6:17 marks. The Greek word denotes the brands used to mark a slave as the property of a certain master. The word was also used to refer to the mark that pagan priests carried to identify the god they served. Paul uses the word to refer to the scars he received during his missionary activity (2 Cor. 11:23–25). These scars branded him as a slave of Christ (Rom. 1:1; Phil. 1:1; Titus 1:1).