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Lexical Summary
apekdusis: Stripping off, removal, disarming
Original Word: á¼ÏÎÎºÎ´Ï ÏιÏ
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance
removal, divestment
From apekduomai; divestment — putting off.
see GREEK apekduomai
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 555 apékdysis â a “putting off” (like the taking off of clothes) using two prefixes (apo, ek). “The word therefore is a strong expression for ‘wholly putting away from oneself’ ” (WS, 907).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from apekduomai
Definition
a stripping off
NASB Translation
removal (1).
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 555: á¼ÏÎÎºÎ´Ï ÏιÏ
á¼ÏÎÎºÎ´Ï ÏιÏ, á¼ÏÎµÎºÎ´Ï ÏεÏÏ, ἡ (á¼ÏεκδÏομαι, which see), a putting off, laying aside: Colossians 2:11. (Not found in Greek writings.)
Topical Lexicon
Overview
Strongâs Greek 555 points to the decisive âputting offâ that takes place when the believer is united with Jesus Christ. While the noun occurs only once in the Greek New Testament (Colossians 2:11), its theological weight is considerable, binding together themes of spiritual circumcision, death to the old life, and victory over hostile powers.
Biblical Occurrence
Colossians 2:11: âIn Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.â
Historical and Literary Context
Paul writes to the church in Colossae, where legalistic and proto-gnostic influences threatened to obscure the sufficiency of Christ. By invoking the imagery of the ancient rite of circumcision, Paul answers Jewish legalists; by stressing an inward and once-for-all âputting off,â he counters ascetic demands that promised a higher spirituality through self-made religion (Colossians 2:23).
Spiritual Circumcision and Identity in Christ
1. Circumcision made without hands (Colossians 2:11) fulfills earlier prophetic calls for an inward work of God (Deuteronomy 10:16; Jeremiah 4:4).
Old Man versus New Man
The âputting offâ of Colossians 2:11 anticipates Paulâs exhortation to âput off the old self with its practicesâ (Colossians 3:9). Similar language appears in Ephesians 4:22-24 where believers are told to âput offâ the old self and âput onâ the new. In each case the indicativeâwhat God has already doneâgrounds the imperativeâhow believers must now live.
Connection with Baptism
The flow of thought moves seamlessly from spiritual circumcision (verse 11) to burial with Christ in baptism (verse 12). Baptism testifies that the believer has been stripped of the old allegiance, buried, and raised with Christ (Romans 6:4). Thus, baptism is not merely symbolic; it proclaims the objective reality of the âputting offâ accomplished by Christ.
Christâs Victory over the Powers
The same root idea resurfaces in Colossians 2:15 where Christ âdisarmed the rulers and authorities.â Just as believers are stripped of the body of flesh, so hostile powers are stripped of their weaponry. This parallel underscores that the believerâs deliverance and Christâs cosmic triumph are facets of one grand victory.
Practical Ministry Implications
1. Assurance of Salvation: The decisive nature of the âputting offâ gives believers confidence that sinâs dominion has been broken (Romans 6:14).
Related Scriptures for Further Study
Romans 2:28-29; Romans 6:6-14; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Philippians 3:3; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:9-10.
Forms and Transliterations
αÏÎµÎºÎ´Ï Ïει αÏεκδÏÏει á¼ÏεκδÏÏει εÏεκÏάÏÎµÎ¹Ï apekdusei apekdysei apekdýsei
Links
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