τέλος G5056
End, conclusion, termination (esp. eschatological); tax, toll, or customs duty; goal, outcome, or purpose.
The Greek noun telos embraces both termination and consummation — not merely where something stops, but where it reaches fulfillment. Its dominant NT use (36 occurrences) is eschatological: 'the end is not yet' (Matt 24:6), 'the one who endures to the end will be saved' (Matt 24:13). But telos also carries a fiscal sense: the 'toll' or 'tax' kings exact (Matt 17:25; Rom 13:7), where Spanish shifts from fin to impuesto and German from Ende to Steuer. A third sense means the designed goal or purpose: 'the goal of the commandment is love' (1 Tim 1:5). Paul's claim that Christ is 'the telos of the law' (Rom 10:4) famously oscillates between 'end' and 'goal.'
3. goal, outcome, purpose — The intended outcome, goal, or ultimate purpose toward which something aims — telos in its teleological sense of designed result rather than mere cessation. With 3 occurrences, this appears in 1 Timothy 1:5 ('the goal of the commandment is love from a pure heart'), 1 Peter 1:9 ('receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls'), and 1 Peter 3:8's summons to unity as the telos of community life. Spanish propósito and fin compete here, while German Ziel occasionally replaces Ende, signaling the purposive rather than terminal force. This sense preserves the Aristotelian philosophical heritage of telos as final cause. 3×
AR["خِتامًا","غايَةَ","غايَةُ"]·ben["লক্ষ্য","শেষ","শেষে"]·DE["Ende"]·EN["end"]·FR["Ende"]·heb["סוֹף","תַּכְלִית"]·HI["परिणाम","लकश्य","सब"]·ID["akhirnya","hasil","tujuan"]·IT["fine"]·jav["ancas","pungkasan,","tujuan"]·KO["끝으로","목적","목적은"]·PT["fim","fim,"]·RU["конец","наконец,","цель"]·ES["fin"]·SW["hatimaye","lengo","matokeo"]·TR["amacı","sonucunu","sonuç"]·urd["آخر،","انجام","مقصد"]
▼ 2 more senses below
Senses
1. end, conclusion, termination — The end-point, conclusion, or termination of a period, process, or state — frequently carrying eschatological weight as the end of the age. This dominant sense (36 occurrences) appears in the Olivet Discourse's repeated 'the end is not yet' (Matt 24:6; Mark 13:7) and 'he who endures to the end' (Matt 10:22; 24:13). The phrase eis telos ('to the end, utterly, finally') intensifies the sense of completion in John 13:1 ('he loved them to the end') and 2 Corinthians 3:13 (the fading glory). Spanish fin, French fin, and German Ende converge uniformly here. Paul's declaration that Christ is the telos of the law (Rom 10:4) straddles this sense and sense 3 in one of the NT's great lexical ambiguities. 36×
AR["النِّهايَةُ","النِّهايَةِ","النِّهَايَةَ","النِّهَايَةِ","غَايَةُ","نِهايَةً","نِهايَةٌ","نِهايَةُ","نِهايَةِ","نِهايَتَها","نِهَايَةٌ","نِهَايَةٍ","نِهَايَةُ"]·ben["শেষ","শেষ,","শেষে","শেষের","শেষের,","সমাপ্তি"]·DE["Ende","Steuer"]·EN["an-end","end","the-end"]·FR["fin"]·heb["הַ-סּוֹף","הַסּוֹף","סוֹף","קֵץ","תַּכְלִית"]·HI["अंत","अन्त","अन्त-तक"]·ID["akhir","akhirnya","kesudahan","kesudahan,"]·IT["fine"]·jav["pungkasan","pungkasan,","pungkasan.","wekasanipun"]·KO["끝","끝-을","끝-이","끝까지","끝은","끝을","끝이","끝이-아니다","끝이니","끝이라"]·PT["Fim","fim","fim,","o-fim"]·RU["конец","конца","тех"]·ES["el-fin","fin"]·SW["Wakati","huyu","mwisho","mwisho,"]·TR["o-","son","sona","sonu","sonuna-kadar","suçsuz"]·urd["آخر","اختتام","انتہا","انجام","خاتمہ"]
Matt 10:22, Matt 24:6, Matt 24:13, Matt 24:14, Matt 26:58, Mark 3:26, Mark 13:7, Mark 13:13, Luke 1:33, Luke 18:5, Luke 21:9, Luke 22:37 (+24 more)
2. tax, toll, revenue — A tax, customs duty, or toll collected by the state — a well-attested classical sense derived from telos as a 'payment due' or 'completion of obligation.' With 3 NT occurrences, this appears in Jesus' question to Peter about whether kings collect tele (taxes) from their own sons or from others (Matt 17:25), and in Paul's instruction to render telos to whom telos is owed alongside phoros (tribute) in Romans 13:7. Spanish shifts decisively to impuesto/impuestos, French retains impôt, and German moves from Ende to Steuer — a lexical bifurcation that confirms translators recognize a categorically different meaning from 'end.' 3×
AR["-الضَّرِيبَةَ","ضَرَائِبَ"]·ben["কর","শুল্ক,","শুল্ক;"]·DE["Ende","Steuer"]·EN["revenue","taxes"]·FR["fin"]·heb["מִסִּים","מֶכֶס"]·HI["कर","चुंगी"]·ID["cukai,","cukai;","pajak"]·IT["fine"]·jav["cukai,","cukai;","pajeg"]·KO["관세가","관세를","세금을"]·PT["imposto,","imposto;","impostos"]·RU["подати"]·ES["impuesto","impuestos"]·SW["kodi","ushuru,","ushuru;"]·TR["gümrük","vergi"]·urd["محصول","چنگی"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
τέλος, εος, τό, (τέλλομαι, τέλλω) coming to pass, performance, consummation, εἰ γὰρ ἐπ᾽ ἀρῇσιν τ. ἡμετέρῃσι γένοιτο Refs 8th c.BC+; δίκη δ᾽ ὑπὲρ ὕβριος ἴσχει ἐς τ. ἐξελθοῦσα issuing in fulfilment, execution,Refs 4th c.BC+; καθήκει νῦν [τὰν γνώμαν] ἐπὶ τέλος ἀχθῆμεν Refs 1st c.AD+; ἔλπομαι μέν, ἐν θεῷ γε μὰν τ. Refs 8th c.BC+; result, τ. δ᾽ οὔ πώ τι πέφανται Refs 8th c.BC+ the coming to pass…