ἀπελεγμός (apelegmos)
apelegmos
discredit
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun apelegmos refers to a state of being exposed as false or worthless, resulting in public disgrace. Derived from the verb meaning to convict or refute, it describes the outcome when an argument or claim is successfully dismantled. In such cases, the subject falls into disrepute because its lack of value has been clearly demonstrated.
This word appears only once in the New Testament, in Acts 19:27. The context involves the silversmiths’ fear that their trade will lose honor because the gospel challenges the worship of Artemis. Here, apelegmos captures the idea that the goddess’s reputation will be brought into disrepute as her supposed power is refuted by the spread of Christian teaching.
Translators typically render this term as "discredit" or "disrepute," highlighting the social and reputational damage rather than just intellectual disagreement. The focus is on the loss of esteem that follows public exposure of falsehood, making it a powerful word for describing how truth can undermine false claims in the public eye.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
This word describes a specific kind of shame: the public loss of honor when something false is exposed. It carries the weight of being proven wrong in front of others, leading to disgrace. In Acts 19, it captures the silversmiths' fear that their business and the goddess Artemis would lose their standing because the truth of the gospel was revealed.
For your faith, this offers a quiet comfort. You do not need to defend every false idea yourself. When truth stands firm, falsehood naturally loses its power and reputation. This means you can rest in the fact that God’s word is strong enough to handle any lie without your anxious effort.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- disrepute1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- ἀπελεγμὸν1×
Key Verses
-
Acts 19:27
Not only is there danger that this our trade come into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be counted as nothing and her majesty destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worships.”
This verse shows the word describing the tangible social and economic consequence of exposing false worship, highlighting how truth dismantles established reputations.