Exploring the Meaning of Nuni in Greek

νυνί marks the present moment with the simple force of “now,” and it frequently sharpens a contrast between what was formerly the case and what stands true in the current situation. In the passages where it appears, it anchors speech, accusation, revelation, changed status, practical intention, divine arrangement, and enduring realities to the immediacy of the present.

Occurrences

“Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense which I now make to you.” (Acts 22:1)

Here νυνί situates a spoken “defense” in the instant of address. The appeal is not to a past document or a future explanation, but to the present act of speaking: the defense is being made as they listen.

Nor can they prove to you the things of which they now accuse me. (Acts 24:13)

In this courtroom setting, νυνί places the accusations in the active present. The charge is not treated as a settled verdict but as an ongoing claim being leveled at that moment—claims that, as the sentence insists, cannot be proved.

But now apart from the law, a righteousness of God has been revealed, being testified by the law and the prophets; (Romans 3:21)

νυνί drives the pivot introduced by “But”: the sentence announces a present disclosure—“has been revealed”—and marks it as the current state of affairs. The adverb helps frame the revelation as standing in the present “apart from the law,” while still being “testified” by prior witnesses.

But now, being made free from sin and having become servants of God, you have your fruit of sanctification and the result of eternal life. (Romans 6:22)

With νυνί Paul fixes attention on a present condition described in two participles: “being made free from sin” and “having become servants of God.” The “now” is the temporal hinge that connects this changed status to its present outcome: “you have your fruit… and the result.”

But now we have been discharged from the law, having died to that in which we were held; so that we serve in newness of the spirit, and not in oldness of the letter. (Romans 7:6)

νυνί again introduces a decisive present: “we have been discharged.” The following clauses explain how this present release (“having died to that in which we were held”) produces a present mode of service, characterized as “newness… not… oldness.” The “now” underscores that the contrast is not theoretical; it describes current practice.

So now it is no more I that do it, but sin which dwells in me. (Romans 7:17)

In this introspective statement, νυνί ties the conclusion (“So”) to the present analysis of agency: “now it is no more I… but sin.” The adverb indicates that the speaker’s claim is made with reference to the present moral struggle being described, locating the diagnosis in the immediate reality of indwelling sin.

but now, no longer having any place in these regions, and having these many years a longing to come to you, (Romans 15:23)

Here νυνί marks a change in circumstances that affects travel plans. The present is defined by two features: “no longer having any place in these regions” and an already long-standing “longing.” The “now” highlights that the opportunity to act on that longing has arrived in the current situation.

But now, I say, I am going to Jerusalem, serving the saints. (Romans 15:25)

νυνί anchors a concrete decision in the present: “I am going to Jerusalem.” The trip is characterized as active service—“serving the saints”—and “now” places this intention as the immediate next step, not a distant aspiration.

But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body, just as he desired. (1 Corinthians 12:18)

In an argument about the body and its members, νυνί introduces the settled present arrangement: “God has set the members… in the body.” The adverb gives the statement a present force: the configuration is not merely an ideal but a current placement reflecting divine desire.

But now faith, hope, and love remain—these three. The greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

νυνί frames what “remain” as the present enduring set: “faith, hope, and love.” In context, “now” gathers the discussion into a statement of what stands as abiding realities at the point being made, before the sentence identifies love as greatest among the three.

But now Christ has been raised from the dead. He became the first fruits of those who are asleep. (1 Corinthians 15:20)

νυνί punctuates a proclamation about a present fact with decisive implications: “Christ has been raised.” The adverb strengthens the contrast implied by “But” and places the resurrection as the current truth on which the ensuing claim rests—he “became the first fruits” in relation to “those who are asleep.”

But now complete the doing also, that as there was the readiness to be willing, so there may be the completion also out of your ability. (2 Corinthians 8:11)

νυνί functions as a pastoral prompt toward action in the present. The command “complete the doing also” is timed: readiness has already existed (“there was the readiness to be willing”), and “now” calls for that prior willingness to be matched by present completion appropriate to their “ability.”

Sense and Usage

Across these passages νυνί consistently signals present time, but it does more than locate events on a timeline; it often serves as a rhetorical hinge. Paired with “But now,” it marks a turn from one state of affairs to another, directing attention to what stands in effect at the moment of speaking or writing. In Romans 3:21, 6:22, and 7:6, the adverb drives major transitions: revelation presently stands disclosed, freedom and servanthood presently define identity, and discharge presently governs how service is rendered. The contrast is not merely chronological; it is argumentative—“now” introduces the point that must be recognized as currently true.

In narrative and legal settings νυνί has a crisp immediacy. Acts 22:1 places a defense in the act of delivery, and Acts 24:13 locates the accusation as something being pressed in the present. In both, “now” sharpens the scene: listeners are asked to attend to what is happening in real time, and a judge is asked to assess what is being alleged right now and whether it can be proved.

νυνί also appears where present circumstances open or direct concrete action. Romans 15:23–25 uses “now” to move from long-standing desire to present opportunity and then to immediate itinerary. The adverb highlights how present conditions—“no longer having any place in these regions”—make room for a long-held plan, while also showing that another present obligation (“going to Jerusalem, serving the saints”) comes first.

In the Corinthian letters νυνί can present the current order of things in either divine arrangement or ethical exhortation. In 1 Corinthians 12:18, “now” anchors the claim that God’s placement of members in the body stands as an accomplished arrangement. In 2 Corinthians 8:11, “now” does the opposite kind of work: it presses the readers to bring their present actions into alignment with an earlier readiness, so that willingness becomes completed doing. And in 1 Corinthians 13:13, the adverb gathers the discussion into a present statement of what “remain,” identifying the enduring triad at the point of conclusion.

Finally, νυνί can bear a weighty declarative force when attached to a central proclamation. In 1 Corinthians 15:20 it underscores the present reality of Christ’s resurrection as the premise for what follows. The “now” sets the claim on the ground of current truth, not mere speculation, and it is precisely this present fact that allows the next sentence to speak of “first fruits” in relation to “those who are asleep.”

Present-Moment Emphasis

The repeated “But now” in these texts gives νυνί a characteristic sound: a turning point spoken aloud. Whether it introduces a defense, refutes an accusation, announces what has been revealed, describes a changed condition, states God’s ordering of the body, names what remains, proclaims resurrection, or urges completion of a promised work, νυνί repeatedly presses the reader to attend to the immediacy of what stands before them as the present reality.

Sources: Lexical data from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance and the Translators Brief Lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (STEPBible, CC BY). Occurrence data from the Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament (STEPBible, CC BY). Scripture quotations from the World English Bible (public domain).