G1805 — ἐξαγοράζω (exagorazō)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G1805
Original: ἐξαγοράζω
Transliteration: exagorazō
Pronunciation: ex-ag-or-ad'-zo
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: ἐκ (G1537, "out of") + ἀγοράζω (G59, "to purchase in the marketplace")
Occurrences: 4 in NT (4 unique verses across 3 books)
First Occurrence: Gal 3:13 — "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From ἐκ (G1537) and ἀγοράζω (G59); to buy up, i.e. ransom; figuratively, to rescue from loss (improve opportunity).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 37.010: Release, Set Free — "to release or set free, with the implied analogy to the process of buying back a slave or captive"
Domain 68.006: Do Intensely or Extensively — "to do something with intense effort and thoroughness"
Domain 65.005: Advantageous, Not Advantageous — "to gain an advantage by making the most of something"
Other words in 37.010: ἀγοράζω (G59), ἀντίλυτρον (G487), ἀπαλλάσσω (G525), ἀπολύτρωσις (G629), ἀπολύω (G630), ἄφεσις (G859), δικαιόω (G1344), ἐλευθερία (G1657), ἐλεύθερος (G1658)

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
hath redeemed	1	25%
redeem	1	25%
Redeeming	1	25%
redeeming	1	25%

100% of occurrences rendered with "redeem" vocabulary.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Galatians	2	1.3
Colossians	1	1.1
Ephesians	1	0.6

Exclusively Pauline. Concentrated in the "captivity epistles" and Galatians. The word never appears in the Gospels, Acts, Hebrews, or Revelation.

Morphological Distribution¶

Form	Parsing	Reference
ἐξηγόρασεν	Aorist Active Indicative 3S	Gal 3:13
ἐξαγοράσῃ	Aorist Active Subjunctive 3S	Gal 4:5
ἐξαγοραζόμενοι	Present Middle Participle NPM	Eph 5:16
ἐξαγοραζόμενοι	Present Middle Participle NPM	Col 4:5

Two semantic poles correspond to two grammatical patterns: the soteriological uses (Gal 3:13, 4:5) are aorist active — a completed act by an agent; the practical-wisdom uses (Eph 5:16, Col 4:5) are present middle participle — ongoing self-involved action.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Soteriological Redemption — Buying Out from Under the Law's Curse¶

Gal 3:13 — "Christ hath redeemed [ἐξηγόρασεν] us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree"
Gal 4:5 — "To redeem [ἐξαγοράσῃ] them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons"

Both Galatians uses are aorist active with Christ as subject. The ἐκ- prefix emphasizes extraction — buying someone out of a condition. In 3:13, the condition is the curse (κατάρα) of the law; in 4:5, it is subjection under (ὑπό) the law. The purpose clause in 4:5 specifies the positive result: υἱοθεσία (adoption as sons).

2. Practical Wisdom — Buying Up the Opportune Time¶

Eph 5:16 — "Redeeming [ἐξαγοραζόμενοι] the time, because the days are evil"
Col 4:5 — "Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming [ἐξαγοραζόμενοι] the time"

Both uses are present middle participle with believers as subject. The object is τὸν καιρόν (the opportune time). The marketplace metaphor shifts: rather than extracting a person from bondage, one "buys up" every available opportunity. The middle voice suggests personal investment. Colossians pairs it with σοφία (wisdom) and evangelistic conduct toward outsiders.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
καιρός (kairos)	G2540	2x (50%)	"redeeming the time" — object of the buying-up
νόμος (nomos)	G3551	2x (50%)	"from the curse of the law" / "under the law" — domain of bondage
κατάρα (katara)	G2671	1x (25%)	"from the curse" — the condition redeemed from
ἐπικατάρατος (epikataratos)	G1944	1x (25%)	"Cursed is every one" — Deut 21:23 citation
υἱοθεσία (huiothesia)	G5206	1x (25%)	"adoption of sons" — purpose/result of the redemption
σοφία (sophia)	G4678	1x (25%)	"walk in wisdom" — accompanies time-redeeming
Χριστός (Christos)	G5547	1x (25%)	"Christ hath redeemed" — the purchasing agent

Word Family / Cognates¶

G59 ἀγοράζω (agorazō) — root verb: to purchase in the marketplace (31 occurrences). The simple form without the ἐκ- prefix. Used of buying goods (Matt 13:44, 14:15), buying a field (Matt 27:7), and redemptive purchase (1 Cor 6:20 "ye are bought with a price"; Rev 5:9 "hast redeemed us... by thy blood").
G58 ἀγορά (agora) — the marketplace itself; the noun from which agorazō derives.
G1537 ἐκ (ek) — preposition "out of," denoting origin or extraction. The prefix that distinguishes exagorazō from agorazō, adding the sense of buying out of a condition.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
ἀγοράζω (agorazō)	G59	"redeemed" (Rev 5:9, 14:3-4)	Simple purchase — buying. No inherent "out of" extraction sense. Used of ordinary commercial transactions and of Christ's purchase of believers.
λυτρόω (lytroo)	G3084	"redeemed" (Tit 2:14, 1 Pet 1:18)	Ransom-payment verb from the λύτρον (lytron) word family. Sanctuary/ransom metaphor rather than marketplace metaphor. Emphasizes the price paid to liberate.
ἀπολύτρωσις (apolytrosis)	G629	"redemption" (Eph 1:7, Rom 3:24)	Noun — the completed act of ransoming in full. Also from the lytron family. Overlaps with exagorazō in Pauline letters but draws from ransom/liberation imagery rather than commercial purchase.
λύτρωσις (lytrosis)	G3085	"redeemed" (Heb 9:12)	The simple act of ransoming. Used in Hebrews for sanctuary-based redemption.

Semantic Domain¶

Domain 37.010 (Release, Set Free) neighbors:

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV Translation
G59	ἀγοράζω	31	buy, bought
G487	ἀντίλυτρον	1	ransom
G629	ἀπολύτρωσις	10	redemption
G859	ἄφεσις	16	forgiveness, remission
G1344	δικαιόω	37	justify, justified
G1657	ἐλευθερία	11	liberty
G1658	ἐλεύθερος	23	free

Hebrew Source¶

No Hebrew sources found via LXX mapping. The word ἐξαγοράζω does not appear in the LXX canon as a rendering of any Hebrew term. It appears in the LXX of Daniel 2:8 (Theodotion) for Aramaic זְבַן (zeban, "to buy/gain"), but no systematic Hebrew-to-Greek bridge exists for this word. This is a distinctly NT coinage by Paul, compounding existing Greek elements.