Elpis #39

In everyday Greek elpis could mean any expectation, good or bad, and often carried a note of uncertainty. In the New Testament it is consistently positive and settled: hope is directed toward something God has promised, and its certainty rests on God’s faithfulness rather than on how things look at the moment.

Biblical Usage

Paul defines hope by its object: hope that is seen is not hope, and so believers wait for what they do not yet see with patience (Romans 8:24-25). He names faith, hope, and love as the three things that “abide” (1 Corinthians 13:13). First Peter says believers have been begotten again “unto a lively hope” through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1 Peter 1:3), tying hope to an event already past. Hebrews 6:19 pictures hope as an anchor of the soul, secure and steadfast, reaching into the place within the veil, and Hebrews 11:1 describes faith as the assurance of things hoped for.

The object of hope varies. Paul speaks of “the hope of glory” as Christ in believers (Colossians 1:27), Titus speaks of a “blessed hope” in the appearing of Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13), and Titus 1:2 links it to eternal life. In Romans 15:13 God himself is called the God of hope.

Theological Significance

The New Testament sets hope alongside faith and love, so the three are usually treated as connected. Faith trusts what God has done, love acts on it now, and hope looks toward what is still to come, above all the return of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the renewal of creation. Hope in this sense is also what sustains endurance under suffering, which is why Paul links hope with tribulation and patience in Romans 5:3-4. Traditions differ on what exactly is hoped for and when, but they agree in treating hope as a confident, active waiting rather than optimism.