just persons made perfect

δίκαιος, αία, ον (s. δικαιοσύνη; Hom.+; loanw. in rabb.)

① pert. to being in accordance with high standards of rectitude, upright, just, fair

ⓐ of humans

α. In Gr-Rom. tradition a δ. pers. is one who upholds the customs and norms of behavior, including esp. public service, that make for a well-ordered, civilized society (Hom, Od. 6, 120f hospitality and fear of God mark an upright pers.; Dem. 3, 21 a δίκαιος πολίτης gives priority to the interest of the state). Such perspective opened a bridge to Greco-Romans for understanding of Jewish/Christian perspectives: e.g. the description of an eccl. overseer (w. σώφρων, ὅσιος) Tit 1:8. Both polytheistic and monotheistic societies closely associated uprightness, with special reference to behavior toward humans (cp. Pla., Rep. 4, 443; Aristot. EN 5, 1, 1129a-1130a), and piety in reference esp. to familial obligations and deity (Augustus enshrined the perspective, taking pride in being awarded a crown for his δικαιοσύνη and εὐσέβεια Res Gestae 34). In keeping with OT tradition, NT writers emphasize a connection between upright conduct and sense of responsibility to God; δ. like צַדִּיק=conforming to the laws of God and people. General definition ὁ ποιῶν τὴν δικαιοσύνην δ. ἐστιν one who does what is right, is righteous 1J 3:7; cp. Rv 22:11.—Ro 5:7. δικαίῳ νόμος οὐ κεῖται law does not apply to an upright person 1 Ti 1:9. οὐκ ἔστιν δίκαιος Ro 3:10 (cp. Eccl 7:20); δ. παρὰ τῷ θεῷ righteous in the sight of God Ro 2:13; δ. ἐναντίον τοῦ θεοῦ (Gen 7:1; Job 32:2) Lk 1:6. W. φοβούμενος τὸν θεόν of Cornelius Ac 10:22. W. εὐλαβής (Pla., Pol. 311ab ἤθη εὐλαβῆ κ. δίκαια, τὸ δικαιον κ. εὐλαβές) Lk 2:25. W. ἀγαθός (Kaibel 648, 10; Jos., Ant. 8, 248; 9, 132 ἀνὴρ ἀγ. κ. δίκ.; s. ἀγαθός 2aα) 23:50; ἀθῷος (Sus 53) 1 Cl 46:4; ὅσιος (En 103:9) 2 Cl 15:3; ταπεινός B 19:6. (ὡς δίκαιον καὶ ἀναμάρτητον Just., D. 47, 5). Serving God w. a pure heart makes one δ. 2 Cl 11:1. Hence the δίκαιοι=the just, the upright in a specif. Israelite-Christian sense Mt 13:43 (cp. Da 12:3 Theod.) Lk 1:17; 1 Pt 3:12 (Ps 33:16); 1 Cl 22:6 (Ps 33:16); 33:7; 45:3f; 48:3 (Ps 117:20); 2 Cl 6:9; 17:7; 20:3f; B 11:7 (Ps 1:5f); MPol 14:1; 17:1; also of those who only appear upright (cp. Pr 21:2) Mt 23:28; Lk 18:9; 20:20; specifically of Christians Mt 10:41; Ac 14:2 D; 1 Pt 4:18 (Pr 11:31); Hv 1, 4, 2. W. apostles MPol 19:2; cp. 1 Cl 5:2. Esp. of the righteous of the OT: πατέρες δ. 1 Cl 30:7. W. prophets Mt 13:17; 23:29 (perh. teachers: DHill, NTS 11, ’64/65, 296–302). Of Abel (Did., Gen. 181, 10) Mt 23:35 (construction with τοῦ αἵματος deserves consideration: GKilpatrick, BT 16, ’65, 119); Hb 11:4; Enoch 1 Cl 9:3; Lot 2 Pt 2:7f (Noah: Just., D. 20, 1; 138, 1; δίκαιοι καὶ πατριάρχαι ibid. 67, 7); John the Baptist (w. ἅγιος) Mk 6:20; δ. τετελειωμένοι just persons made perfect (i.e., who have died) Hb 12:23. Opp. ἄδικοι (Pr 17:15; 29:27; En 99:3; 100:7) Mt 5:45; Ac 24:15; 1 Pt 3:18; ἁμαρτωλοί (Ps 1:5; En 104:6 and 12; PsSol 2:34) Mt 9:13; Mk 2:17; Lk 5:32; 15:7; ἁμαρτωλοί and ἀσεβεῖς (Ps 1:5f) 1 Ti 1:9; 1 Pt 4:18 (Pr 11:31); πονηροί (Pr 11:15) Mt 13:49 (μοχθηροί Tat. 3, 2). W. regard to the Last Judgment, the one who stands the test is δ. righteous Mt 25:37, 46.—Ro 1:17 (s. ζάω 2bβ); Gal 3:11; Hb 10:38 (all three Hab 2:4; cp. Larfeld I 494); Ro 5:19. Resurrection of the just Lk 14:14; prayer Js 5:16; cp. 5:6 (1bβ below). Joseph, who is interested in doing the right thing honorable, just, good (Jos., Ant. 15, 106; Diod S 33, 5, 6 ἀνδρὸς εὐσεβοῦς κ. δικαίου; Conon [I B.C.–I A.D.]: 26 Fgm. 1, 17 Jac.; Galen CMG V/10, 3 p. 33, 13f [XVIII/1 p. 247 K.] ἄνδρες δ.) Mt 1:19 (w. connotation of ‘merciful’ DHill, ET 76, ’65, 133f; s. δικαιοσύνη 3b).

β. of things relating to human beings ἔργα 1J 3:12; αἷμα δ. (Jo 4:19; La 4:13=αἷμα δικαίου Pr 6:17, where αἷ. δίκαιον is a v.l.) blood of an upright, or better, an innocent man Mt 23:35 (s. 1bβ below), and esp. 27:4, where δ. is v.l. for ἀθῷον; AcPl Ha 11, 8; ψυχὴ δ. upright soul (cp. Pr 10:3; s. also GrBar 10:5) 2 Pt 2:8; πνεῦμα δ. upright spirit Hm 5, 2, 7; ἐντολή (w. ἁγία and ἀγαθή) Ro 7:12. κρίσις (Dt 16:18; Is 58:2; 2 Macc 9:18; 3 Macc 2:22; Jos., Ant. 9, 4) J 5:30; 7:24; 8:16 v.l.; 2 Th 1:5; B 20:2. Pl. Rv 16:7; 19:2. φύσει δικαίᾳ by an upright nature IEph 1:1 (Hdb. ad loc.; Orig., C. Cels. 5, 24, 8); ὁδὸς δ. (Vi. Aesopi I G 85 P. of the ‘right way’) 2 Cl 5:7; B 12:4; pl. Rv 15:3.

ⓑ of transcendent beings. Because of their privileged status as authority figures, the idea of fairness or equity is associated w. such entities (for δ. in the sense of ‘equitable’ in a very explicit form s. Strabo 4, 18, 7).

α. God (NRhizos, Καππαδοκικά 1856, p. 113: it is gener. assumed that deities are just or fair, but the attribute is esp. affirmed in an ins fr. Tyana Θεῷ δικαίῳ Μίθρᾳ.—JMordtmann, MAI 10, 1885, 11–14 has several exx. of ὅσιος κ. δίκαιος as adj. applied to gods in west Asia Minor.—δικ. of Isis: PRoussel, Les cultes égypt. à Delos 1916, p. 276.—Oft. in OT; Jos., Bell. 7, 323, Ant. 11, 55 [w. ἀληθινός]; Just., A II, 12, 6, D. 23, 2) just, righteous w. ref. to God’s judgment of people and nations κριτὴς δ. a righteous judge (Ps 7:12; 2 Macc 12:6; PsSol 9:2; cp. the description of Rhadamanthys, Pind., O. 2, 69) 2 Ti 4:8; δ. ἐν τοῖς κρίμασιν 1 Cl 27:1; 60:1; cp. 56:5 (Ps 140:5); πατὴρ δ. J 17:25; cp. Ro 3:26; 1J 2:29; cp. 3:7; ὁ θεὸς ὁ παντοκράτωρ δ. AcPlCor 2:12. W. ὅσιος (Ps 144:17; Dt 32:4) Rv 16:5. W. πιστός 1J 1:9.

β. of Jesus who, as the ideal of an upright pers. is called simply ὁ δ. the upright one (HDechent, D. ‘Gerechte’, Eine Bezeichnung für d. Messias: StKr 100, 1928, 439–43) Ac 7:52; 22:14; Mt 27:19, cp. 24 v.l.; 1J 2:1; 3:7b; Lk 23:47 (for Gr-Rom. associations in favor of upright, esp. in Lk 23:47 s. Danker, Benefactor ’82, 345f. GKilpatrick, JTS 42, ’41, 34–36, prefers innocent, so also Goodsp., Probs. 90f, but against this interp. s. RHanson, Hermathena 60, ’42, 74–78; RKarris, JBL 105, ’86, 65–74). W. ἅγιος Ac 3:14. On the qu. whether Js 5:6 applies to Jesus, s. KAland, TLZ ’44, 103 and MDibelius, Commentary (Hermeneia), ad loc. (but s. Greeven’s note in this comm. p. 240, 58: ‘perhaps a veiled, melancholy allusion to the death of James’).—Also of angels Hs 6, 3, 2.

② The neuter denotes that which is obligatory in view of certain requirements of justice, right, fair, equitable (Dio Chrys. 67 [17], 12; Jos., Ant. 15, 376; cp. Strabo 4, 18, 7; s. Larfeld I 494) δ. παρὰ θεῷ it is right in the sight of God 2 Th 1:6. Also δ. ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ Ac 4:19; δ. καὶ ὅσιον it is right and holy 1 Cl 14:1, pl. Phil 4:8; δ. ἐστιν it is right Eph 6:1; w. inf. foll. Phil 1:7; 1 Cl 21:4 (cp. Hyperid. 6, 14; PSI 442, 14 [III B.C.] οὐ δίκαιόν ἐστι οὕτως εἶναι; Sir 10:23; 2 Macc 9:12; 4 Macc 6:34); δ. ἡγοῦμαι I consider it right (Diod S 12, 45, 1 δ. ἡγοῦντο) 2 Pt 1:13; τὸ δ. (Appian, Bell. Civ. 4, 97 §409 τὸ δ.=the just cause; Arrian, Anab. 3, 27, 5; Polyb.; IMagnMai; SEG XLI, 625, 5; pap; 2 Macc 4:34; 10:12; 3 Macc 2:25; EpArist; Jos., Bell. 4, 340 Ant. 16, 158; το νῦν δ. Tat. 1, 3) what is right Lk 12:57. τὸ δ. παρέχεσθαι give what is right Col 4:1. ὸ̔ ἐὰν ᾖ δ. δώσω ὑμῖν whatever is right I will give you Mt 20:4 (Diod S 5, 71, 1 τὸ δίκαιον άλλήλοις διδόναι; 8, 25, 4). Abstract for concrete (Philipp. [=Demosth. 12] 23 μετὰ τοῦ δ.; Dio Chrys. 52 [69], 6 ἄνευ νόμου κ. δικαίου; Ael. Aristid, 46 p. 302 D.) τὸ δίκαιον ὀρθὴν ὁδὸν ἔχει uprightness goes the straight way Hm 6, 1, 2. Pl. (Diod S 15, 11, 1; 19, 85, 3; Appian, Samn. 11 §4 al.; Lucian, Dial. Mort. 30, 1; Jos., Ant. 19, 288; SibOr 3, 257; Just., A I, 68, 3 δ. ἀξιοῦν; D. 28, 4 φυλάσσει τὰ αἰώνια δ.) δίκαια βουλεύεσθαι have upright thoughts Hv 1, 1, 8 (cp. λαλεῖν Is 59:4; ἐκζητήσεται 1 Macc 7:12; κρίνειν Ar. 15, 4; Just., A II, 15, 5).—B. 1180. DELG s.v. δίκη. M-M. TW. Spicq. Sv.