a thing given: a gift handed from one party to another, whatever the setting.
At root this is the plainest word for a present: something passed from one hand to another. The word is built straight off the verb for giving, and by itself it carries no special weight. What each appearance means is decided by who gives, who receives, and why, not by the word itself. So the same word names:
- the treasures the wise men lay before the child king
- the offering a worshipper carries to the altar
- a binding promise that puts property out of reach by calling it dedicated to God
- even the rescue God hands down to people who could never earn it.
The reason this one word stretches so far is historical. When Greek-speaking Jews translated their scriptures, they reached for this word again and again to render the Hebrew term for an offering brought to the altar (קׇרבן). Over time it became almost a fixed term among them for a sacrifice. The writers of the New Testament inherited that habit, which is why so many of its appearances sit in the world of temple worship. But the older, everyday meaning never went away, and the word keeps its full range here.
This is exactly why care is needed. The weight a gift carries in one verse cannot be carried over into another.
- The treasures of the wise men are royal honor, not a priestly sacrifice.
- The offering in Hebrews is part of the whole temple system.
- The gift in Ephesians is salvation itself.
Each must be read on its own terms, by what the surrounding words actually say, rather than by loading every appearance with the fullest possible meaning.