ἐπαισχύνομαι
To feel shame for something
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Canonical witness: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
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What does ἐπαισχύνομαι (epaischýnomai) mean in the Bible?
ἐπαισχύνομαι (epaischýnomai) is a Greek word meaning "to feel shame for something". ἐπ-αισχύνομαι [in LXX: Job. The refusal to feel shame for the gospel or for imprisoned believers reflects courageous allegiance to Christ. This term runs through the canonical themes of Messiah.
Full entry for ἐπαισχύνομαι (G1870) · Browse the biblical lexicon
Meaning
Shame directed outward toward others or their judgment, not mere inner embarrassment about oneself.
to be ashamed (of): absol., 2Ti.1:12; with accusative of person(s), Mrk.8:38, Luk.9:26; with accusative of thing(s), Rom.1:16, 2Ti.1:8 1:16; ἐπί, with dative of thing(s), Rom.6:21; with inf., Heb.2:11; with, accusative of person(s), and inf., Heb.11:16,
Why This Word Matters
The refusal to feel shame for the gospel or for imprisoned believers reflects courageous allegiance to Christ. 2 Timothy 1:15-18
Paul confronts the temptation to distance oneself from the gospel when it brings social cost or suffering. 2 Timothy 1:8-12
Grammatical Forms
How mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 3×
Indicative states a fact or reality 8×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 11 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
Canonical Themes
Biblical Occurrences
Each occurrence shows the passage reference, the original language term as it appears in that context, its transliteration, and the contextual sense.
New Testament Witnesses
Additional Occurrences
Word Pictures (Robertson)
A.T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) discusses this term in the following chapters. Open any chapter and go to the Word Pictures tab to read his verse-by-verse commentary.
A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) — public domain