πτωχός

πτωχός — ptōchós

πτωχός, πτωχή, πτωχόν (πτώσσω, to be thoroughly frightened, to cower down or hide oneself for fear; hence, πτωχός properly, one who slinks and crouches), often involving the idea of roving about in wretchedness (see πένης, at the end; "but it always had a bad sense till it was ennobled in the Gospels; see Mat 5:3; Luk 6:20, cf. 2Co 8:9" (Liddell and Scott, under I.)); hence,

1. in classical Greek from Homer down, reduced to beggary, begging, mendicant, asking alms: Luk 14:13; Luk 14:21; Luk 16:20; Luk 16:22.

2. poor, needy (opposed to πλούσιος): Mat 19:21; Mat 26:9; Mat 26:11; Mar 10:21; Mar 12:42-43; Mar 14:5; Mar 14:7; Luk 18:22; Luk 19:8; Luk 21:3; Joh 12:5-6; Joh 12:8; Joh 13:29; Rom 15:26; 2Co 6:10; Gal 2:10; Jas 2:2-3; Jas 2:6; Rev 13:16; in a broader sense, destitute of wealth, influence, position, honors; lowly, afflicted: Mat 11:5; Luk 4:18 (from Isa 61:1);; οἱ πτωχοί τοῦ κόσμου (partitive genitive), the poor of the human race, Jas 2:5; but the more correct reading is that of L T Tr WH viz. τῷ κόσμῳ (unto the world), i. e. the ungodly world being judge, cf. Winers Grammar, § 31, 4 a.; Buttmann, § 133, 14; (R. V. as to the world (see next head, and cf. κόσμος, 7)). tropically, destitute of the Christian virtues and the eternal riches, Rev 3:17; like the Latininops, equivalent to helpless, powerless to accomplish an end: στοιχεῖα, Gal 4:9 (`bringing no rich endowment of spiritual treasure' (Lightfoot)).

3. universally, lacking in anything, with a dative of the respect: τῷ πνεύματι, as respects their spirit, i. e. destitute of the wealth of learning and intellectual culture which the schools afford (men of this class most readily gave themselves up to Christ's teaching and proved themselves fitted to lay hold of the heavenly treasure, Mat 11:25; Joh 9:39; 1Co 1:26-27; (others make the idea more inward and ethical: 'conscious of their spiritual need')), Mat 5:3; compare with this the Epistle of Barnabas 19 [ET], see ἔσῃ ἁπλοῦς τῇ καρδία καί πλούσιος τῷ πνεύματι, abounding in Christian graces and the riches of the divine kingdom. (The Sept. for עָנִי, דַּל, רָשׁ, אֶבְיון, etc.)