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νέος : NEOS; NEW

Illustrations of English words
derived from the Greek in the New Testament.

νέος,neos,G3501. 'new'- Bible Greek illustrated. Gaylon West.
           

see another word meaning "new" in the Bible:
     





THE GRAPHIC:

veos [neos] is the Greek way of writing “new”. It is used for “young” people, juice from grapes (“new wine”), the New Testament (the expression of Hebrews 12:24). It has many derived uses in everyday use in English; e.g., neo-natal.


IS “NEW WINE” AN ALCOHOLIC DRINK?


“NEWG3501 WINE.” The Bible speaks of “new wine” in two passages. In Acts 2:12, 13 “And they [Jerusalem audience] were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.” Now if one stays with the King James translation,i this indicates that the “new wine” is an expression for intoxicating and answers to our modern wines. This seems to support the idea that Jesus may have actually used fermented wine when he gave thanks for the “fruit of the vine” during the Passover supper (Matthew 26:29; Mark 14:25; Luke 22:18) and therefore meant for us to use alcoholic wine in the communion.


FOOLISH APPLICATION. A religious “commentator” claimed that since he could prove that NT wine was alcoholic two or three times then it should mean it is an alcoholic beverage everytime it is used in the Bible. This is an illogic way of looking at nuances in any language. But this is similar to the way I was looking at the meaning of “new wine. For years I interpreted the KJV translation of Acts 2:13's “new wine” as meaning fermented (alcoholic) wine and have applied that definition to any “new wine” in the NT since the expression “new wine” was so used against the apostles. It seemed to me that logically every “new wine” in the NT would mean that.



“NEW WINE” IN THE GOSPELS. So in Matthew 9:17, Mark 2:22, and Luke 5:37 & 38, Jesus used “new wine” versus “old and new bottles” in the parable of the “new wine” versus “old bottles”. “Neither do men put newG3501 wineG3631 into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved” (Matthew 9:17). Applying the faulty reasoning, I understood Jesus to say then that people did not put alcoholic beverage into old bottles. Actually, Jesus said the opposite. He said that people do not, and sensibly so, put grape juice into old skin bottles.


FAULTY REASONING. This is the reasoning for my erroneous KJV conclusion for Jesus' statement in Matthew 9:17:


      1. Jesus said that “new wine” would corrupt an “old” bottle (Matthew 9:17). Commentators indicated that this means that the wine is in a “stage” of fermentation. Therefore, to me then, “wine” refers to the final stage of alcoholic fermented drink, because ...

      2. The expression “new wine” of Acts 2 refers to an accusation of the apostles being “tanked drunkards.” Hence, my conclusion: “new wine” meant alcoholic drink.


ORIGINAL CONTEXT HELPS. The original language says a different thing:


      1. The “new wine” illustration of Matthew 9:17 refers to a drink that would develop fermentation; not already a fully fermented drink. Aged “wine” does NOT ferment; for it is fully fermented. The yeast that is required for fermentation is gone. If it is fermented, there is no natural yeast left; no bubbling. Hence, the old bottle (skin type) would not be expanded by any fermentation which would burst old bottles.

      2. Acts 2 is not the same wording in the original as Matthew 9. There happens to be no Greek word that equates the word “new” in Acts 2! Whereas “new” in Matthew 9 is “neos.” Acts 2 does not have that word! Neither is the word for “wine” [oinos G3631] used in the passage! It is simply glucoseG1098 which can refer to the advanced stage of fermented or alcoholic drink. Mickelson's definition of glucose is “γλεῦκος gleukos G1098. 1. (literally) a sweet juice (i.e. fresh juice). 2. (properly) a sweet wine, dessert wine (used of the more sugary, fermented wine, and therefore highly inebriating). Robinson's Word Pictures: “Sweet wine, but intoxicating. Sweet wine kept a year was very intoxicating.”



“YOUNG WINE” GRAPHIC. The above graphic illustrates that the “new” men who carried the body of Ananias were “young” men. The translators understood the neos Greek word “new” to mean “young” when applied to people; the persons carrying the body here were “new” men; i.e., “young persons.” This is significant in interpreting new “neos” wine. The Greek word “newG3501” is not a word that refers to advanced age of people or things; this includes the thing of liquids. So, “new wine” would be new or fresh from the vine.

THE BOTTLES. JESUS' description of the bottles being “new” or “old” does not help us in understanding the meaning of “new” wine. First of all, the word “new bottle” is a different Greek word for “new”. It is kainos and is not the same as the first “new” which is neos wine. Second, the bottles whether new or old tell us what the neos wine is because they will be affected by whether the wine is fresh or aged. Being new or old skin bottles would indicate whether they could be affected by newly fermented contents. This was the point of Jesus' parable. The “bottles” according to Vincent's Word Studies meant “wine-skin... being a bottle of leather. ... When old, they break under the fermentation of the wine.”


CONCLUSION. Hence, the wisdom of selecting new bottles for “new wine” so that the bottles would expand with the chemical process of fermentation. Therefore, “new wine” could not be fermented wine. “New wine” was a liquid capable of the chemical process. That could only be the “young” juice or grape juice.




i I am a user of the KJV and NKJV for special reasons. Nevertheless, I believe we should test with available helps any translations or versions for proper interpretation. The Spirit's original message was in Greek, not Latin and not English. ::: The Bereans: “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11).




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DICTIONARIES FOR NT GREEK WORD NEOS ("NEW")

King James Concordance [for the word "new" as illustrated above]:

νέος neos G3501 Total KJV Occurrences: 23

new, 11 [hover mouse over passage]

Matthew 9:17 , 2 Mark 2:22 , 3 Luke 5:37-38, 1 Corinthians 5:7, Colossians 3:10, Hebrews 12:24,

younger, 8

Luke 15:12,13, (2) Luke 22:26, 1 Timothy 5:1,2, (2) 1 Timothy 5:11 1 Timothy 5:14 1 Peter 5:5

young, 4

John 21:18 Acts 5:6 Titus 2:4 Titus 2:6



Thayer Definition:

νέος neos G3501

        1.  recently born, young, youthful
    2.  new

 Part of Speech: adjective



Strong's Definition:

νέος neos G3501

A primary word, including the comparative (second form); “new”, that is, (of persons) youthful, or (of things) fresh; figuratively regenerate: - new, young. Total KJV occurrences: 24



Mickelson's Enhanced Strong's Dictioaries:

1. new (of age), youthful.

2. (of persons) young (even under 40 years old, by Hebrew customs of the day).

3. (comparatively) younger.

4. (of things) fresh new (as in wine, a lump of dough, a man).

5. (figuratively) rejuvenated.





AMERICAN ENGLISH DERIVED FROM G3501

(two words from Greek word neos: neo- plus new).


Over 973 entries found for both English "new" and "neo-" formed words.

NEOS. SEE also NEW, below. Same meanings: recent; modern; young; etc.

NEO-

neoteny (n.) "retention of juvenile characteristics in adult life," 1898, from German neotenie (1884), from Greek neos "young" (see new) + teinein "to extend."

neoteric (adj.) - "recent in origin, new, modern," 1590s, from neōteros, comparative of neos "new"

Naples - city in southern Italy founded by Greek colonists 5c. B.C.E., from Italian Napoli, from Greek Neapolis, literally "New City," from nea, fem. of neos "new" (see neo-) + polis "city" (see polis).

neo- word-forming element meaning "new, young, recent," used in a seemingly endless number of adjectives and nouns, mostly coined since c. 1880, from Greek neos "new, young, youthful; fresh, strange; lately, just now."


neon (n.) chemical element, one of the noble gases, 1898, coined by its discoverers, Sir William Ramsay and Morris W. Travers, from Greek neon, neuter of neos "new" (see new).

neophyte (n.) in English from 1400, neophite, "new convert" (modern spelling from 16c.), from Church Latin neophytus, from Greek neophytos "a new convert; one newly initiated," noun use of adjective meaning "newly initiated, newly converted," literally "newly planted," from neos "new" (see new) + phytos "grown; planted,"

Eocene (adj.) in reference to the second epoch of the Tertiary Period, 1831, from eo- "earliest" + Latinized form of Greek kainos "new" (see -cene).

new (adj.) Middle English neue, from Old English neowe, niowe, earlier niwe "made or established for the first time, fresh, recently made or grown; novel, unheard-of, different from the old; untried, inexperienced, unused," Greek neos,

New Testament in English is from late 14c. New math New World New Deal in the FDR New school, New Left (1960) was a coinage of U.S. political sociologist C. Wright Mills (1916-1962). New light in reference to religions is from 1640s. New frontier, in U.S. politics, "reform and social betterment," is from 1934 (Henry Wallace) but associated with John F. Kennedy's use of it in 1960.

New Wave 1960



NEW (adj.) Middle English neue, from Old English neowe, niowe, earlier niwe "made or established for the first time, fresh, recently made or grown; novel, unheard-of, different from the old; untried, inexperienced, unused." This is from PIE *newo- "new" (source also of Sanskrit navah, Persian nau, Hittite newash, Greek neos,

new-made (adj.) "recently made," c. 1400, from new + made. The verb new-make (1610s) probably is a back-formation.

"quite new," 1560s, from brand (n.) + new. Popularly bran-new.


newish (adj.) "rather new," 1560s, from new + -ish.

New York. former New Amsterdam (city), New Jersey named 1664 by one of the proprietors

New Mexico; etc.


newborn (adj.). also new-born, "just born or very lately born," c. 1300, from new + born. As a noun, "a newborn child," from 1879.

newness (n.). "state or quality of being new," Middle English neuenesse, "something new-made, new doctrines, new spiritual life," from Old English neownysse; see new + -ness.

newcomer (n.). "recent arrival, a stranger newly arrived," mid-15c., with agent noun ending + new-come (past-participle adjective) "just arrived," c. 1200, from Old English niwe cumen; see new + come (v.). Old English also used niwcumen as a noun meaning "newcomer, neophyte."

anew (adv.)"over again, once more, afresh," c. 1300, a neue, from Old English of-niowe; see a- (1) + new. One-word form dominant from c. 1400.



renew (v.)late 14c., from re- "again" + Middle English newen "resume, revive, renew" (see new); formed on analogy of Latin renovare. Related: Renewed; renewing.Related entries & more

neoteric (adj.), etc. "recent in origin, new, modern," 1590s, from Late Latin neotericus, from Greek neōterikos "youthful, fresh, modern," from neōteros, comparative of neos "new" (see new).

novation (n.) "replacement of an old obligation by a new one," 1530s, from Latin novationem (nominative novatio) "a making new, renewal, renovation," noun of action from past-participle stem of novare "make new, renew, make fresh," from novus "new" (see new).




English words have different nuances. Sometimes, we arbitrarily apply “our” local meaning to words in passages that were not intended to be so understood. Translators select or use English words to legitimately convey the meaning of the original Greek but our interpretation is based on an erroneous nuance interpretation. For example, they select the word “wine” or “new” without alerting the reader to the first century meaning. Wine did not mean the brewed drink that we are acquainted of. I cringe when a preacher says we will give thanks for the "wine." Jesus just called it "fruit of the vine." But actually he's correct for the word "wine" in Greek was generic and the word could mean grape juice whereas our nuance of wine is a certain stage of fermentation. On the other hand, an English word “new” is translated from different Greek words that have different meanings (e.g., “new wine” in one passage is “sweet intoxicating wine” and in another passage just plain “grape juice”). According to John Stuart Mills, the noted philosopher logician, we more often bring our past experiences into coloring the meaning of some expressions in our ignorance. Consequently, it is important that we study a passage with the intent of capturing the translator's viewpoint of the words.

Thank you, Janie R Ward and Mary L West for editing.


I recommend a well researched article of quotes and proofs of new neos wine being "grape juice" online for oinos being generic; i.e., as fresh grape juice, fermented alcoholic : http://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/LVanswers/2008/04-10b.html

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