ὀφείλ-ημα G3783
that which is owed, a debt or obligation
This noun denotes what is owed—a debt, whether financial or moral. Classical usage covers monetary debts and obligations. In the New Testament, both uses carry theological weight. Matthew 6:12 contains the Lord's Prayer petition: 'forgive us our debts,' using the term metaphorically for sins as obligations owed to God. Romans 4:4 contrasts grace with wages, noting that to one who works, payment is reckoned not as gift but as 'debt'—what is owed. The word bridges commercial and moral spheres, making obligation and indebtedness central to understanding sin and grace.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Matthew 6:12 uses the neuter plural for sins conceived as debts owed to God, while Romans 4:4 uses the singular for wages owed to a worker. The multilingual translations clearly render 'debt/debts': Spanish 'deuda, deudas,' French 'dette,' German 'Schuld' (which like English encompasses both financial debt and moral guilt). The Lord's Prayer thus frames sin as indebtedness requiring cancellation or forgiveness, while Paul uses commercial debt-language to clarify that grace cannot be earned—what is owed is not a gift. 2×
AR["الدَّينِ", "ذُنوبَنا"]·ben["ঋণ", "বাধ্যতা।"]·DE["Schuld", "ὀφειλήματα"]·EN["debt", "debts"]·FR["dette"]·heb["הַחוֹבוֹת", "חוֹבָה"]·HI["अपराध", "कर्ज़"]·ID["kesalahan", "kewajiban."]·IT["debito", "opheilemata"]·jav["kalepatan", "utang."]·KO["빚", "빚들"]·PT["dívida", "dívidas"]·RU["долги", "долгу"]·ES["deuda", "deudas"]·SW["deni", "madeni"]·TR["borca", "borçlarımızı"]·urd["قرض"]
Related Senses
H5414 1. give, bestow (1855×)H3947 1. take, seize, grasp (Qal) (940×)G2192 1. possess / have (680×)G1325 1. give, bestow (336×)H5159 1. inherited land or property (170×)G2983 1. receive, obtain (134×)H3423 1. Qal: take possession of land (130×)G2983 2. take, take up (113×)G2398 1. one's own, belonging to oneself (91×)G3860 1. hand over, deliver to custody (78×)H7998 1. spoil, plunder, booty (74×)G1325 2. be given, be granted (70×)H5414 2. put, place, set (68×)H7999a 1. pay, repay, recompense (63×)H7069 1. Buy, purchase (59×)H1892 1. vanity, futility, absurdity (58×)H5159 2. heritage as covenant portion (52×)H6299 1. redeem or ransom (Qal active) (49×)H4376 1. Sell (Qal active) (47×)H1350a 1. Redeem, buy back (46×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ὀφείλ-ημα, ατος, τό, that which is owed, debt, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἀποτίνειν ὀ. Refs 5th c.BC+; and Papyrus, Refs 3rd c.BC+; compare ὀφήλωμα.