ἀνελεήμων

without compassion, cruel

Definition

The adjective ἀνελεήμων means 'without compassion,' 'unmerciful,' or 'cruel.' It describes a person who is devoid of pity and actively refuses to show mercy or kindness to others. In the New Testament, it characterizes a profound moral failure, a deliberate hardness of heart that contradicts the fundamental virtue of mercy expected in God's people. Its single biblical occurrence in Romans 1:31 lists it among the vices of a depraved mind, showing it as a symptom of humanity's rejection of God.

Biblical Usage

This word is used only once in the New Testament, in Romans 1:31. It appears in Paul's list of sins that result when people suppress the truth about God. Here, being 'unmerciful' (ἀνελεήμων) is grouped with other relational failures like being 'faithless' and 'heartless,' painting a picture of complete social and moral breakdown. Its placement in this vice catalog indicates it is not a minor character flaw but a serious indicator of a corrupted conscience.

Etymology

Derived from the alpha-privative prefix ἀν- (an-), meaning 'not' or 'without,' combined with the adjective ἐλεήμων (eleēmōn, G1655), which means 'merciful' or 'compassionate.' The root is ἔλεος (eleos), meaning 'mercy' or 'pity.' Thus, the word literally means 'merciless' or 'lacking in mercy,' directly negating a core divine and human virtue.

Semantic Range

This word is theologically significant as it describes the antithesis of a central attribute of God, who is repeatedly described as merciful (e.g., Luke 6:36). To be ἀνελεήμων is to be fundamentally opposed to God's character and the ethic of the New Covenant, which calls believers to be 'merciful, just as your Father is merciful.' Its use in Romans 1 highlights that a rejection of God logically leads to a rejection of His moral character, including mercy, thereby corrupting human relationships.

In the Greco-Roman world, mercy (eleos) was sometimes viewed as a weakness, while stern justice was a virtue. However, within Jewish and Christian thought, mercy was a supreme divine and human quality. Therefore, labeling someone as ἀνελεήμων would carry a strong condemnatory weight in a Christian context, identifying them as operating outside the community's core value of compassion modeled by God.

ἀσπλαγχνος (asplagchnos, G794) — emphasizes being 'without affection' or 'heartless,' lacking inner compassion. σκληρός (sklēros, G4642) — means 'hard,' 'harsh,' or 'stern,' focusing on tough character rather than a specific lack of mercy.

Word Details

Scripture References