The quality of being unseen or uncertain; uncertainty, unreliability
Adēlotēs (from adēlos, 'uncertain') is an abstract noun meaning 'uncertainty' or 'unpredictability.' Its single NT occurrence (1 Timothy 6:17) instructs the wealthy not to hope in the adēlotēs of wealth — its inherent unreliability and transience. Riches may vanish; they offer no ultimate security. The contrast is with God, who 'richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment' — a certain, stable foundation.
1 Timothy 6:17 crystallizes a major biblical theme: the unreliability of material wealth versus the reliability of God. Proverbs 23:5 — 'Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone; for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.' Riches are adēlos — uncertain, transient. The prosperity gospel promises what only God can give; it roots hope in what is inherently uncertain. True wealth, Jesus taught, is stored in heaven (Matthew 6:20) — an imperishable treasury. Paul does not condemn wealth per se but the misplaced hope that treats the uncertain as certain.