An equitable deed; by implication, a statute or decision
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δικαίωμα (dikaiōma) belongs to the word family of righteousness and justification, but its precise sense changes with context. It can denote a righteous decree, a legal requirement, a judicial outcome, or a righteous act.
Reader summary
Full entry for δικαίωμα (G1345) · Open the biblical lexicon
δικαίωμα (dikaiōma) belongs to the word family of righteousness and justification, but its precise sense changes with context. It can denote a righteous decree, a legal requirement, a judicial outcome, or a righteous act.
The BSB source-word alignment has 10 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include regulations (2), righteous acts (2), act of righteousness (1), decrees (1), justification (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Luke 1:6. Its strongest book concentrations include Romans (5), Hebrews (2), Revelation (2), Luke (1).
δικαίωμα (dikaiōma) belongs to the word family of righteousness and justification, but its precise sense changes with context. It can denote a righteous decree, a legal requirement, a judicial outcome, or a righteous act. Romans 1:32 speaks of God's righteous decree against practiced evil. Romans 2:26 refers to the law's requirements in an argument exposing the insufficiency of outward covenant markers without obedience.
Romans 5 places the noun inside the Adam-Christ contrast, where condemnation arising from Adam's trespass is answered by God's justifying gift and the righteous act associated with Christ's obedience. The noun should not be reduced to the gloss 'righteous act,' nor should it be used to collapse decree, requirement, verdict, and obedience into one idea. It helps readers follow Paul's legal and covenant reasoning when each sentence is allowed to control the sense.
Romans uses δικαίωμα for God's righteous decree, the law's requirement, and the justifying side of the Adam-Christ contrast. The shared righteousness family does not erase these contextual distinctions.
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things are worthy of death, they not only continue to do these things, but also approve of those who practice them.
Humanity knows God's righteous decree yet continues in evil and approves others who practice it, deepening the charge of accountable rebellion.
If a man who is not circumcised keeps the requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision?
Paul uses the law's requirement to expose confidence in circumcision without obedience; the argument prepares for a heart-level work of the Spirit.
Again, the gift is not like the result of the one man’s sin: The judgment that followed one sin brought condemnation, but the gift that followed many trespasses brought justification.
The noun appears in a judicial contrast: Adam's one sin brings condemnation, while God's gift answers many trespasses with justification.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. A concrete expression of divine righteousness: ordinance, judicial verdict, or righteous deed.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
10 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
a thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read versea thing pronounced to be just
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 6 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 1 selected witness from 10 lexical occurrence verses.
δικαίωμα is built from this root:
Refers to Christ’s righteous act leading to justification and life. Romans 5:12-21
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
δικαίωμα helps readers hear the coherence of God's righteousness without flattening Paul's argument. Romans 1 names a righteous decree that condemns practiced evil, showing that divine judgment is neither arbitrary nor unknown. Romans 2 turns to the requirement of the law and strips outward circumcision of value when obedience is absent. Paul is closing every mouth, not offering Gentile law-keeping as an alternate path of justification.
Romans 5 then places the noun within the representative contrast between Adam and Christ. One trespass brings condemnation; God's gracious gift addresses many trespasses with justification, and Christ's obedient act stands on the life-giving side of the contrast. The theological center is God's righteous action in judging sin and giving a right-standing outcome through Christ.
The lexical contribution is to track each legal or covenant function carefully rather than letting one English gloss decide the doctrine in advance.
Rom.5.15-19
As a result noun in the δικ- family, δικαίωμα may denote a righteous ordinance or requirement, a judicial decision or outcome, or a righteous deed. The surrounding verbs, contrasts, and legal setting determine the sense. Cognate relationship does not make it interchangeable with δικαιοσύνη or δικαίωσις.
The Old Testament speaks of the Lord's righteous ordinances and calls Israel to covenant obedience, while also exposing the people's need for mercy and heart renewal. Paul receives that legal and covenant vocabulary and centers the justifying gift in Christ. The bridge must preserve the different functions of decree, requirement, verdict, and obedient act.
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