4401. procheirotoneó

Lexical Summary

procheirotoneó: To appoint, to choose, to elect

Original Word: προχειροτονέω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: procheirotoneó
Pronunciation: pro-khi-ro-to-NEH-o
Phonetic Spelling: (prokh-i-rot-on-eh'-o)
KJV: choose before
NASB: chosen beforehand
Word Origin: [from G4253 (πρό - before) and G5500 (χειροτονέω - appointed)]

1. to elect in advance

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

choose before.

From pro and cheirotoneo; to elect in advance -- choose before.

see GREEK pro

see GREEK cheirotoneo

HELPS Word-studies

4401 proxeirotonéō (from 4523 /Saddoukaíos, "before" and 5500/xeironteneō, "stretch out the hand") – properly, "extend the hand before" (used only in Ac 10:41).

4401/proxeirotonéō ("God's hand extended before") illustrates how God, the Creator, plans out all the physical scenes of our lives before the foundation of the world (cf. Ps 139:16; Is 43:13 - 45:7). For example, the Lord's hand determined who would be the initial witnesses of Christ's resurrection (Ac 10:41).

Reflection: God is always in charge . . . because He is always "previous!"

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from pro and cheirotoneó
Definition
to appoint beforehand
NASB Translation
chosen beforehand (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 4401: προχειροτονέω

προχειροτονέω, προχειροτόνω: perfect passive participle προκεχειροτονημενος; (see χειροτονέω); to choose or designate beforehand: Acts 10:41. (Plato, legg. 6, p. 765 b. c. (Aeschines, Demosthenes), Dio Cassius, 50, 4.)

Topical Lexicon

Overview

The term indicates God’s sovereign act of designating individuals for a task before that task unfolds in history. It points to an appointment that precedes human initiative and guarantees the fulfillment of God’s redemptive purposes.

Scriptural Occurrence

Acts 10:41 stands alone in the Greek New Testament: “He was not seen by all the people, but by the witnesses God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead.” Peter is speaking in Caesarea to the household of Cornelius, recounting the resurrection and the divine choice of specific eyewitnesses.

Historical Context

Peter’s sermon comes at a watershed moment when the gospel first penetrates the Gentile world without the prerequisite of becoming Jewish proselytes. By stressing that certain witnesses had been “pre-appointed,” Peter validates the authenticity of the resurrection while underscoring that the Gentile mission rests on the same divinely established foundation as the earlier Jewish mission.

Divine Sovereignty and Election

The verse resonates with wider biblical teaching on God’s prior choice (compare Ephesians 1:4; Romans 8:29–30). Whereas other passages speak of believers being chosen “before the foundation of the world,” Acts 10:41 focuses on specific individuals appointed ahead of time to bear eyewitness testimony. Both uses highlight that salvation history unfolds according to a pre-existent divine plan.

Apostolic Witness and Authority

Those “chosen beforehand” possessed two credentials: (1) direct, empirical interaction with the risen Christ (“ate and drank with Him”), and (2) divine commissioning. Their testimony anchors the church’s proclamation in verifiable history rather than myth or speculation (see Luke 24:48; 1 John 1:1–3). The early church’s doctrinal and missional authority rests on this unique, pre-appointed witness pool.

Continuity with Old Testament Patterns

God’s practice of pre-appointing representatives is seen throughout Scripture—Joseph before the famine (Genesis 45:5), Moses before the Exodus (Exodus 3:10–12), and the Servant of Isaiah “called … from the womb” (Isaiah 49:1). Acts 10:41 confirms that the same covenant-keeping God directs New Testament events.

Implications for Ministry

1. Confidence in Gospel Proclamation: Modern evangelists stand on the foundation laid by those original, God-appointed witnesses; thus the message rests on divine initiative rather than human ingenuity.
2. Assurance of Calling: While believers are not eyewitnesses of Christ’s earthly ministry, they are nonetheless “created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance” (Ephesians 2:10), reflecting the same principle of divine pre-appointment.
3. Inclusivity of the Mission: The verse appears in the first major Gentile conversion narrative, signaling that God’s prior planning always included the nations. The church therefore embraces cross-cultural evangelism as part of God’s eternal design.

Summary

Strong’s Greek 4401 highlights God’s deliberate, prior selection of resurrection witnesses. This single New Testament instance illuminates the reliability of apostolic testimony, showcases divine sovereignty in salvation history, and encourages the church to trust and obey the God who continues to appoint His servants in advance for works that serve His redemptive purposes.

Forms and Transliterations

προκεχειροτονημενοις προκεχειροτονημένοις prokecheirotonemenois prokecheirotoneménois prokecheirotonēmenois prokecheirotonēménois

Englishman's Concordance

Acts 10:41 V-RPM/P-DMP
GRK: μάρτυσιν τοῖς προκεχειροτονημένοις ὑπὸ τοῦ
NAS: but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God,
KJV: unto witnesses chosen before of
INT: to witnesses who had been chosen before by

Strong's Greek 4401
1 Occurrence

προκεχειροτονημένοις — 1 Occ.