G1753 — ἐνέργεια (enérgeia)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G1753
Original: ἐνέργεια
Transliteration: enérgeia
Pronunciation: en-érg-i-ah
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: ἐν (G1722, "in") + ἔργον (G2041, "work") — via cognate verb ἐνεργέω (G1754, "to be at work in / operate")
Occurrences: 8 in NT (all Pauline)
First Occurrence: Ephesians 1:19 — "according to the working of his mighty power"
Hapax Legomenon: No
LXX Occurrences: Not used in canonical LXX; the noun belongs to the Hellenistic philosophical/medical register and enters Scripture only through Paul.

Lexicon Definition¶

From ἐνεργός ("at work, active"), which is from ἐν + ἔργον: "efficiency," "operation," "active working," "energy." The noun names operative power actually in motion — power conceived not as latent capacity but as the exertion or outworking of that capacity. KJV renders: working, effectual working, operation, strong.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 042 — Perform, Do
Subdomain: 042.001 — Function
Gloss: "to function / to work / to be at work"
Other words in domain: ἐνεργέω (G1754), ἐνέργημα (G1755), ἐνεργής (G1756), πράσσω (G4238), ποιέω (G4160) — the domain groups verbs and nominals of effective action and operation.

UBS Semantic Domains¶

042 — Perform, Do

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
working	3	37.5%
effectual working	1	12.5%
to the effectual working	1	12.5%
operation	1	12.5%
the working	1	12.5%
strong	1	12.5%

All eight renderings cluster around a single English concept ("working/operation"); the apparent variety is stylistic. "Strong" in 2 Thess 2:11 is part of the phrase πέμπει … ἐνέργειαν πλάνης, rendered "strong delusion" (lit. "a working of deception").

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Ephesians	3	1.94
2 Thessalonians	2	4.21
Colossians	2	2.11
Philippians	1	0.96

All eight occurrences are in the Pauline prison / late epistles (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians) and 2 Thessalonians. The word does not appear in the Gospels, Acts, General Epistles, or Revelation. It is a distinctly Pauline theological term.

Semantic Categories¶

The noun always denotes operative working — power-in-action rather than power-at-rest. Its theological weight lies in the genitive construction that follows: ἐνέργεια τοῦ X ("working of X") is a subjective genitive — X is the source or agent whose power is being exerted. The category below is organized by the identity of that source.

1. The Operative Power of God / Christ (resurrection, sanctification, apostolic ministry)¶

The working of the divine source energizing salvation, resurrection, ministry, and bodily transformation. - Eph 1:19 — "what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power" (κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν τοῦ κράτους τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ — stacked with three other power words: δύναμις, κράτος, ἰσχύς) - Eph 3:7 — "I was made a minister … by the effectual working of his power" (κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ) - Col 1:29 — "striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily" (κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐνεργουμένην — noun reinforced by its cognate participle) - Col 2:12 — "risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead" (τῆς ἐνεργείας τοῦ θεοῦ) - Phil 3:21 — "Who shall change our vile body … according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself" (κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν τοῦ δύνασθαι αὐτὸν)

2. The Operative Power Distributed through the Body of Christ¶

The source (Christ/Head) operates through the members; ἐνέργεια names the measured outflow of that power into each part. - Eph 4:16 — "From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part" (κατ' ἐνέργειαν ἐν μέτρῳ ἑνὸς ἑκάστου μέρους)

3. The Operative Power of Satan / of Delusion¶

The same construction is used of Satan as the active source, and then of the deceptive operation God judicially sends. The noun is morally neutral — it names whatever source is actually exerting its power. - 2 Thess 2:9 — "whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders" (κατ' ἐνέργειαν τοῦ Σατανᾶ — the coming of the lawless one is patterned after and energized by the ἐνέργεια of Satan, with the cascade of δύναμις, σημεῖα, τέρατα ψεύδους following in vv. 9–10 as the observable output of that ἐνέργεια) - 2 Thess 2:11 — "For this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie" (πέμπει αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς ἐνέργειαν πλάνης — literally "God sends them a working of deception"; divine judicial action releasing the deceptive operation upon those who rejected the love of the truth)

Grammatical Pattern — The Subjective Genitive¶

In seven of eight occurrences ἐνέργεια is qualified by a following genitive, and in every case the genitive identifies the source/agent of the working, not its object:

Reference	Genitive phrase	Agent of the working
Eph 1:19	τοῦ κράτους τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ	His mighty power (God)
Eph 3:7	τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ	His power (God)
Eph 4:16	— (governed by κατ' + μέτρον phrase)	Christ / each member
Phil 3:21	τοῦ δύνασθαι αὐτὸν	His power (Christ)
Col 1:29	αὐτοῦ (+ ἐνεργουμένην)	His (Christ)
Col 2:12	τοῦ θεοῦ	God
2 Thess 2:9	τοῦ Σατανᾶ	Satan
2 Thess 2:11	πλάνης	(deception — object of the sending; the sender is God, v. 11a)

The seven source-genitives (six divine, one Satanic) establish a fixed Pauline idiom: ἐνέργεια + genitive = "the operative power exerted by X." In 2 Thess 2:11 the governing verb πέμπει with subject ὁ θεός preserves the same logic by grammatical means rather than genitive: God is the sender, πλάνη is what the working consists of.

Five of eight instances occur in the prepositional phrase κατὰ (τὴν) ἐνέργειαν ("according to the working of …"), marking the operative power as the norm or standard by which a result is produced.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences with G1753	Typical Pattern
δύναμις (dýnamis)	G1411	Eph 1:19; 3:7; Phil 3:21 (cognate δύνασθαι); 2 Thess 2:9	"working of (his) power" — ἐνέργεια names the operation, δύναμις the power being operated
κράτος (krátos)	G2904	Eph 1:19	Stacked power chain ("working of the dominion of his might")
ἰσχύς (ischýs)	G2479	Eph 1:19	Stacked power chain
ἐνεργέω (energéō)	G1754	Col 1:29 (ἐνέργειαν … ἐνεργουμένην); Eph 1:19 (adj. usage); Eph 3:7 context	Noun reinforced by its own cognate verb — figura etymologica intensifying the idea of active operation
θεός (theós)	G2316	Col 2:12	"operation of God"
Σατανᾶς (Satanâs)	G4567	2 Thess 2:9	"working of Satan" — the only negative-source construction
σημεῖον (sēmeîon)	G4592	2 Thess 2:9	Signs as output of Satanic working
τέρας (téras)	G5059	2 Thess 2:9	Lying wonders as output of Satanic working
πλάνη (plánē)	G4106	2 Thess 2:11	"working of deception" — delusion as the content of the judicial working

Word Family / Cognates¶

G1754 ἐνεργέω (energéō) — verb, "to be at work, operate, produce effects"; 21 NT occurrences; the action form of the same root. Paired with G1753 in Col 1:29 (figura etymologica).
G1755 ἐνέργημα (enérgēma) — neuter noun, "the effect / result of the working"; 2 occurrences (1 Cor 12:6, 10). Where ἐνέργεια is the working itself, ἐνέργημα is the effect produced.
G1756 ἐνεργής (energḗs) — adjective, "active, effective, powerful"; 3 occurrences (1 Cor 16:9; Phm 1:6; Heb 4:12 — "the word of God is quick and powerful").
G2041 ἔργον (érgon) — noun, "work, deed"; root of the compound; ~170 NT occurrences.
G1722 ἐν (en) — preposition, "in"; first element of the compound (indicating the work is in operation).

Synonyms¶

search_relationships.py surfaced no separate synonym list for G1753 beyond its cognate family and closest related studies.

Antonyms¶

search_relationships.py surfaced no dedicated antonym pair for G1753.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Overlap Area	Key Difference
δύναμις (dýnamis)	G1411	"power / mighty working"	dýnamis = the capacity or inherent power; enérgeia = that power in actual operation. Paul often pairs them: "the working (enérgeia) of his power (dýnamis)."
ἰσχύς (ischýs)	G2479	"might / strength"	ischýs = possessed strength as an attribute; enérgeia = the exerting of strength in effect.
κράτος (krátos)	G2904	"dominion / might"	krátos = ruling might / dominion; enérgeia = the specific act of exerting power.
ἔργον (érgon)	G2041	"work"	érgon = the deed or task as a thing accomplished; enérgeia = the active working as a process.
ἐνέργημα (enérgēma)	G1755	"operation / working"	enérgēma = the outcome/effect; enérgeia = the operation itself.
πρᾶξις (prâxis)	G4234	"deed / action"	prâxis = a practice or mode of acting; enérgeia = operative power at work.

Domain Neighbors (LN 042 — Perform, Do)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total vv	Primary KJV Translation	Key Difference
G1754	ἐνεργέω	21	worketh, effectual, worketh effectually	Verb form — the act of operating
G1755	ἐνέργημα	2	operations, working	The effect produced by the working
G1756	ἐνεργής	3	effectual, powerful	Adjective — describing something as operative
G4160	ποιέω	568	do, make	Generic "to do / make"
G4238	πράσσω	39	do, commit	To practice or carry out
G2041	ἔργον	169	work, deed	The concrete deed/result

Historical-Philosophical Note¶

ἐνέργεια is a technical term in Aristotelian philosophy ("actuality" as opposed to δύναμις = "potentiality"). It does not appear in the canonical LXX and is absent from Classical Hebrew thought categories. Paul — writing in a Hellenistic idiom — imports the word and uses it theologically: not as a metaphysical abstraction but as a concrete designation for whose power is actually operating in a given event (God's, Christ's, the risen body's, the members of the church's, or Satan's).