From kata ('according to') and hos ('as'). Kathos is the Greek word for comparison β 'just as' or 'even as' β used to draw parallels, typically between divine action and human obligation.
Kathos is the foundation word of Christian ethics: 'Love one another, kathos I have loved you' (John 13:34; 15:12). The measure of Christian love is not a general principle but the specific, sacrificial, covenant-keeping love of Christ. This makes Christian ethics both infinitely demanding and infinitely resourced: we can only love kathos Christ loved us by drawing from His love, not our own reserves. Kathos also structures the Lord's Prayer ('forgive us our debts, kathos we forgive'), the Beatitudes, and Paul's ethical instructions in Colossians 3. The Christian life is a life of kathos β continuous comparison to Christ.