Lexicon kratistos: strongest, noblest Original Word: κράτιστος, η, ονPart of Speech: Adjective Transliteration: kratistos Phonetic Spelling: (krat'-is-tos) Short Definition: most excellent Definition: most excellent, an official epithet, used in addressing a Roman of high rank, and in the second century one of equestrian (as distinguished from senatorial) rank. NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originsuperl. from kratus (strong) Definitionstrongest, noblest NASB Translationmost excellent (4).
Thayer's STRONGS NT 2903: κράτιστοςκράτιστος, κρατίστη, κράτιστον, superlative of the adjective κρατύς ( κράτος) (from ( Homer) Pindar down), mightiest, strongest, noblest, most illustrious, best, most excellent: vocative κράτιστε used in addressing men of conspicuous rank or office, Acts 23:26; Acts 24:3; Acts 26:25, (Otto, De ep. ad Diognetum etc. Jena 1845, p. 79ff, and in his Epist. ad Diognet. Leips. edition, p. 53f, has brought together examples from later writings). Perhaps also it served simply to express friendship in Luke 1:3 (as in Theophrastus, char. 5; Dionysius Halicarnassus, de oratt. 1; Josephus, Antiquities 4, 6, 8), because in Acts 1:1 it is omitted in addressing the same person. Cf. Grimm in Jahrbb. f. deutsche Theol. for 1871, p. 50f.
Strong's most excellent, noble. Superlative of a derivative of kratos; strongest, i.e. (in dignity) very honorable -- most excellent (noble). see GREEK kratos |
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