to the cities abroad

πέμπω fut. πέμψω; 1 aor. ἑπεμψα; pf. πέπομφα IEph 17:2. Pass.: fut. inf. πεμφθήσεσθαι (Just., A I, 28); 1 aor. ἐπέμφθην; 1 pf. ptc. πεπεμμένος (Just., D. 126, 6); plpf. 3 sg. ἐπέπεμπτο Just., D. 56, 5).

① to dispatch someone, whether human or transcendent being, usually for purposes of communication, send τινά someone J 1:22; 13:16; 20:21b; Phil 2:23, 28; ISm 11:3. δοῦλον Lk 20:11; cp. vs. 12f. τ. ἀδελφούς 2 Cor 9:3. ἄνδρας πιστούς 1 Cl 63:3. ὑπηρέτην Dg 7:2. ἐπισκόπους IPhld 10:2. W. double acc. π. τινὰ κατάσκοπον send someone out as a spy B 12:9; w. acc. of a ptc. π. τινὰ κρίνοντα send someone as a judge Dg 7:6. π. τινὰ πρεσβεύσοντα send someone to be a representative Pol 13:1. W. a destination indicated (the ref. to a legation somet. being omitted as self-evident, like the Engl. ‘send to someone’= ‘send a messenger to someone’): π. (τινὰ) εἴς τι send (someone) to, into (X., Hell. 7, 4, 39; Jos., C. Ap. 1, 271 εἰς Ἱερος.) Mt 2:8; Lk 15:15; 16:27; Ac 10:5, 32 (without acc.); 15:22; IEph 6:1; GJs 16:2. W. the point of departure and the destination given ἀπὸ τῆς Μιλήτου εἰς Ἔφεσον Ac 20:17 (without acc.). W. indication of the pers. to whom someone is sent π. (τινὰ) πρός τινα send (someone) to someone (X., Cyr. 1, 5, 4; Demetr.: 722 Fgm. 1:13 Jac.; Diod S 20, 72, 1 π. τινὰ εἰς Συρακούσας πρὸς τ. ἀδελφόν; PHib 127 descr. 3 [III B.C.] π. τινὰ πρός τινα; Sb 6769, 5; 2 Esdr 5:17; En 10:2; TestJos 9:1; Manetho: 609 Fgm. 10 Jac. [in Jos., C. Ap. 1, 241]) Lk 7:19 (αὐτούς them is supplied by the immediate context); Ac 10:33 (without acc.); 15:25; 19:31 (without acc.); 23:30 (the acc. αὐτόν him is supplied by the context.—S. further below, where this pass. is cited again); Eph 6:22; Phil 2:25; Col 4:8; Tit 3:12; GJs 21:2 codd. In several of these places π. is used w. another verb that tells the purpose of the sending. This verb can be in the ptc.: ἔπεμψεν λέγων he sent to ask (cp. Gen 38:25; 2 Km 14:32; Jos., C. Ap. 1, 262) Lk 7:19; cp. vs. 6. Or the verb w. π. is in a finite mood and π. stands in the ptc. (Appian, Bell. Civ. 5, 9 §34 πέμψας ἀνεῖλε=he sent and had [her] put to death; 5, 118 §489 ἤρετο πέμπων=he sent and asked; Gen 27:42; Jos., Ant. 7, 149) πέμψαντες παρεκάλουν they sent and advised Ac 19:31; cp. πέμψας ἀπεκεφάλισεν he sent and had (John) beheaded Mt 14:10.—22:7. Differently πέμψας αὐτοὺς εἶπεν he sent them and said 2:8. W. indication of the one who is to receive someone, in the dat. π. τινά τινι send someone to someone 1 Cor 4:17; Phil 2:19.—ὁ Ἰω. πέμψας δύο τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ εἶπεν αὐτῷ=‘sent two of his disciples and had them say to him’ Mt 11:2 v.l. (cp. Appian, Bell. Civ. 1, 96 §449 πέμψας τινὰς ὁ Πομπήιος συνέλαβεν [Κάρβωνα]=Pompey sent certain men and had Carbo taken into custody). W. purpose indicated by the inf. (Just., D. 45, 4) Lk 15:15; 1 Cor 16:3; cp. also J 1:33; Rv 22:16. By subst. inf. w. εἰς 1 Th 3:2, 5. By εἰς (Appian, Mithrid. 108 §516 ἔπεμπεν τὰς θυγατέρας ἐς γάμους=in order to marry them [to Scythian princes]) εἰς αὐτὸ τοῦτο for this very purpose Eph 6:22; Col 4:8. εἰς ἐκδίκησιν κακοποιῶν 1 Pt 2:14. W. εἰς twice: εἰς θεοῦ τιμὴν εἰς Σμύρναν IEph 21:1. W. purpose indicated by ἵνα Lk 16:24.—Esp. of sending forth of God’s representatives (Aberciusins. 7; Philosoph. Max. 497, 8, the wise man is ἀποσταλείς, his πέμψας is God) Moses 1 Cl 17:5; Elijah Lk 4:26. The angel of repentance Hs 8, 11, 1. Above all the Father sends the Son (upon the earth) Ro 8:3; IMg 8:2. πέμψω τὸν υἱόν μου τὸν ἀγαπητόν Lk 20:13 (cp. Hdt. 1, 119, 2f ἦν οἱ παῖς εἷς μοῦνος … τοῦτον ἐκπέμπει … ἐς Ἀστυάγεος … Ἀστυάγης σφάξας αὐτόν). John’s gospel is dominated by the thought that Jesus is sent by God fr. heaven (s. Hdb. exc. on J 3:17) J 4:34; 5:23f, 30, 37; 6:38f, 44; 7:16, 28, 33; 8:16, 18, 26, 29; 9:4; 12:44f, 49; 13:20; 14:24; 15:21; 16:5. Jesus, or God in his name, will send the Paraclete or Holy Spirit J 14:26; 15:26 (ὸ̔ν ἐγὼ πέμψω ὑμῖν παρὰ τοῦ πατρός); 16:7. Sim. πέμπει αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς ἐνέργειαν πλάνης God sends them a deluding influence 2 Th 2:11.—The idea of moving from one place to another, which is inherent in ‘sending’, can retreat into the background, so that π. takes on the mng. instruct, commission, appoint: ὁ πέμψας με βαπτίζειν ἐν ὕδατι J 1:33. Cp. 7:18 and the pass. 1 Pt 2:14. Elsewh., too, π. takes on a particular mng. fr. the context: πέμψον ἡμᾶς εἰς τοὺς χοίρους eject us into the swine Mk 5:12. Of one under arrest: have him transported to his destination Ac 25:25, 27; cp. 23:30 (on these pass. s. TGagos/PSijpesteijn, BASP 33, ’96, 77–97).—Abs. οἱ πεμφθέντες those who were sent Lk 7:10.—In several of the places already mentioned (Ac 23:30; Eph 6:22; Phil 2:28; Col 4:8) ἔπεμψα is an epistolary aorist (Thu. 1, 129, 3; Chion, Ep. 15, 3 ἔπεμψα δὲ τὸ ἀντίγραφον; POxy 937, 21.—B-D-F §334; Rob. 845f).

② to dispatch someth. through an intermediary, send τινί τι someth. to someone Rv 11:10; Hv 2, 4, 3a; Hs 5, 2, 9; 5, 5, 3. The thing that is the object of the sending can remain unmentioned if it is easily supplied fr. the context πέμψον ταῖς ἑπτὰ ἐκκλησίαις, εἰς Ἔφεσον καὶ εἰς … send (the book) to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to … Rv 1:11. πέμψει Κλήμης εἰς τὰς ἔξω πόλεις Clement is to send (it=his copy or rescripts of it) to the cities abroad Hv 2, 4, 3b. ὥρισαν εἰς διακονίαν πέμψαι τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς they decided to send (someth.) to the brethren for their support Ac 11:29. εἰς τὴν χρείαν μοι ἐπέμψατε you have sent me (what was necessary) to satisfy my needs Phil 4:16 (cp. vv.ll. without the prep. εἰς and s. Ar. Milne p. 74 ln. 26: πέμπουσιν αὐτοῖ ἃ χρέαν ἔχουσιν). Fig. μερίσας … ἀπὸ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἔπεμψεν εἰς τοὺς προφήτας (God) sent a portion of Christ’s spirit into the prophets AcPlCor 2:10.—On π. τὸ δρέπανον Rv 14:15, 18 s. δρέπανον.—π. διά τινος could come fr. the OT (=שָׁלַח בְּיַד פּ׳ 1 Km 16:20; 2 Km 11:14; 3 Km 2:25) and could have given rise to the expr. πέμψας διὰ τῶν μαθητῶν εἶπεν αὐτῷ he sent word by his disciples and said to him Mt 11:2 ([Just., D. 53, 1]; yet a similar expr. is found in Appian, Mithrid. 108 §516 ἔπεμπεν διʼ εὐνούχων).—π. abs. means send, write a document, letter, etc. (Ps.-Callisth. 3, 18, 4; PGiss 13, 5 [II A.D.] Ἀρσινόη μοι ἔπεμψε περὶ τῶν δύο ταλάντων; 17, 8; 13; 27, 8 οὗ ἕνεκα πρὸς σὲ ἔπεμψα ἵνα ἐπιγνῶ; 81, 6; 14 πέμψον μοι οὖν περὶ τῆς σωτηρίας σου and oft. in pap) ἐσπούδασα κατὰ μικρὸν ὑμῖν πέμπειν I have taken pains to write to you briefly B 1:5.—DELG. M-M. EDNT.