5102. titlos

Lexical Summary

titlos: Title, Inscription

Original Word: τίτλος
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: titlos
Pronunciation: TIT-los
Phonetic Spelling: (tit'-los)
KJV: title
Word Origin: [of Latin origin]

1. a titulus or "title" (placard)

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

an inscription, notice

Of Latin origin; a titulus or "title" (placard) -- title.

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 5102: τίτλος

τίτλος, τιτλου, ὁ, a Latin word, a title; an inscription, giving the accusation or crime for which a criminal suffered: John 19:19, 20, and after it Ev. Nic c. 10, 1 at the end. (Sueton. Calig c. 32praecedente titulo qui causam poenae indicaret; again, Domit c. 10canibus objecit cunt hoe titulo: impie locutus parmularius.)

Topical Lexicon

Definition and General Sense

Strong’s 5102 designates a written notice affixed in a conspicuous place, especially to announce a charge or declaration. In Roman practice it was commonly attached above a crucified victim’s head to explain the offense. Scripture employs the term exclusively for the placard that declared Jesus’ identity and alleged crime.

Occurrences in the New Testament

• John 19:19 – “Pilate also had a notice written and posted on the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
• John 19:20 – Many Jews read the notice, for the place of crucifixion was near the city, and the sign was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek.

John alone records the trilingual detail, underscoring the universal reach of the message.

Historical Background

Roman governors required a titulus to accompany capital sentences. According to Suetonius (Caligula 32) and Josephus (Jewish War 5.451), the board could be carried before the condemned during procession or fastened to the cross. The languages John lists mirror the power blocs of first-century Palestine: Hebrew for the covenant people, Latin for imperial authority, and Greek for the wider Mediterranean world.

Literary Emphases in John’s Gospel

1. Public testimony: John highlights how “many Jews read the notice,” showing that the crucifixion was not hidden but openly declared (John 19:20).
2. Irony and divine sovereignty: Pilate intends a political statement; God turns it into a theological proclamation. When the chief priests protest, Pilate’s reply, “What I have written, I have written” (John 19:22), reinforces the permanence of the declaration.
3. Kingship motif: From Nathanael’s first confession (John 1:49) to the mock coronation (John 19:2-3), the Gospel climaxes with the title over the cross, presenting Jesus as King precisely at the moment of apparent defeat.

Theological Significance

• Christ’s universal lordship—The notice in three languages anticipates the global mission envisioned in Acts 1:8 and Revelation 5:9.
• Fulfillment of prophecy—The wording echoes Psalm 2:6 and anticipates Philippians 2:9-11, where the crucified One is exalted and confessed by every tongue.
• Inviolability of divine truth—Human authorities could not alter the title once written, illustrating how God’s purposes stand firm despite opposition (Isaiah 46:10).

Implications for Ministry and Worship

1. Cross-cultural evangelism: The trilingual inscription models the church’s task of communicating the gospel across linguistic and cultural boundaries.
2. Public witness: Like the notice over Jesus, believers are called to visible identification with Christ (Matthew 5:14-16).
3. Christ-centered proclamation: All preaching culminates in declaring Jesus as King, just as the notice did, however unintended by its author.

Use in Christian Tradition

Early Christian art and architecture often reproduce the title, abbreviated in Latin as “INRI” (Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum). Liturgical readings on Good Friday repeat the wording to emphasize the irony of the cross turning shame into glory.

Key Related Passages

• Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38 – Synoptic parallels that corroborate the presence of the sign.
• Colossians 2:14 – Christ cancels the legal record against us, a contrast to the record of accusation affixed above Him.
• Hebrews 13:12-13 – Believers go “outside the camp” bearing His reproach, much as the notice bore His title beyond the city gate.

Summary

Strong’s 5102 refers to the placard Pilate placed above Jesus, a small wooden board that conveyed profound, Spirit-guided truth: the crucified carpenter from Nazareth is in fact the King. Its dual occurrence in John underscores the public, multilingual, and unalterable proclamation of Christ’s identity and advances the broader biblical theme of God’s redemptive plan for all nations.

Forms and Transliterations

τιτλον τίτλον titlon títlon

Englishman's Concordance

John 19:19 N-AMS
GRK: δὲ καὶ τίτλον ὁ Πιλᾶτος
NAS: wrote an inscription and put
KJV: Pilate wrote a title, and put
INT: moreover also a title Pilate

John 19:20 N-AMS
GRK: οὖν τὸν τίτλον πολλοὶ ἀνέγνωσαν
NAS: this inscription, for the place
KJV: This title then read
INT: therefore the title many read

Strong's Greek 5102
2 Occurrences

τίτλον — 2 Occ.