476. antidikos
Lexical Summary
antidikos: Adversary, opponent

Original Word: ἀντίδικος
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: antidikos
Pronunciation: an-TEE-dee-kos
Phonetic Spelling: (an-tid'-ee-kos)
KJV: adversary
NASB: opponent, adversary, opponent at law
Word Origin: [from G473 (ἀντί - instead) and G1349 (δίκη - justice)]

1. an opponent or adversary (in a lawsuit)
2. (specially) Satan (Adversary-Accuser), as the arch-enemy

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
adversary.

From anti and dike; an opponent (in a lawsuit); specially, Satan (as the arch-enemy) -- adversary.

see GREEK anti

see GREEK dike

HELPS Word-studies

476 antídikos (from 473 /antí, "against, off-set" and 1349 /díkē, "justice, a judge") – properly, a prosecuting attorney arguing a case-at-law; an "opponent at law" (TDNT).

476 /antídikos ("an accuser, adversary") brings formal charges, i.e. as they are binding to exact penalty. Satan acts as such an adversary, bringing the "(law)suit" of darkness against believers for their eternal damnation (cf. 1 Pet 5:8). Offsetting this is the perfect sacrifice of Christ (Jn 19:30)!

[476 (antídikos) is "an adversary in a lawsuit," from anti/"against," and dīkē/"a lawsuit," WS, 319.

476 (antidikos) is a technical legal term used in antiquity of an adversary in a courtroom, i.e. someone seeking official (formal, binding) damages.

The papyri (Pl Phdr 237) used 476 (antídikos) of an opponent in a law suit.]

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from anti and diké
Definition
an opponent, adversary
NASB Translation
adversary (1), opponent (3), opponent at law (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 476: ἀντίδικος

ἀντίδικος, ἀντίδικον (δίκη); as a substantive ἀντίδικος a. an opponent in a suit at law: Matthew 5:25; Luke 12:58; Luke 18:3 (Xenophon, Plato, often in the Attic orators).

b. universally, an adversavy, enemy (Aesehyl. Ag. 41; Sir. 33:9; 1 Samuel 2:10; Isaiah 41:11, etc.): 1 Peter 5:8 (unless we prefer to regard the devil as here called ἀντίδικος because he accuses men before God).

Topical Lexicon
Overview

Strong’s Greek 476 designates an opponent in a judicial setting, an “adversary” who stands against another and seeks legal satisfaction. The term appears five times in the Greek New Testament, spread across the Gospels and one Petrine epistle. While retaining its courtroom nuance, it is expanded theologically to include the cosmic opposition of Satan to believers.

Occurrences and Immediate Contexts

Matthew 5:25 (twice): “Reconcile quickly with your adversary while you are still with him on the way…”. In the Sermon on the Mount the word frames Jesus’ call to seek peace before conflict escalates to judgment.
Luke 12:58: Jesus repeats the teaching in another setting, emphasizing urgent settlement lest judgment become unavoidable.
Luke 18:3: A persistent widow pleads, “Give me justice against my adversary.” The term underscores her vulnerability and dependence on a righteous judge.
1 Peter 5:8: “Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Here the word is lifted out of earthly courts to portray Satan as the prosecuting enemy of souls.

Legal Imagery in First-Century Life

Roman Palestine was saturated with civil litigation. Debts, land, and honor disputes often proceeded from private negotiation to public trial. An adversary possessed the right to initiate proceedings and, if uncompensated, could secure imprisonment until satisfaction was made. Jesus’ listeners understood that court outcomes were costly and uncertain; therefore His summons to reconcile “on the way” carried practical weight.

Ethical Call to Reconciliation

In both Matthew and Luke the adversary represents more than a lawsuit opponent; he symbolizes any estranged party. The urgency to settle quickly upholds Jesus’ deeper message that Kingdom righteousness surpasses legal minimalism. Believers are to pursue peace proactively, reflecting the peacemaking character of God (Matthew 5:9).

Prayer and Persistence Illustrated by the Widow

Luke 18:1–8 uses the adversary to frame a parable on prayer. The powerless widow, facing an unnamed opponent, epitomizes saints beseeching God for justice amid oppression. Her relentless petitions anticipate the Lord’s swift vindication of His elect, encouraging persistent faith even when the adversary seems to dominate.

Satan as the Ultimate Adversary

1 Peter 5:8 identifies the devil with the same courtroom term, portraying him as the prosecuting counsel who seeks conviction and destruction. The legal metaphor harmonizes with passages such as Revelation 12:10, where Satan is “the accuser of our brothers.” Yet believers possess a superior Advocate—Jesus Christ the righteous (1 John 2:1)—whose atoning work nullifies every charge (Romans 8:33–34).

Pastoral and Ministry Implications

1. Vigilance in Spiritual Warfare

The adversary’s intent demands sobriety, prayer, and resistance “firm in the faith” (1 Peter 5:9). Shepherds must alert congregations to Satan’s strategies without fostering fear, grounding them in the victory of Christ.

2. Priority of Reconciliation

Churches are to model swift, humble reconciliation. Unresolved conflict grants opportunity to the adversary (Ephesians 4:26–27). Biblical peacemaking averts spiritual and communal damage.

3. Confidence in Divine Justice

Like the widow, oppressed believers may appeal to the Judge of all the earth. While earthly systems fail, God guarantees final rectification, emboldening perseverance under persecution.

Theological Reflection

Antidikos unites the realms of human relationship and cosmic struggle. Earthly adversaries foreshadow a deeper conflict wherein Satan accuses and Christ advocates. Scripture’s consistent testimony is that reconciliation—whether between people or between God and humanity—comes through the cross, disarming the adversary’s claims (Colossians 2:14–15). Consequently, the church lives in freedom yet remains vigilant, reconciling quickly with one another and resisting the devil by steadfast faith.

Forms and Transliterations
αντίδικοί αντιδίκοις αντίδικον αντίδικόν αντιδικος αντίδικος ἀντίδικος αντιδικου αντιδίκου ἀντιδίκου αντιδίκους αντιδικω αντιδίκω ἀντιδίκῳ αντίζηλον αντίζηλος antidiko antidikō antidíkoi antidíkōi antidikos antídikos antidikou antidíkou
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Englishman's Concordance
Matthew 5:25 N-DMS
GRK: εὐνοῶν τῷ ἀντιδίκῳ σου ταχὺ
NAS: quickly with your opponent at law
KJV: with thine adversary quickly,
INT: agreeing with adversary of you quickly

Matthew 5:25 N-NMS
GRK: παραδῷ ὁ ἀντίδικος τῷ κριτῇ
NAS: with your opponent at law while
KJV: lest at any time the adversary deliver
INT: deliver the adversary to the judge

Luke 12:58 N-GMS
GRK: μετὰ τοῦ ἀντιδίκου σου ἐπ'
NAS: you are going with your opponent to appear before
KJV: thine adversary to
INT: with the adversary of you before

Luke 18:3 N-GMS
GRK: ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀντιδίκου μου
NAS: Give me legal protection from my opponent.'
KJV: of mine adversary.
INT: of the adversary of me

1 Peter 5:8 N-NMS
GRK: γρηγορήσατε ὁ ἀντίδικος ὑμῶν διάβολος
NAS: [spirit], be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil,
KJV: because your adversary the devil, as
INT: watch the adversary of you [the] devil

Strong's Greek 476
5 Occurrences


ἀντιδίκῳ — 1 Occ.
ἀντίδικος — 2 Occ.
ἀντιδίκου — 2 Occ.

475
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