ἐπικουρ-ία G1947
aid, help, assistance
A noun meaning help, assistance, or auxiliary support. Acts 26:22 has Paul declaring, 'Having obtained help (ἐπικουρίας) from God, I stand to this day testifying to both small and great.' The term could refer to military reinforcements in classical usage but here denotes divine support and protection. Paul attributes his survival and continued ministry not to his own strength but to God's sustaining aid.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Paul's testimony before Agrippa highlights divine assistance. The Spanish 'auxilio,' French 'secours,' and the broader semantic field all emphasize support and rescue. Through shipwrecks, beatings, imprisonments, and plots, God's help has kept Paul alive to fulfill his apostolic calling. This is not abstract providence but concrete preservation, enabling Paul to stand before kings and continue proclaiming the prophesied suffering and resurrection of the Messiah. 1×
AR["عَوْنًا"]·ben["সাহায্য"]·DE["ἐπικουρίας"]·EN["help"]·FR["secours"]·heb["עֶזְרָה"]·HI["सहायता"]·ID["Pertolongan"]·IT["aiuto"]·jav["pitulungan"]·KO["도움을"]·PT["socorro"]·RU["помощи"]·ES["auxilio"]·SW["msaada"]·TR["yardıma"]·urd["مدد"]
Related Senses
H8104 1. Qal: keep, observe (law/covenant) (399×)G3101 1. disciple, learner (263×)H5826 1. Qal: to help, aid (53×)H8334 1. to minister, serve (52×)H8334 2. minister, servant, attendant (46×)G5083 1. observe or obey commands (41×)H8104 2. Niphal: beware, take heed (34×)G1247 1. to serve or minister to (32×)H3256 1. discipline, chastise (Piel active) (27×)H5833 1. help, aid, assistance (26×)H8104 3. Qal: watch, look out (26×)H5341 1. keep, observe (commandments) (24×)G5083 2. guard or protect someone (23×)H5647 2. serve, minister to (a person) (21×)H5826 2. Qal participle: helper (21×)G5219 1. obey, be obedient to (20×)H5341 2. guard, protect, preserve (a person) (20×)G1398 1. serve, render service to (19×)H5828 1. help, assistance (19×)H5411 1. Nethinim, temple servants (18×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ἐπικουρ-ία, Ionic dialect -ιη, ἡ, aid, succour, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἐ. ποιεῖσθαί τινι Refs 5th c.BC+; ἀπολογίας towards one's defence, Refs; σκυτίνη 'πικ., ={ὄλισβος}, Refs __II. auxiliary force, Refs 5th c.BC+ __II.2. position of the ἐπίκουροι (in Plato's Republic), Refs __III. prayer for aid, entreaty, Refs 3rd c.BC+