Original Word: μόλις
Part of Speech: Adverb
Transliteration: molis
Pronunciation: MOH-lis
Phonetic Spelling: (mol'-is)
KJV: hardly, scarce(-ly), + with much work
NASB: difficulty, hardly, only with difficulty, scarcely
Word Origin: [probably by variation for G3425 (μόγις - Hardly)]

1. with difficulty

with difficulty

Probably by variation for mogis; with difficulty -- hardly, scarce(-ly), + with much work.

see GREEK mogis

3433 mólis (from mogos, "toil) – properly, something happening with great difficulty, i.e. hardly ("scarcely").

3433 /mólis ("what barely happens") emphasizes the slight margin by which something comes to pass, i.e. because it is so difficult.

[3425 /mógis (from mogos, "laborious toil") focuses on the prolonged nature of a difficulty.]

Word Origin
from molos (toil)
Definition
with difficulty
NASB Translation
difficulty (4), hardly (1), only with difficulty (1), scarcely (1).

STRONGS NT 3433: μόλις

μόλις (μολος toil); an adverb used by post-Homeric writings indiscriminately with μόγις;

a. with difficulty, hardly (cf. Wis. 9:16, where μετά πόνου corresponds to it in the parallel member): (Luke 9:39 Tr marginal reading WH (others μόγις, which see)); Acts 14:18; Acts 27:7f, 16; 1 Peter 4:18.

b. not easily, i. e. scarcely, very rarely: Romans 5:7.

Scope of Usage

Strong’s Greek 3433 appears six times in the New Testament, each occurrence stressing how close an event came to failing, or how narrowly a goal was reached. The term expresses a razor-thin margin between success and disaster, righteousness and condemnation, or life and death.

Narrative Settings in Acts

• Acts 14:18 – After Paul healed the man in Lystra, the crowd tried to worship Paul and Barnabas as gods. “Even with these words, they could hardly restrain the people from sacrificing to them.” The adverb heightens the tension: human adulation almost crosses into idolatry.
• Acts 27:7-8 – During Paul’s voyage to Rome the ship “sailed slowly for many days and had difficulty” (verse 7) and then “we sailed along the coast of Crete, opposite Salmone, and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the city of Lasea” (verse 8). The narrative underscores that progress toward Rome was hanging by a thread.
• Acts 27:16 – Near the islet of Clauda, “we were barely able to secure the skiff.” A single misstep would have meant losing the lifeboat in a storm that later wrecked the ship. Luke’s repetition of the term throughout the chapter magnifies God’s providence: by human measure survival was unlikely, yet divine purpose prevailed.

Doctrinal Emphasis in Romans and 1 Peter

• Romans 5:7 – “Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.” The word “very rarely” (μόλις) frames the contrast between human reluctance and God’s freely given love in the next verse: “But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Paul’s argument builds on the frailty of human devotion to exalt the certainty of divine grace.
• 1 Peter 4:18 – Citing Proverbs 11:31, Peter writes, “And ‘If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?’” Salvation is described as something secured “with difficulty,” not because Christ’s work is insufficient, but because the path of discipleship demands perseverance amid persecution (1 Peter 4:12-19). The verse urges sober self-examination and redemptive urgency toward the lost.

Contextual Nuances

1. Human Limitation: In every passage the adverb points to the inadequacy of human strength, foresight, or morality.
2. Divine Intervention: Each context ultimately reveals God’s sovereign hand—whether by preserving Paul at sea, redirecting misguided worship in Lystra, or accomplishing redemption in Christ.
3. Moral Urgency: Romans 5 and 1 Peter 4 connect the term with eternal stakes, reminding hearers that ordinary human resolve is insufficient for the demands of love or salvation.

Historical Background

Luke’s maritime detail in Acts 27 reflects technical nautical vocabulary common to first-century maritime logs. The repetition of the adverb matches classical usage in sea diaries, emphasizing the near-impossibility of safe navigation during the winter months. Paul's survival authenticated his apostolic authority in Rome and encouraged the early Church that no circumstance, however perilous, frustrates God’s mission.

Pastoral and Practical Implications

• Evangelism: The “hardly” of salvation for the righteous (1 Peter 4:18) challenges complacency. If even the godly are saved through refining trials, the urgency to reach the ungodly intensifies.
• Worship Integrity: Acts 14 warns that sincere but misdirected zeal can swiftly become idolatry; spiritual leaders must guard congregations against exalting messengers above the Gospel.
• Perseverance in Hardship: Acts 27 portrays believers sustained amid incremental, fragile progress. Ministry often advances “with difficulty,” yet God’s purposes stand.
• Christ-Centered Confidence: Romans 5 contrasts human reluctance to sacrifice with Christ’s decisive cross-work, redirecting confidence from human virtue to divine love.

Summary

Strong’s 3433 highlights the knife-edge on which human endeavors balance—whether physical survival, moral resolve, or eternal destiny. Scripture uses the term to magnify God’s faithfulness in circumstances where human effort barely suffices, directing believers to rely wholly on sovereign grace while laboring earnestly in worship, witness, and perseverance.

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