Greek word · Strong's G3624

οἶκος

oîkos · noun · “house, household”

In a sentence

Oikos means house or household — the building, the family in it, and figuratively the people of God as God’s own household.

Oikos covers both the structure and the family within it. The New Testament uses it for the church as the “household of God” — a family with God as Father, gathered around the Son, indwelt by the Spirit.

When Paul tells Timothy how to behave “in the household (oikos) of God,” he is treating the church not as an organization but as a family with a name to honor. To follow Jesus is to be brought into a house.

Strong's reference

Definition: a dwelling (more or less extensive, literal or figurative); by implication, a family (more or less related, literally or figuratively)

KJV usage: home, house(-hold), temple

Reference gloss from Strong's Concordance (1890, public domain).

Key verses BSB · Public Domain (CC0)

1 Timothy 3:15 “in case I am delayed, so that you will know how each one must conduct himself in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.” Hebrews 3:6 “But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are His house, if we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope of which we boast.” 1 Peter 4:17 “For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God?”

Original BibleDawn word study. Original-language data and the public-domain Strong's (1890) gloss are referenced; see sources.