ἀσπάζομαι

ἀσπάζομαι fut. ptc. ἀσπασομένους 3 Macc. 1:8; 1 aor. ἠσπασάμην (s. next entry; Hom.+) ‘greet’.

① to engage in hospitable recognition of another (w. varying degrees of intimacy), greet, welcome τινά someone Just., A I, 65, 2

ⓐ through word or gesture or both: of those entering a house Mt 10:12; Lk 1:40; Ac 21:19; Hv 5:1. Of those meeting others (Jos., Ant. 8, 321) Lk 10:4; welcome, greet someone (Philostrat., Vi. Apoll. 1, 12) Mk 9:15; Hv 1, 1, 4; 1, 2, 2; 4, 2, 2; AcPl Ha 7:38; 8:3. Of those departing take leave of (X., An. 7, 1, 8; Nicol. Dam.: 90 Fgm. 68, 7 Jac.; Plut., Aemil. P. 270 [29, 1] ἀσπασάμενος ἀνέζευξεν) Ac 20:1, 12 D; 21:6 v.l.; AcPl Ha 5, 13.—Mt 5:47 ἀ. here denotes more than a perfunctory salutation and requires some such rendering as spend time in warm exchange (cp. X., Cyr. 1, 4, 1; Ael. Aristid. 31, 6 K.=11 p. 128 D.; Aelian, VH 9, 4; Appian, Bell. Civ. 3, 79 §322 τ. ἐναντίους); w. ἀγαπάω (vs. 46), of which it is almost a synonym (as Plut., Mor. 143b; s. HAlmqvist, Plut. u. das NT, ’46, 34; Ptolem., Apotel. 1, 3, 17.—W. φιλέω: Hierocles 19, 460; opp. μισέω: Simplicius in Epict. p. 31, 6). See FPorporato, Verb. Domini 11, ’31, 15–22.—Freq. in written greetings (cp. the exx. in Ltzm., Griech. Papyri [Kleine Texte 14]² 1910, nos. 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13.—FZiemann, De Epistularum Graec. Formulis Soll., diss. Halle 1911, 325ff; FXJExler, The Form of the Ancient Gk. Letter 1923; ORoller, D. Formular d. paul. Briefe ’33, 67ff; HKoskenniemi, Studien z. Idee u. Phraseologie d. griech. Briefes ’56, 148ff); the impv. may be transl. greetings to (someone) or remember me to (someone); other moods than impv. may be rendered wish to be remembered, greet, send greetings Ro 16:3, 5ff; 1 Cor 16:19f; 2 Cor 13:12; Phil 4:21f; Col 4:10, 12, 14f; 2 Ti 4:19, 21; Tit 3:15; Phlm 23; Hb 13:24; 1 Pt 5:13f; 2J 13; 3J 15; IMg ins; 15; ITr ins; 12:1; 13:1; IRo ins; 9:3; IPhld ins; 11:2; ISm 11:1; 12:1f; 13:1f; IPol 8:2f. Another person than the writer of the letter sometimes adds greetings of his own Ro 16:22 (sim. POxy 1067, 25 κἀγὼ Ἀλέξανδρος ἀσπάζομαι ὑμᾶς πολλά). ἀ. πολλά (besides the pap just mentioned also PParis 18, 3 [Dssm., B 215]; POxy 930, 22; 935, 22; PGrenf II, 73, 4 [=Ltzm. Pap. nos. 13, 14, 15]) greet warmly 1 Cor 16:19; ἀ. κατʼ ὄνομα (PParis 18, 15 [Dssm., B 216]; POxy 930, 26 [=Ltzm. Pap. no. 13]) greet by name 3J 15; ISm 13:2 (πάντας κατʼ ὄνομα as PMich 206, 20ff [II A.D.]); ἄσπασαι τοὺς φιλοῦντας ἡμᾶς ἐν πίστει (PFay 119, 25ff ἀσπάζου τοὺς φιλοῦντες [sic] ἡμᾶς πρὸς ἀλήθιαν. Sim. BGU 814, 38) Tit 3:15. Among friends the greeting is accompanied by a kiss (Ps.-Lucian, De Asin. 17 φιλήμασιν ἠσπάζοντο ἀλλήλους; Heliod. 10, 6; φιλήματι Just., A I, 65, 2; cp. the apocryphal preface Ath. 32, 3 [Resch, Agrapha 137]), hence: ἀ. ἐν φιλήματι Ro 16:16; 1 Cor 16:20; 2 Cor 13:12; 1 Th 5:26; 1 Pt 5:14. Of homage to a king hail, acclaim (Dionys. Hal. 4, 39; Plut., Pomp. 624 [12, 4]; 13, 7; cp. Jos., Ant. 10, 211) Mk 15:18 (cp. Philo, In Flacc. 38).

ⓑ of short friendly visits, ‘look in on’ Ac 18:22; 21:7; IRo 1:1. Of official visits pay one’s respects to (Sb 8247, 13; 15 [II A.D.]; BGU 248, 12; 347 I, 3 and II, 2; 376 I, 3; Jos., Ant. 1, 290; 6, 207) Ac 25:13 (OGI 219, 43 [III B.C.]) s. Schwyzer II 301, also 297. Of the greeting given to a priest in a liturgical service τοῦ ἀσπάσασθαι αὐτὸν ἐν εὐχῇ to greet him with prayer GJs 24:1.

② to express happiness about the arrival of someth., welcome, greet, fig. ext. of 1 in ref. to someth. intangible (Eur., Ion 587; Chariton 6, 7, 12; Alciphron 1, 3, 3; Diog. L. σοφίαν ἀσπαζόμενος; POxy 41, 17 τὴν παρʼ ὑμῶν τιμήν; CPR 30 II, 39; Philo, Det. Pot. Ins. 21; Jos., Ant. 6, 82; 7, 187; TestGad 3:3; Just.) τὰς ἐπαγγελίας the promises Hb 11:13.—DELG. M-M. TW.