οἰκέτης (oiketēs)
oiketēs
slave
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 5 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun oiketēs refers to a household servant or slave, specifically one who lives within the master’s home rather than working as an outsider. Derived from the word for "house" (oikos), it describes someone under the direct authority of the householder. In the New Testament, this term appears in five verses, including Luke 16:13 and Romans 14:4, where it underscores the intimate yet subordinate relationship between the servant and the master.
Unlike a hired hand who might come and go, an oiketēs was part of the domestic structure. The sources note that in classical usage, the plural form could encompass all inmates of the house, reflecting a broad scope of household members under one roof. This distinction highlights the permanence and closeness of their position within the family unit.
Translators typically render oiketēs as "servant" or "slave," capturing the legal and social reality of ancient domestic life. Its presence in passages like Acts 10:7 illustrates how this role was a common social category, familiar to early Christian audiences. The word grounds spiritual metaphors in the tangible experience of daily household management.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word oiketēs describes a servant who lives within the master’s home, sharing its daily rhythms and authority structure. This was not a temporary worker but someone integrated into the household unit. In passages like Acts 10:7, Cornelius calls his oiketēs to hear the gospel, showing that these individuals were present in the intimate spaces of early Christian life.
Jesus uses this image in Luke 16:13 to teach about divided loyalty. An oiketēs cannot serve two masters because their position requires total commitment to one household head. This metaphor helps us understand the exclusivity of our devotion to God, reminding us that faith shapes how we live in every room of our lives.
Paul also references this relationship in Romans 14:4, noting that each person stands or falls before their own lord. While the context involves spiritual accountability, the term grounds these truths in the tangible reality of ancient domestic life. It invites us to consider how our service reflects our ultimate allegiance.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 5 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- servants1×
- servant?1×
- servant.1×
- servant1×
- Servants1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- οἰκέτου.¶1×
- οἰκέτης1×
- οἰκέτην;1×
- οἰκέται1×
- οἰκετῶν1×
Key Verses
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Luke 16:13
No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to one and despise the other. You aren’t able to serve God and Mammon.”
Jesus uses the concept of household servitude to illustrate that divided loyalty is impossible when serving God.
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Acts 10:7
When the angel who spoke to him had departed, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier of those who waited on him continually.
This verse shows Cornelius summoning his household servants, highlighting their role as trusted members of his domestic circle.
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Romans 14:4
Who are you who judge another’s servant? To his own lord he stands or falls. Yes, he will be made to stand, for God has power to make him stand.
Paul uses the master-servant dynamic to remind believers that ultimate accountability belongs to God, not human judges.