What does ἔχθρα (échthra) mean in the Bible?
Hostility is opposition that sets persons or parties against one another. This Greek noun names it in different relationships.
Greek · G2189
ἔχθρα
Hostility; by implication, a reason for opposition
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ἔχθραG2189
Pronunciationéchthra
What does ἔχθρα (échthra) mean in the Bible?
Hostility is opposition that sets persons or parties against one another. This Greek noun names it in different relationships.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἔχθρα (G2189) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G2189?
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include hostility (2), [is] hostile (1), enemies (1), hatred (1), of hostility (1).
Where does ἔχθρα (échthra) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Luke 23:12. Its strongest book concentrations include Ephesians (2), Galatians (1), James (1), Luke (1).
What This Word Actually Means
Hostility is opposition that sets persons or parties against one another. This Greek noun names it in different relationships. Romans 8:7 speaks of the mind of the flesh as hostile to God, and Galatians 5:20 places hatred among the works of the flesh. James 4:4 describes friendship with the world's covetous and quarrelsome way as hostility toward God. The context identifies the allegiance or conduct being opposed; the word is not a label for every moment of discomfort or disagreement.
Ephesians 2:14-16 announces a decisive answer to hostility: Christ is our peace, making the two one and reconciling both to God through the cross. Luke 23:12 supplies a different scene, where Herod and Pilate become friends during the proceedings against Jesus. Their ending of an old enmity is not presented as the same reconciliation Christ accomplishes. Agreement between people must still be evaluated by its purpose. Likewise, a call to abandon hostility must not be turned into a demand that someone ignore danger or surrender a necessary protective boundary.
source_lexiconPassage contextPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
Opposition to God, hostility among people, Christ's reconciling cross, and Herod and Pilate's new friendship distinguish the reality of enmity from different ways it may be confronted or suspended.
- Eph.2.14
For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has torn down the dividing wall of hostility
Christ Himself is identified as peace, making the two one and tearing down the dividing wall of hostility. The preceding address to Gentiles and the following reconciliation keep the statement within Paul's account of their being brought near in Christ.
- Eph.2.16
And reconciling both of them to God in one body through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility.
Both are reconciled to God in one body through the cross, where the hostility is put to death. The passage grounds peace in Christ's work rather than in one group asserting superiority over the other.
- Rom.8.7
Because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
The mind of the flesh is described as hostile to God because it does not submit to His law. The surrounding contrast with the Spirit concerns spiritual allegiance, not a diagnosis inferred from anxiety, illness, or difficult emotions.
- Gal.5.20
Idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions,
Hatred appears among the works of the flesh alongside discord, jealousy, rage, and factions. The list is followed by the Spirit's fruit, directing attention to the character of life together.
- Jas.4.4
You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.
Hostility toward God is named within a rebuke of quarrels, coveting, and self-serving desires. Friendship with the world in this setting should not be reduced to ordinary neighborliness toward people outside the church.
- Luke.23.12
That day Herod and Pilate became friends; before this time they had been enemies.
Herod and Pilate become friends after previously being enemies, amid the proceedings and mockery surrounding Jesus. Their agreement shows why the ending of a rivalry is not by itself evidence of righteous reconciliation.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Ithostility2×Ephesians 2:16, James 4:4
[is] hostile1×Romans 8:7
enemies1×Luke 23:12
hatred1×Galatians 5:20
of hostility1×Ephesians 2:14
Show sample aligned rows
Luke 23:12ἔχθρᾳtoenemiesNoun - Dative Feminine SingularRomans 8:7ἔχθραto[is] hostileNoun - Nominative Feminine SingularGalatians 5:20ἔχθραιtohatredNoun - Nominative Feminine PluralEphesians 2:14ἔχθρανtoof hostilityNoun - Accusative Feminine SingularEphesians 2:16ἔχθρανtohostilityNoun - Accusative Feminine SingularJames 4:4ἔχθραtohostilityNoun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowLuke 23:12
Aligned rows6
Books represented5
Luke1Romans1Galatians1Ephesians2James1
Source forms
ἔχθρα2xechthraRomans 8:7, James 4:4
ἔχθραν2xechthranEphesians 2:14, Ephesians 2:16
ἔχθρᾳ1xechthraLuke 23:12
ἔχθραι1xechthraiGalatians 5:20
Parsing patterns
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular2xEphesians 2:14, Ephesians 2:16
Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular2xRomans 8:7, James 4:4
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular1xLuke 23:12
Noun - Nominative Feminine Plural1xGalatians 5:20
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Test calls for unity by whether they can bear truth, responsibility, and care for the people affected.
- Renounce vindictive opposition while preserving boundaries that protect against continuing harm or coercion.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that Christ's peace makes the truth about injustice irrelevant or grants one community superiority over another.
- Do not claim that every disagreement, painful feeling, or necessary safety boundary is the hostility condemned in these passages.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Active hostility or enmity as deep opposition, not merely disagreement or dislike
Strong'sG2189
Lexical occurrences6 versesGreek text appearances6 timesWord forms4 forms6 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Study linkLuke 23:12Source Gloss
hostility; by implication, a reason for opposition
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Luke 23:12Noun Dative Singular Feminine
ἔχθρᾳecqra
enmity, hostility
Read verseRomans 8:7Noun Nominative Singular Feminine
ἔχθραecqra
enmity, hostility
Read verseGalatians 5:20Noun Nominative Plural Feminine
ἔχθραι,ecqrai
enmity, hostility
Read verseEphesians 2:15Noun Accusative Singular Feminine
ἔχθρανecqran
enmity, hostility
Read verseEphesians 2:16Noun Accusative Singular Feminine
ἔχθρανecqran
enmity, hostility
Read verseJames 4:4Noun Nominative Singular Feminine
ἔχθραecqra
enmity, hostility
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 4 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns4Aligned forms6Case patternNominative (3)Number patternSingular (5)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Nominative · Singular · FeminineRom 8:7 · Jas 4:42×
Nominative · Plural · FeminineGal 5:201×
Dative · Singular · FeminineLuke 23:121×
Accusative · Singular · FeminineEph 2:14 · Eph 2:162×
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
hostility between persons, resolved through a common cause
opposition and hostility of the flesh toward God's law
works of the flesh, representing hostile divisions among believers
hostility between Jews and Gentiles abolished through Christ's cross
hostility toward God resulting from worldly friendship and unfaithfulness
Showing 5 selected witnesses from 6 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
ἔχθρα is built from this root:
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
Ephesians 2:16 says that both are reconciled to God through the cross. Neither party is invited to stand above the other as the source of peace. Christ Himself is the peace named in verse 14, and the surrounding passage brings those who were far away near through His blood. Teaching this word should therefore make Christ's work central rather than merely recommending a friendlier atmosphere.
Luke 23:12 sharpens the distinction. Two rulers end their rivalry during the proceedings against Jesus, but agreement does not make their conduct righteous. A church can similarly speak of unity while avoiding the truth about someone being harmed. Applying these passages responsibly requires refusing vindictive hostility while also telling the truth, addressing wrongdoing, and protecting people. Necessary accountability is not defeated simply by calling it divisive; peace cannot be measured only by the absence of an audible dispute.
Anchor passage
Eph.2.16
Doctrinal connections
- Ephesians 2:13-16 grounds reconciliation in Christ's blood and cross, with both parties brought into one body before God.
- Ephesians 2:17-18 joins proclaimed peace with shared access to the Father through Christ in one Spirit.
- Romans 8:5-9 contrasts the flesh's hostility and refusal of God's law with the life of the Spirit.
- Galatians 5:19-23 places hatred among the flesh's works and names love, peace, and patience among the Spirit's fruit.
- James 4:1-6 confronts quarrelsome desire and hostility toward God while announcing His greater grace to the humble.
- Luke 23:11-14 places Herod and Pilate's new friendship within the treatment of Jesus, whose guilt Pilate says he has not established.
The noun describes enmity, but its object and setting differ across the passages. Opposition toward God, conflict between people, and the hostility Christ removes cannot be collapsed into a single emotional state. The surrounding statements supply the relevant relationship and evaluation.
From Old to New Testament
The Hebrew passages about treachery and deceptive peace, such as Malachi 2:14 and Jeremiah 9:8, provide thematic comparisons for damaged relationships and false appearances of harmony. Ephesians 2 announces reconciliation through Christ's cross. The comparison does not identify these different words as one technical category or erase the particular covenant settings of the Hebrew texts.
Passage contextCanonical parallelPastoral application