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Acts 11:4 — Word Study

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N1904ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

BSAhaving begunarchomai nowde <the>ho PeterPetros [the rock, Jesus' apostle] he was explaining [it]ektithēmi [to expound, clearly show] to themautos in orderkathexēs [in order, one after another, all that had happened, from the beginning] saying;legō

Word
Listen & take awayActs 11
English ↓ Download MP3 The Berean Standard Bible chapter audio already hosted for the site's Bible section — verse 4 is in this chapter.
Say the word Each Greek word carries its transliteration (legō) — no per-word recordings of the Greek exist to link to.
Take it away
Acts 11:4quick helps
In a sentencePeter explains the events leading to his actions with the Gentiles.
Who is speakingPeter, one of Jesus' apostles, addressing the Jewish believers.
Where we arePeter is responding to criticism about his association with Gentiles.
The hard wordἀρξάμενος
Take awayPeter's explanation is thorough and sequential.
8 commentators on this verse Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them › clause subjectἄρχω verbἄρχω The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
How rare are these words?in the New Testament

Every word here is used elsewhere in the New Testament.

Bars are logarithmic — , the commonest word in the Greek New Testament, stands 19,867 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.

Deep Study — Acts 11:4

Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.

Context — Peter's Defense Before the Apostlesgenerated

3and said, “You visited uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
4But Peter began and explained to them the whole sequence of events:
5“I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision of something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came right down to me.
6I looked at it closely and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air.

Acts 11:4 recounts how Peter began to explain to the Jewish believers the events that led him to associate with Gentiles. This was a significant moment in the early church, as it addressed the growing tension between Jewish and Gentile Christians. Peter's careful recounting of the events serves to clarify his actions and demonstrate that they were in accordance with God's will, as revealed to him through a vision.


Cross References

ReferenceText (BSB)
1Acts 14:27When they arrived, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them, and how He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.
2Joshua 22:21–31Then the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered the leaders of the clans of Israel:
3Proverbs 15:1A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
4Luke 1:3Therefore, having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,

The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 4 references, hung on the phrase they belong to

But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying,Acts 14:27 Joshua 22:21–31 Proverbs 15:1 Luke 1:3

The Key Word ἀρξάμενος, archomaigenerated

The word ἄρχω (*archō*) means 'to begin' or 'to rule.' In this context, it is a participle meaning 'having begun,' indicating that Peter is starting his explanation.

The aorist middle participle form suggests that Peter is actively engaging in the act of explaining, emphasizing his role in recounting the events that took place.


How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated

The verse is rendered in the Berean Standard Bible as 'But Peter began and explained to them the whole sequence of events:'. The KJV uses 'rehearsed the matter from the beginning,' which emphasizes a retrospective view.

The ASV, YLT, and WEB also maintain the idea of Peter beginning his explanation, while the KJV adds a nuance of recounting from the start. The translations generally agree on the core meaning but differ in phrasing.


Sentence Structuregenerated

The main clause is governed by the verb ἐξετίθετο, he was explaining, with a subject Πέτρος (Peter) and an adverbial phrase καθεξῆς (in order) describing how he was explaining.

The structure shows that Peter's explanation is both sequential and direct, indicating a clear communication of events.


Septuagint Backgroundgenerated

ἐκτίθημι appears in the Septuagint and is often used in contexts of explaining or exposing ideas. It connects to similar Hebrew terms that convey the act of making something known.

The use of ἄρχω in the Septuagint also carries the sense of beginning or ruling, aligning with its New Testament usage in Acts.


In plain words — the whole versegenerated

Acts 11:4 shows Peter explaining to the Jewish believers why he interacted with Gentiles. He recounts the events in a clear order, emphasizing that his actions were guided by a vision from God.


Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated

What does Peter mean by 'the whole sequence of events'?

Peter refers to the detailed account of his vision and subsequent actions that led him to share the Gospel with Gentiles, emphasizing God's directive.

Why was Peter's explanation necessary?

Peter needed to clarify his actions to the Jewish believers who were concerned about the implications of associating with Gentiles.

How does this passage relate to the early church's challenges?

This moment highlights the tension between Jewish customs and the inclusion of Gentiles in the faith, a significant issue in the early church.

What can we learn from Peter's approach to explaining his actions?

Peter's thorough and orderly explanation serves as a model for addressing misunderstandings and clarifying our actions in faith.


Reflection Questionsgenerated

  1. How can I be more open to sharing my experiences of faith with others?
  2. What steps can I take to ensure my explanations of faith are clear and orderly?
  3. In what ways can I learn from Peter's example when faced with criticism?
  4. How do I respond to challenges in my faith journey, and how can I communicate those experiences to others?

The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it

Early church fathers, particularly John Chrysostom, comment on Peter's defense and the role of the Holy Spirit in his words.

John ChrysostomHomily on Acts 24 c. 347–407
Observe his freedom from all elation and vainglory. For it says, "But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying, I was in the city of Joppa, praying:" he does not say why,
Early Church Fathers on Acts 11 →
John ChrysostomCATENA ON THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 11.4 c. 347–407
The words were not those of the prudent Peter but of the Spirit. And in his defense he showed God as the absolute author and himself as the author of nothing.
Early Church Fathers on Acts 11 →
John ChrysostomHomily on Acts 24 c. 347–407
But not so does Peter frame his defence: for he was wise, or rather it was not his wisdom, but the Spirit that spake the words.
Early Church Fathers on Acts 11 →

Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse

Each of these wrote on Acts 11:4 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.

John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning,.... Of the vision at Joppa; and expounded it by order unto them; or related every particular, in a very methodical and orderly manner: he did not

Read John Gill on Acts 11 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary

But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying, But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order , arxamenos (G756),

Read Robert Jamieson on Acts 11 →
Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy Bible

This great apostle condescends to the least and weakest amongst them, and gives an account of what he had done and the reasons that moved him unto it, if by any means he might gain some, and confirm others.

Read Matthew Poole on Acts 11 →
John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

4 But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying, Ver. 4. But Peter rehearsed] With singular modesty he seeks to satisfy them (if reason will do it), and to quench their wild fire by casting milk upon it. Zuinglius and Oecolampadius endeavoured to do the like by Luther and his disciples, but could never effect it. In the year 1533, he wrote a very bitter epistle to the Senate of Frankfort, Qua Zuinglianos Archi-diabolos appellat, e suggestu repellendos, ditione eieciendos, wherein he calleth the Zuinglians arch-devils; and judgeth that they ought to be kept out of the pulpit, driven out of the country. In the year 1567, at Antwerp the…

Read John Trapp on Acts 11 →
Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(4) But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning.—Better, perhaps, the word “rehearse” having grown into a different shade of meaning, began and set forth the matter. The translators seem to have paraphrased the participle “having begun” somewhat more fully than its actual meaning admits. The almost verbal repetition of the same narrative as that of Acts 10 seems, at first sight, inconsistent with our common standard of skill in composition. The probable explanation of it is that St. Luke obtained the first narrative from the disciples whom he met at Cæsarea, and the second from those of Jerusalem, and that the close agreement of the two seemed to him, as indeed it was, a confirmation…

Read Charles John Ellicott on Acts 11 →
AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible

Verse 4. But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order] εξετιθετοαυτοιςκαθεξης. This is the very style of St. Luke; see his Gospel, Lu 1:3. To remove their prejudice, and to give them the fullest reasons for his conduct, he thought it best to give them a simple relation of the whole affair; which he does, as we have seen in the preceding chapter, with a few additional circumstances here. See the notes before.

Read AdamClarke on Acts 11 →
CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

4. But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them] Better, “But Peter began and rehearsed the matter in order unto them.”

Read Cambridge on Acts 11 →
Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the Bible

But Peter rehearsed - Greek: Peter beginning, explained it to them in order; that is, he began with the vision which he saw, and gave a narrative of the various events in order, as they actually occurred.

Read Albert Barnes on Acts 11 →

The verse in English, compared — 16 translations, and where they part company

Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.

Modern formal

BSBBerean Standard Bible2020

But Peter began and explained to them the whole sequence of events:

WEBWorld English Bible2000

But Peter began, and explained to them in order, saying,

MSBMajority Standard Bible2022

But Peter began and explained to them the whole sequence of events:

NETBNew English Translation2006

But Peter began and explained it to them point by point, saying,

Tyndale line

KJVKing James Version1611

But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying,

ASVAmerican Standard Version1901

But Peter began, and expounded the matter unto them in order, saying,

RVARevised Version, American1894

But Peter began, and expounded the matter unto them in order, saying,

NWBWebster's Bible1833

But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order to them, saying,

GNVGeneva Bible1599

Then Peter beganne, and expounded the thing in order to them, saying,

Strictly literal

DBYDarby Translation1890

But Peter began and set forth [the matter] to them in order, saying,

YLTYoung's Literal Translation1862

And Peter having begun, did expound to them in order saying,

LSVLiteral Standard Version2020

And Peter having begun, set [it] forth to them in order, saying,

ULBUnlocked Literal Bible2017

But Peter started to explain the matter to them in detail; he said,

From the Latin

DRADouay-Rheims (Challoner)1899

But Peter began and declared to them the matter in order, saying:

Simplified

FBVFree Bible Version2020

Peter began to explain to them everything that had happened.

BBEBible in Basic English1949

But Peter gave them an account of it all in order, saying to them,

Word by word, the decisions they made

ἀρξάμενοςarchomai having begun G757 3 different renderings
beganASV BSB DBY DRA FBV MSB NETB RVA WEB
beginningKJV NWB
having begunLSV YLT
καθεξῆςkathexēs in order G2517 2 different renderings
in orderASV BBE DBY DRA GNV LSV RVA WEB YLT
from the beginningKJV NWB

Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.


The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the Nestle 1904 treebank

This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.

clauseδὲnowclauseadverbialἀρξάμενοςHaving begunsubjectΠέτροςPeterverbἐξετίθετοhe set [it] forthindirect objectαὐτοῖςto themadverbialκαθεξῆςin orderclause · adverbialclauseverbλέγωνsayingclauseclausesubjectἘγὼIverb phrase · verbἤμηνwasπροσευχόμενοςprayingprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinnoun phraseπόλει[the] cityἸόππῃof JoppaκαὶandclauseclauseverbεἶδονI sawprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinἐκστάσειa trancenoun phrase · objectὅραμαa visionnoun phraseclauseverbκαταβαῖνονdescendingnoun phrase · subjectσκεῦόςa vesselτιcertainclauseὡςlikeclausenoun phrase · subjectὀθόνηνa sheetμεγάληνgreatnoun phrase · adverbialτέσσαρσινby fourἀρχαῖςcornersverbκαθιεμένηνbeing let downprepositional phrase · adverbialἐκout ofnoun phraseτοῦ-οὐρανοῦheavenκαὶandclauseverbἦλθενit came downprepositional phrase · adverbialἄχριas far asἐμοῦme

Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.


The earliest translations — Latin and Syriac

Every translation is an argument about meaning made by someone who had to commit to one. These two were made while the Greek was still a living language, and they are the oldest opinions we have about what this verse says.

Latin VulgateAD 382–405

Incipiens autem Petrus exponebat illis ordinem, dicens :

Jerome revised the Old Latin against the Greek from AD 382; the Latin west read this text for a thousand years.

Syriac Peshittaby AD 400

ܘܐܩܦ ܗܘܐ ܫܡܥܘܢ ܒܬܪ ܒܬܪ ܠܡܐܡܪ ܠܗܘܢ

The Bible of the Syriac-speaking church, in the language nearest to the Aramaic Jesus spoke.

Shown verse by verse rather than word by word: aligning a Greek word to its Latin or Syriac counterpart automatically would be guesswork, and a wrong alignment is worse than none.


The Greek editions compared — what the manuscripts actually say

Eight printed editions of the Greek New Testament, side by side. Where they agree the wording is settled; where a word is missing from an edition it is marked, so you can see the difference rather than take it on trust.

Nestle-Aland 28th edition2012 · Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

The standard critical text of the New Testament.

Nestle-Aland 27th edition1993 · Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

The previous edition, still widely cited.

SBL Greek New Testament2010 · Michael Holmes

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

The Society of Biblical Literature edition, freely licensed.

Westcott–Hort1881 · Westcott and Hort

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

The edition that turned scholarship toward the earliest manuscripts.

Tregelles1857–1879 · Samuel Prideaux Tregelles

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

An independent critical text built from the oldest witnesses then known.

Tyndale House Greek NT2017 · Tyndale House, Cambridge

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

A recent critical edition following documentary evidence closely.

Byzantine majority text2018 · Robinson–Pierpont

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

The reading of the majority of surviving manuscripts.

Textus Receptus1550/1894 lineage

ἀρξάμενος δὲ Πέτρος ἐξετίθετο αὐτοῖς καθεξῆς λέγων·

The printed tradition behind the King James Version.

Every witness on this verse they differ
Critical editions
Nestle-Aland 28th edition2012Nestle-Aland 27th edition1993SBL Greek New Testament2010Westcott–Hort1881Tregelles1857–1879Tyndale House Greek NT2017
Byzantine / Majority
Byzantine majority text2018
Received Text
Textus Receptus1550/1894

A witness that read differently would show its variant word here, marked.

Word by word, across the editions

WordEditions carrying itMissing from
<the>TR, ByzNA28, NA27, SBL, WH, Treg, Tyn

Apparatus — SBL Greek New Testament, CC BY 4.0


The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with

This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Greek New Testament — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.

Acts 11:4ἄρχωhaving beguhaving begunἄρχωδέnownowδέ<the><the>ΠέτροςPeterPeterΠέτροςἐκτίθημιhe was explhe was explainiἐκτίθημιαὐτόςto themto themαὐτόςκαθεξῆςin orderin orderκαθεξῆςλέγωsaying;saying;λέγωἐκPrep. fromPrep. from out,ἐκκατάPrep. downPrep. down fromκατάλίθοςn.m. a ston.m. a stoneλίθοςΚηφᾶςn.m. Cephan.m. CephasΚηφᾶςἀήρn.m. airn.m. airἀήρἑαυτοῦRefl.pr. hRefl.pr. himselἑαυτοῦφημίv. I sayv. I sayφημίΣίμωνn.m. Simonn.m. SimonΣίμωνἈνδρέαςn.m. Andren.m. AndrewἈνδρέαςδέCj. but, oCj. but, on theδέἐπερωτάωv. I interv. I interrogatἐπερωτάωἀμήνHebr. veriHebr. verily, tἀμήνδιδάσκαλοςn.m. a tean.m. a teacherδιδάσκαλος
meets it a little oftener than chancemeets it far oftener than chancebuilt from the same roottwo words of the verse share ita word of this versea related word

Lexicons — every word in Acts 11:4

One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Greek lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.

Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. Imported from the CrossWire SWORD modules — Abbott-Smith, the full Liddell-Scott-Jones, Strong's, Dodson, the Intermediate LSJ, Robinson and Packard on the Greek, Webster and Cawdrey on the English the translators were using. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
ἀρξάμενοςarchomai having begun G757 Verb · aorist · middle · participle · nominative · singular · masculine
2× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
In plain English
Meaning
To be first or reign over means to have power or authority, like a ruler. This is seen in Jesus' teachings and interactions with his disciples, such as in Matthew 16:21.
Tyndale gloss
be first
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word ἄρχω (*archō*) primarily means 'to begin' or 'to rule.' It can denote the act of starting something, often with a genitive case, or the authority to lead or govern. In the New Testament, it appears in contexts related to leadership (e.g., Mark 10:42) and beginning actions (e.g., Matthew 4:17). The lexicons do not show significant disagreement on its meanings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ἄρχω,

[in LXX for חלל, משׁל, etc.;]

to begin.

to rule (v. DCG, ii, 538b.): c. gen., Mk 10:42, Ro 15:12. Mid., to begin: seq. ἀπό, Mt 16:21 20:8, Lk 14:18 23:5 24:27, 47, Jo 8:9, Ac 1:22 8:35 10:37, I Pe 4:17; c. inf., an Aramaic pleonasm, Mk 1:45 2:23 5:17, Lk 3:8, al. (v. M, Pr., 14 f.; Dalman, Words, 27; MM, s.v.).

Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

ἄρχω ; [fr. Hom. down]; to be first. 1. to be the first to do (anything), to begin, —a sense not found in the Grk. Bible. 2. to be chief, leader, ruler: twos [B. 169 (147) ], Mk. x. 42; Ro. xv. 12 (fr. Is. xi. 10). See ἄρχων. Mid., pres. ἄρχομαι ; fut. ἄρξομαι (once [twice], Lk. xiii. 26 [but not Tr mrg. WH mrg.; xxiii. 30]); 1 aor. ἠρξάμην; to begin, make a beginning: ἀπό twos, Acts x. 37 [B. 79 (69); ef. Matth. § 558]; 1 Pet. iv. 17; by brachylogy ἀρξάμενος ἀπό τινος ἕως τινός for, having begun from some person or thing (and continued or continuing) to some person or thing: Mt. xx.8; Jn. viii. 9 [i.e. Rec.]; Acts i. 22; ef. W. § 66, 1 c.; [B. 374 (320)]; ἀρξάμενον is used impers. and absol. a beginning being made, Lk. xxiv. 27 (so in Hadt. 3, 91; cf. W. 624 (580) ; [B. 374 sq. (321)]); carelessly, ἀρξάμενος ἀπὸ Μωυσέως καὶ ἀπὸ πάντων προφητῶν διηρμήνευεν for, beginning from Moses he…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

ἄρχω (archō) — be first.

ἄρχω,

Epic dialect infinitive ἀρχέμεναι[Refs 8th c.BC+]imperfect ἦρχον[Refs]; Doric dialect ἆρχον[Refs 5th c.BC+]: future ἄρξω[Refs 8th c.BC+]aorist ἦρξα, Epic dialect ἄρξα[Refs 8th c.BC+]: perfect ἦρχα[Refs 1st c.AD+]:—middle, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; non-thematic participle ἄρχμενος[Refs 3rd c.BC+]: imperfect, [Refs 8th c.BC+]future ἄρξομαι (in middle sense, see below) [Refs 8th c.BC+]; Doric dialect ἀρξεῦμαι[Refs 3rd c.BC+]: aorist ἠρξάμην[Refs 8th c.BC+] —passive, perfect ἦργμαι only in middle sense, see below [Refs]: aorist ἤρχθην, ἀρχθῆναι[Refs 5th c.BC+]:—to be first,

I. in Time, begin, make a beginning, active and middle (in [Refs 8th c.BC+]to be the aggressor, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; π. ἄρχεσθαι to begin one's operations, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἄρχειν…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

ἄρχω

archo

a primary verb; to be first (in political rank or power):--reign

(rule) over.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ἄρχω

v.

I reign, rule

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ἄρχω archō 86x

(1) pr. (act.) to be first; to rule, Mk. 10:42; Rom. 15:12 (2) mid. to begin, Mt. 4:17; to take commencement, Lk. 24:27; 1 Pet. 4:17

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

ἄρχω pf. pass. ἦργμαι only in mid. sense in pass. sense:— to be first,

of Time, to begin, make a beginning, both in Act. and Mid.:

c. gen. to make a beginning of, πολέμοιο, μάχης, etc., Hom.; so Hdt. and attic:—Mid. also in a religious sense, like ἀπάρχεσθαι, ἀρχόμενος μελέων beginning the sacrifice with the limbs, Od.; ἄρχειν σπονδῶν Thuc.

c. gen. also to begin from or with, ἐν σοὶ μὲν λήξω σέο δ᾽ ἄρξομαι Il.; so, ἄρχεσθαι ἔκ τινος Od.; ἀρξάμενοι ἀπὸ παιδίων even from boyhood, Hdt.

c. gen. rei et dat. pers., ἄρχ. θεοῖς δαιτός to make preparations for a banquet to the gods, Il.; τοῖσι δὲ μύθων ἦρχε id. Il., etc.

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-AMP-NSM — Verb · aorist · middle · participle · nominative · singular · masculine
nominative — the one doing it — the subject.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-AMP-NSM Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Aorist Voice: Middle Mood: Participle Case: Nominative Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
31%began
began31% · 27×he began28% · 24×having begun10% · 9×they began9% · 8×beginning3% · 3×may begin3% · 3×other renderings14% · 12×

86 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 18 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
δοκέωI think, seem, appea
Article the
ἀνίστημιI raise up, set up,
Article the
ἄρχωhaving begun
what comes after →
Article the
ἔθνοςa race, people,
ἔθνοςa race, people, the
ἐπί

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordanceἄρχω · 2× in the New Testament
Mark Romans
Across the New Testament2 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 74 Old Testament verses where this Greek word stands: which Hebrew word keeps standing there too. A correspondence of verses rather than a word-by-word alignment, so read the percentage as strength of evidence, not as a claim about any single verse.

Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria The Epistle of Barnabas
Philo of AlexandriaAllegorical Interpretation of Genesis 1.72c. AD 40

δίκαιον γὰρ τὸ μὲν κρεῖττον ἄρχειν ἀεὶ καὶ πανταχοῦ, τὸ δὲ χεῖρον ἄρχεσθαι·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 4.77c. AD 75–95

καὶ Μωυσῆς, ἄρχειν γὰρ μάχης οὐ συνεβούλευσεν ὁ θεὸς χρωμένῳ, τὴν δύναμιν ὑπανῆγε διὰ τῆς ἐρήμου ἐκπεριιών.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 6.18c. AD 100

τίς οὖν ὁ δυνάμενος νῦν ἄρχειν θηρίων ἤ ἰχθύων ἤ πετεινῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ;

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
6th c. AD 3rd c. AD 2nd c. AD 2nd c. BC 3rd c. BC
P.Wisc. 1 33ArsinoitesAD 147

ον καίτοι τῶν τοιούτων κεκωλυμένων δημοσίοις πράγμασι προσιέναι. ἴσθι γε καὶ κωμοστρατηγεῖν, τουτέστιν ἄρχειν, καὶ κωμῶν κακοήθους ἐᾶν τοὺς ἐλευθέρους τύπτειν καὶ παίειν καὶ μαστιγοῦν. τῶν οὖν τοιούτων

CPR 7 4Soknopaiu Nesos (Arsinoites)AD 156

τινες ἑκούσιοι ὑπεσχήμενοι, μετʼ ἐκείνους γυμνασιαρχεῖν, ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ὦσι, μετὰ τὸν νῦν γυμνασίαρχον ἀρχεῖν ?. ἄλλο ἐπὶ τοὺς θανόντας· Ἀρτεμιδώρου προσαχθέντος Σαραπίων νεώτερος ῥήτωρ εἶπεν· ὁ ἡμέτερος πατὴρ

P.Vet.Aelii 7Ankyron (Herakleopolites)AD 223–AD 224

πρὸς μόνον … … υρης τω … … … ους τρια … … ω Αρχω … … ὄρος, λιβὸς … … υ Σαραπ … … υ παρα

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
δὲde now G1161 Conjunction
2,787× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in Acts as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This is a conjunction that means and, but, or then, used to connect ideas like in Matthew 1:2 and 2 Corinthians 6:15.
Tyndale gloss
then
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

δέ (de) is a post-positive particle in Greek, primarily used as a conjunction to connect clauses. It can express contrast (but, on the other hand) or continuation (and, also), and is often used to transition between ideas or to add emphasis. In the New Testament, it appears frequently in various contexts, such as contrasting statements or resuming interrupted discourse, with notable examples in Matthew and 2 Corinthians.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

δέ (before vowels δ’; on the general neglect of the elision in NT, v. WH, App., 146; Tdf., Pr., 96),

post-positive conjunctive particle;

copulative, but, in the next place, and, now (Abbott, JG, 104): Mt 1:2ff., II Co 6:15, 16, II Pe 1:5-7; in repetition for emphasis, Ro 3:21, 22, 9:30, I Co 2:6, Ga 2:2, Phl 2:8; in transition to something new, Mt 1:18 2:19, Lk 13:1, Jo 7:14, Ac 6:1, Read the full entry →

Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

δέ (related to δή, as μέν to μήν, ef. Klotz ad Devar. ii. 2 p. 355), a particle adversative, distinctive, disjunctive, but, moreover, (W.§ 53, 7 and 10, 2); it is much more freq. in the historical parts of the N. T. than in the other books, very rare in the Epp. of John and the Apocalypse. {On its general neglect of elision (when the next word begins with a vowel) cf. Tdf. Proleg. p. 96; WH. App. Ῥ 146; W.§5,1a.; B. p.10sq.] It is used ἘΠ ΟἹ δὲ univ. by way of opposition and distinction; it is added to statements opp. to a preceding statement: ἐὰν yap ἀφῆτε... ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀφῆτε, Mt. vi. 14 sq.; ἐὰν de ὁ ὀφθαλμὸς κτλ. Mt. vi. 23; ἐλεύσονται δὲ ἡμέραι, Mk. ii. 20; it opposes persons to persons or things previously mentioned or thought of, —either with strong emphasis: ἐγὼ δέ, Mt. v. 22, 28, 32, 34, 39,44; ἡμεῖς de, 1 Co. i. 23; 2 Co. x. 13; σὺ δέ, Mt. vi. 6; ὑμεῖς δέ, Mk. viii. 29; of δὲ…

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Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

δεῖ. For the conjunctive, as in Mt 26%, cf. P Fay 109° (early i/A.D.) ἐάν σε δῇ (for δέῃ) τὸ εἱμάτιόν σου θεῖναι ἐνέχυρον. “even if you have to pawn your cloak” (Edd.). In P Tebt I. 585° (B.c. 111) we have ἐάν followed by the indicative— ἐὰν δεῖ σε συνπεσεῖν τῶι ᾿Ανικήτωι, σύνπεσαι, ‘if you must meet Anicetus, meet him” (Edd.): cf. Mayser G7. p. 325. Other examples of the verb are l’ Par 461® (B.C. 153) διὸ Kal ἡγούμενος δεῖν ἐπ᾿ ἄλλου μὲν μηθενὸς αὐτῶι διακριθῆναι» P Lille I. 267 (iii.B.c.) περὶ (corr. from πεερὶ) δὲ τούτου τοῦ μέρους δεήσει ἐπισχεῖν, P Tebt 11. 3414 (A.p. 140-1) δεήσι ἐπισταλῆναι εἰς δάνε[ι]α σπέρματα κατασπίο]ρᾶς KTA., “ΕἼ will be necessary to send on account of loans of seedcorn for the sowing,” etc., AécheZ 1001" © (Theran Doric —c. B.C. 200) no one may bring forward a proposal ὡς δεείσῃ διαλῦσαι τὸ κοινὸν εἰ τὰς θυσίας, P Flor II. 133" (A.D. 257) ἔδι μὲν ὑμᾶς μηδὲ…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

δέ (de) — then.

δέ,

but: adversative and copulative Particle,

I. answering to μέν (which see), τὴν νῦν μὲν Βοιωτίαν, πρότερον δὲ Καδμηίδα γῆν καλουμένην [Refs 5th c.BC+]

II. without preceding μέν,

II.1. adversative, expressing distinct opposition, αἰεί τοι τὰ κάκ᾽ ἐστὶ φίλα.. μαντεύεσθαι, ἐσθλὸν δ᾽ οὔτε τί πω εἶπας[Refs 5th c.BC+]; so in Prose, οὐκ ἐπὶ κακῷ, ἐλευθερώσει δέ.. [Refs 5th c.BC+]

II.2. copulative,

II.2. a in explanatory clauses, ξυνέβησαν.. τὰ μακρὰ τείχη ἑλεῖν (ἦν δὲ σταδίων μάλιστα ὀκτώ) [Refs 8th c.BC+]: when a substantive is followed by words in apposition, Ἀρισταγόρῃ τῷ Μιλησίῳ, δούλῳ δὲ ἡμετέρῳ [Refs 5th c.BC+]; so in answers, διπλᾶ λέγειν. —Answ. διπλᾶδ᾽ ὁρᾶν…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

δέ

de

a primary particle (adversative or continuative); but, and,

etc.:--also, and, but, moreover, now (often unexpressed in English).

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

δέ

Cj.

but, on the other hand, and

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

δέ de 2x

a conjunctive particle, marking the superaddition of a clause, whether in opposition or in continuation, to what has preceded, and it may be variously rendered but, on the other hand, and, also, now, etc.; καὶ δέ, when there is a special superaddition in continuation, too, yea, etc. It sometimes is found at the commencement of the apodosis of a sentence, Acts 11:17. It serves also to mark the resumption of an interrupted discourse, 2 Cor. 2:10; Gal. 2:6

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

δέ but: conjunctive Particle, with adversative force: it commonly answers to μέν, and may often be rendered by while, whereas, on the other hand, v. μέν:— but μέν is often omitted, δέ being used merely to pass on from one thing to another; ὣς Ἀχιλεὺς θάμβησεν, θάμβησαν δὲ καὶ ἄλλοι Il.; etc.; κινεῖ κραδίην κινεῖ δὲ χόλον Eur.

δέ is often redundant,

to introduce the apodosis, where it may be rendered by then, yet, εἰ δέ κε μὴ δώωσιν, ἐγὼ δέ κεν αὐτὸς ἕλωμαι if they will not give it, then I will take it, Il.; so at in Lat., si tu oblitus es, at Dii meminerint Catull.

to resume after interruption caused by a parenthesis, where it may be rendered by I say, now, so then, Hdt.

POSITION of δέ: properly second, being often put between the Art. and Subst., the prep. and case.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Conj — Conjunction
conjunction — it joins clauses, and never changes form.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

CONJ CONJunction or conjunctive particle

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
33%now
now33% · 974×however27% · 780×then21% · 620×and12% · 360×but5% · 154×other renderings2% · 49×

2,937 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 15 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 2,787 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
Article the
αὐτόςεἰμίI am, existσύ
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςκύριοςlord, Lord, mastπεντακισχίλιοιfive thousand
εἰCond
παλαιόςold, ancient, woσύεἰμίI am, exist
εἰμίI am, exist
περιπατέωI walk, conduct ἀναπίπτωI lie down, reclμνημεῖονa tomb, sepulche
οὗτος
δίδωμιI offer, giveθεόςGod, a godπίστιςfaith, belief, t
δέnow2787×
what comes after →
Article the
ἸησοῦςJesusθεόςGod, a godκύριοςlord, Lord, mast
αὐτός
Article theκαίand, even, also,ἐπί
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςArticle theσύ
καίand, even, also, nam
Article theοὗτοςἸωάννηςJohn
τὶς
Article theαὐτόςὄνομαname, character,

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordanceδέ · 2,787× in the New Testament
Acts Luke Matthew 1 Corinthians John Mark Romans 2 Corinthians Hebrews Galatians James 1 Timothy

2 inflected forms — one of the commonest words in the New Testament. Full distribution →

Across the New Testament26 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
ho <the> G3588 Article · nominative · singular · masculine
19,783× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in Acts as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
The Greek word for 'the' or 'this', used to point out a specific person or thing, like in Acts 17:28. It can also mean 'he', 'she', or 'it'.
Tyndale gloss
the/this/who
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The definite article — the commonest word in the Greek New Testament at 19,867 occurrences. Greek uses it more freely than English does and can drop it deliberately, so its presence and its absence both carry weight for a translator; but no single occurrence carries a message of its own. Here it simply gathers “the things” into one definite bundle.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ὁ, ἡ, τό,

the prepositive article (ἄρθρον προτακτικόν), originally a demonstr. pron. (so usually in Hom.), in general corresponding to the Eng. definite article.

As demonstr. pron.

As freq. in Hom., absol., he (she, it), his (etc.): Ac 17:28 (quoted from the poet Aratus).

Distributive, ὁ μὲν . . . ὁ δέ, the one . . . the other: I Co 7:7, Ga 4:22; pl., Ac 14:4, 17:32, Phl 1:16, al.; οἱ μὲν . . . ἄλλοι δέ, Mt 16:14, Jo 7:12; οἱ μεν̀ . . . ὁ δέ, He 7:21, 23.

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Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

ὁ 435 ὁ tives of quantity, ὅλος, πᾶς, πολύς, see each in its own place. d. What has been said concerning adjectives holds true also of all other limitations added to substantives, as ἡ κατ᾽ ἐκλογὴν πρόθεσις, Ro. ix. 11; ἡ παρ᾽ ἐμοῦ διαθήκη, Ro. xi. 27; 6 λόγος 6 τοῦ σταυροῦ, 1 Co. i. 18; ἡ εἰς Χριστὸν πίστις, Col. ii. 5; on the other hand, ἡ πίστις ὑμῶν ἡ πρὸς τὸν θεόν, 1 Th. i. 8; τῆς διακονίας τῆς εἰς τοὺς ἁγίους, 2 Co. viii. 4; see many other exx. of each usage in W. 131 (124) sqq.; [B. 91 (80) sqq.]. e. The noun has the article before it when a demonstrative pronoun (υὗτος, ἐκεῖνος) belonging to it either precedes or follows [W. § 18, 4; B. § 127, 29-31]; as, ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος, Jn. ix. 24 [οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρ. 1, Tr mrg. WH); Acts vi. 13; xxii. 26; ὁ λαὸς οὗτος, Mt. xv. 8; 6 vids σου οὗτος, Lk. xv. 30; plur. Lk. xxiv. 17, and numberless other exx.; οὗτος 6 ἄνθρωπος, Lk. xiv. 30; οὗτος ὁ…

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Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

ὃ, ἡ τό. (1) Apart from connexion with μέν or δέ (see below) the demonstrative use of the art. in the NT is confined to a poetical quotation Ac 1778, but it is not uncommon in the papyri, e.g. P Par 45® (B.C. 153) (= Witkowski®, p. 85) τὰ (for ἃ) πράσεις (Δ πράσσεις), P Oxy VIII. 1160! (iii/iv A.D.) Ta (for ἃ) σεσύλληχα (for συνείληχα) δὲ κέρμα {ταν τηρῶ αὐτὰ εἰς τὴν δίκην, “1 am keeping for the trial the money that I have collected” (Ed.). For the distributive Opéev.. - 6 8€, as in 1 Cor7’, cf. P Lond 535 (B.c. 161) (=I. p. 19, U.P.Z. i. p. 239) kal τὰ μὲν ἡμῶν ἐληφότων εἰς τὴν γινομένην ἡμῖν συντάξειν, τὰ δ᾽ ἔτι διὰ τὴν τῶν ὑποτεταγμένων {(.. ... > παρελκομένων. (2) The use of the art. as a relative, of which there is no trace in the NT, may again be illustrated by the following papyrus citations from ¢c. A.D. 346—P Lond 414® (= II. Ῥ. 292) γεινῴσκιν oe θέλω περὶ τοῦ βρεουίου…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

ὁ (ho) — the/this/who.

ὁ,

ἡ, τό, is, when thus written,

__A demonstrative Pronoun.

__B in Attic dialect, definite or prepositive Article.

__C in Epic dialect, the so-called postpositive Article, = relative Pronoun, ὅς, ἥ, ὅ.—The nominative masculine and feminine singular and plural, ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ, have no accent in codices and most printed books, except when used as the relative; but ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ differ only in writing from ὃ, ἣ, οἳ, α; the nominative forms of the article are said by Hdn.Gr.1.474 to be oxytone, and by [Refs 2nd c.AD+] in Aeolic dialect accusative to [Refs 8th c.BC+] genitive and dative dual τοῖιν [Refs 8th c.BC+]— In Doric dialect and all other dialects except Attic dialect and Ionic dialect the feminine forms preserve the old ᾱ instead of changing it to η, hence Doric dialect etc. ἁ, τάν, τᾶ; the genitive plural τάων contracts in many dialects to τᾶ; the genitive…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

ὁ ἡ τό

ho

he hay, and the neuter

to to

in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be

supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one,

he, she, it, etc.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ὁ, ἡ, τό

Article

the

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ὁ ho 19x

the prepositive article, answering, to a considerable extent, to the English definite article; but, for the principle and facts of its usage, consult a grammar; ὁ μὲν ... ὁ δέ, the one ... the other, Phil. 1:16, 17; Heb. 7:5, 6, 20, 21, 23, 24; pl. some ... others, Mt. 13:23; 22:5, 6; ὁ δέ, but he, Mt. 4:4; 12:48; οἱ δέ, but others, Mt. 28:17; used, in a poetic quotation, for a personal pronoun, Acts 17:28

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

ὁ the, that

ὁ, ἡ, τό, is

demonstr. Pronoun.

the definite Article.

in epic, the relative Pronoun, when it is written with the accent ὅ, ἥ, τό ῀ ὅς, ἥ, ὅ. Besides the common forms, note epic gen. sg. τοῖο for τοῦ; pl. nom. τοί, ταί; gen. fem. τάων [α^], dat. τοῖσι, τῇς and τῇσι; dual gen, and dat. τοῖιν:— in Trag. we find τοὶ μέν . . , τοὶ δέ . . , for οἱ μέν . . , οἱ δέ . . ; dat. pl. also τοῖσι, ταῖσι: the dual has commonly but one gender, τώ for τά, τοῖν for ταῖν.

DEMONSTR. PRONOUN:

joined with a Subst., not as the Art., but like Lat. ille, ὁ Τυδείδης Tydeus's famous son, Il.; Νέστωρ ὁ γέρων Nestor— that aged man, id. Il.; τιμῆς τῆς Πριάμου for honour, namely that of Priam, id. Il.

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Art-NSM — Article · nominative · singular · masculine
nominative — the one doing it — the subject.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

T-NSM Part of Speech: definite arTicle Case: Nominative Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

English usagewhat the translators’ English meant
Webster's Dictionary (1828), Webster's Unabridged (1913), Webster's Dictionary (1806)

THE, an adjective or definitive adjective.

1. This adjective is used as a definitive, that is, before nouns which are specific or understood; or it is used to limit their signification to a specific thing or things, or to describe them; as the laws of the twelve tables. the independent tribunals of justice in our country, are the security or private rights, and the best bulwark against arbitrary power. the sun is the source of light and heat.

This he calls the preaching of the cross.

2. the is also used rhetorically before a noun in the singular number, to denote a species by way of distinction; a single thing representing the whole. the fig tree putteth forth her green figs; the almond tree shall flourish; the grasshopper shall be a burden.

3. In poetry, the sometimes loses the final vowel before another vowel.

Th' adorning thee with so much art,

Is but a barb'rous skill.

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
64%the
the64% · 13160×<the>28% · 5846×those3% · 597×other renderings4% · 788×other renderings1% · 294×

20,685 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 83 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
subject34%adverbial32%object24%predicate5%indirect object4%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 19,783 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
καίand, even, also, nam
αὐτόςεἰμίI am, existἐγώ
ἐν
καίand, even, also,αὐτόςArticle the
εἰς
αὐτόςεἰσέρχομαιI go in, come inἔρχομαιI come, go
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakδέbut, on the otheπρός
εἰμίI am, exist
οὗτοςσύἐγώ
<the>19783×
what comes after →
θεόςGod, a god
Article theκαίand, even, also,ἐγώ
δέbut, on the other ha
λέγωI say, speakἸησοῦςJesusἀποκρίνομαιI answer, reply
ἸησοῦςJesus
λέγωI say, speakκαίand, even, also,Article the
κύριοςlord, Lord, master,
ἐγώἸησοῦςJesusArticle the
πατήρfather, Father, ance
ἐγώσύαὐτός

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordance · 19,783× in the New Testament
Matthew Acts Luke John Revelation Mark Romans 1 Corinthians Hebrews 2 Corinthians Ephesians 1 John

40 inflected forms — one of the commonest words in the New Testament. Full distribution →

Across the New Testament27 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria The Shepherd of Hermas Clement of Rome The Epistle of Barnabas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 1c. AD 40

Τῶν ἄλλων νομοθετῶν οἱ μὲν ἀκαλλώπιστα καὶ γυμνὰ τὰ νομισθέντα παρ’ αὐτοῖς εἶναι δίκαια διετάξαντο, οἱ δὲ πολὺν ὄγκον τοῖς νοήμασι προσπεριβαλόντες ἐξετύφωσαν τὰ πλήθη μυθικοῖς πλάσμασι τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπικρύψαντες.

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.argc. AD 75–95

τοῦ κόσμου σύστασις καὶ διάταξις τῶν στοιχείων.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.1c. AD 100

Χαίρετε, υἱοὶ καὶ θυγατέρες, ἐν ὀνόματι κυρίου τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντος ἡμᾶς, ἐν εἰρήνῃ.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 1st c. AD 3rd c. BC 6th c. AD
P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

r βασιλεύοντος Πτολεμαίου τοῦ ἐπικαλουμένου Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ Βερενίκης τῆς ἀδελφῆς θεῶν Φιλομητόρων ἔτους ιε, ἐφʼ ἱερέων καὶ ἱερειῶν

P.Adl. 11Pathyris99 BC

ιζ Θῶυθ κη ἀπέδοτο Πετεσοῦχος Φίβιος καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ τὸ ὕπαρχον αὐτοῖς ἥμισυ περιστερῶνος τοῦ ὄντος ἐν τῶι ἀπὸ βορρᾶ μέρει Παθύρεως χαλκοῦ Γ. ἐπρίατο Ὧρος Νεχούτου.

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

βασιλευόντων Πτολεμαίου τοῦ ἐπικαλουμένου Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ Βερενίκης τῆς ἀδελφῆς θεῶν φιλομητόρων ἔτους ιϛ, ἐφʼ ἱερέων καὶ ἱερειῶν

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
ΠέτροςPetros Peter G4074 Noun · nominative · singular · masculine
156× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Acts than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This is the name Peter, which means a rock or stone. Jesus gave this name to Simon, one of his apostles, in Matthew 16:18. Peter became a key leader in the early Christian church.
Amplified meaning
the rock, Jesus' apostle
Tyndale gloss
[mother-in-law of Peter]
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word Πέτρος (i.e., *Petros*) means 'rock' or 'stone' and refers specifically to Simon Peter, the Apostle. It is derived from a primary word indicating a piece of rock and is used in the New Testament to denote Peter's identity and role. The entries consistently emphasize its connection to the name Cephas and its metaphorical implications of strength and stability.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

Πέτρος, -ου, ὁ (i.e. a stone, v.s. πέτρα, Κηφᾶς),

Simon Peter, the Apostle: Mt 4:18 10:2, Mk 3:16, Lk 5:8, Jo 1:41, 43, al.

Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

Πέτρος, -ov, ὁ, (an appellative prop. name, signifying ‘a stone,’ ‘arock,’ ‘a ledge’ or ‘cliff’; used metaph. of a soul hard and unyielding, and so resembling a rock, Soph. O. R. 334; Eur. Med. 28; Here. fur. 1397; answering to the Chald. Κηφᾶς, q. v., Jn. i. 42 (43)), Peter, the surname of the apostle Simon. He was a native of Bethsaida, a town of Galilee, the son of a fisherman (see *Iwavyns, 3, and "Iwvas, 2), and dwelt with his wife at Capernaum, Mt. viii. 14; ΜΚ. 1. 30; Lk. iv. 38, ef. 1 Co. ix. 5. He had a brother Andrew, with whom he followed the occupation of a fisherman, Mt. iv. 18; Mk. i. 16; Lk. vy. 3. Both were received by Jesus as his companions, Mt. iv. 19; Mk. 1. 17; Lk. v. 10; Jn. i. 40-42 (41-43); and Simon, whose pre-eminent courage and firmness he discerned and especially relied on for the future establishment of the kingdom of God, he honored with the name of Peter…

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Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

Πέτρος. For the occurrence of the name Peter, both in Greek and Latin, among the inscrr. in the first-century catacomb of Priscilla at Rome, see Edmundson /he Church in Rome, p- 52. The name is found in such early Christian papyrus letters as P land 11° (iii/A.D.) τῷ κυρίῳ pov ἀδελφῷ Πέτρῳ, PST III. 208? (iii/iv A.D.) χαῖρε ἐν K(upt)o, ἀγαπητὲ [ἄδ]ελφε Πέτρε. :

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

Πέτρος (Petros) — Peter.

πέτρος, ὁ

(in later Poets ἡ, [Refs 3rd c.BC+], stone (distinguished from πέτρα, which see); in [Refs 8th c.BC+], used by warriors, λάζετο πέτρον μάρμαρον ὀκριόεντα [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ἐν πέτροισι πέτρον ἐκτρίβων, to produce fire, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; of a boulder forming a landmark, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]

2. proverbial, πάντα κινῆσαι πέτρον 'leave no stone unturned', [Refs 5th c.BC+]; of imperturbability, καὶ γὰρ ἂν πέτρου φύσιν σύ γ᾽ ὀργάνειας [Refs 5th c.BC+]

II. a kind of reed, [Refs] —The usual Prose word is λίθος.

[unnamed] (Petros) — [wife of Peter].

πέτρος, ὁ

(in later Poets ἡ, [Refs 3rd c.BC+], stone (distinguished from πέτρα, which see); in [Refs 8th c.BC+], used by warriors, λάζετο πέτρον μάρμαρον…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

∏έτρος

Petros

apparently a primary word; a (piece of) rock (larger than 3037); as a

name, Petrus, an apostle:--Peter, rock. Compare 2786.

see GREEK for 3037

see GREEK for 2786

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

Πέτρος, ου, ὁ

n.m.

Peter

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

Πέτρος Petros 156x

a stone; in NT the Greek rendering of the surname Cephas, given to the Apostle Simon, and having, therefore, the same sense as πέτρα, Peter, Mt. 4:18; 8:14

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-NSM — Noun · nominative · singular · masculine
nominative — the one doing it — the subject.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-NSM Part of Speech: Noun Case: Nominative Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
Easton's Bible Dictionary

Peter

Originally called Simon (=Simeon ,i.e., “hearing”), a very common Jewish name in the New Testament. He was the son of Jona (Matt. 16:17). His mother is nowhere named in Scripture. He had a younger brother called Andrew, who first brought him to Jesus (John 1:40-42). His native town was Bethsaida, on the western coast of the Sea of Galilee, to which also Philip belonged. Here he was brought up by the shores of the Sea of Galilee, and was trained to the occupation of a fisher. His father had probably died while he was still young, and he and his brother were brought up under the care of Zebedee and his wife Salome (Matt. 27:56; Mark 15:40; 16:1). There the four youths…

Smith's Bible Dictionary

(a rock or stone). The original name of this disciple was Simon, i.e. "hearer." He was the son of a man named Jonas, (Matthew 16:17; John 1:42; 21:16) and was brought up in his father’s occupation, that of a fisherman. He and his brother Andrew were partners of John end James, the sons of Zebedee, who had hired servants. Peter did not live, as a mere laboring man, in a hut by the seaside, but first at Bethsaida, and afterward in a house at Capernaum belonging to himself or his mother-in-law, which must have been rather a large one, since he received in it not only our Lord and his fellow disciples, but multitudes who were attracted by the miracles and preaching of Jesus. Peter was probably between thirty and forty pears of age at the date of his call. That call was preceded by a…

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

This name in Greek signifies a rock, as does also the name Cephas in Syriac. Peter was one of the twelve apostles, and was also called Simon, Mt 16:17, and Simeon, Ac 15:14. He was of Bethsaida, and was the son of Jonas, a fisherman, which occupation he also followed. After his marriage he resided at Capernaum, Mt 8:14 Lu 4:38, though called at a later period to labor else where as an apostle, and it would seem often accompanied in his journeys by his wife, 1Co 9:5. When first introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew, he received from Him the name of Peter, Joh 1:42

Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

a rock or stone

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
99%peter
peter99% · 158×other renderings1% · 1×

159 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 2 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
subject67%object12%indirect object7%predicate6%adverbial5%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 156 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
Article the
δέbut, on the otheλέγωI say, speakαὐτός
δέbut, on the other ha
Article theἀτενίζωI direct my gazeλέγωI say, speak
ΣίμωνSimon
αὐτόςδέbut, on the otheArticle the
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakπρός
ἀνίστημιI raise up, set up,
οὗτοςαὐτόςἐγώ
ΠέτροςPeter156×
what comes after →
καίand, even, also, nam
Article theἸωάννηςJohnἈνδρέαςAndrew
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςArticle theκύριοςlord, Lord, mast
Article the
ῥῆμαa thing spokenλόγοςa word, speech, παιδίσκηa female slave,
κύριοςlord, Lord, master,
πρόςμήNegποῦIrg
δέbut, on the other ha
ἀποκρίνομαιI answer, replyπρόςκαίand, even, also,

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

ConcordanceΠέτρος · 156× in the New Testament
Acts John Matthew Mark Luke Galatians 1 Peter 2 Peter

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament8 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch Josephus
JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 7.142c. AD 75–95

τοῦ δὲ βασιλέως ἀκούσαντος παρὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων ταῦτα καὶ δυσφοροῦντος φάσκοντος ἁμαρτεῖν αὐτοὺς τῷ τείχει προσβαλόντας, δέον ὑπονόμοις καὶ μηχανήμασιν ἑλεῖν πειρᾶσθαι τὴν πόλιν, καὶ ταῦτʼ ἔχοντας παράδειγμα τὸν Γεδεῶνος υἱὸν Ἀβιμέλεχον, ὃς ἐπεὶ τὸν ἐν…

Clement of RomeFirst Clement 5.4c. AD 96

Πέτρον, ὅς διὰ ζῆλον ἄδικον οὐχ ἕνα οὐδὲ δύο, ἀλλὰ πλείονας ὑπήνεγκεν πόνους καὶ οὕτω μαρτυρήσας ἐπορεύθη εἰς τὸν ὀφειλόμενον τόπον τῆς δόξης.

Ignatius of AntiochThe Letters of Ignatius 4.4.3c. AD 110

οὐχ ὡς Πέτρος καὶ Παῦλος διατάσσομαι ὑμῖν.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
6th c. AD 7th c. AD 5th c. AD 4th c. AD 8th c. AD
ÉdP 3 (1936), p. 32- no. 15Karanis (Arsinoites)AD 297

ἡμῶν Μαξιμιανοῦ Σεβαστοῦ τὸ ε καὶ Μαξιμιανοῦ τοῦ ἐπιφανεστάτου Καίσαρος τὸ β. Αὐρήλιοι Πωλίων Πέτρου μητρὸς Α … … ε … ἀπὸ ἐποικίου Φανοῦ ὡς ἐτῶν λ οὐλὴ μετώπῳ

P.Lond. 2 p. 316 no. 251Alexandria bzw. Philadelphia (Arsinoites)AD 337–AD 350

Πέτρον … τὸν Πτολεμαῖον καὶ ὁπότερον αὐτῶν τῶν δύο ἐγγύων ἀλλήλων ἀποστήσειν καὶ ἐκδικήσειν παραχρῆμα

P.Lond. 2 p. 274-275 no. 242Hermopolis (Arsinoites)AD 346

Παῦλον τὸν σταρτιώτην τῶν ὑπὸ τὴν σὴν φροντίδα, καὶ ὑπέβαλεν τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ κακοπραγμόνας Πέτρον υἱὸν Σαραπίωνος καὶ τὸν τούτου ἀδελφὸν Μέλαν στρατιώτην καὶ Ἀπίωνα υἱὸν Ὡρίωνος εἰρηνάρχου ἀπὸ

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
ἐξετίθετοektithēmi he was explaining [it] G1620 Verb · imperfect · middle · indicative · third person · singular
4× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Acts than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
To explain or expose something means to clearly show or declare it, like in Acts 7:21 and 11:4. It is about making something known or understood.
Amplified meaning
to expound, clearly show
Tyndale gloss
to explain/expose
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word ἐκτίθημι (i.e., *ektithemi*) is composed of the prefix ἐκ (out) and the root τίθημι (to place). It means to expose or set forth, and is used in both literal and metaphorical contexts, such as exposing a child (Acts 7:21) or expounding ideas (Acts 11:4, 18:26, 28:23). The lexicons show some variation in usage examples but agree on its core meanings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ἐκ-τίθημι

[in LXX for נָתַן ni., etc. ;]

to set out, expose: Ac 7:21, Metaph., to set forth, expound: Ac 11:4 28:23; c. acc rei, Ac 18:26.†

Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

ἐκ-τίθημι : 1 aor. pass. ptep. ἐκτεθείς ; Mid., impf. ἐξετιθέμην ; 2 aor. e&ebeunv; to place or set out, expose; Ὶprop.: an infant, Acts vii. 21; (Sap. xviii. 5; [Hdt. 1, 112]; Arstph. nub. 531; Ael. v. h. 2,7; Leian. de sacrif. 5, and often). 2. Mid. metaph. /o set forth, declare, expound: Acts xi. 4; τί, Acts xviii. 26; xxviii. 23; ([Aristot. passim]; Diod. 12, 18; Joseph. antt. 1, 12, 2; Athen. 7 p. 278 d.; al.).

Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

ἐκτίθημι is used = ‘expose ”’ an infant, as in Ac 731 (cf. 19 ἔκθετα), in BGU IV. rroq*4 (B.c. 8) τὸ βρέφος ἐκτίθεσθαι. The verb is common = ‘‘ post up” a notice etc., e.g. P Hib I. 29° (c. B.C. 265) ὁ δὲ τελώνης το[ῦτο τὸ] γραμματί εἴον] γράψας εἰς λεύκωμα μεγάλοις γράμμασιν (cf. Gal 6!) ἐκτιθέτίω πρὸ] τοῦ ἀγοραν[ομί]ου ἑκάστης ἡ[μ]έρας, ‘and the tax-farmer shall write this document upon a notice board in large letters and expose it in front of the agoranomus-office every day” (Edd.), P Par 63% (B.c. 164) (=P Petr III. p. 24) ὥπως τοῦτο μὲν ἔν τε ταῖς μητροπόλεσιν ἐκ[τ]εθῆι, “that this be posted up in the chief towns’’: cf. 26. 498 (B.c. 164-158) (= Witkowski,? p. 69) τοσ[αὐ]τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ ἐλευθερ[ιότητ]α [ο]ὐὺ βαναυσίαν ἐκτέθει[κ]α πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις, and with the corresponding subst. (as in Esther 814, 17 A) P Petr IL. 13 (184)?° (B.c. 258-3) ἔκθες οὖν ἔκθεμα καὶ προκήρυξον, ‘issue a…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

ἐκτίθημι (ektithēmi) — to explain/expose.

ἐκτίθημι

(infinitive -τιθεῖν[Refs]future -θήσω: perfect -τέθεικα[Refs 2nd c.BC+]:—set out, place outside, πυκινὸν λέχος [Refs 8th c.BC+]; expose on a desert island, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; expose a new-born child, [Refs 5th c.BC+] —so in passive, τέθνηκε.. θηρσὶν ἐκτεθείς[Refs]; expose, ἑαυτὸν βέλεσι [Refs 1st c.AD+] —middle, ἐκτίθεσθαι λείαν εἰς Βιθυνούς export it thither, [Refs 1st c.AD+]

II. set up, offer for a prize, λέβητας ἐκτιθεὶς φέρειν [Refs 5th c.BC+]

II. b fix or grant allowances, rates of pay, etc., [Refs 3rd c.BC+]

II.2. exhibit publicly, post up, νόμους πρὸς τοὺς ἐπωνύμους Decrees cited in [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ὀνόματα εἰς στοάν [Refs 3rd c.BC+] —passive, ὅπως ἐκτεθῶσι [οἱ νόμοι]…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

ἐκτίθεμι

ektithemi

from 1537 and 5087; to expose; figuratively, to declare:--cast out,

expound.

see GREEK for 1537

see GREEK for 5087

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ἐκτίθημι

v.

I put out or expose a child, set forth, explain

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ἐκτίθημι ektithēmi 4x

pr. to place outside, put forth; to expose an infant, Acts 7:21; met. to set forth, declare, explain, Acts 11:4; 18:26; 28:23*

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

ἐκτίθημι fut. -θήσω to set out, place outside, Od.: to expose on a desert island or to expose a new-born child, Hdt., attic:—Mid. to export, Plut.

to set up in public, exhibit publicly, νόμους Dem.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-IMI-3S — Verb · imperfect · middle · indicative · third person · singular
imperfect middle indicative — a continuing action in past time.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-IMI-3S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Imperfect Voice: Middle Mood: Indicative Person: third Number: Singular

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
25%when was being exposed
when was being exposed25% · 1×he was explaining25% · 1×they expounded25% · 1×he was expounding25% · 1×

4 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 4 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
verb100%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 4 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
ΠέτροςPeter
δέbut, on the othe
αὐτός
ἀκριβῶςComp
ὅς
πολύςmuch, many, ofte
ἐκτίθημιhe was explaining [it]
what comes after →
δέbut, on the other ha
αὐτός
αὐτός
καθεξῆςin order, just a
Article the
ὁδόςa way, road, jou
διαμαρτύρομαιI give solemn eviden
Article the

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordanceἐκτίθημι · 4× in the New Testament
Acts
Across the New Testament1 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The company it keepswords that stand beside it more often than chance
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 10 Old Testament verses where this Greek word stands: which Hebrew word keeps standing there too. A correspondence of verses rather than a word-by-word alignment, so read the percentage as strength of evidence, not as a claim about any single verse.

Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Life of Moses 1.12c. AD 40

ἐν αἰσθήσει κακῶν ἀργαλεωτέρων διαφθείρηται.“ καὶ οἱ μὲν ἀγνοίᾳ τοῦ μέλλοντος ἀπῄεσαν οἰκτρῷ κατεσχημένοι πένθει, ἀδελφὴ δὲ τοῦ ἐκτεθέντος βρέφους ἔτι παρθένος ὑπὸ φιλοικείου πάθους μικρὸν ἄποθεν ἐκαραδόκει τὸ ἀποβησόμενον·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 2.283c. AD 75–95

τά τε κατὰ τὸ Σιναῖον ὄρος αὐτῷ συντυχόντα καὶ τὰς τοῦ θεοῦ φωνὰς καὶ τὰ πρὸς πίστιν ὧν οὗτος αὐτῷ προστάξειεν ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ δειχθέντα σημεῖα καθʼ ἕκαστον ἐξετίθετο, παρεκάλει τε μὴ ἀπιστοῦντα τούτοις ἐμποδὼν ἵστασθαι τῇ τοῦ θεοῦ γνώμῃ.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 2nd c. BC 3rd c. BC 5th c. AD

r γέγραπται γραφὴ ἔτους γ Ἐπεὶφ κγ. Δωροθέωι ἐπιμελητῆι παρὰ … κωμογραμματέως Τάνεως. ἐμοῦ ἐκτεθέντος ἀντιγραφομένου παρὰ βασιλικοῦ γραμματέως τὸ περὶ Τάνιν ἐργαστήριον τοῦ ις ἔτους πυροῦ ἀρτάβας x

Actenstücke 1Theben132 BC–131 BC

πλήρωσιν η πηχῶν τὴν ἀξίαν καθὼς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς ὑποστάσεως δραχμὰς Αχ ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐξέθεντο τὰς γᾶς εἰς πρᾶσιν … ἐπὶ τοῦ δρόμου τοῦ μεγίστου θεοῦ Ἄμμωνος σὺν τοῖς

PSI 14 1406AD 138–AD 142

ἀντίγραφον προγράμματος ἐκτεθέντος ἐν Μέμφει· Γάιος Αὐίδιος Ἡλιόδωρος ἔπαρχος Αἰγύπτου λέγει· πολλῶν ἐν τῷ γεναμένῳ διαλογισμῷ μεμψαμένων

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
αὐτοῖςautos to them G846 Personal pronoun · dative · plural · masculine
5,550× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in Acts as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This pronoun refers to a person or thing, like 'he', 'she', or 'it'. It is used in the Bible to emphasize a person or thing, like in John 2:25 where it says 'he himself knew'.
Tyndale gloss
it/s/he
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

αὐτός is a pronoun meaning 'self' or 'the same,' used to emphasize distinction or opposition. It can function as a reflexive pronoun and appears frequently in the New Testament, often in contexts that highlight contrast or identity, such as in Luke 5:37 and John 2:25. The entries indicate that it can also be used in various grammatical constructions, including with articles to denote sameness.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

αὐτός, -ή, -ό,

determinative pron., in late Gk. much more freq. than in cl. (WM, 178 f.; Jannaris, HGG, §1399).

Emphatic (so always in nom. exc. when preceded by the art., v. infr., iii);

self (ipse), expressing opposition, distinction, exclusion, etc., αὐ. ἐκχυθήσεται, Lk 5:37; αὐ. ἐγινώσκεν, Jo 2:25; αὐ. ὑμεῖς, Jo 3:28; καὶ αὐ. ἐγώ, Ro 15:14; αὐ. Ἰησοῦς, Jo 2:24; αὐ. καὶ οἱ μετ’ αὐτοῦ, Mk 2:25; ὑμεῖς αὐ., Mk 6:31; esp. (as freq in cl.) αὐ. ὁ, Mt 3:4, Mk 6:17, Jo 16:27, I Th 3:11, al.; in late Gk., sometimes…

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Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

αὐτός, -7, -d, pron. (“derived from the particle αὖ with the added force of a demonstrative pronoun. In itself it signifies nothing more than again, applied to what has either been previously mentioned or, when the whole discourse is looked at, must necessarily be .upplied.” Klotz ad Devar. ii. p. 219; [see Vaniéek p. 268]). It is used by the bibl. writ. both of the O. T. and of the N. T. far more frequently than the other pronouns; and in this very frequent and almost inordinate use of it, they deviate greatly from prof. auth.; cf. B. § 127, 9. [On classic usage ef. Hermann, Opusce. i. 308 sqq., of which dissertation a summary is given in his edition of Viger pp- 732-736.] I. self, as used (in all persons, genders, numbers) to distinguish a person or thing from or contrast it with another, or to give him (it) emphatic prominence. ik When used to express Opposition or Distinction, it is…

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Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

αὐτός. The weakening of the old distinction between αὐτὸς 6 and ὁ αὐτός, especially in Luke, is noted in Proleg. p. 91, and paralleled from Hellenistic. We may add (cf. Linleitung p. 145f.) Sy// 8071 (ii/A.D.) αὐταῖς ταῖς ἡμέραις, where Dittenberger remarks ‘‘expectaveris ταῖς αὐταῖς," OG/S 383! (Antiochus of Commagene, i/8.c.) τὴν αὐτήν τε κρίσιν, for which Ditt. desiderates ταύτην τὴν κρίσιν, P Iib I. 30° (B.c. 265) αὐτὸς Ὧρος “the said H.,’’ P Lille I. 238 (B.C, 221) οὗ μ[ισ]θωτὴς Ἡρώδ[ης] ὁ αὐτός “ce méme L.,”’ P Oxy VI. 892% (A.D. 338) τῆς αὐτῆς πόλεως, 26. VIII. 1105 (A.D. 254) τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἀμφοδογραμματέως “the said a.’’: all these seem to be practically identical, with αὐτός differing little from ἐκεῖνος. The combination αὐτὸ τοῦτο may be illustrated by P Grenf I. 114 (literary, ii/B.c.) “ for this reason ” (Ed.) as in 2 Pet 1°, P Ryl 11. 77°9 (a.p. 192) καὶ αὐτὰ ταῦτα ἀσφαλίσομαι…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

αὐτός (autos) — it/s/he.

αὐτός

(Cretan dialect ἀϝτός [Refs] (also αὐτόν[Refs], reflexive pronoun, self:—in oblique cases used for the personal pronoun, him, her, it:—with Article, ὁ αὐτός, ἡ αὐτή, τὸ αὐτό (also ταὐτόν), etc., the very one, the same.

I. self, myself, thyself, etc., accusative to the person of the Verb: frequently joined with ἐγώ, σύ, etc. (see. below 10),

I.1. one's true self, the soul, not the body, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; reversely, body, not soul, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; oneself, as opposed to others who are less prominent, as king to subject, [Refs]; man to wife and children, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; warrior to horses, [Refs 8th c.BC+], or to weapons, [Refs]; shepherd to herd, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; seamen to ships, [Refs]: generally, whole to parts,[Refs 5th c.BC+]: absolutely, the Master, as in the [Refs 4th c.BC+]…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

αὐτός

autos

from the particle au (perhaps akin to the base of 109 through the idea

of a baffling wind) (backward); the reflexive pronoun self, used

(alone or in the comparative 1438) of the third person , and (with the

proper personal pronoun) of the other persons:--her, it(-self), one,

the other, (mine) own, said, (self-), the) same, ((him-, my-, thy-

)self, (your-)selves, she, that, their(-s), them(-selves), there(-at,

- by, -in, -into, -of, -on, -with), they, (these) things, this (man),

those, together, very, which. Compare 848.

see GREEK for 109

see GREEK for 1438

see GREEK for 848

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

αὐτός, αὐτή, αὐτό

Pers.pr.

he, she, it, they, them, same

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

αὐτός autos 5x

self, very; alone, Mk. 6:31; 2 Cor. 12:13; of one’s self, of one’s own motion, Jn. 16:27; used also in the oblique cases independently as a personal pron. of the third person; ὁ αὐτός, the same; unchangeable, Heb. 1:12; κατὰ τὸ αὐτό, at the same time, together, Acts 14:1; ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό, in one and the same place, Mt. 22:34; at the same time, together, Acts 3:1

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

αὐτός self, Lat. ipse:— in the oblique cases simply for the personal Pron., him, her, it:— with the Artic. ὁ αὐτός, ἡ αὐτή, τὸ αὐτό (or ταὐτόν), etc., the very one, the same.

self, myself, thyself, etc., acc. to the person of the Verb., Hom., etc.:

oneself, one's true self, the soul, not the body, Od.; or opp. to others, as king to subjects, parent to children, man to wife, etc., Hom.; hence absol. for the master, τίς οὗτος;—Αὐτός, i. e. Socrates, Ar.; similarly in neut. αὐτὸ δείξει the result will shew, Eur.

of oneself, of one's own accord, Lat. sponte, Hom., Soph.

by oneself, alone, αὐτός περ ἐών although alone, Il.; αὐτοί ἐσμεν we are by ourselves, i. e. among friends, Ar.

in Plat., τὸ δίκαιον αὐτό right in itself, the idea of right, etc.; cf. αὐτοάνθρωπος.

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Pron-DPM — Personal pronoun · dative · plural · masculine
dative — to, for, with — the one it is done to or by.
Agrees with anything else marked plural masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

P-DPM Part of Speech: Personal pronoun Case: Dative Number: Plural Gender: Masculine

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
52%him
him52% · 3025×them25% · 1488×it6% · 323×her4% · 250×other renderings10% · 587×other renderings3% · 188×

5,861 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 92 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
object33%adverbial28%indirect object19%subject18%predicate3%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 5,561 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
λέγωI say, speak
καίand, even, also,δέbut, on the otheἸησοῦςJesus
πρός
λέγωI say, speakἔρχομαιI come, goδέbut, on the othe
ἐν
Article theαὐτόςεὑρίσκωI find
δέbut, on the other ha
λέγωI say, speakοὗτοςὁράωI see, look upon
καίand, even, also, nam
αὐτόςσύθεόςGod, a god
αὐτόςto them5550×
what comes after →
Article the
ἸησοῦςJesusμαθητήςa learner, disciθεόςGod, a god
καίand, even, also, nam
Article theλέγωI say, speakαὐτός
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςτίςIrgκύριοςlord, Lord, mast
ἐν
Article theαὐτόςὅς
εἰς
Article theδικαιοσύνηjustice, justnesἹεροσόλυμαJerusalem

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordanceαὐτός · 5,550× in the New Testament
Luke Matthew John Mark Acts Revelation Romans Hebrews 1 John 1 Corinthians Ephesians 2 Corinthians

19 inflected forms — one of the commonest words in the New Testament. Full distribution →

Across the New Testament27 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The company it keepswords that stand beside it more often than chance
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria The Shepherd of Hermas Clement of Rome The Epistle of Barnabas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 1c. AD 40

Τῶν ἄλλων νομοθετῶν οἱ μὲν ἀκαλλώπιστα καὶ γυμνὰ τὰ νομισθέντα παρ’ αὐτοῖς εἶναι δίκαια διετάξαντο, οἱ δὲ πολὺν ὄγκον τοῖς νοήμασι προσπεριβαλόντες ἐξετύφωσαν τὰ πλήθη μυθικοῖς πλάσμασι τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐπικρύψαντες.

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.argc. AD 75–95

περὶ τοῦ γένους Ἀδάμου καὶ τῶν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ δέκα γενεῶν τῶν μέχρι τοῦ κατακλυσμοῦ.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.4c. AD 100

πεπεισμένος οὖν τοῦτο καὶ συνειδὼς ἐμαυτῷ, ὅτι ἐν ὑμῖν λαλήσας πολλὰ ἐπίσταμαι, ὅτι ἐμοὶ συνώδευσεν ἐν ὁδῷ δικαιοσύνης κύριος, καὶ πάντως ἀναγκάζομαι κἀγὼ εἰς τοῦτο, ἀγαπᾶν ὑμᾶς ὑπὲρ τὴν ψυχήν μου, ὅτι μεγάλη πίστις καὶ ἀγάπη ἐγκατοικεῖ ἐν ὑμῖν ἐπ’…

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 6th c. AD 4th c. AD 1st c. AD
P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

Πακοίβιος ἱερεὺς Σούχου καὶ Ἀφροδίτης ὡς ἐτῶν μ εὐμεγέθης μελίχρως μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν τὴν ὑπάρχουσαν αὐτῷ μερίδα γῆς σιτοφόρου ἐν τῷ περὶ Παθῦρειν πεδίωι σφραγίδων τεσσάρων , ἣν καὶ αὐτὸς

P.Adl. 11Pathyris99 BC

1 ἔτους ιζ Θῶυθ κη ἀπέδοτο Πετεσοῦχος Φίβιος καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ τὸ ὕπαρχον αὐτοῖς ἥμισυ περιστερῶνος τοῦ ὄντος ἐν τῶι ἀπὸ βορρᾶ μέρει Παθύρεως χαλκοῦ Γ. ἐπρίατο Ὧρος

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

ὡς ἐτῶν νε μέσος ἢ ἐλάσσων μελίχρως μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν ὑπόσκνιφος, καὶ Πετεαρσοῆρις Σχώτου τῶν αὐτῶν ἱερέων ὡς ἐτῶν ν μέσος ἢ ἐλασσων μελίχρως μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν ὑπόσκνιφος, ἀπὸ τοῦ ὑπάρχοντος

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
καθεξῆςkathexēs in order G2517 Adverb
5× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Acts than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
In order or one after another is the sense of this word, used in Luke 1:3 and Acts 11:4 to describe events happening in sequence.
Amplified meaning
in order, one after another, all that had happened, from the beginning
Tyndale gloss
in order
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word καθεξῆς (*kathexēs*) is an adverb meaning successively or in order. It is built from the components meaning 'down' and 'in succession.' The New Testament uses it in contexts like Luke 1:3 and Acts 11:4, indicating a sequence or subsequent events. Moulton & Milligan note its specific use in Luke as referring to an uninterrupted narrative.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

*† καθ-εξῆς

(= cl. ἑξῆς, ἐφεξῆς),

adv.,

successively, in order: Lk 1:3, Ac 11:4 18:23; τῶν κ. (those that succeeded him), Ac 3:24.

afterwards: ἐν τῷ κ. (sc. χρόνῳ), Lk 8:1.†

Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

καθ-εξῆς, (κατά and ἑξῆς, q. v.), adv., one after another, successively, in order: Lk. i. 3; Acts xi. 4; xviii. 23; of καθεξ. those that follow after, Acts iii. 24 [ef. W. 633 (588) ]; ἐν τῷ καθ. sc. χρόνῳ [R. V. soon aflerwards], Lk. viii. 1. (Ael. v. ἢ. 8, 7; Plut. symp. 1, 1, 5; in earlier Grk. ἑξῆς and ἐφεξῆς are more usual.)

Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

καθεξῆς is confined in the NT to Lk 1°, where Blass (PAz/o/ogy of the Gospels, p. 18f.) understands it as ‘‘referring to the uninterrupted series of a complex narrative.

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

καθεξῆς (kathexēs) — in order.

καθεξῆς,

adverb, = the more usually ἐφεξῆς, [NT+1st c.AD+]; poetry κατά θ᾽ ἑξείης [Refs 3rd c.AD+]

Strong's Greek Dictionary

καθεξῆς

kathexes

from 2596 and 1836; thereafter, i.e. consecutively; as a noun (by

ellipsis of noun) a subsequent person or time:--after(-ward), by (in)

order.

see GREEK for 2596

see GREEK for 1836

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

καθεξῆς

Adv

in order, just after

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

καθεξῆς kathexēs 5x

in a continual order or series, successively, consecutively, Lk. 1:3; Acts 11:4; 18:23; ὁ, ἡ, καθεξῆς, succeeding, subsequent, Lk. 8:1; Acts 3:24*

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Adv — Adverb
adverb — it qualifies the verb, and never changes form.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

ADV ADVerb or adverb and particle combined

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

or'-der (`arakh, "to arrange"; tassein ( diatassein, taxis, tagma)): "Order" in Biblical phrases may indicate

(1) arrangement in rows,

(2) sequence in time,

(3) classification and organization,

(4) likeness or manner,

(5) regulation, direction or command, or

(6) the declaring of a will.

In many passages it is difficult if not impossible to determine from the English text alone in which of these senses the word is used.

1. Arrangement in Rows:

The fundamental idea suggested by the Hebrew, Greek and English words is that of arrangement in rows. Thus "order" is used in the Bible of arranging wood for an altar (Le 1:7; 1Ki 18:33; compare Hebrew Ge 22:9; Isa 30:33); of laying out…

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
20%subsequently
subsequently20% · 1×order20% · 1×successively20% · 1×method20% · 1×soon20% · 1×

5 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 5 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
adverbial80%subject20%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 5 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
Article the
ἐνκαίand, even, also,
ἀκριβῶςComp
πᾶςall, the whole,
αὐτός
ἐκτίθημιI put out or exp
διέρχομαιI pass through, spre
ἐξέρχομαιI go out, come o
καθεξῆςin order
what comes after →
σύ
γράφωI write
καίand, even, also, nam
αὐτός
ὅσος
λαλέωI speak, say
λέγωI say, speak
Article the
Γαλατικόςbelonging to the

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordanceκαθεξῆς · 5× in the New Testament
Acts Luke
Across the New Testament2 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Clement of Rome
Clement of RomeFirst Clement 37.3c. AD 96

οὐ πάντες εἰσὶν ἔπαρχοι οὐδὲ χιλίαρχοι οὐδὲ ἑκατόνταρχαι οὐδὲ πεντηκόνταρχοι οὐδὲ τὸ καθεξῆς, ἀλλ̓ ἕκαστος ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ τάγματι τὰ ἐπιτασσόμενα ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ τῶν ἡγουμένων ἐπιτελεῖ.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
4th c. AD
P.Kellis 1 23Kellis (Oasis Magna)AD 353

πάντας τὴν τύχην ἑαυτῶν τῇ στρατηγικῇ τάξει διδόναι κατὰ τὸ ἔθος καὶ ἕκαστος ἡμῶν καθεξῆς ἐκληρώθη εἰς λειτουργείας, μόνον δὲ Ταα τινα τὸ ὄνομα κληρωθέντα μεθʼ ἡμῶν … την

having begun now <the> Peter he was explaining [it] to them in order saying;
λέγων·legō saying; G3004 Verb · present · active · participle · nominative · singular · masculine
2,255× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in Acts as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This word means to say or speak, and it is used by Jesus and others in the New Testament to share teachings and tell stories. It appears in Matthew 9:34 and John 1:29.
Tyndale gloss
to say
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

λέγω (legō) is a primary Greek verb meaning 'to say' or 'to speak.' It encompasses a range of uses, including expressing thoughts, making declarations, and narrating events. The New Testament frequently employs it in direct speech and as a way to convey meaning, such as in Matthew 27:11. Abbott-Smith notes its distinction from similar verbs like λαλέω.

Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament — λαλέω, λέγω, λαλιά, λόγος from a scan

In dealing with synonyms of the N. T. we plainly need not concern ourselves with such earlier, or even contemporary, uses of the words which we are discriminating, as lie altogether outside of the N. T. sphere, when these uses do not illustrate, and have not affected, their Scriptural employment. It follows from this that all those contemptuous uses of λαλεῖν as to talk at random, as one ἀθυρόστομος, or with no door to his lips, might do; of λαλιά, as chatter («Kpacia λόγου ἄλογος, Plato, Defin. 416)—for I cannot believe that we are to find this at John iv. 42—may be dismissed and set aside. The antithesis in the line of Eupolis (Meineke, /ragm. Com. Gr. p. 174), Λαλεῖν ἄριστος, ἀδυνατώτατος λέγειν, does little or nothing to illustrate the matter in hand. The distinction which indeed exists between the words may in this way be made clear. There are two leading aspects under which speech…

Read the full entry →
Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

λέγω,

[in LXX very freq., chiefly for אמר; λέγει for נְאֻם, Ge 22:16, al.;]

in Hom., to pick out, gather, reckon, recount.

In Hdt. and Att., to say, speak, affirm, declare: absol., Ac 13:15 24:10; seq. orat. dir., Mt 9:34, Mk 3:11, Jo 1:29, al.; seq. ὅτι recit., Mk 3:21, Lk 1:24, Jo 6:14, al.; acc. et. inf., Lk 11:18, Jo 12:29, al.; after another verb of speaking, προσφωνεῖν κ. λέγειν, Mt 11:17, al.; ἀπεκρίθη (ἐλάλησεν) λέγων (καὶ λέγει; Dalman…

Read the full entry →
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament from a scan

λέγω (in the N. T. only the pres. and impf. act. and pres. pass. are in use; 3 pers. plur. impf. ἔλεγαν, Jn. xi. 56 Tdf. [ef. ἔχω, init.]): I. in its earliest use in Hom. to lay (like Lat. lego, Germ. legen; οἵ. J. G. Miiller in Theol. Stud. u. Krit. for 1835, p. 127 sqq.; Curtius § 538) ; to cause to lie down, put to sleep; 1. to collect, gather; to pick out. 2. lo lay with, count with; to enumerate, recount, narrate, describe; [οἷ. Eng. tale, Germ. ztihlen). II. to put word to word in speaking, join words together, i. e. to say (how it differs fr. λαλεῖν, see under that word ad init.) ; once so by Hom. in 1]. 2, 222 [yet ef. Schmidt, Syn. i. ch. 1, §§ 20; 48, 2; L. and S. s. vy. B. II. 2]; often in Pind., and by far the most com. use in Attic; Sept. more than thirteen hundred times for 728; often also for D8} (saying, dictum); very rarely for 1393; and soin N.T. 1. univ. a. absol. to…

Read the full entry →
Moulton & Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament from a scan

λέγω. (1). “‘I say, speak”: see e.g. P Par 47 {= Selections, Ῥ- 21 ff.), ¢. B.C. 153, which is addressed on the verso—mpds τοὺς τὴν ἀλήθεαν λέγοντες (—-as), P Fay 12378 (c. A.D. 100) γνώσομαι yap εἰ ἀληθῶς λέγι, “1 will find out whether he is speaking the truth,” P Ryl 11. 7615 (late li/A.D.) ἃ καὶ ἀναγνώσομαι λεγομένου τοῦ [π]ράγματος, “1 will read them when the case is argued” (Edd.), P Flor II. 1327 (A.D. 257) ἔλεζξ]αν πεποιηκέναι ταῦτα ἀγνοίᾳ, ‘they said they had done this in ignorance,” and the magical P Par 5741238 (iii/A.D.) (= Selectzons, p. 113) λόγος λεγόμενος ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ, ‘ invocation to be uttered over the head (of the possessed one).”” For the phrase τὸ αὐτὸ λέγειν, cf. I Cor 11°, Weiss (Meyer 15 ad 1) cites a sepulchral inscr. of husband and wife from Rhodes, /J/Ae 149 (ii/B.c.) ταὐτὰ λέγοντες ταὐτὰ φρονοῦντες ἤλθομεν τὰν ἀμέτρητον ὁδὸν εἰς ᾿Αἴδαν. (2). Closely…

Read the full entry →
Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

λέγω (legō) — to say.

λέγω,

__B pick up, etc.: tenses for signification 1 and 11, future λέξω [Refs 8th c.BC+]: aorist ἔλεξα [Refs 4th c.BC+]:—middle, future in passive sense λέξομαι [Refs 5th c.BC+]: aorist ἐλεξάμην [Refs 8th c.BC+]; Epic dialect ἐλέγμην [Refs 8th c.BC+]:—passive, aorist ἐλέχθην [Refs 8th c.BC+]-; post-[Refs 8th c.BC+]perfect εἴλοχα (κατ-, συν-), passive εἴλεγμαι, in these senses rarely λέλεγμαι (see. the compounds); also future λεγήσομαι (συλ-): aorist 2 ἐλέγην (κατ-, συν-):—gather, pick up, ὀστέα.. λέγωμεν [Refs 8th c.BC+]; αἱμασιάς τε λέγων picking out stones for building walls, [Refs 8th c.BC+]:—middle, gather for oneself, ἐπὶ δὲ ξύλα πολλὰ λέγεσθε [Refs 8th c.BC+]

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

λέγω

lego

a primary verb; properly, to "lay" forth, i.e. (figuratively) relate

(in words (usually of systematic or set discourse; whereas 2036 and

5346 generally refer to an individual expression or speech

respectively; while 4483 is properly to break silence merely, and 2980

means an extended or random harangue)); by implication, to mean:--ask,

bid, boast, call, describe, give out, name, put forth, say(-ing, on),

shew, speak, tell, utter.

see GREEK for 2036

see GREEK for 5346

see GREEK for 4483

see GREEK for 2980

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

λέγω

v.

I say, speak

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

λέγω legō 2x

to lay, to arrange, to gather; to say, Mt. 1:20; to speak, make an address or speech, Acts 26:1; to say mentally, in thought, Mt. 3:9; Lk. 3:8; to say in written language, Mk. 15:28; Lk. 1:63; Jn. 19:37; to say, as distinguished from acting, Mt. 23:3; to mention, speak of, Mk. 14:71; Lk. 9:31; Read the full entry →

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-PAP-NSM — Verb · present · active · participle · nominative · singular · masculine
nominative — the one doing it — the subject.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-PAP-NSM Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Present Voice: Active Mood: Participle Case: Nominative Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
35%saying
saying35% · 480×says13% · 175×i say12% · 164×he says9% · 122×say5% · 70×he was saying3% · 42×they say2% · 31×other renderings17% · 225×other renderings4% · 48×

1,357 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 107 different ways. The commonest English word for it is not its meaning — it is one translator's decision, repeated.

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
verb98%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 2,255 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
καίand, even, also, nam
αὐτόςἸησοῦςJesusἀποκρίνομαιI answer, reply
αὐτός
πρόςμαθητήςa learner, disciἀποκρίνομαιI answer, reply
δέbut, on the other ha
Article theοὗτοςἐγώ
ἸησοῦςJesus
Article theδέbut, on the otheγόνυa knee
ἀμήνHebr
ἀμήνHebrαὐτόςλέγωI say, speak
λέγωsaying;2255×
what comes after →
αὐτός
Article theτίςIrgκύριοςlord, Lord, mast
Article the
μαθητήςa learner, disciἸησοῦςJesusΠέτροςPeter
σύ
ὅτιthat, since, becοὐNegἐάνCond
δέbut, on the other ha
Article theπρόςαὐτός
ὅτιthat, since, because
Article theοὗτοςσύ

branches are dictionary forms, so endings do not split one phrase into five; the number on a branch is how many times the New Testament takes that path

Concordanceλέγω · 2,255× in the New Testament
Luke John Matthew Mark Acts Revelation Hebrews Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians James Galatians

76 inflected forms — one of the commonest words in the New Testament. Full distribution →

Across the New Testament25 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 1,290 Old Testament verses where this Greek word stands: which Hebrew word keeps standing there too. A correspondence of verses rather than a word-by-word alignment, so read the percentage as strength of evidence, not as a claim about any single verse.

Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria The Shepherd of Hermas The Epistle of Barnabas Clement of Rome
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 5c. AD 40

οὐ μὴν διὰ τοῦθ’ ἡσυχαστέον, ἀλλ’ ἕνεκα τοῦ θεοφιλοῦς καὶ ὑπὲρ δύναμιν ἐπιτολμητέον λέγειν, οἴκοθεν μὲν οὐδέν, ὀλίγα δ’ ἀντὶ πολλῶν, ἐφ’ ἃ τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην διάνοιαν φθάνειν εἰκὸς ἔρωτι καὶ πόθῳ σοφίας κατεσχημένην.

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.argc. AD 75–95

ὅπως Ἅβραμος ὁ πρόγονος ἡμῶν ἐξελθὼν ἐκ τῆς Χαλδαίων γῆς κατέσχε τὴν τότε μὲν Χαναναίαν νῦν δὲ Ἰουδαίαν λεγομένην.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 2.4c. AD 100

πεφανέρωκεν γὰρ ἡμῖν διὰ πάντων τῶν προφητῶν, ὅτι οὕτε θυσιῶν οὔτε ὁλοκαυτωμάτων οὔτε προσφορῶν χρῄζει, λέγων ὅτε μέν:

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 6th c. AD 1st c. AD 4th c. AD
P.Grenf. 2 33Pathyris101 BC

τὸ ἐπιβάλλον αὐτῷ μέρος ἧς ἐμισθώσατο σὺν Πακοίβι Σχώτου καὶ τοῖς μετόχοις γῆς σιτοφόρου λεγομένης Νεχθαραῦτι θεοῦ μεγάλου παρὰ τῶν ἱερέων ἐτῶν δέκα εἰς τὰ ἐνλιπόντα αὐτῷ ἑτέρων ,

P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

ἑτερᾶς· νότου γῆ Τακοίμιος, βορρᾶ γῆ Χενσθώτου, ἀπηλιώτου Ἀείους, λιβὸς περίχωμα, τῆς δʼ ἄλλης λεγομένης Πκρώ· νότου γῆ Σενπελαίας, βορρᾶ γῆ Πανᾶτος ἀπηλιώτου ποταμός, λιβὸς Ἀραμείους, ἢ οἳ ἂν

P.Adl. 16Pathyris100 BC

οἱ Φίβιος τοῦ Πανεχάτου υἱοί, ἀπηλιώτου ὁδὸς βασιλική, λιβὸς γῆ Ψεμμώνθου τοῦ Πανεχάτου, ἄλλης λεγομένης Φαμούνιος νότου γῆ Παθώτου τοῦ Πατοῦτος, βορρᾶ γῆ Πατσεοῦτος τοῦ Φίβιος, ἀπηλιώτου ποταμός, λιβὸς

Sources on this page. Lexicons and dictionaries imported from the CrossWire SWORD modules — Abbott-Smith, Strong's, Dodson, the Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones, Robinson and Packard, Webster and Cawdrey. Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Harper, 1889 — Grimm’s Wilke’s Clavis Novi Testamenti, translated, revised and enlarged by Joseph Henry Thayer) is public domain and is set here from the Internet Archive page scan greekenglishlex00grim; it is uncorrected OCR, marked as such on the entry itself, and the Strong’s numbers — which Thayer’s own edition does not carry — were matched by lemma against the other modules on this page. Trench’s Synonyms of the New Testament (Macmillan, 1880) and Moulton and Milligan’s Vocabulary of the Greek Testament (Hodder & Stoughton, 1930, which entered the United States public domain on 1 January 2026) are set from Internet Archive page scans synonymsofnewtes00treniala and vocabularyofgree00mouluoft, and are likewise uncorrected OCR matched to Strong’s numbers by lemma. Trench treats a group of words at once, so the same essay stands on the page of each word it compares. The Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary is © 1993 and is used here by permission for non-commercial use, www.teknia.com/greek-dictionary. The full Liddell-Scott-Jones and the Hebrew word data (TAHOT) come from STEPBible.org, CC BY 4.0. Brown-Driver-Briggs is the OpenScriptures digitisation, public domain. Syntax analysis is the Nestle 1904 Lowfat treebank (biblicalhumanities.org); the concordance and morphology are built from the tagged Nestle 1904 text. Septuagint occurrences use the Open Scriptures Septuagint lemma index, derived from CCAT (University of Pennsylvania) and the Rahlfs 1935 dataset by Eliran Wong, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 — used here on a non-commercial ministry site. Greek of Josephus and Barnabas from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA 4.0. Commentaries and the Ante-Nicene Fathers are public-domain texts hosted on this site. Everyday Greek from the Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri, CC BY 3.0, with dates and provenance from the Heidelberger Gesamtverzeichnis. Philo and the Apostolic Fathers from Open Greek and Latin (First1KGreek), CC BY-SA 4.0. The apparatus and the fifth Greek column are the SBL Greek New Testament, © 2010 SBL and Logos Bible Software, CC BY 4.0. The Latin is the Clementine Vulgate (public domain); the Syriac New Testament is the ETCBC edition (MIT licence). The Hebrew behind the Greek is computed here from the Septuagint index and TAHOT, not taken from any aligned edition. The translation spread and the per-word edition marks come from the Translators Amalgamated Greek NT (STEPBible, CC BY 4.0); clause roles from the Nestle 1904 Lowfat treebank (CC BY-SA 4.0); place identifications and their confidence from OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding (CC BY 4.0), with map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Gospel parallels are computed here from shared uncommon vocabulary, not taken from any printed harmony. Cross references are the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge and the subject headings are Nave’s Topical Bible, both public domain. Works under Creative Commons licences are used unchanged apart from markup removal.

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