☀️
← Back to Lexicon
G291 · Greek · New Testament
Ἀμπλίας
Amplías
Proper noun (person)
Ampliatus (Roman believer greeted by Paul)

Definition

Ampliatus (Ἀμπλίας) was a member of the Roman church whom Paul greets in Romans 16:8 as 'my dear friend in the Lord.' The name was common among Roman slaves and freedmen.

Usage & Theological Significance

The greeting of Ampliatus in Romans 16 is a window into the early church's radical social diversity. Ampliatus was a common slave name — yet Paul calls him 'my dear friend in the Lord' (agapeton mou en kyrio). The gospel had created genuine friendship across the deepest social divides of the ancient world. Archaeological evidence from the Catacomb of Domitilla in Rome shows an early Christian burial inscription for one 'Ampliatus' — possibly this very person — buried with honor near members of the imperial household, illustrating how in Christ 'there is neither slave nor free' (Galatians 3:28). The beloved slave and the noble are brothers in the Lord.

Key Bible Verses

Romans 16:8 Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.
Romans 16:1 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae.
Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Philemon 1:16 No longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother.
1 Corinthians 12:13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body — whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free — and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Related Words

External Resources

🌙
☀️