ἐξομολογ-έομαι G1843
To confess (sins); to praise or give thanks (to God); to consent or agree (to a proposal)
A rich compound verb (ἐκ + ὁμολογέω) whose meaning pivots on context from penitence to praise to agreement. Its most common NT use is confessing sins, as at John's baptism where crowds came 'confessing their sins' (Matt 3:6; Mark 1:5). Yet in Matt 11:25 and Luke 10:21, Jesus uses the same word to praise the Father -- a usage deeply rooted in the LXX's rendering of Hebrew yadah, which similarly bridges confession and thanksgiving. Judas's 'consent' to betray Jesus (Luke 22:6) reveals a third, rarer pragmatic sense. Spanish neatly tracks all three: 'confesando' for sins, 'te alabo' for praise, and 'consintio' for agreement.
Senses
1. confess (sins or faults) — To openly confess or acknowledge one's sins, wrongdoing, or faults before God or others. This penitential sense dominates the NT, appearing at John's baptism (Matt 3:6; Mark 1:5), the Ephesian converts burning their magic books (Acts 19:18), and Paul's citation of Isa 45:23 in Rom 14:11. Spanish 'confesando' and German 'bekennen' both preserve the overtone of public, solemn acknowledgment that the ἐκ- prefix intensifies beyond simple ὁμολογέω. 7×
AR["اعتَرِفوا","سَأَعْتَرِفُ-لَكَ","سَيَعْتَرِفُ","مُعْتَرِفِينَ","يَعْتَرِفُ"]·ben["স্বীকার-করছিল","স্বীকার-করছে","স্বীকার-করতে","স্বীকার-করব","স্বীকার-করবে","স্বীকার-করে","স্বীকার-করো"]·DE["bekennen","ἐξομολογούμενοι"]·EN["Confess","I-will-confess","confessing","may-confess","will-confess"]·FR["confesser"]·heb["אוֹדֶה-לְךָ","הִתְוַדּוּ","מִתְוַדִּים","תּוֹדֶה"]·HI["अंगीकार-करते-हुए","अंगीकार-करूँगा","अंगीकार-करेगी","अंगीकार-करो","पापों","बोल-उथे"]·ID["Aku-akan-mengaku","Mengakulah","akan-mengaku","mengaku"]·IT["confessare","exomologeisthe","exomologēsētai"]·jav["Kula-badhé-ngakeni","badhé-ngakeni","ngaken","ngakeni","ngakoni","ngaku","ngakua"]·KO["고백하라","고백하며","내가-찬양하리라","시인하리라","자백하며"]·PT["confessando","confessará","confesse","te-louvarei"]·RU["исповедает","исповедал","исповедуйте","исповедуя","среди-"]·ES["confesad","confesando","confesará","confiese","te-confesaré"]·SW["itakiri","nitakukiri","ukiri","ungamianeni","wakikiri","wakiungama"]·TR["itiraf-edecek","itiraf-edeceğim","itiraf-ederek","itiraf-edin","itiraf-etsin"]·urd["اقرار-کرتے-ہوئے","اقرار-کرو","اقرار-کرے","اقرار-کرے-گی","حمد-کروں-گا"]
2. praise, give thanks (to God) — To praise, give thanks, or offer grateful acknowledgment to God. This doxological sense reflects the LXX's use of ἐξομολογέομαι to translate Hebrew yadah (hiphil), where confession shades into thanksgiving. In Matt 11:25 and Luke 10:21, Jesus cries 'I praise you, Father' -- Spanish 'te alabo' unmistakably signals worship rather than penitence, while French 'confesser' and German flatten the distinction, showing how English and Romance languages better preserve the semantic fork. 2×
AR["أَحْمَدُكَ","أَشكُرُكَ"]·ben["ধন্যবাদ-জানাচ্ছি","ধন্যবাদ-দিচ্ছি"]·DE["Ἐξομολογοῦμαί"]·EN["I-praise"]·FR["confesser"]·heb["מוֹדֶה","מוֹדֶה-אֲנִי"]·HI["धन्यवअद-देत-होओन","धन्यवाद-करता-हूँ"]·ID["Aku-bersyukur","Aku-memuji"]·IT["confessare"]·jav["Kula-saos-sokur","Saos-sokur"]·KO["감사합니다","내가-감사하노니"]·PT["Louvo-te"]·RU["Славлю"]·ES["Te-alabo"]·SW["Ninakushukuru"]·TR["şükrederim","şükrediyorum"]·urd["شکر-کرتا-ہوں"]
3. consent, agree (to a proposal) — To consent, agree, or assent to a plan or proposal. This pragmatic sense appears only in Luke 22:6, where Judas 'consented' to the chief priests' scheme to betray Jesus. Spanish 'consintio' clearly marks this as volitional agreement rather than religious confession. The classical Greek commercial and legal background of the word -- acknowledging a liability or accepting terms -- surfaces here in the narrative of betrayal. 1×
AR["وَعَدَ"]·ben["সম্মত-হল"]·DE["ἐξωμολόγησεν"]·EN["he-consented"]·FR["confesser"]·heb["הוֹדָה"]·HI["मान-गया"]·ID["dia-menyetujui"]·IT["confessare"]·jav["piyambakipun-nyarujuki,"]·KO["동의했다"]·RU["согласился"]·ES["consintió"]·SW["alikubali"]·TR["kabul-etti"]·urd["مان-گیا"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ἐξομολογ-έομαι, confess, τὰς ἁμαρτίας LXX+NT+1st c.AD+; admit, acknowledge, μυθογραφίαν NT+1st c.BC+; especially in legal formulae, ἐ. εἰληφέναι Refs 1st c.BC+; acknowledge, υἱόν Refs 3rd c.AD+: absolutely, acknowledge a liability, Refs 3rd c.BC+ __2 make grateful acknowledgements, give thanks, sing praises, LXX+1st c.AD+ __II later in active, agree, consent, NTpassive, ἐξωμολογημέναι ἀποδείξεις agreed, admitted proofs, Refs 5th c.BC+