a. properly: εἰς ἐπισκοπήν τοῦ παιδός, to visit the boy, Lucian, dial. deor. 20, 6; with this exception no example of the word in secular writings has yet been noted.

b. In biblical Greek, after the Hebrew פְּקֻדָּה, that act by which God looks into and searches out the ways, deeds, character, of men, in order to adjudge them their lot accordingly, whether joyous or sad; inspection, investigation, visitation (Vulg. usuallyvisitatio): so universally, ἐν ἐπισκοπή ψυχῶν, when he shall search the souls of men, i. e. in the time of divine judgment, Wis. 3:13; also ἐν ὥρα ἐπισκοπῆς, Sir. 18:20 (19); so perhaps ἐν ἡμέρα ἐπισκοπῆς, 1 Peter 2:12 (see below); in a good sense, of God's gracious care: τόν καιρόν τῆς ἐπισκοπῆς σου, i. e. τόν καιρόν ἐν ᾧ ἐπεσκέψατο σε ὁ Θεός, in which God showed himself gracious toward thee and offered thee salvation through Christ (see ἐπισκέπτομαι, b.), Luke 19:44; ἐν καιρῷ ἐπισκοπῆς, in the time of divine reward, 1 Peter 5:6 Lachmann; also, in the opinion of many commentators, 1 Peter 2:12 (others, associate this passage with Luke 19:44 above; cf. DeWette (edited by Brückner) or Huther at the passage); from the O. T. cf. Genesis 50:24; Job 34:9; Wis. 2:20 Wis. 3:7, etc. with a bad reference, of divine punishment: Exodus 3:16; Isaiah 10:3; Jeremiah 10:15; Wis. 14:11 Wis. 19:14 (15); (etc.; cf. Sophocles Lexicon, under the word).

c. after the analogy of the Hebrew פְּקֻדָּה (Numbers 4:16; 1 Chronicles 24:19 (here the Sept. ἐπίσκεψις), etc.), oversight i. e. overseership, office, charge; Vulg.episcopatus: Acts 1:20, from Psalm 108:8 (); specifically, the office of a bishop (the overseer or presiding officer of a Christian church): 1 Timothy 3:1, and in ecclesiastical writings