ἐλπίζω

This chapter is the second chapter in Just Enough Greek devoted to the New Testament’s hope vocabulary. The first was Chapter 20 of this volume, on elpis (ἐλπίς) — hope as a noun. This chapter is on elpizō (ἐλπίζω) — the same root, but the verb form. Hope as something one does.

The two are not redundant. The noun and the verb cover related but distinct theological territory.

The noun elpis names hope as a substantive reality: the confident expectation of what God has promised, the anchor of the soul that reaches into the inner place behind the curtain (Hebrews 6:19), the substance of things not yet seen. Chapter 20 developed this fully. Biblical hope is not the wishful “I hope it doesn’t rain” of contemporary English usage; biblical hope is the confident expectation grounded in God’s faithfulness to His promises.

The verb elpizō shifts the question. Hope, considered as a verb, demands an object. One does not just hope; one hopes in something or upon something or for something. The grammar of the Greek verb almost always requires this completion. Elpizō en (hope in), elpizō epi (hope upon), elpizō eis (hope toward) — the verb’s structure forces the question that the noun can leave implicit: In what are you hoping? Upon whom is your hope set? Toward what does your hope reach?

The question is one of the most spiritually significant in the Christian life. Every believer is hoping in something. The only question is whether the hope is well-placed. The man whose hope is in his bank account, his career, his children, his health, his nation, or his church will find his hope shaken when these prove finite. The man whose hope is in the living God will find his hope vindicated even when everything else fails.

Chapter 20 named the substance of biblical hope. This chapter names the active disposition — what it means to be hoping, how that hoping is directed, and what the right placement of hope looks like in the believer’s life.

The Word

The Greek word is ἐλπίζω (elpizō), pronounced in the Erasmian convention as el-PEE-zo, with the accent on the second syllable. The word is a regular -izō verb and appears thirty-one times in the New Testament. The aorist forms — ēlpisa, ēlpika (perfect) — appear frequently and carry important theological weight.

The etymology runs from the same root that produces the noun elpis. The Greek classical and Hellenistic usage of elpizō covered hoping in the broader Greek sense — expectation of what is to come, whether favorable or unfavorable. Greek had distinct vocabulary for fear (phobos) and for confident expectation; elpizō could cover both kinds of expectation but tended toward the positive. The New Testament use narrows the sense: elpizō almost always refers to the Christian’s confident expectation grounded in God’s faithfulness.

The word family is moderate:

Elpis (ἐλπίς) — hope (noun). Developed in Chapter 20.

Elpizō (ἐλπίζω) — to hope (verb). The chapter’s main word.

Proelpizō (προελπίζω) — to hope beforehand, to be the first to hope. Used once in the New Testament at Ephesians 1:12 — “we who were the first to hope (proēlpikotas) in Christ.” The compound names the priority of Jewish believers in hoping in Christ before the Gentile inclusion.

Apelpizō (ἀπελπίζω) — to despair, to give up hope. The compound with apo- (away from). Appears in some manuscript traditions at Luke 6:35 with the meaning “expecting nothing in return” — though the textual situation is uncertain.

The grammar of elpizō deserves substantial attention because it shapes the theology. The verb is almost always completed by a prepositional phrase that names the object of hope:

Elpizō epi + dative — “to hope upon.” The most common construction. Romans 15:12 (citing Isaiah 11:10) — “the Gentiles will hope upon him” (ep’ autō elpiousin). 1 Timothy 4:10 — “we have set our hope upon the living God” (ēlpikamen epi theō zōnti). 1 Timothy 6:17 — not to hope upon the uncertainty of riches (ēlpikenai epi ploutou adēlotēti). 1 Peter 1:13 — set your hope upon the grace (elpisate epi tēn charin — note the accusative variant here). The “hoping upon” pattern names where the believer’s hope is anchored.

Elpizō eis + accusative — “to hope into” or “toward.” John 5:45 — “Moses, into whom you have hoped” (eis hon hymeis ēlpikate). 2 Corinthians 1:10 — “we have hoped into him” (eis hon ēlpikamen). 1 Peter 3:5 — “the holy women who hoped into God” (hai elpizousai eis theon). The “hoping into” pattern names the direction the believer’s hope reaches.

Elpizō en + dative — “to hope in.” Less common but theologically significant. Found in Septuagint usage and continues into NT phrases like “hoping in the Lord” in the broader sense.

Elpizō with simple object or with no object — for general hoping or expectation. Used at Luke 23:8 (Herod had been hoping to see some sign), Acts 24:26 (Felix hoping for money from Paul — note the negative example), Philippians 2:19, 23 (Paul hoping to send Timothy and to come himself), 1 Timothy 3:14 (hoping to come to you soon).

The Septuagint background of elpizō is substantial. The Greek verb translates several Hebrew terms in the LXX:

Qavah (קָוָה) — to wait, to look for, to hope. The dominant Hebrew verb for active expectant waiting. Treated also in Chapter 31 on hypomonē.

Yachal (יָחַל) — to wait, to hope. Often parallel with qavah. Lamentations 3:24-25 — “The LORD is my portion… I will hope (yachal) in him. The LORD is good to those who wait (qavah) for him.”

Batach (בָּטַח) — to trust, to take refuge. The Hebrew tradition’s term for active reliance and trust. Often the LXX translates batach with elpizō, capturing the close relationship between trusting and hoping. Psalm 22:4 (LXX 21:5) — “In you our fathers trusted (batchu / ēlpisan); they trusted, and you delivered them.”

Chasah (חָסָה) — to take refuge, to flee for protection. The Hebrew imagery of seeking refuge in God. Psalm 11:1 — “In the LORD I take refuge (chasah) / hope (pepoitha in LXX).” Psalm 18:30 — “He is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.”

The Hebrew background gives elpizō a fuller resonance than the bare Greek vocabulary suggests. The Hebrew “hoping in the LORD” is the same disposition as “trusting in the LORD” and “taking refuge in the LORD.” The believer who hopes in God is the believer who trusts in God, who takes refuge in God, who actively waits for God. The four Hebrew terms cover overlapping aspects of the same fundamental Godward disposition.

Several Old Testament passages illuminate the New Testament development:

Psalm 25:5 — “Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait (qavah) all the day long.” The Hebrew piety locates the believer’s waiting/hoping in God Himself.

Psalm 39:7 — “And now, O Lord, for what do I wait (qavah)? My hope (tochalti) is in you.” The structural pattern: when everything else fails, hope in the LORD remains.

Psalm 42:5, 11; 43:5 — “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God (hochili l’elohim); for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” The famous psalmist’s self-counsel: the cure for soul-trouble is hoping in God.

Psalm 71:5 — “For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth.” The whole life structured by hope in the LORD.

Psalm 130:5-7 — “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. O Israel, hope in the LORD!” One of the most beloved expressions of patient hoping in God.

Psalm 146:5 — “Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope (sivro) is in the LORD his God.” The blessing of those whose hope is rightly placed.

Lamentations 3:24-26 — “The LORD is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope (ochil) in him. The LORD is good to those who wait (qovav) for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.” The pattern of hoping in the LORD even in the midst of national catastrophe.

The Old Testament’s pattern is consistent. The believer’s hope is to be directed to the LORD Himself. The Hebrew piety understood that the question is not whether one is hoping but in what. The wicked hope in their riches, their power, their alliances; the righteous hope in the LORD. The Hebrew Scriptures contain dozens of explicit commands and exhortations to hope in the LORD. The New Testament’s elpizō doctrine inherits this whole tradition and develops it through Christ as the One in whom the believer’s hope is now to be placed.

Range of Meaning

Elpizō in the New Testament covers a meaningful range:

Hoping in God or in Christ as the substance of Christian existence. The dominant theological sense. 1 Timothy 4:10 (we have our hope set on the living God), 2 Corinthians 1:10 (we have set our hope on him), 1 Peter 3:5 (the holy women who hoped in God), 1 Peter 1:13 (set your hope fully on the grace), 1 John 3:3 (everyone who hopes in him).

Christ as the one in whom the Gentiles will hope. Matthew 12:21 (citing Isaiah 42:4) — “in his name the Gentiles will hope.” Romans 15:12 (citing Isaiah 11:10) — “in him will the Gentiles hope.” The fulfillment of the OT prophetic vision that the nations would come to hope in Israel’s Messiah.

The contrast between hoping in God and hoping in something else. 1 Timothy 6:17 — the rich are not to be haughty or to hope in the uncertainty of riches, but to hope in God. The structural contrast that runs through the wisdom tradition.

Hoping for the future resurrection or eschatological consummation. Acts 24:15 (Paul has hope in God for the resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked), 26:6-7 (Paul’s hope in the promise made by God). The future-directed dimension of biblical hope.

Hoping for ordinary future events — travel plans, gospel work, ministry. Romans 15:24 (Paul hopes to see the Romans on his way to Spain), 1 Corinthians 16:7 (Paul hopes to stay with the Corinthians), 2 Corinthians 5:11 (we hope that we are well-known to your conscience), Philippians 2:19, 23 (Paul hoping to send Timothy), 1 Timothy 3:14 (hoping to come soon), Philemon 22 (hoping to be granted to the Philemon community). The ordinary uses of elpizō for human plans and expectations.

Love hopes all things. 1 Corinthians 13:7 — “love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” The love-hope connection: Christian love includes the disposition of hoping even when circumstances do not warrant ordinary optimism.

The first to hope. Ephesians 1:12 (the Jewish believers who first hoped in Christ, before the Gentile inclusion).

Where You’ll Meet It

1 Peter 1:13. “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” The Greek: teleiōs elpisate epi tēn pheromenēn hymin charin en apokalypsei Iēsou Christou.

The verse is one of the most direct New Testament imperatives concerning elpizō. Several observations matter.

First, the imperative form. Elpisate — aorist active imperative, “Set your hope” or “Hope!” The verb is a command, not a description. The believer is being commanded to hope, and to do so with particular completeness and direction.

Second, the adverb teleiōs — “completely, fully, perfectly.” The hope is not to be partial, hedged, or divided. The believer is to set his hope fully — entirely, without reservation — on the grace that is being brought. The completeness of the hoping matters; a partial hope is not what the imperative names.

Third, the object. Epi tēn pheromenēn hymin charin en apokalypsei Iēsou Christou — “upon the grace that is being brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” The believer’s hope is to be set upon grace, and specifically the grace that will be revealed when Christ returns. The future-directed dimension is built into the verse: the believer hopes upon what is coming, the consummation grace that Christ will bring at His revelation.

Fourth, the context. The imperative comes after Peter’s celebration of the believer’s living hope (1:3) and the inheritance reserved in heaven (1:4). The “therefore” connects the hope-imperative to the hope-substance: because of what is real, hope fully. The imperative is not detached from the indicative; the indicative grounds the imperative.

The Lutheran tradition has held this verse with substantial weight in pastoral theology. The believer is not just told that hope exists; the believer is commanded to set his hope, fully and directionally, upon the grace that is being brought. The hoping is active — a directing of the believer’s whole disposition toward the coming Christ. The pastoral implication is that the believer is responsible for where his hope is set. The Christian who has set his hope on something other than the coming grace of Christ has misdirected the hope God commands.

1 Timothy 6:17-19. “As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.” The Greek of verse 17: mēde ēlpikenai epi ploutou adēlotēti all’ epi theō.

The passage develops the central pastoral question of elpizō: in what is the believer hoping? Two observations matter.

First, the structural contrast. The rich are not to set their hope upon ploutou adēlotēti — “the uncertainty of riches.” They are to set their hope upon theō — God. The contrast is direct and theologically loaded. Riches are inherently uncertain — they can be lost, devalued, taken, or proven inadequate. God is certain — He does not change, He does not fail, His provision is steady and reliable. The believer’s hope, to be well-placed, must be on what is certain.

Second, the result of rightly-placed hope. The rich who hope in God rather than in their wealth are to do good, be rich in good works, be generous and ready to share. The shifted hope produces shifted behavior. When the believer’s hope is no longer in his wealth, the wealth becomes available for generous use. When the believer’s hope is in God, the worldly resources are stewarded freely rather than clutched anxiously.

The pastoral implication is substantial. The Christian whose hope is in his bank account treats his money differently from the Christian whose hope is in God. The first hoards; the second gives. The first is anxious about every market fluctuation; the second has stability that fluctuations cannot disturb. The first identifies with his net worth; the second identifies with his Lord. The structural disposition of the hope shapes the entire economic life of the believer.

Romans 8:24-25. “For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” The Greek of verse 25: ei de ho ou blepomen elpizomen, di’ hypomonēs apekdechometha.

The passage was treated in Chapter 20 (on elpis) and Chapter 31 (on hypomonē) for those specific dimensions. Here we note its elpizō dimension. Paul develops the structural relationship of hoping to seeing. The believer hopes for what he does not see; if he could see it, there would be no hope (hope is replaced by sight at the consummation).

The verbal form of elpizō in this passage is significant. The believer is not just having hope (noun); the believer is hoping — actively maintaining the directed disposition toward what is coming. The present-tense verb names the continuing active reality. The Christian life is conducted in this verbal hoping — the ongoing reaching toward what is not yet visible.

The implication is significant for pastoral life. The believer who feels he must wait until he can see in order to trust has misunderstood the structure of Christian existence. The Christian life is conducted in active hoping for what is not yet seen. The Spirit produces this hoping in the believer; the means of grace sustain it; the eschatological consummation will replace it with sight.

1 John 3:2-3. “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” The Greek of verse 3: kai pas ho echōn tēn elpida tautēn ep’ autō hagnizei heauton kathōs ekeinos hagnos estin.

The passage develops the connection between hoping and ethical transformation. The believer who has the hope of being like Christ — of seeing Him as He is — purifies himself. The hoping is not merely cognitive or emotional; the hoping has moral consequences in the believer’s life.

Two observations matter.

First, the connection between hope and purification. The Greek hagnizei heauton kathōs ekeinos hagnos estin — “purifies himself as he is pure.” The believer who hopes in Christ becomes like Christ in moral character. The hoping is not just an internal disposition; the hoping shapes the life. The Christian who is rightly hoping in Christ is being purified in his ongoing life; the hoping and the purification are connected.

Second, the eschatological orientation. The believer’s hope is for the future revelation of Christ — for seeing Him as He is, for being like Him. The future orientation produces present purification. The Christian who knows what he is going to be acts now in light of that future. The believer who is going to see Christ purifies himself now.

This is one of the most theologically rich New Testament passages on the connection between hoping and Christian ethics. The hoping is active; the hoping has direction; the hoping produces transformation. The believer who hopes in Christ is being changed by the hoping into someone who looks more like Christ.

Psalm 42-43. The OT background that surfaces in NT elpizō. “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God (hochili l’elohim); for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” The threefold refrain (42:5, 11; 43:5) gives one of the most extended OT treatments of the verb-of-hoping in personal piety.

The Psalmist counsels his own soul. The soul is troubled, cast down, in turmoil. The counsel is direct: hope in God. The Hebrew imperative hochili — “hope!” — is the same fundamental verbal action the New Testament names with elpizō.

The implication for New Testament use is foundational. The Psalmist’s self-counsel — “hope in God” — is the same fundamental disposition the New Testament names. The believer in troubled circumstances is to direct his hope to God. The hoping is not a feeling that happens to the believer; the hoping is something the believer can call himself to do. The Christian who is troubled is to counsel his own soul: hope in God. The disposition can be commanded, directed, and re-established.