ἄπειμι G0548
To be absent, to be away from; the state of physical separation from a person or place.
A verb meaning 'to be away' or 'to be absent,' formed from 'apo' (away from) and 'eimi' (to be). In the New Testament it appears almost exclusively in Paul's letters, where he contrasts physical absence with spiritual or authoritative presence. Writing to Corinth, he insists that though 'absent in body,' he is present in spirit to judge the immoral man (1 Cor 5:3), and warns that what he says by letter while absent, he will carry out when present (2 Cor 10:11; 13:2, 10). The word captures the pastoral tension of apostolic leadership exercised at a distance.
Senses
1. to be absent, to be away — To be physically absent or away from a place, group, or person. Consistently rendered as Spanish 'ausente/estando ausente,' French 'etre absent,' German 'abwesend sein,' English 'be absent.' Nearly all NT uses are Pauline, expressing the tension between physical distance and spiritual authority. In 1 Cor 5:3 Paul is 'absent in body but present in spirit'; in 2 Cor 10:1 opponents accuse him of being bold only when absent; in 2 Cor 13:2 and 13:10 he warns of what he will do when no longer absent. Phil 1:27 broadens the usage to Paul's possible absence from the Philippian church. The core meaning — physical non-presence — is constant throughout. 7×
AR["غائِباً", "غائِبينَ", "غائِبًا", "غائِبٌ"]·ben["অনুপস্থিত", "অনুপস্থিত-থেকে", "আমি-অনুপস্থিত"]·DE["abwesend-sein"]·EN["I-am-absent", "being-absent"]·FR["être-absent", "ἀπὼν", "ἄπειμι"]·heb["נִעְדָּר,", "נֶעְדָּר", "נֶעְדָּר-אֲנִי", "נֶעְדָּרִים"]·HI["अनुपस्थित", "अनुपस्थित,", "अनुपस्थित-होकर", "मैन-दोओर-होओन"]·ID["aku tidak hadir", "tidak hadir", "tidak-hadir"]·IT["apeimi", "apōn", "essere-assente"]·jav["kula-mboten-wonten", "mboten-wonten"]·KO["내가-떨어져-있으나", "떠나서", "떠나서는", "부재하나", "없으면,"]·PT["ausente", "estando-ausente", "estando-ausentes", "estou-ausente"]·RU["отсутствую", "отсутствующие", "отсутствующий", "отсутствуя"]·ES["ausente", "estando-ausente", "estando-ausentes", "estoy-ausente"]·SW["hatukukuwepo,", "ingawa-siko", "niko-mbali", "nisipokuwepo"]·TR["uzak-olan", "uzaktayken", "yok olarak"]·urd["غائب", "غائب-ہوں", "غیر-حاضر"]
Related Senses
H8033 1. There (locative adverb) (835×)H7760a 1. put, place, set physically (444×)H8064 1. heavens / sky (329×)H5439 1. around, all around (spatial) (319×)H4057b 1. wilderness, desert region (270×)H3220 1. sea, body of water (269×)H0520a 1. cubit (unit of length) (246×)H0127 1. ground, land (territory) (210×)H3383 1. Jordan River (proper noun) (183×)G1093 1. earth, the world (176×)H5800a 1. forsake, abandon (Qal active) (166×)H8121 1. sun (celestial body) (133×)H7126 1. offer, present sacrificially (122×)H6828 1. north, cardinal direction (120×)H2351 1. outside, exterior space (119×)H5104 1. river, stream (119×)H7341 1. width, breadth (101×)G1563 1. there (95×)H7126 2. draw near, approach (95×)G2281 1. sea, large body of water (91×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ἄπειμι, (εἰμί __A sum), imperfect ἀπῆν (later ἀπήμηνRefs 3rd c.AD+, 2nd pers.singular ἀπῆσθαRefs 5th c.BC+; Epic dialect ἀπέηνRefs 8th c.BC+: future ἀπέσομαιRefs 5th c.BC+; Epic dialect ἀπέσσομαιRefs 8th c.BC+:—to be away or far from, with genitive, ὁππότε πάτρης ἧς ἀπέῃσιν ἀνήρ Refs 5th c.BC+ __A.2 absolutely, to be away or absent, and of things, to be wanting, οἵ τ᾽ ὄντες οἵ τ᾽ ἀπόντες, i.e.…