Original Word: οἶκος
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: oikos
Pronunciation: OY-kos
Phonetic Spelling: (oy'-kos)
Definition: House, household, home, family
Meaning: (a) a house, the material building, (b) a household, family, lineage, nation.

Word Origin: Derived from the root of οἰκέω (oikeō), meaning "to dwell" or "to inhabit."

Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries: - H1004 (בַּיִת, bayith): House, household, dwelling

- H4940 (מִשְׁפָּחָה, mishpachah): Family, clan, tribe

Usage: The Greek word "oikos" primarily refers to a physical structure or dwelling place, such as a house. It can also denote the people who reside within that structure, thus extending its meaning to "household" or "family." In the New Testament, "oikos" is used both literally and metaphorically. Literally, it refers to a physical building or home (e.g., Matthew 7:24, "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock"). Metaphorically, it can refer to the family of God or the community of believers (e.g., 1 Timothy 3:15, "if I am delayed, you will know how to conduct yourself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth").

Cultural and Historical Background: In ancient Greek and Jewish culture, the "oikos" was a central unit of society. It encompassed not only the immediate family but also extended family members, servants, and sometimes even close friends. The "oikos" was a place of shelter, economic activity, and social interaction. In the Greco-Roman world, the household was often seen as a microcosm of the state, with the head of the household (paterfamilias) holding significant authority. In Jewish tradition, the household was also a place of religious instruction and practice, with the family playing a crucial role in the transmission of faith and values.

Word Origin
a prim. word
Definition
a house, a dwelling
NASB Translation
descendants (1), families (1), family (1), home (18), homes (2), house (79), household (14), households (1), itself (1), palaces (1), place (1).

STRONGS NT 3624: οἶκος

οἶκος, οἴκου, ὁ (cf. Latinvicus, English ending -wich; Curtius, § 95), from Homer down; the Sept. in numberless places for בַּיִת, also for הֵיכַל, a palace, אֹהֶל, a tent, etc.;

1. a house;

a. strictly, an inhabited house (differing thus from δόμος the building): Acts 2:2; Acts 19:16; τίνος, Matthew 9:6; Mark 2:11; Mark 5:38; Luke 1:23, 40, 56; Luke 8:39, 41, etc.; ἔρχεσθαι εἰς οἶκον, to come into a house (domurn venire), Mark 3:20 (19); εἰς τόν οἶκον, into the (i. e. his or their) house, home, Luke 7:10; Luke 15:6; ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ, in the (her) house, John 11:20; ἐν οἴκῳ, at home, 1 Corinthians 11:34; 1 Corinthians 14:35; οἱ εἰς τόν οἶκον(see εἰς, C. 2), Luke 9:61; κατ' οἶκον, opposed to ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ, in a household assembly, in private (R. V. at home; see κατά, II. 1 d.), Acts 2:46; Acts 5:42; κατ' οἴκους, opposed to δημοσίᾳ, in private houses (A. V. from house to house; see κατά, II. 3 a.), Acts 20:20; κατά τούς οἴκους εἰσπορευόμενος, entering house after house, Acts 8:3; ἡ κατ' οἶκον τίνος ἐκκλησία, see ἐκκλησία, 4 b. aa.

b. any building whatever: ἐμπορίου, John 2:16; προσευχῆς, Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46; τοῦ βασιλέως, τοῦ ἀρχιερέως, the palace of etc., Matthew 11:8; Luke 22:54 (here T Tr WH οἰκία); τοῦ Θεοῦ, the house where God was regarded as present — of the tabernacle, Matthew 12:4; Mark 2:26; Luke 6:4; of the temple at Jerusalem, Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46; John 2:16f, (Isaiah 56:5, 7); cf. Luke 11:51; Acts 7:47, 49; of the heavenly sanctuary, Hebrews 10:21 (οἶκος ἅγιος Θεοῦ, of heaven, Deuteronomy 26:15; Baruch 2:16); a body of Christians (a church), as pervaded by the Spirit and power of God, is called οἶκος πνευματικός, 1 Peter 2:5.

c. any dwelling-place: of the human body as the abode of demons that possess it, Matthew 12:44; Luke 11:24; (used in Greek authors also of tents and huts, and later, of the nests, stalls, lairs, of animals). universally, the place where one has fixed his residence, one's settled abode, domicile: οἶκος ὑμῶν, of the city of Jerusalem, Matthew 23:38; Luke 13:35.

2. by metonymy, the inmates of a house, all the persons forming one family, a household: Luke 10:5; Luke 11:17 (al: refer this to 1, and take ἐπί either locally (see ἐπί, C. I. 1), or of succession (see ἐπί, C. I. 2 c.)); ; Acts 7:10; Acts 10:2; Acts 11:14; Acts 16:31; Acts 18:8; 1 Corinthians 1:16; 1 Timothy 3:4; 1 Timothy 5:4; 2 Timothy 1:16; 2 Timothy 4:19; Hebrews 11:7; plural, 1 Timothy 3:12; Titus 1:11 (so also Genesis 7:1; Genesis 47:12, and often in Greek authors); metaphorically, and in a theocratic sense ὁ οἶκος τοῦ Θεοῦ, the family of God, of the Christian church, 1 Timothy 3:15; 1 Peter 4:17; of the church of the Old and New Testament, Hebrews 3:2, 5f (Numbers 12:7).

3. stock, race, descendants of one (A. V. house): ὁ οἶκος Δαυίδ, Luke 1:27, 69; Luke 2:4 (1 Kings 12:16); οἶκος Ἰσραήλ, Matthew 10:6; Matthew 15:24; Luke 1:33; Acts 2:36; Acts 7:42; ((ὁ οἶκος Ἰακώβ), 46 L T Tr marginal reading); Hebrews 8:8, 10 (Jeremiah 38:31 (); Exodus 6:14; Exodus 12:3; Exodus 19:3; 1 Samuel 2:30; (cf. ὁ σεβαστός οἶκος, Philo in Flac. § 4)). The word is not found in the Apocalypse. [SYNONYMS: οἶκος, οἰκία: in Attic (and especially legal) usage, οἶκος denotes one's household establishment, one's entire property, οἰκία, the dwelling itself; and in prose οἶκος is not used in the sense of οἰκία. In the sense of family οἶκος and οἰκία are alike employed; Schmidt vol. ii., chapter 80. In relation to distinctions (real or supposed) between οἶκος and οἰκία the following passages are of interest (cf. Valckenaer on Herodotus 7, 224): Xenophon, oecon. 1, 5 οἶκος δέ δή τί δοκεῖ ἡμῖν κειναι; ἄρα ὅπερ οἰκία, ἤ καί ὅσα τίς ἔξω τῆς οἰκίας κέκτηται, πάντα τοῦ οἴκου ταῦτα ἐστιν ... πάντα τοῦ ὀκου εἶναι ὅσα τίς κέκτηται. Aristotle, polit. 1, 2, p. 1252{b}, 9ff, ἐκ μέν οὖν τούτων τῶν δύο κοινωνιων (viz. of a man with wife and servant) οἰκία πρώτη, καί ὀρθῶς ἡσιοδος εἶπε ποιήσας "οἶκον μέν prootista] γυναῖκα τέ βοῦν τ' ἀροτηρα." ... ἡ μέν οὖν εἰς πᾶσαν ἡμέραν συνεστηκυια κοινωνία κατά φύσιν οἶκος ἐστιν. ibid. 3, p. 1253{b}, 2ff, πᾶσα πόλις ἐκ οἰκιῶν σύγκειται. οἰκίας δέ μέρη, ἐκ ὧν αὖθις οἰκία συνισταται. οἰκία δέ τέλειος ἐκ δούλων καί ἐλευθέρων ... πρῶτα δέ καί ἐλάχιστα μέρη οἰκίας δεσπότης καί δοῦλος καί πόσις καί ἄλοχος. πατήρ καί τέκνα, etc. Plutarch, de audiend. poetis § 6 καί γάρ οἶκον πότε μέν τήν οἰκίαν καλοῦσιν, "οἶκον ἐς ὑψοροφον." πότε δέ τήν οὐσίαν, "ἐσθίεται μοι οἶκος." (see οἰκία, c.) Hesychius' Lexicon, under the words οἰκία, οἶκοι, under the word οἶκος. ὀλίγη οἰκία ... καί μέρος τί τῆς οἰκίας ... καί τά ἐν τῇ οἰκία. In the N. T., although the words appear at times to be used with some discrimination (e. g. Luke 10:5, 6, 7; Acts 16:31, 32, 34; cf. John 14:2), yet other passages seem to show that no distinction can be insisted upon: e. g. Matthew 9:23; Mark 5:38; Luke 7:36, 37; Acts 10:17,(); ; (1 Corinthians 1:16; 1 Corinthians 16:15).]

home, household, temple.

Of uncertain affinity; a dwelling (more or less extensive, literal or figurative); by implication, a family (more or less related, literally or figuratively) -- home, house(-hold), temple.

οικίας οικοι οίκοι οίκοί οικοις οίκοις οἴκοις όικοις οικον οικόν οίκον οίκόν οἶκον οἶκόν όικον οικος οικός οίκος οίκός οἶκος οἶκός όικος οικου οικού οίκου οἴκου οικους οίκους οἴκους οικω οίκω οἴκῳ όικω οικων οίκων οἴκων oiko oikō oíkoi oíkōi oikois oíkois oikon oikōn oíkon oíkōn oîkon oîkón oikos oîkos oîkós oikou oíkou oikous oíkousInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts