to know/choose
proginosko denotes knowing beforehand or having long-standing knowledge of someone, including God’s foreknowing of people.
The dominant use concerns prior knowledge: it describes one who was foreknown before the world’s foundation, prior awareness that guards against error, and God’s foreknowing of people in contexts of predestination and non-rejection. Acts 26:5 uses it for long-standing human knowledge of Paul that could support testimony about his life.
Senses in use
-
Knowing beforehand or prior recognition · dominant
In 1 Peter 1:20, the perfect passive participle identifies someone as foreknown before the foundation of the world; the APB renders the clause “He was foreknown before the foundation of the world.” In 2 Peter 3:17, a present active participle addresses readers as knowing something beforehand before warning them against error, while Romans 8:29 and Romans 11:2 use the aorist active form of God’s foreknowing people in clauses concerning predestination and God’s not rejecting his people.
-
Long-standing personal acquaintance · rare
In Acts 26:5, the present active participle describes people who had known Paul for a long time and could testify that he lived as a Pharisee; the APB renders, “They have known me for a long time.”
In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB varies between “foreknown,” “knowing this beforehand,” “known me for a long time,” and “foreknew.” These renderings confirm the clauses’ overall presentation rather than fixing a separate English equivalent in every instance.