Bond

Vine's Expository Dictionary of NT Words

1: δεσμός (Strong'S #1199 — Noun Masculine — desmos — des-mon', des-mos' )

from deo, "to bind" (see Band), is usually found in the plural, either masculine or neuter; (a) it stands thus for the actual "bonds" which bind a prisoner, as in  Luke 8:29;  Acts 16:26;  20:23 (the only three places where the neuter plural is used);   Acts 22:30; (b) the masculine plural stands frequently in a figurative sense for "a condition of imprisonment,"  Philippians 1:7,13 , i.e., "so that my captivity became manifest as appointed for the cause of Christ;"  Philippians 1:14,16;  Colossians 4:18;  2 Timothy 2:9;  Philemon 1:10,13;  Hebrews 10:34 .

 Mark 74:35  Luke 13:16BandChainString.

2: δέσμιος (Strong'S #1198 — Adjective — desmios — des'-mee-os )

"a binding," denotes "a prisoner," e.g.,  Acts 25:14 , Rv, for the Av, "in bonds;"  Hebrews 13:3 , "them that are in bonds," Paul speaks of himself as a prisoner of Christ,  Ephesians 3:1 :  2 Timothy 1:8;  Philemon 1:1,9; "in the Lord,"  Ephesians 4:1 . See Prisoner.

3: σύνδεσμος (Strong'S #4886 — Noun Masculine — sundesmos — soon'-des-mos )

"that which binds together" (sum, "with," and No. 1), is said of "the bond of iniquity,"  Acts 8:23; "the bond of peace,"  Ephesians 4:3; "the bond of perfectness,"  Colossians 3:14 (figurative of the ligaments of the body); elsewhere;   Colossians 2:19 , "bands," figuratively of the bands which unite the church, the body of Christ. See Band.

4: ἅλυσις (Strong'S #254 — Noun Feminine — halusis — hal'-oo-sis )

denotes "a chain;" so the Rv in  Ephesians 6:20 , for Av "bonds." See Chain.

5: γογγυσμός (Strong'S #1112 — Noun Masculine — gramma — gong-goos-mos' )

in  Luke 16:6 , Rv, means "a bill or note of hand." See Bill , No. 2.

6: χειρόγραφον (Strong'S #5498 — Noun Neuter — cheirographon — khi-rog'-raf-on )

"a handwriting," is rendered "bond" in  Colossians 2:14 , Rv.

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

( Colossians 2:14)

The point here lies in the word χειρόγραφον. For ‘bond’ in the sense of δοῦλος, see  1 Corinthians 12:13 etc., and in that of σύνδεσμος (ligament in surgery [very often]), see  Colossians 2:19, etc.  Colossians 2:14 is the only instance in the Nt of the word χειρόγραφον, though there are other compounds with χειρ (χειραγωγέω  Acts 9:8; χειραγωγούς,  Acts 13:11; χειροποίητος,  Ephesians 2:11, and ἀχειροποίητος  Colossians 2:11; χειροτονέω,  Acts 14:23). This synthetic compound means originally ‘handwriting’ or ‘autograph,’ and occurs in this sense in Polybius (xxx. 8. 4), Dion. Hal. (v. 8), etc. Its technical use is for ‘a note of hand, a bond or obligation, as having the “sign manual” of the debtor or contractor’ (Lightfoot, Col .3, 1879, in loc. ); so To 5:3 ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ τὸ χειρόγραφον. See also Plut. ( Mor . p. 829 A) and Artem. ( Oneir . iii. 40). Its position as a κοινή word is greatly strengthened by the papyri, where it is very common (Deissmann, Bible Studies , Eng. translation, 1901, p. 247). Some of these bonds in papyri texts are crossed out with the Greek cross-letter X, thus cancelling the note (cf. Deissmann, Light from the Ancient East 2, 1911, p. 336f.). A number of these ‘crossed-out’ bonds are in the papyri lists at Berlin, Heidelberg, and elsewhere. This was the method of official as well as private cancellation (see the Florentine Papyrus [a.d. 85], where the Governor of Egypt ordered the bond to be ‘crossed out’ [χιασθῆναι]). There is no evidence for the notion that these bonds were cancelled by hanging on nails (perforation). There are examples of inscribed leaden rolls being perforated and hung on nails, but not for cancellation by the nails (Deissmann, Bible Studies , p. 273f.). St. Paul piles up his metaphors, as he often does, by the use of ἐξαλείψας (‘blotting Out’; cf. χιάζω ‘cross out’), ἧρκεν ἐκ τοῦ μέσου (‘take out of the midst’; note change to indicative and perfect for notion of permanent removal). Dibelius ( Handbuch zum Nt , ‘Kolosser,’ 1912, p. 81) cites Epictetus’ use of αἶρε ἔξω, αἶρε ἐκ τοῦ μέσου as synonymous. As to προσηλώσας τῷ σταυρῷ (‘nailing to the cross’), E. Haupt (Meyer-Haupt, Kom. Kol. , 1902, in loc. ) points out that with St. Paul it is not the cancelling by nailing, but the nailing to the cross that is dominant. These three metaphors all accentuate the main idea of the cancellation of the debt.

What the bond is in  Colossians 2:14 scholars are not agreed. Probably the general notion of law is correct, since Gentiles as well as Jews seem to be included, rather than the Mosaic Law or the narrower notion of the purely ceremonial law. The addition of τοῖς δόγμασιν, difficult as to syntax, points to formulated commandment (Peake, Expositor’s Greek Testament , ‘Colossians,’ 1903, in loc. ) of some kind (cf.  Ephesians 2:15), though ‘the moral assent of the conscience’ (Lightfoot, in loc. ) is surely involved also. No stress is to be laid on the fact of the law being written or not written (the autograph idea in χειρόγραφον) by the sinner, though, if the primary reference be to the Jews, they might be said to have signed the contract in giving assent to the law as represented in  Deuteronomy 27:14-26. The central idea is that the bond of moral obligation which was against us (καθʼ ἡμῶν and ὃ ἦν ὑπεναντίον ἡμῖν) has been removed by the death of Christ on the Cross. It has been cancelled (crossed out) and hung up for all to see (nailed to the cross) as an obligation from which we are now free. It is a bold picture of grace versus works as the method of salvation. Christ has paid the debt and destroyed the note against us. Cf. St. Paul’s offer to pay Philemon for the debt of Onesimus ( Philemon 1:18 f.),

A. T. Robertson.

Webster's Dictionary

(1): (v. t.) To place under the conditions of a bond; to mortgage; to secure the payment of the duties on (goods or merchandise) by giving a bond.

(2): (a.) In a state of servitude or slavery; captive.

(3): (n.) League; association; confederacy.

(4): (n.) A heavy copper wire or rod connecting adjacent rails of an electric railway track when used as a part of the electric circuit.

(5): (n.) That which binds, ties, fastens, or confines, or by which anything is fastened or bound, as a cord, chain, etc.; a band; a ligament; a shackle or a manacle.

(6): (n.) A vassal or serf; a slave.

(7): (n.) The state of being bound; imprisonment; captivity, restraint.

(8): (n.) A binding force or influence; a cause of union; a uniting tie; as, the bonds of fellowship.

(9): (n.) Moral or political duty or obligation.

(10): (n.) A writing under seal, by which a person binds himself, his heirs, executors, and administrators, to pay a certain sum on or before a future day appointed. This is a single bond. But usually a condition is added, that, if the obligor shall do a certain act, appear at a certain place, conform to certain rules, faithfully perform certain duties, or pay a certain sum of money, on or before a time specified, the obligation shall be void; otherwise it shall remain in full force. If the condition is not performed, the bond becomes forfeited, and the obligor and his heirs are liable to the payment of the whole sum.

(11): (n.) An instrument (of the nature of the ordinary legal bond) made by a government or a corporation for purpose of borrowing money; as, a government, city, or railway bond.

(12): (n.) The state of goods placed in a bonded warehouse till the duties are paid; as, merchandise in bond.

(13): (n.) The union or tie of the several stones or bricks forming a wall. The bricks may be arranged for this purpose in several different ways, as in English or block bond (Fig. 1), where one course consists of bricks with their ends toward the face of the wall, called headers, and the next course of bricks with their lengths parallel to the face of the wall, called stretchers; Flemish bond (Fig.2), where each course consists of headers and stretchers alternately, so laid as always to break joints; Cross bond, which differs from the English by the change of the second stretcher line so that its joints come in the middle of the first, and the same position of stretchers comes back every fifth line; Combined cross and English bond, where the inner part of the wall is laid in the one method, the outer in the other.

(14): (n.) A unit of chemical attraction; as, oxygen has two bonds of affinity. It is often represented in graphic formulae by a short line or dash. See Diagram of Benzene nucleus, and Valence.

(15): (v. t.) To dispose in building, as the materials of a wall, so as to secure solidity.

King James Dictionary

Bond, n.

1. Anything that binds, as a cord, a chain, a rope a band. 2. Ligament that which holds things together. 3. Union connection a binding.

Let walls be so constructed as to make a good bond.

4. In the plural, chains imprisonment captivity.

He hath done nothing worthy of death or of bonds. Acts.

5. Cause of union cement which unites link of connection as the bonds of affection.

Charity is the bond of perfectness. Col.3

6. An obligation imposing a moral duty, as by a vow, or promise, by law or other means. 7. In law, an obligation or deed by which a person binds himself, his heirs, executors, and administrators, to pay a certain sum, on or before a future day appointed. This is a single bond. But usually a condition is added, that if the obligor shall do a certain act, or pay a certain sum of money, on or before a time specified, the obligation shall be void otherwise it shall remain in full force. If the condition is not performed, the bond becomes forfeited, and the obligor and his heirs are liable to the payment of the whole sum.

Bond, a. for bound. In a state of servitude, or slavery captive.

Whether we be jews or Gentiles whether we be bond or free.  1 Corinthians 12

Bond, To give bond for as for duties or customs at a custom house to secure payment of, by giving a bond.

On their reshipment and exportation, official clearances were given, in which no mention was made that the cargo consisted of bonded or debentured goods.

In the U.States, it is applied to the goods on which the customs arise, and to the duties secured by bond.

Holman Bible Dictionary

 Judges 15:14 1 Kings 14:10 Psalm 107:14 Psalm 116:16 Luke 8:29 Philippians 1:13 Isaiah 58:6 Luke 13:16 Acts 8:23 Isaiah 28:22 Isaiah 52:2 Jeremiah 30:8 Nahum 1:13 Job 12:18 Psalm 2:3 Jeremiah 2:20 Jeremiah 5:5 Colossians 2:14 Ephesians 4:3 Colossians 3:14 Ecclesiastes 7:26

Easton's Bible Dictionary

 Numbers 30:2,4,12 Psalm 116:16 Philippians 1:7 Colossians 3:14 Ephesians 4:3

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

Bond . 1 . See Band. 2 . See Bill. 3 . See Chain.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

(אֵָסר, esar', or אַסָּר, issar', a moral obligation; δεσμός, a physical means of restraint) is used for an obligation of any kind in  Numbers 30:2;  Numbers 30:4;  Numbers 30:12, (See Vow); metaphorically, the word signifies oppression, captivity, affliction ( Psalms 116:16;  Philippians 1:7). (See Captivity). The influences of the Holy Spirit are called the bond of peace ( Ephesians 4:3). Charity or Christian love is called the bond of perfectness, because it completes the Christian character ( Colossians 3:14). Bonds are also bands or chains worn by prisoners ( Acts 20:23;  Acts 25:14) bound or subjected to slavery ( 1 Corinthians 12:13;  Revelation 6:15). (See Prison).

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

Bondage

Bond, Bondage [[[Slave]]]