I. Name

The plural ‘authorities’ (exousiai) functions, strictly speaking, not as a name but as a cultic epithet denoting celestial forces (see Gladigow 1981:1217–1221, 1226–1231). The term is derived from Gk. ἐξουσία and corresponds to the verb ἔξεστιν (‘have permission, possibility, authority’). The designation then refers to those who have been given authority, the bearers of authority. Characteristically, in the NT (e.g. Eph. 3.10, Eph. 6.12; Col. 1.16; 1 Pet. 3.22) the plural form of …