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G1736 · Greek · New Testament
ἐνδημέω
Endēmeō
Verb
To Be at Home; To Be Present; To Dwell

Definition

To be present, at home, or dwelling in a place — used by Paul for the contrast between being 'at home' in the body versus being 'at home' with the Lord.

Usage & Theological Significance

The Greek endēmeō (from en + dēmos, people/land) means to be present in one's homeland, to dwell at home. Paul uses it three times in 2 Corinthians 5:6-9 in a rich theological passage about embodied and unembodied existence: 'While we are at home (endēmountes) in the body we are away from the Lord... We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home (endēmēsai) with the Lord.' The word is weighty: 'home' with God is the true homeland.

Paul's use of endēmeō in 2 Corinthians 5 reveals his eschatological homesickness. The body is a dwelling, a tent (2 Corinthians 5:1), a temporary residence — but it is not home. True home is pros ton Kyrion — with the Lord. This is not an escapist dualism (Paul immediately affirms that whether present or absent, the goal is to please God) but a proper ordering of ultimate belonging. Every Christian is, in a sense, an exile in the body — longing for the homeland where God himself will be 'all in all' (1 Corinthians 15:28). The endēmountes with the Lord is the destination of all sanctification.

Key Bible Verses

2 Corinthians 5:6 Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord.
2 Corinthians 5:8 We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
2 Corinthians 5:9 So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.
Philippians 1:23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.
John 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

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