οἰκουμένη

οἰκουμένη — oikouménē

οἰκουμένη, οἰκουμένης, ἡ (feminine of the present passive participle from οἰκέω (namely, γῆ; cf. Winers Grammar, § 64, 5; Buttmann, § 123, 8));

1. the inhabited earth;

a. in Greek writings often the portion of the earth inhabited by the Greeks, in distinction from the lands of the barbarians, cf. Passow, ii., p. 415a; (Liddell and Scott, under the word, I.).

b. in the Greek authors who wrote about Roman affairs (like the Latinorbis terrarum) equivalent to the Roman empire: so πᾶσα ἡ οἰκουμένη contextually equivalent to all the subjects of this empire, Luk 2:1.

c. the whole inhabited earth, the world (so in (Hyperides, Eux. 42 (probably Liddell and Scott)) the Sept. for תֵּבֵל and אֶרֶץ): Luk 4:5; Luk 21:26; Act 24:5; Rom 10:18; Rev 16:14; Heb 1:6 (πᾶσα ἡ οἰκουμένη, Josephus, b. j. 7, 3, 3); ὅλῃ ἡ οἰκουμένη, Mat 24:14; Act 11:28 (in the same sense Josephus, Antiquities 8, 13, 4 πᾶσα ἡ οἰκουμένη; cf. Bleek, Erklär. d. drei ersten Evv. i., p. 68); by metonymy, the inhabitants of the earth, men: Act 17:6; Act 17:31 (Psa 9:9);; ἡ οἰκουμένη ὅλῃ, all mankind, Rev 3:10; Rev 12:9.

2. the universe, the world: Wis 1:7 (alternating there with τά πάντα); ἡ οἰκουμένη μελλουσα, that consummate state of all things which will exist after Christ's return from heaven, Heb 2:5 (where the word alternates with πάντα and τά πάντα, Heb 2:8, which there is taken in an absolute sense).