Lexical Summary tropé: Turning, change, variation Original Word: τροπή Strong's Exhaustive Concordance turning. From an apparently primary trepo to turn; a turn ("trope"), i.e. Revolution (figuratively, variation) -- turning. NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom trepó (to turn) Definition a turning NASB Translation shifting (1). Thayer's Greek Lexicon STRONGS NT 5157: τροπήτροπή, τροπῆς, ἡ (from τρέπω to turn), a turning: of the heavenly bodies, James 1:17 (on this see ἀποσκίασμα); often so in the Greek writings from Homer and Hesiod down (see Liddell and Scott, under the word, 1); cf. Job 38:33; Wis. 7:18; Deuteronomy 33:14; (Sophocles' Lexicon, under the word). Topical Lexicon Overview Τροπή (Strong’s Greek 5157) appears a single time in the New Testament, James 1:17, where it supplies the vivid picture of “change” or “variation.” The word draws on astronomical language: the turning of heavenly bodies that produces the alternating patterns of light and shadow observable in the night sky. James contrasts that ceaseless cosmic motion with the utter constancy of God, the giver of every good and perfect gift. Occurrence in Scripture James 1:17 – “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.” Literary Setting in James 1. Context: James exhorts believers undergoing trials (James 1:2-4) and warns against blaming God for temptation (James 1:13). Cosmic Imagery and Ancient Background • In Hellenistic astronomy τροπή referred to the solstices—the turning points of the sun. To the naked eye even stars wander; shadows lengthen and shorten; phases of the moon wax and wane. Theological Significance: The Immutability of God 1. Old Testament Foundations Contrast with Created Order Psalm 102:25-27 reminds that the heavens “will wear out like a garment,” while God remains. James echoes this: heavenly lights shift; the Father of those lights does not. Believers therefore anchor hope not in visible stability but in the unchanging Giver behind it. Pastoral and Devotional Applications • Assurance amid trial: because God’s character is fixed, His gifts—wisdom (James 1:5), new birth (James 1:18), and every providential blessing—are reliably good. Historical and Doctrinal Reflections • Patristic writers (e.g., Athanasius, Augustine) cited James 1:17 against Arian claims that the Son could change. Ministry Significance Counseling: believers tempted to interpret hardship as proof of divine inconsistency are redirected to the fixed nature of the Giver. Mission: the reliability of God undergirds proclamation; the message does not mutate with cultural tides. Ethics: because God’s moral nature is constant, moral standards remain objective and universal. Related Imagery: Light and Shadow • “Father of the heavenly lights” links to Genesis 1:14-18, where God speaks luminaries into being. Summary Τροπή in James 1:17 encapsulates the stark distinction between a universe of continual motion and the steadfast God who authors it. Every dependable blessing—from the smallest mercy to the climactic gift of salvation—flows from a Source untouched by variation. This single occurrence serves the church as a perpetual reminder that, though seasons turn and shadows move, the Father of lights remains forever the same, worthy of trust, worship, and joyful service. Forms and Transliterations τροπάς τροπή τροπήν τροπης τροπής τροπῆς τροπών tropes tropês tropēs tropē̂sLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts |
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