Greek notes¶

These notes are for readers who want to see the words behind the argument. They are not a substitute for a lexicon or a commentary. The rule is simple: a word's range does not decide a sentence's meaning; context does. Where a lexical claim is contested, the note says so.

Menō — "remain, abide"¶

Gloss: to stay, remain, dwell, continue, persist.
John 15: meinate en emoi (aorist imperative, v.4), ho menōn en emoi (present participle, v.5), ean mē tis menē en emoi (present subjunctive, v.6), meinate en tē agapē mou (aorist imperative, v.9).
Range in John: the Spirit remains on Jesus (1:32-33); the disciples remain with Jesus (1:39); Jesus' word remains in people (5:38; 8:31); the one who eats his flesh remains in him (6:56); the Spirit remains with the disciples forever (14:16-17); the Father remains in Jesus (14:10); the branch remains in the vine (15:4-7); disciples remain in love (15:9-10); in 1 John, believers remain in Christ, in the light, in the teaching, in love, and in God (2:6, 24, 27-28; 3:6, 14-15, 17, 24; 4:12-16).
What it does not mean: it is not a technical term for "eternal security." It is an ordinary word for staying or dwelling, used metaphorically for a continuing relationship.
The point: the imperative and the warning are intelligible only if remaining is a real relationship that can be maintained or abandoned.

Apostasia — "apostasy, falling away"¶

Gloss: defection, revolt, abandonment of a previous allegiance.
Occurrences: Acts 21:21 (Paul accused of teaching "apostasy from Moses"); 2 Thess 2:3 ("the apostasy" before the day of the Lord).
Related verb aphistēmi: "to stand away from, depart, fall away." Luke 8:13 (the rocky soil "fall away" in testing); 1 Tim 4:1 ("some will depart from the faith"); Heb 3:12 ("fall away from the living God").
The point: the New Testament has a category for settled departure from the faith. It is not the same as doubt or a single sin.

Parapiptō — "fall away" (Heb 6:6)¶

Gloss: literally "to fall beside/alongside"; in Hebrews, "to fall away, defect."
Occurrence: Heb 6:6, parapesontas (aorist participle, accusative plural): "those who have fallen away."
The point: the word describes a decisive fall, not a stumble. It is not the ordinary word for sin.

Hekousiōs — "deliberately, willingly" (Heb 10:26)¶

Gloss: voluntarily, of one's own accord, deliberately.
Occurrence: Heb 10:26, hekousiōs hamartanontōn ("if we go on sinning deliberately"). The same adverb is used in 1 Pet 5:2 of shepherds serving "willingly."
Old Testament background: the law distinguishes inadvertent sin from sin "with a high hand" (Num 15:30-31), which is defiant, presumpative sin. The Greek adverb captures the voluntary, willful character of the sin, not its size.
What it does not mean: it does not mean "any sin you commit on purpose." All sin is in some sense voluntary. The context is a settled, defiant posture that rejects the sacrifice of Christ.

Hēgiasthē — "was sanctified" (Heb 10:29)¶

Gloss: to make holy, consecrate, sanctify. Aorist passive, third singular: "he was sanctified."
The debated referent: "the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified." The most natural reading is that "he" is the person who has trampled the Son of God underfoot — a real participant in the covenant community who has been set apart by the blood. Some interpreters argue the referent is Christ himself (who was consecrated through his sacrifice), but the immediate context of the apostate's action favors the person.
The point: the verse describes someone who has had real contact with the sanctifying blood, not a complete outsider. This is one reason the "never saved" reading is strained.

Adokimos — "disqualified, failing the test"¶

Gloss: not standing the test, disapproved, rejected, unfit.
Occurrences: 1 Cor 9:27 ("lest... I myself should be disqualified"); 2 Cor 13:5-7 ("fail to meet the test"); Rom 1:28 ("a debased mind"); 2 Tim 3:8 ("corrupted in mind"); Heb 6:8 (land that bears thorns is "worthless").
The point: in 1 Cor 9:27, Paul's fear is not merely the loss of a bonus. The word is used for failing a test, being disapproved. The context of the race and the prize includes reward, but the warning is serious.

Katargeō — "severed, abolished" (Gal 5:4)¶

Gloss: to make ineffective, abolish, nullify, render powerless.
Occurrence: Gal 5:4, katērgēthēte apo Christou ("you are severed from Christ"). The passive suggests that the Galatians' own action of seeking justification by law has cut them off from Christ.
The point: the language is strong and relational, not merely "you lose your reward."

Ekpiptō — "fall away from" (Gal 5:4)¶

Gloss: to fall out of, fall away from, lose.
Occurrence: Gal 5:4, tēs charitos exepesate ("you have fallen away from grace"). The same verb is used in Acts 12:7 (chains "fell off"), 1 Pet 1:24 (the flower "falls"), and James 1:11.
The point: the metaphor is a real falling out of a state or relationship, not a merely emotional lapse.

Harpazō — "snatch, seize" (John 10:28)¶

Gloss: to seize, snatch away, carry off by force.
Occurrences: John 10:28 ("no one will snatch them out of my hand"); Matt 11:12 (the kingdom suffers violence); Acts 8:39 (Philip was "carried away"); 2 Cor 12:2-4 (caught up to paradise); 1 Thess 4:17 (caught up to meet the Lord); Rev 12:5 (the child was "caught up").
The point: the word connotes external force. The promise is that no external power can pry the sheep from the Shepherd's hand. It does not address the sheep's own decision to leave.

Tēreō and phylassō — "keep, guard"¶

Tēreō: to keep, guard, preserve, observe. John 17:11-12 ("keep them in your name"); 1 John 5:18 ("the evil one does not touch him"); John 8:51-52 ("keeps my word"); 1 Tim 5:22 ("keep yourself pure").
Phylassō: to guard, watch, preserve. Jude 24 ("able to keep you from stumbling"); Luke 11:28 ("keep the word of God"); Acts 16:4 (delivering decrees); 2 Tim 4:15 (guard against).
The point: the keeping language is real and strong. But the same vocabulary is used for human watchfulness ("keep yourselves," "guard your hearts"). Divine keeping and human keeping are not mutually exclusive; the New Testament uses both.

Gennaō and sperma — "be born" and "seed"¶

Gennaō: to beget, give birth. John 3:3-8 ("born again/from above"); 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18 ("born of God").
Sperma: seed. 1 John 3:9 ("God's seed abides in him"); 1 Pet 1:23 ("born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable").
The point: the new birth is a divine act that creates a new life. The "seed" language emphasizes the reality and permanence of the life principle. It does not by itself say that the life cannot be abandoned; the same letters warn against abandoning it.

Arrabōn — "guarantee, down payment"¶

Gloss: a pledge, deposit, first installment that guarantees the full payment.
Occurrences: 2 Cor 1:22; 5:5; Eph 1:14.
The point: the Spirit is the down payment of the inheritance. The image is commercial: the pledge is real and guarantees the whole. It is not a license; it is a relationship with the one who pledged himself.

Sphragizō — "seal"¶

Gloss: to seal, stamp with a seal, mark as one's own, certify.
Occurrences: Eph 1:13; 4:30; 2 Cor 1:22; Rev 7:3-8.
The point: the seal is God's mark of ownership and authenticity. It is real assurance. But the same Spirit who seals can be grieved (Eph 4:30) and quenched (1 Thess 5:19).

Pisteuō — "believe"¶

Gloss: to believe, trust, rely on.
John 3:16: pas ho pisteuōn — "everyone who believes" (present participle). The promise is to the one who is believing, not to a person who once believed and stopped.
John 5:24: ho ton logon mou akouōn kai pisteuōn — "the one who hears and believes" (present participles).
The point: John's habitual construction describes the believing person, not a past transaction. This does not make faith a work; it makes faith a living relationship.

Apollymi — "perish, be destroyed"¶

Gloss: to destroy, ruin, lose, perish.
John 3:16: mē apolētai ("should not perish"); John 10:28: ou mē apolōntai ("they will never perish"); John 17:12: apōleto ("was lost" — Judas).
The point: the contrast is between perishing and eternal life. It is a real contrast, not a metaphor for a minor loss.

Zōē aiōnios — "eternal life"¶

Gloss: the life of the age (aiōn) to come; God's own life, revealed in Christ.
John 3:15-16, 36; 5:24; 6:40, 47, 54; 10:28; 17:3; 1 John 1:2; 2:25; 5:11-13.
The point: the adjective describes the life's source and quality. It is not a bare duration. The question of whether a person can cease to participate in it is not settled by the adjective alone; it is settled by the sentences that attach the life to believing and abiding.

Kathairō and katharos — "prune" and "clean" (John 15:2-3)¶

Kathairō: to cleanse, purify, prune.
Katharos: clean, pure.
The wordplay: "every branch that does bear fruit he prunes (kathairei)... Already you are clean (katharoi) because of the word." The word that makes clean is the same word that prunes. The vinedresser's work is not arbitrary; it is the work of the word.
The point: pruning is a real, painful, purposeful act of care, not punishment.

Airō — "take away" (John 15:2)¶

Gloss: to lift up, take up, take away, remove.
Occurrence: John 15:2, airei ("he takes away"). The same verb is used in John 1:29 ("the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world"), John 11:39 ("take away the stone"), and John 19:15 ("take him away").
The point: the verb is decisive removal, not mere pruning. The fruitless branch is removed.

Ekballō exō — "cast out" (John 6:37; 15:6)¶

John 6:37: ton erchomenon pros me ou mē ekbalō exō — "whoever comes to me I will never cast out."
John 15:6: exō eblēthē — "he is thrown out."
The point: the promise of 6:37 is to the one who comes; the warning of 15:6 is to the one who does not remain. There is no contradiction: the one who comes and remains is kept; the one who does not remain is cast out. The similarity of language is striking and worth pondering.

Kaiō — "burn" (John 15:6)¶

Gloss: to kindle, burn, set on fire.
Occurrence: John 15:6, kaietai ("is burned"). Compare Matt 3:12 (chaff burned with unquenchable fire), Matt 13:30, 40 (weeds burned), 1 Cor 3:15 (work burned up).
The point: the image is of disposal and judgment, not of refinement. The branch is not purified; it is burned.

A caution¶

Lexical study can clarify a text, but it cannot replace the sentence. The question is not "What does menō mean?" but "What is Jesus saying about the branches who remain and do not remain?" The notes above are meant to help you see the text more clearly, not to give you a word to brandish.