A noun denoting comfort, consolation, or encouragement given to those in distress. Classical usage included exhortation and assuagement of grief. Colossians 4:11 uses it in Paul's commendation of fellow workers who have been a comfort to him. The term suggests tangible encouragement—not abstract sympathy but concrete support that lightens burdens and lifts spirits. In ministry contexts it captures the mutual strengthening that sustains workers through difficulty and isolation.