Original Word: ἐξουσία, ας, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: exousia
Phonetic Spelling: (ex-oo-see'-ah)
Short Definition: power, authority, weight
Definition: (a) power, authority, weight, especially: moral authority, influence, (b) in a quasi-personal sense, derived from later Judaism, of a spiritual power, and hence of an earthly power.

1849 eksousía (from 1537 /ek, "out from," which intensifies 1510 /eimí, "to be, being as a right or privilege") – authority, conferred power; delegated empowerment ("authorization"), operating in a designated jurisdiction.

In the NT, 1849 /eksousía ("delegated power") refers to the authority God gives to His saints – authorizing them to act to the extent they are guided by faith (His revealed word).

STRONGS NT 1849: ἐξουσία

ἐξουσία, ἐξουσίας, ἡ (from ἔξεστι, ἐξόν, which see), from Euripides, Xenophon, Plato down; the Sept. for מֶמְשָׁלָה and Chaldean שָׁלְטָן; power.

1. power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases; leave or permission: 1 Corinthians 9:12, 18; ἔχειν ἐξουσίαν, 2 Thessalonians 3:9; with an infinitive added indicating the thing to be done, John 10:18; 1 Corinthians 9:4; Hebrews 13:10 (WH brackets ἐξουσία); followed by an infinitive with τοῦ, 1 Corinthians 9:6 (L T Tr WH omit τοῦ); with a genitive of the thing or the person with regard to which one has the power to decide: Romans 9:21 (where an explanatory infinitive is added (Buttmann, 260 (224))); 1 Corinthians 9:12; ἐπί τό ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς, permission to use the tree of life, Revelation 22:14 (see ἐπί, C. I. 2 e.); ἐξουσίαν ἔχειν περί τοῦ ἰδίου θελήματος (opposed to ἀνάγκην ἔχειν (cf. Winer's Grammar, § 30, 3 N. 5)), 1 Corinthians 7:37; ἐν τῇ ἰδίᾳ ἐξουσία (appointed, see τίθημι, 1 a. sub at the end) according to his own choice, Acts 1:7; ἐν τῇ σῇ ἐξουσία ὑπῆρχεν, i. e. at thy free disposal, Acts 5:4; used of liberty under the gospel, as opposed to the yoke of the Mosaic law, 1 Corinthians 8:9.

2. "physical and mental power; the ability or strength with which one is endued, which he either possesses or exercises": Matthew 9:8; Acts 8:19; Revelation 9:3, 19; Revelation 13:2, 4; Revelation 18:1; followed by an infinitive of the thing to be done, Mark 3:15; Luke 12:5; John 1:12; Revelation 9:10; Revelation 11:6; Revelation 13:5; followed by τοῦ with the infinitive Luke 10:19; αὕτη ἐστιν ἡ ἐξουσία τοῦ σκότους, this is the power that darkness exerts, Luke 22:53; ποιεῖν ἐξουσίαν to exert power, give exhibitions of power, Revelation 13:12; ἐν ἐξουσία εἶναι, to be possessed of power and influence, Luke 4:32; also ἐξουσίαν ἔχειν (both expressions refer to the ability and weight which Jesus exhibited in his teaching) Matthew 7:29; (Mark 1:22); κατ' ἐξουσίαν powerfully, Mark 1:27; also ἐν ἐξουσία, Luke 4:36.

3. the power of authority (influence) and of right: Matthew 21:23; Mark 11:28; Luke 20:2; spoken of the authority of an apostle, 2 Corinthians 10:8; 2 Corinthians 13:10; of the divine authority granted to Jesus as Messiah, with the infinitive of the thing to be done, Matthew 9:6; Mark 2:10; Luke 5:24; John 5:27; ἐν ποίᾳ ἐξουσία; clothed in what authority (i. e. thine own or God's?), Matthew 21:23, 24, 27; Mark 11:28, 29, 33; Luke 20:2, 8; delegated authority (German Vollmacht, authorization): παρά τίνος, with the genitive of the person by whom the authority is given, or received, Acts 9:14; Acts 26:10, 12 (R G).

4. the power of rule or government (the power of him whose will and commands must be submitted to by others and obeyed (generally translated authority));

a. universally: Matthew 28:18; Jude 1:25; Revelation 12:10; Revelation 17:13; λαμβάνειν, ἐξουσίαν ὡς βασιλεύς, Revelation 17:12; εἰμί ὑπό ἐξουσίαν, I am under authority, Matthew 8:9; with τασσόμενος added, (Matthew 8:9 L WH brackets); Luke 7:8; ἐξουσία τίνος, the genitive of the object, authority (to be exercised) over, as τῶν πνευμάτων τῶν ἀκαθάρτων, Mark 6:7; with ὥστε ἐκβάλλειν αὐτά added, Matthew 10:1; ἐξουσίαν πάσης σαρκός, authority over all mankind, John 17:2 (πάσης σαρκός κυρειαν, Bel and the Dragon, verse 5); (the genitive of the subject, τοῦ Σατανᾶ, Acts 26:18); ἐπί τινα, power over one, so as to be able to subdue, drive out, destroy, Revelation 6:8; ἐπί τά δαιμόνια, Luke 9:1; or to hold submissive to one's will, Revelation 13:7; ἐπί τάς πληγάς, the power to inflict plagues and to put an end to them, Revelation 16:9; ἐπί τῶν ἐθνῶν, over the heathen nations, Revelation 2:26; ἐπί τίνος, to destroy one, Revelation 20:6; ἔχειν ἐξουσίαν ἐπί τοῦ πυρός, to preside, have control, over fire, to hold it subject to his will, Revelation 14:18; ἐπί τῶν ὑδάτων, Revelation 11:6; ἐπάνω τίνος ἐξουσίαν ἔχειν, to be ruler over a thing, Luke 19:17.

b. specifically, α. of the power of judicial decision; ἐξουσίαν ἔχειν with an infinitive of the thing decided: σταυρῶσαι and ἀπολῦσαι τινα, John 19:10; followed by κατά τίνος, the power of deciding against one, John 19:11; παραδοῦναι τινα ... τῇ ἐξουσία τοῦ ἡγεμόνος, Luke 20:20. β. of authority to manage domestic affairs: Mark 13:34.

c. metonymically, α. a thing subject to authority or rule: Luke 4:6; jurisdiction: ἐκ τῆς ἐξουσίας ἡδωρου ἐστιν, Luke 23:7 (1 Macc. 6:11 (cf. Psalm 113:2 (); Isaiah 39:2)). β. one who possesses authority; (cf. the Latin use ofhonestates,dignitates,auctoritates (so the English authorities, dignities, etc.) in reference to persons); αα. a ruler, human magistrate (Dionysius Halicarnassus 8, 44; 11, 32): Romans 13:1-3; plural: Luke 12:11; Romans 13:1; Titus 3:1. ββ. the leading and more powerful among created beings superior to man, spiritual potentates; used in the plural of a certain class of angels (see ἀρχή, δύναμις, θρόνος, κυριότης): Colossians 1:16; 1 Peter 3:22 (cf. Fritzsche on Romans, vol. ii., p. 226f; (Lightfoot on Colossians, the passage cited)); with ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις added, Ephesians 3:10; πᾶσα ἐξουσία, 1 Corinthians 15:24; Ephesians 1:21; Colossians 2:10; used also of demons: in the plural, Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 2:15; collectively (cf. Lob. ad Phryn., p. 469), ἡ ἐξουσία τοῦ ἀέρος (see ἀήρ), Ephesians 2:2; τοῦ σκότους, Colossians 1:13 (others refer this to 4 a. (or c. α.) above (cf. Luke 22:53 in 2), and regard σκότος as personified; see σκότος, b.).

d. a sign of the husband's authority over his wife, i. e. the veil with which propriety required a woman to cover herself, 1 Corinthians 11:10 (as βασιλεία is used by Diodorus 1, 47 for the sign of regal power, i. e. a crown). (Synonym: see δύναμις, at the end. On the infinitive after ἐξουσία, and ἐξουσία ἔχειν cf. Buttmann, 260 (223f).)

authority, jurisdiction, liberty, power

From exesti (in the sense of ability); privilege, i.e. (subjectively) force, capacity, competency, freedom, or (objectively) mastery (concretely, magistrate, superhuman, potentate, token of control), delegated influence -- authority, jurisdiction, liberty, power, right, strength.

see GREEK exesti

εξουσια εξουσιά εξουσία ἐξουσία ἐξουσίᾳ εξουσιαι εξουσίαι ἐξουσίαι εξουσιαις εξουσίαις ἐξουσίαις εξουσιαν εξουσίαν ἐξουσίαν εξουσιας εξουσίας ἐξουσίας εξουσιων εξουσιών ἐξουσιῶν exousia exousía exousiai exousíai exousíāi exousiais exousíais exousian exousían exousias exousías exousion exousiôn exousiōn exousiō̂nInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts