ἐπικαλέω

ἐπικαλέομαι — epikaléomai

ἐπικαλέω, ἐπικαλῶ: 1 aorist ἐπεκαλεσα; (passive and middle, present ἐπικαλοῦμαι); perfect passive ἐπικέκλημαι; pluperfect 3 person singular ἐπεκέκλητο, and with neglect of augment (cf. Winers Grammar, § 12, 5; Buttmann, 33 (29)) ἐπικεκλητο (Act 26:32 Lachmann); 1 aorist passive ἐπεκλήθην; future middle ἐπικαλέσομαι; 1 aorist middle ἐπεκαλεσάμην; the Sept. very often for קָרָא;

1. to put a name upon, to surname: τινα (Xenophon, Plato, others), Mat 10:25 G T Tr WH (Rec. ἐκάλεσαν); passive ὁ ἐπικαλούμενος, he who is surnamed, Luk 22:3 R G L; Act 10:18; Act 11:13; Act 12:12; Act 15:22 R G; also ὅς ἐπικαλεῖται, Act 10:5; Act 10:32; ὁ ἐπικληθείς, Mat 10:3 (R G); Act 4:36; Act 12:25; equivalent to ὅς ἐπεκλήθη, Act 1:23. Passive with the force of a middle (cf. Winers Grammar, § 38, 3), to permit oneself to be surnamed: Heb 11:16; middle with τινα: 1Pe 1:17 εἰ πατέρα ἐπικαλεῖσθε τόν etc. i. e. if ye call (for yourselves) on him as father, i. e. if ye surname him your father.

2. ἐπικαλεῖται τό ὄνομα τίνος ἐπί τινα, after the Hebrew פ עַל פ... שֵׁם נִקְרָא..., "the name of one is named upon some one, i. e. he is called by his name or declared to be dedicated to him" (cf. Gesenius, Thesaurus iii., p. 1232a): Act 15:17 from Amo 9:12 (the name referred to is the people of God); Jas 2:7 (the name οἱ τοῦ Χριστοῦ).

3. τίνι with the accusative of the object; properly, to call something to one (cf. English to cry out upon (or against) one); "to charge something to one as a crime or reproach; to summon one on any charge, prosecute one for a crime; to blame one for, accuse one of" (Aristophanes pax 663; Thucydides 2, 27; 3, 36; Plato, legg. 6, 761 e.; 7, 809 e.; Dio Cass. 36, 28; 40, 41 and often in the orators (cf. under the word κατηγορέω)): εἰ τῷ οἰκοδεσπότῃ Βηλζεβουλ ἐπεκάλεσαν (i. e. accused of commerce with Beelzebul, of receiving his help, cf. Mat 9:34; Mat 12:24; Mar 3:22; Luk 11:15), πόσῳ μᾶλλον τοῖς ὀικιακοις αὐτοῦ, Mat 10:25 L WH marginal reading after Vat. (see 1 above), a reading defended by Rettig in the Studien und Kritiken for 1838, p. 477ff and by Alexander Buttmann (1873) in the same journal for 1860, p. 343, and also in his N. T. Gram. 151 (132); (also by Weiss in Meyer edition 7 at the passage). But this expression (Beelzebul for the help of Beelzebul) is too hard not to be suggestive of the emendation of some ignorant scribe, who took offence because (with the exception of this passage) the enemies of Jesus are nowhere in the Gospels said to have called him by the name of Beelzebul.

4. to call upon (like German anrufen), to invoke; middle, to call upon for oneself, in one's behalf: anyone as a helper, Act 7:59, where supply τόν κύριον Ἰησοῦν (βοηθόν, Plato, Euthyd., p. 297 c.; Diodorus 5, 79); τινα μάρτυρα, as my witness, 2Co 1:23 (Plato, legg. 2, 664 c.); as a judge, i. e. to appeal to one, make appeal unto: Καίσαρα, Act 25:11; Act 26:32; Act 28:19; (τόν Σεβαστόν, Act 25:25); followed by the infinitive passive Act 25:21 (to be reserved).

5. Hebraistically (like יְהוָה בְּשֵׁם קָרָא to call upon by pronouncing the name of Jehovah, Gen 4:26; Gen 12:8; 2Ki 5:11, etc.; cf. Gesenius, Thesaurus, p. 1231{b} (or his Hebrew Lexicon, under the word קָרָא); an expression finding its explanation in the fact that prayers addressed to God ordinarily began with an invocation of the divine name: Psa 3:2; Psa 6:2; Psa 7:2, etc.) ἐπικαλοῦμαι τό ὄνομα τοῦ κυρίου, I call upon (on my behalf) the name of the Lord, i. e. to invoke, adore, worship, the Lord, i. e. Christ: Act 2:21 (from Joe 2:32 );; Rom 10:13; 1Co 1:2; τόν κύριον, Rom 10:12; 2Ti 2:22; (often in Greek writings ἐπικαλεῖσθαι τούς Θεούς, as Xenophon, Cyril 7, 1, 35; Plato, Tim., p. 27 c.; Polybius 15, 1, 13).