ἄτοπος, ἄτοπον (τόπος), out of place; not befitting, unbecoming (so in Greek writings from Thucydides down; very often in Plato); in later Greek in an ethical sense, improper, wicked: Luk_23:41 (ἄτοπον τί πράσσειν, as in Job_27:6; 2Ma_14:23); Act_25:5 L T Tr WH; (the Sept. for ΰΘεΖο. Job_4:8; Job_11:11, etc. Josephus, Antiquities 6, 5, 6; Plutarch, de aud. poët. c. 3 φαῦλα and ἄτοπα); of men: 2Th_3:2 (ἀτοποι καί πονηροί; Luth.unartig, more correctly unrighteous ((iniquus), A. V. unreasonable, cf. Ellicott at the passage)). inconvenient, harmful: Act_28:6 μηδέν ἄτοπον εἰς αὐτόν γινόμενον, no injury, no harm coming to him (Thucydides 2, 49; Josephus, Antiquities 11, 5, 2; Herodian, 4, 11, 7 (4, Bekker edition)).

ἄτοπος atopos 4x pr. out of place; inopportune, unsuitable, absurd; new, unusual, strange; in NT improper, amiss, wicked, Luk_23:41 ; Act_25:5 ; 2Th_3:2 ; noxious, harmful, Act_28:6

ἄ -τοπος , -ον ( < τόπος ), [in LXX : Job_4:8 ; Job_11:11 , Pro_30:20 , al ., for H205 , etc.;] 1. out of place, not befitting. 2. marvellous, strange (of symptoms, Hipp .): Act_28:6 ; hence, in late Greek, with ethical sense, 3. improper, unrighteous (so in LXX , and for exx . from Papyri, v. M , Th ., l.c .; MM , s.v. ): Luk_23:41 , Act_25:5 , 2Th_3:2 .†

ἄτοπος [page 90] From its original meaning out of place, unbecoming, ἄτοπος came to be used especially in Plato of what was marvellous, odd (e.g. Legg. i. 646 B τοῦ θαυμαστοῦ τε καὶ ἀτόπου ), and from this the transition was easy in later Grk to the ethical meaning of improper, unrighteous, e.g. Philo Legg. Alleg. iii. 17 παρ᾽ ὃ καὶ ἄτοπος λέγεται εἶναι ὁ φαῦλος ἄτοπον δέ ἐστι κακὸν δύσθετον . It is in this sense that the word is always used in the LXX and in the NT (except Act_28:6 and even there it = κακόν ), and the usage can be freely illustrated from the Κοινή . Thus in the early P Petr II. 19 (1 a ) .5 f. (iii/B.C.) a prisoner asserts in the name of God and of fair play (οὕνεκα τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τοῦ καλῶς ἔχοντος ) that he has said nothing ἄτοπον , ὅπερ καὶ ἀληθινόν ἐστι , and in ib. III. 43 (3) .17 f : (iii/B.C.) precautions are taken against certain discontented labourers ι̣[να μὴ ἄτοπ [ό ]ν τι πράξωσιν . Similarly Chrest. I. 238 .12 ( c. A.D. 117) παραφυλάξε τε εἰς τὸ μηδὲν ἄτοπον ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν πραχθῆναι . In BGU III. 757 .21 (A.D. 12) ἕτερα ἄτοπα̣ are attributed to some marauders who had pulled to pieces a farmer s sheaves of wheat, and thrown them to the pigs; and the parents of the prodigal (P Flor I. 99 .10 see s.v. ἀσωτία ) announce that they are giving publicity to his misdeeds μήποτε ἐ [π ]ηρεάσηι ἡμεῖν ἢ ἕτερο [ν ] ἢ (? omit) ἄτοπο̣ν τι πράξη [ι ], lest he should insult us, or do anything else amiss. P Flor II. 177 .16 (A.D. 257) ἄτοπον γάρ ἐστιν αὐτοὺς ὠνεῖσθαι is less clear. The subst. ἀτόπημα is found P Tebt II. 303 .11 (A.D. 176 80) περὶ ὧν εἰς ἡμᾶς διεπράξατο ἀτοπημάτων , concerning the outrages which he committed against us (Edd.) : cf. P Lips I. 39 .7 (A.D. 390) καὶ μ [η ]κέτι κατὰ μ̣ηδεν̣ὸ̣ς̣ ἀτόπημα διαπράξασθαι . A curious use of the adverb (if the restoration is correct) occurs in the Acts of Christina, where the saint is represented as addressing Urbanus, after having looked up into heaven καὶ [ἀτ ]όπως γελάσασα (PSI 27 .7 , v/A.D.); perhaps with a strange or forced laugh. It may be added that in CR xvii. p. 265 οὐκ ἀτόπως is cited from Thucydides (vii. 30 .2 ) with the meaning not badly an uncommon use, the writer adds.

ἄτοπος "out of place", and so, "strange, unwonted, extraordinary", Eur. , etc. "strange, odd, eccentric", δοῦλοι τῶν ἀεὶ ἀτόπων slaves to every new "paradox", Thuc. ; τῶν ἀτοπωτάτων ἂν εἴη Dem. "unnatural, disgusting, foul", πνεῦμα Thuc. adv. —πως, "marvellously or absurdly", id=Thuc. , Plat.

ἄ-τοπος, -ον (τόπος), [in LXX: Job.4:8 11:11, Pro.30:20, al., for אָוֶן, etc. ;] __1. out of place, not befitting. __2. marvellous, strange (of symptoms, Hipp.): Act.28:6; hence, in late Greek, with ethical sense, __3. improper, unrighteous (so in LXX, and for exx. from π., see M, Th., l.with; MM, see word): Luk.23:41, Act.25:5, 2Th.3:2.† (AS)