

Acts 17:18 Adj-GNP
GRK: οἱ δέ Ξένων δαιμονίων δοκεῖ
NAS: to be a proclaimer of strange deities,--
KJV: a setter forth of strange gods:
INT: Others moreover Of foreign gods he seems

Acts 17:21 Adj-NMP
GRK: οἱ ἐπιδημοῦντες ξένοι εἰς οὐδὲν
NAS: the Athenians and the strangers visiting
KJV: and strangers which
INT: the visiting strangers in nothing

Romans 16:23 Adj-NMS
GRK: Γαῖος ὁ ξένος μου καὶ
NAS: Gaius, host to me and to the whole
KJV: Gaius mine host, and of the whole
INT: Gaius the host of me and

Ephesians 2:12 Adj-NMP
GRK: Ἰσραὴλ καὶ ξένοι τῶν διαθηκῶν
NAS: of Israel, and strangers to the covenants
KJV: and strangers from the covenants
INT: of Israel and strangers from the covenants

Ephesians 2:19 Adj-NMP
GRK: οὐκέτι ἐστὲ ξένοι καὶ πάροικοι
NAS: you are no longer strangers and aliens,
KJV: no more strangers and
INT: no longer are you strangers and aliens

Hebrews 11:13 Adj-NMP
GRK: ὁμολογήσαντες ὅτι ξένοι καὶ παρεπίδημοί
NAS: and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles
KJV: that they were strangers and pilgrims
INT: having confessed that strangers and exiles

Hebrews 13:9 Adj-DFP
GRK: ποικίλαις καὶ ξέναις μὴ παραφέρεσθε
NAS: by varied and strange teachings;
KJV: with divers and strange doctrines. For
INT: various and strange not be carried about

1 Peter 4:12 Adj-GNS
GRK: γινομένῃ ὡς ξένου ὑμῖν συμβαίνοντος
NAS: as though some strange thing were happening
KJV: as though some strange thing happened
INT: [which is] taking place as if a strange thing to you [is] happening

3 John 1:5 Adj-AMP
GRK: καὶ τοῦτο ξένους
NAS: and especially [when they are] strangers;
KJV: and to strangers;
INT: and they are strangers

Strong's Greek 3581
14 Occurrences


ξέναις — 1 Occ.
Ξένων — 1 Occ.
ξένοι — 4 Occ.
ξένοις — 1 Occ.
ξένον — 2 Occ.
ξένος — 3 Occ.
ξένου — 1 Occ.
ξένους — 1 Occ.

3580
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