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ἀῤῥαβών

arrhabṓn

G728 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A legal pledge or deposit given as a guarantee or security for the fulfillment of an agreement, especially the first installment of a payment serving as assurance that the full amount will subsequently be paid; in a broader sense, used figuratively for any form of guarantee or irrevocable promise pending completion of a transaction or agreement.

Semantic Range

pledge, legal deposit, down payment, first installment as guarantee, earnest money, figurative guarantee (esp. of future fulfillment)

Root / Etymology

Borrowed from Hebrew עֲרָבוֹן (ʿărābôn), denoting a pledge or security; ultimately related to the Semitic root ערב meaning 'to guarantee, be responsible for.' The term entered Greek usage likely through commercial or legal contact, maintaining the sense of a financial or legal guarantee.

Historical & Contextual Notes

The word ἀῤῥαβών is rare in classical Greek and appears primarily in Hellenistic and Koine Greek, reflecting its Semitic origin and adaptation to Greek legal and commercial vocabulary. In the Septuagint, it mirrors its Hebrew counterpart as a contractual deposit or surety (e.g., Gen 38:17-20). In New Testament usage (e.g., 2 Cor 1:22; 5:5; Eph 1:14), it is employed both in the literal sense of a deposit or down payment and metaphorically, especially by Paul, as a metaphor for the Spirit given as a guarantee of future fulfillment. English translations often render it as 'earnest,' 'guarantee,' or 'deposit,' but these may miss the strong legal sense of an irrevocable binding pledge with both assurance and expectation of completion, as well as the distinct Semitic legal background of the term. There is no true classical Greek equivalent; the closest native term is ἐγγύη ('surety, bail'), but ἀῤῥαβών emphasizes the partial, advance nature of the payment or pledge. Its rarity and foreignness in Greek texts signal its technical, contractual nuance, distinguishing it from more generic words for pledge or promise.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

of Hebrew origin (עֲרָבוֹן); a pledge, i.e. part of the purchase-money or property given in advance as security for the rest:--earnest.

Root Family

ἀῤῥαβών (arrhabōn) — pledge, legal deposit, down payment, guarantee

Root ἀρραβ- to pledge, to give as security

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G728-02 ἀρραβῶνα arrabona N ACC M SG earnest a pledge deposit a pledge deposit 2
G728-01 ἀρραβὼν arrabon N NOM M SG pledge a pledge-deposit a pledge-deposit 1

Occurrences in Scripture

3 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G728-02 2 Corinthians 1:22 ἀρραβῶνα arrabona N ACC M SG earnest a pledge deposit pledge deposit
G728-02 2 Corinthians 5:5 ἀρραβῶνα arrabona N ACC M SG earnest a pledge deposit a pledge deposit
G728-01 Ephesians 1:14 ἀρραβὼν arrabon N NOM M SG pledge a pledge-deposit a pledge-deposit
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