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John 19:22 — Word Study

Depth

N1904ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

BSAAnsweredapokrinō [to respond] <the>ho Pilate;Pilatos [the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate] Whathos, hē I have written,graphō [recorded] I have written.graphō [inscribed, will not change]

Word
Listen & take awayJohn 19
English ↓ Download MP3 The Berean Standard Bible chapter audio already hosted for the site's Bible section — verse 22 is in this chapter.
Greek ↓ Download MP3 Nestle 1904 — the very text on this page — read by Andy Martin in Erasmian pronunciation.
Say the word Each Greek word carries its transliteration (graphō) — no per-word recordings of the Greek exist to link to.
Take it away
John 19:22quick helps
In a sentencePilate firmly states that his written declaration will not be changed.
Who is speakingPilate, the Roman governor, responding to the chief priests.
Where we areAt the crucifixion of Jesus, where Pilate is inscribing the title above the cross.
The hard wordγέγραφα
Take awayWhat is written is final and unalterable.
7 commentators on this verse Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them › clause subject verbἀποκρίνομαι 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 — John 19:22

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 — The Inscription on the Crossgenerated

21So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but only that He said, ‘I am the King of the Jews.’”
22Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
23When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they divided His garments into four parts, one for each soldier, with the tunic remaining. It was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.
24So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it. Instead, let us cast lots to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My garments among them, and cast lots for My clothing.” So that is what the soldiers did.

John 19:22 shows Pilate's unwavering decision regarding the inscription he has ordered to be placed on the cross of Jesus. The chief priests attempted to persuade him to change the wording, but Pilate's response indicates his determination to stand by what he has written. This moment emphasizes the authority of Pilate in the trial and crucifixion of Jesus, as well as the significance of the title that identifies Jesus as the King of the Jews.


Cross References

ReferenceText (BSB)
1John 19:12From then on, Pilate tried to release Him, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who declares himself a king is defying Caesar.”
2Psalm 65:7You stilled the roaring of the seas, the pounding of their waves, and the tumult of the nations.
3Psalm 76:10Even the wrath of man shall praise You; with the survivors of wrath You will clothe Yourself.
4Proverbs 8:29when He set a boundary for the sea, so that the waters would not surpass His command, when He marked out the foundations of the earth.

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


The Key Word γέγραφα, graphōgenerated

The verb γράφω means 'to write' and is in the perfect active indicative form, indicating a completed action with ongoing effects. Pilate asserts that what he has written is final, suggesting that the inscription will remain as a permanent record.

This verb appears frequently in the New Testament, often in contexts involving legal or formal writing, such as in the recording of events or commands. Pilate's use of it here underscores the authority of his declaration.


How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated

In this study, the verse is read in the Berean Standard Bible, which has I have written. Other translations agree on this phrasing, including the KJV and ASV.

However, the BBE translates it as What I have put in writing will not be changed, emphasizing the permanence of Pilate's decision.


Sentence Structuregenerated

The main verb of the verse is ἀπεκρίθη, Pilate answered, which governs the entire sentence. It is followed by a noun phrase as the subject and two clauses that express what Pilate has written.

The structure shows a clear response format, where Pilate's declaration is emphasized by the repetition of the verb γέγραφα, I have written, reinforcing the finality of his statement.


Septuagint Backgroundgenerated

In John 19:22, the Greek word ἀπεκρίθη (apokrinō), meaning 'answered,' corresponds to the Hebrew word עוּן (ʿānāh), which also conveys the idea of responding. This connection emphasizes the act of giving a definitive reply.

The phrase γέγραφα (graphō), translating to 'I have written,' is linked to the Hebrew כָּתַב (kātab), meaning 'to write.' This choice highlights the authority and permanence of Pilate's declaration, reinforcing that what he has inscribed is final and unchangeable.


In plain words — the whole versegenerated

John 19:22 shows Pilate responding to the chief priests, asserting that what he has written on the sign above Jesus' cross will not be changed. This highlights Pilate's authority and the significance of the title 'King of the Jews' as it relates to Jesus' identity.


Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated

What does Pilate mean by 'What I have written, I have written'?

Pilate is affirming that his inscription regarding Jesus' title is final and cannot be altered, indicating his authority in the matter.

Why did the chief priests want Pilate to change the inscription?

The chief priests wanted to clarify that Jesus claimed to be the King of the Jews, rather than being declared as such by Pilate, as they sought to undermine Jesus' authority.

What is the significance of the title 'King of the Jews'?

This title highlights the charge against Jesus and serves as a proclamation of His identity, which was a point of contention among the Jewish leaders.

How does Pilate's response reflect his character?

Pilate's firm response illustrates his position of power and his unwillingness to yield to the pressure from the Jewish leaders.


Reflection Questionsgenerated

  1. In what ways do I assert my decisions when faced with pressure from others?
  2. How can I better understand the authority of Jesus as the King of my life?
  3. What can I learn from Pilate's response about standing firm in my beliefs?
  4. How does the title 'King of the Jews' challenge my understanding of Jesus' identity?

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

Augustine of Hippo reflects on Pilate's declaration in relation to the recognition of Jesus as king by both the magi and Pilate himself, emphasizing the significance of this moment.

Augustine of HippoSERMON 201.2 354–430
The magi were from the Gentiles. Pilate too was a Gentile. They saw a star in the sky; he wrote a title on the tree. Both, however, were looking for or acknowledging the king, not of the Gentiles but of the Jews.
Early Church Fathers on John 19 →

Commentators on this verse — 7 expositors, verse by verse

Each of these wrote on John 19:22 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.

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

Pilate answered, what I have written I have written,.... He seems to say this, as one angry and displeased with them; either because they would not consent to release Jesus, which he was desirous of,

Read John Gill on John 19 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary

Pilate answered, What I have written I have written. Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

Read Robert Jamieson on John 19 →
Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy Bible

But Pilate refuseth to gratify them, and lets them know he would not be directed by them what to write, nor alter any thing of it.

Read Matthew Poole on John 19 →
John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

22 Pilate answered, What I have written I have written. Ver. 22. What I have written, I have written] i.e. I am unchangeably resolved it shall stand. So God saith, I am that I am; that is, I am yesterday, and today, and the same for ever. Learn we may of Pilate to be constant to a good cause. Marcellus the pope would not change his name, according to the custom, to show his immutability, that he was no changeling. Non retractat homo profanus, quod, vere licet, sine mente et consilio de Christo scripsit. Cal.

Read John Trapp on John 19 →
AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible

Verse 22. What I have written, I have written.] That is, I will not alter what I have written. The Roman laws forbad the sentence to be altered when once pronounced; and as this inscription was considered as the sentence pronounced against our Lord, therefore, it could not be changed: but this form of speech is common in the Jewish writings, and means simply, what is done shall continue. Pilate seems to speak prophetically. This is the king of the Jews: they shall have no other Messiah for ever.

Read AdamClarke on John 19 →
CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

22. Pilate answered] His answer illustrates the mixture of obstinacy and relentlessness, which Philo says was characteristic of him. His own interests are not at stake, so he will have his way: where he had anything to fear or to gain he could be supple enough. A shrewd, practical man of the world, with all a Roman official’s contemptuous impartiality and severity, and all the disbelief in truth and disinterestedness which the age had taught him, he seems to have been one of the many whose self-interest is stronger than their convictions, and who can walk uprightly when to do so is easy, but fail in the presence of danger and difficulty.

Read Cambridge on John 19 →
Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

22. I have written—In the true style of an imperious Roman. He at once displays his arbitrary authority, maintains an immovable record, and attains a complete triumph over these Jews.

Read Daniel Denison Whedon on John 19 →

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

Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

WEBWorld English Bible2000

Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

MSBMajority Standard Bible2022

Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

NETBNew English Translation2006

Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

Tyndale line

KJVKing James Version1611

Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

ASVAmerican Standard Version1901

Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

RVARevised Version, American1894

Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

NWBWebster's Bible1833

Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.

GNVGeneva Bible1599

Pilate answered, What I haue written, I haue written.

Strictly literal

DBYDarby Translation1890

Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.

YLTYoung's Literal Translation1862

Pilate answered, 'What I have written, I have written.'

LSVLiteral Standard Version2020

Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

ULBUnlocked Literal Bible2017

Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

From the Latin

DRADouay-Rheims (Challoner)1899

Pilate answered: What I have written, I have written.

Simplified

FBVFree Bible Version2020

Pilate replied, “What I have written I have written.”

BBEBible in Basic English1949

But Pilate made answer, What I have put in writing will not be changed.

Word by word, the decisions they made

γέγραφα,graphō I have written, G1125 2 different renderings
i have writtenASV BSB DBY DRA FBV KJV LSV MSB NETB NWB RVA ULB WEB YLT
writtenGNV
γέγραφα.¶graphō I have written. G1125 2 different renderings
i have writtenASV BSB DBY DRA FBV KJV LSV MSB NETB NWB RVA ULB WEB YLT
writtenGNV

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.

clauseclauseverbἀπεκρίθηAnswerednoun phrase · subject-ΠειλᾶτοςPilateclausenoun phrase · objectclauseobjectWhatverbγέγραφαI have writtenverbγέγραφαI have written

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

Respondit Pilatus : Quod scripsi, scripsi.

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

ܐܡܪ ܦܝܠܛܘܣ ܡܕܡ ܕܟܬܒܬ ܟܬܒܬ

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

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

The standard critical text of the New Testament.

Nestle-Aland 27th edition1993 · Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

The previous edition, still widely cited.

SBL Greek New Testament2010 · Michael Holmes

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

The Society of Biblical Literature edition, freely licensed.

Westcott–Hort1881 · Westcott and Hort

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

The edition that turned scholarship toward the earliest manuscripts.

Tregelles1857–1879 · Samuel Prideaux Tregelles

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

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

Tyndale House Greek NT2017 · Tyndale House, Cambridge

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

A recent critical edition following documentary evidence closely.

Byzantine majority text2018 · Robinson–Pierpont

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

The reading of the majority of surviving manuscripts.

Textus Receptus1550/1894 lineage

ἀπεκρίθη Πιλᾶτος· γέγραφα, γέγραφα.¶

The printed tradition behind the King James Version.

Every witness on this verse all agree
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

Every edition agrees. All 8 printed editions — Nestle-Aland 28, Nestle-Aland 27, SBLGNT, Westcott-Hort, Tregelles, Tyndale House 2017, Textus Receptus (KJV), Byzantine majority — carry every word of this verse, in the same order, with no difference that any translator would render differently.


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.

John 19:22ἀποκρίνομαιAnsweredAnsweredἀποκρίνομαι<the><the>ΠιλᾶτοςPilate;Pilate;ΠιλᾶτοςὅςWhatWhatὅςγράφωI have writI have written,γράφωγράφωI have writI have written.γράφωἀπόPrep. fromPrep. from, awaἀπόArticle thArticle theοὗAdv where,Adv where, whitοὗὅδεDem.pr. thDem.pr. this heὅδεβιβλίονn.n. a papn.n. a papyrus βιβλίονΠέτροςn.m. Petern.m. PeterΠέτροςἸησοῦςn.m. Jesusn.m. JesusἸησοῦςΠόντιοςn.m. Pontin.m. PontiusΠόντιοςαἰτέωv. I ask, v. I ask, requeαἰτέωἄνDisj.prt. Disj.prt. an unἄνἄχριAdv as farAdv as far as, ἄχρι
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 John 19:22

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.

Answered <the> Pilate; What I have written, I have written.
ἀπεκρίθηapokrinō Answered G611 Verb · aorist · middle deponent · indicative · third person · singular
231× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in John than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
To answer or respond, as in Matthew 27:12 and Mark 14:61, where Jesus answers the high priest. It can also mean to begin speaking or to give a reply. The KJV translates it as 'answer'.
Amplified meaning
to respond
Tyndale gloss
to answer
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word ἀποκρίνομαι (apokrinomai) is built from the prefix ἀπο- and the root κρίνω, meaning to separate or distinguish. It primarily means to answer or reply, often in a context where a response is expected. In the New Testament, it appears in various forms, particularly in legal or conversational contexts, such as in Matthew 3:15 and John 1:49.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ἀπο-κρίνω,

[in LXX chiefly for ענה;]

in cl.,

to separate, distinguish.

to choose. Mid., to answer: Mt 27:12, Mk 14:61, Lk 3:16 23:9, Jo 5:17, 19, Ac 3:12. In late Gk. the pass, also is used in this sense, and pass. forms are the more freq. in NT (M, Pr., 39, 161; MM, s.v.);

in general sense: absol., Mk 12:34; c. acc. rei, Mt 22:46; c. dat. pers., Mt 12:38; seq. πρός, Ac 25:16;

Hebraistically

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

ἀποκρίνομαι. Syil 928°? (Magnesia, early 11,8.6.) περὶ ταύτης τῆς] χώρας τῆς παρὰ IIpinvéwy ἀποκεκριμένης οὔσης shows the old ἀποκρίνω in passive. For the combination of pf. partic. and ὦν, cf. Col 12. In P Ryl II. 122" (a.p. 127) εἰς τὸ κἀμὲ δύνασθαι ἀποκριθῆναι τῶι δημοσίωι, ‘enabling me thus to fulfil my duties towards the Treasury” (Edd.), we have an , ἀποκρίνομαι isolated ex. of the passive aor. not meaning ‘‘answer.” This latter, so overwhelmingly predominant in NT, is rather surprisingly uncommon in the non-literary Kow#. Early inscriptional instances are Sy// 328" (8.6. 84) ἀπεκρίθην κα]λῶς [αὐτ]όν [τε δεδωἸκέναι kal KrA., 24. 307%! (B.C. 150-47) ἔδοξεν... τούτοις φιλανθρώπως ἀποκριθῆναι, 25. 9305: (B.C. 112), same phrase: the last two are senatus consulta, starting in Latin. Similarly the dialectic Sy// 654° (Ὁ ii/B.c.) ἀποκριθῆμεν τοῖς πρεσβευταῖς διότι KTA. Mayser, p. 379…

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

ἀποκρίνω (apokrinō) — to answer.

ἀποκρίνω [ῑ],

future -κρῐνῶ, set apart, probably in [Refs 7th c.BC+]:—passive, to be parted or separated, ἀποκρινθέντε parted from the throng (of two πρόμαχοι), [Refs 8th c.BC+]; of the elements in cosmogony, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἀποκεκρίσθαι εἰς ἓν ὄνομα to be separated and brought under one name, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; οὐ βεβαίως ἀπεκρίθησαν, of combatants, separated without decisive result, [Refs]

2. in Medicine texts in passive, to be distinctly formed, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; of the embryo, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; τὰ ἐν τῷ σώματι -όμενα bodily secretions, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; but ἐς τοῦτο πάντα ἀπεκρίθη all illnesses determined or ended in this alone, [Refs 5th c.BC+]are voided, [Refs 4th c.BC+]

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

ἀποκρίνομαι

apokrinomai

from 575 and krino; to conclude for oneself, i.e. (by implication) to

respond; by Hebraism (compare 6030) to begin to speak (where an

address is expected):--answer.

see GREEK for 575

see HEBREW for 06030

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ἀποκρίνομαι

v.

I answer, reply

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ἀποκρίνομαι apokrinomai 231x

to answer, Mt. 3:15; in NT to respond to certain present circumstances, to avow, Mt. 11:25

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-ADI-3S — Verb · aorist · middle deponent · indicative · third person · singular
aorist middle deponent indicative — a completed action, viewed as a whole.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-ADI-3S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Aorist Voice: middle Deponent Mood: Indicative Person: third Number: Singular

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
47%answering
answering47% · 115×answered36% · 89×he answered4% · 9×they answered3% · 8×other renderings9% · 23×other renderings1% · 3×

247 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 23 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
verb59%adverbial41%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 231 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
λόγοςa word, speech, ἐγώσύ
δέbut, on the other ha
Article theΠέτροςPeterὅς
τότεthen
θεόςGod, a god
οὐNeg
καίand, even, also,λέγωI say, speakδέbut, on the othe
οὐδείςno one, none, nothin
αὐτόςπρεσβύτεροςelderοὐκέτιNeg
ἀποκρίνομαιAnswered231×
what comes after →
αὐτός
Article theλέγωI say, speakἸησοῦςJesus
δέbut, on the other ha
Article theλέγωI say, speakαὐτός
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςArticle theοὐNeg
Article the
ἸησοῦςJesusΠέτροςPeterἄγγελοςan angel, messen
ἸησοῦςJesus
καίand, even, also,οὔτεNegArticle 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

Concordanceἀποκρίνομαι · 231× in the New Testament
John Matthew Luke Mark Acts Colossians Revelation

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament7 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 118 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
Philo of Alexandria The Shepherd of Hermas Josephus Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaAllegorical Interpretation of Genesis 2.46c. AD 40

ὁ δὲ ἀποκρίνεται ὅτι, ὦ ψευδοδοξοῦσα, οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ νοῦς αἴτιον οὐδενός, ἀλλ’ ὁ πρὸ τοῦ νοῦ θεός·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 3.174c. AD 75–95

ἐκ μέντοι τῶν κλάδων ἀνίησι κάλυκα προσεχῆ τῷ κλωνί, περίεισι δʼ αὐτὴν ἔλυτρον, ὅπερ ἀποκρίνεται κατʼ αὐτὸ πρὸς τὸν καρπὸν μεταβαλεῖν ἠργμένης·

Clement of RomeFirst Clement 12.4c. AD 96

ἐπισταθέντων δὲ τῶν παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ λεγόντων: Πρὸς σὲ εἰσῆλθον οἱ κατάσκοποι τῆς γῆς ἡμῶν: ἐξάγαγε αὐτούς, ὁ γὰρ βασιλεὺς οὕτως κελεύει, ἥδε ἀπεκρίθη: Εἰσῆλθον μὲν οἱ ἄνδρες, οὓς ζητεῖτε, πρός με, ἀλλ̓ εὐθέως ἀπῆλθον καὶ πορεύονται τῇ ὁδῷ:…

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 3rd c. BC 4th c. AD 1st c. AD
P.Amh. 2 65 RoHermopolisAD 117–AD 127

Δίδυμος· ὅλως ἀμφοδογραμματεὺς οὐ καθίστησιν σιτολόγον. ἐκεῖνος· σὺ αὐτοὺς εἰσέδωκας ἐργολαβῆσαι θέλων. Πομπήιος Πλάντας ἀποκρίνεται· Ἑρμαῖος ὁ ἀδελφὸς … πράγματι ε … … … … ματι εἰργολάβησεν … Πομπήιος

P.Fay. 203 descr.Bakchias (Arsinoites)AD 148–AD 150

γὰρ επ … … ἁπλῆς πράσεως … τ … … εἶπεν· τί πρὸς ταῦτα ἀποκρίνῃ; … … αι καὶ μηδε … … … η τοῖς ονη … … βοηθῆσαι

PSI 10 1100ArsinoitesAD 161

περιγραφῇ τῇ ἐμῇ ταῦτα βασταχθῇ καὶ παραπόληται τῷ ταμίῳ. Φαῦστος ἐπύθετο· ὑπὸ τίνος βασταχθῇ; ἀπεκρίνατο· ὑπὸ τῶν σιτολόγων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων. ἐὰν οὖν σοι δοκῆι, κατάστησόν τινας ἐπακολουθοῦντας. Φαῦστος

Answered <the> Pilate; What I have written, I have written.
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 John 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

Answered <the> Pilate; What I have written, I have written.
Πιλᾶτος·Pilatos Pilate; G4091 Noun · nominative · singular · masculine
55× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in John than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
Pilate was a Roman leader who played a key role in the New Testament, particularly in the trials of Jesus. He is mentioned in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Pilate's story is significant in the Bible.
Amplified meaning
the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate
Tyndale gloss
Pilate
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word Πιλᾶτος (transliterated as Pilatos) refers to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea. It is of Latin origin and is used in the New Testament in several passages, including Matthew 27:2 and Mark 15:1. The entries note variations in spelling and accentuation, but they consistently identify Pilate as a significant historical figure involved in the trial of Jesus.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

Πειλᾶτος (Rec. Πιλάτος, Tr., -ᾶτος, v. WH, App., 155), -ου, ὁ,

Pontius Pilate: Mt 27:2, Mk 15:1, Lk 3:1, Jo 18:29, Ac 3:13, I Ti 6:13, al.

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

Πιλάτος, [L] Tr better Πιλᾶτος ([on the accent in codd. see Tdf. Proleg. p. 103; cf. Chandler § 326; B. p- 6n.J]; W. § 6,1 m.), T WH incorrectly Πειλᾶτος [but see Tdf. Proleg. p. 84 sq.; WH. App. p. 155; and cf. εἰ» 4], (a Lat. name, i.q. ‘armed with a pilum or javelin,’ like Torquatus i. q. ‘adorned with the collar or neck-chain’; [so generally; but some would contract it from pileatus i. 6. ‘ wearing the felt cap’ (pileus), the badge of a manumitted slave; οἵ. Leyrer in Herzog as below; Plumptre in B. D. s. v. Pilate (note) ]), -ov, ὁ [on the use of the art. with the name οἵ. W. 113 (107) n.], Pontius Pilate, the fifth procurator of the Roman emperor in Judea and Samaria (having had as predecessors Coponius, Marcus Ambivius, Annius Rufus, and Valerius Gratus). [Some writ. (e.g. BB. DD. s.v.) call Pilate the sixth procurator, reckoning Sabinus as the first, he having had charge for a…

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

Πειλᾶτος σε, φίλτατε, ἤδη ποτὲ πεῖσαι αὐτὸν τοῦ ἐλθεῖν. Cf. also P Oxy II. 2045} (A.D. 22) ἐὰν μή τι πίσωσι τὸν ἀρχιστάτορα δο[ῦν]αι εἱκανὸν ἕως ἐπὶ διαλογισμόν, ‘unless indeed they shall persuade the chief usher to give security for them until the inquiry.” The 2nd perf. πέποιθα c. dat., which is rare in Hellenistic prose, is found in BGU IV. 1141? (B.c. 14) πέποιθα yap ἐματῶι, fersuasé mht: cf. 2 Cor 107, Phil 144, Philem*4, In PSI V. 538? (iii/B.c.) the intrans. πέποιθα is construed c. gen., which the editor attributes to Tonic influence—érlotyt δὲ καὶ od διότι τοῦ ὀψωνίου πεποίθαμεν, ‘‘sai anche tu che sull’ ὀψώνιον facciamo assegnamento.” For the mid. or pass. ‘‘am persuaded,” we may cite P Petr II. r1(1)4 (mid. iii/B.c.) (= Selections, p. 7) ἐὰν yap σὺ παραγένηι, πέπεισμαι ῥαιδίως pe τῶι βασιλεῖ συσταθήσεσθαι, ‘for, if you come, I am sure that I shall easily be introduced to the…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

Πιλᾶτος (Pilatos) — Pilate.

Πειλᾶτος (Rec. Πιλάτος, Tr., -ᾶτος, see WH, App., 155), -ου, ὁ,

Pontius Pilate: Mat.27:2, Mrk.15:1, Luk.3:1, Jhn.18:29, Act.3:13, 1Ti.6:13, al

(From Abbott-Smith. LSJ has no entry)

Strong's Greek Dictionary

∏ιλᾶτος

Pilatos

of Latin origin; close-pressed, i.e. firm; Pilatus, a Roman:--Pilate.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

Πιλᾶτος, ου, ὁ

n.m.

Pilate

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

Πιλᾶτος Pilatos 55x

Pilate, pr. name

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
Smith's Bible Dictionary

(armed with a spear), Pontius. Pontius Pilate was the sixth Roman procurator of Judea, and under him our Lord worked, suffered and died, as we learn not only from Scripture, but from Tacitus (Ann. xv. 44). was appointed A.D. 25-6, in the twelfth year of Tiberius. His arbitrary administration nearly drove the Jews to insurrection on two or three occasions. One of his first acts was to remove the headquarters of the army from Caesarea to Jerusalem. The soldiers of course took with them their standards, bearing the image of the emperor, into the holy city. No previous governor had ventured on such an outrage. The people poured down in crowds to Caesarea, where the procurator was then residing, and besought him to remove the images. After five days of discussion he gave the signal to some concealed soldiers to surround the petitioners and put them to death unless they ceased to trouble him…

Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary

armed with a dart

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
100%pilate
pilate100% · 55×

55 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 1 different way. 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
subject75%indirect object11%adverbial9%object6%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 55 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
αὐτόςδέbut, on the otheπροσέρχομαιI come near, con
δέbut, on the other ha
Article the
ΠόντιοςPontius
ἡγεμονεύωI governκαίand, even, also,ἐπί
παραδίδωμιI hand over, deliver
καίand, even, also,
πρός
Φαρισαῖοςa Pharisee
ΠιλᾶτοςPilate;55×
what comes after →
Article the
ἡγεμώνa governorἸουδαίαJudeaἸησοῦςJesus
καίand, even, also, nam
αἰτέωI ask, request, φωνέωI crow, shout, sλέγωI say, speak
τίςIrg
θέλωI will, wish, deοὖνtherefore, thenεἰμίI am, exist
αἰτέωI ask, request, beg,
Article the
πάλινagain, further, on t
ἐπερωτάωI interrogate, qἀποκρίνομαιI answer, reply

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

ConcordanceΠιλᾶτος · 55× in the New Testament
John Luke Mark Matthew Acts 1 Timothy
Across the New Testament6 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Embassy to Gaius 299c. AD 40

Πιλᾶτος ἦν τῶν ὑπάρχων ἐπίτροπος ἀποδεδειγμένος τῆς Ἰουδαίας·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 18.argc. AD 75–95

ὡς Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος ἠθέλησε κρύφα εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα εἰσενέγκαι προτομὰς Καίσαρος, ὁ δὲ λαὸς οὐ κατεδέξατο στασιάσας.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
6th c. AD
P.Cair. Masp. 2 67251Aphrodites Kome (Antaiopolites)AD 549

τὸ πιττάκιον ὡς πρόκειται. Φαῶφι κα ιγ ἰνδικτίονος Ἰακὼβ Ἀβρααμίου στοιχεῖ μοι ὡς πρόκειται. Πιλᾶτος Ἀπολλῶτος νομικὸς μαρτυρῶ ὁ καὶ σωματίσας

ZPE 78 (1989), p. 110 no. 5Aphrodites Kome (Antaiopolites)AD 553

εἰρημένων νδ κερατίων ὥστε ἐμὲ ἀποκαταστῆσαι ὑμῖν τὸ γραμμάτιον ὑμῶν τῶν πεντήκοντα ἑνὸς νομισματίων. Πιλᾶτος Ἀπολλῶτος νομικὸς μαρτυρῶ τῷ ἐνταγίῳ ἀκούσας παρὰ Ἰωάννου τοῦ καὶ θεμένου.

Answered <the> Pilate; What I have written, I have written.
hos, hē What G3739 Relative pronoun · accusative · singular · neuter
1,407× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in John as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
The word which is a pronoun used to ask for or identify something, as seen in John 5:11. It can also be used to describe a person or thing, such as in Mark 15:23. This word helps to clarify or specify what is being talked about.
Tyndale gloss
which
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

ὅς is a pronoun meaning 'who,' 'which,' 'what,' or 'that.' It serves as both a demonstrative and a relative pronoun, agreeing in gender with its antecedent. The New Testament uses it in various constructions, including phrases like ὃς μὲν... ὃς δέ to indicate contrasting subjects. Notably, it can express purpose or cause in certain contexts.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ὅς, ἥ, ὅ,

the postpositive article (ἄρθρον ὑποτακτικόν).

As demonstr. pron. = οὗτος, ὅδε, this, that, also for αὐτός, chiefly in nom.: ὅς δέ, but he (cf. ἦ δὲ ὅς, freq. in Plat.), Mk 15:23, Jo 5:11; ὃς μὲν . . . ὃς δέ, the one . . . the other, Mt 21:35 22:5 25:15, Lk 23:33, Ac 27:14, Ro 14:5, I Co 11:21, II Co 2:16, Ju 22; neut., ὃ μὲν . . . ὃ δέ, the one . . . the other, some . . . some, Mt 13:8, 23, Read the full entry →

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

ὅς 455 ὅς iii. 5 [RG], 6; Heb. vi. 10; ix. 20; Jas. ii. 5; 1 In. iii. 24; Jude 15; for other exx. see below; ἐν ὥρᾳ 7 οὐ γινώoxet, Mt. xxiv. 50; τῇ παραδύσει 9 παρεδώκατε, Mk. vii. 13 ; add, Lk. ii. 20; v. 9; ix. 435 xii. 46; xxiv. 25; Jn. xvii. 5; Acts ii. 22; xvii. 31; xx. 38; 2 Co. xii. 21; 2Th.i. 4; Rev. xviii. 6; ef. W. § 24,1; [B. as above]. Rarely attraction oceurs where the verb governs the dative [but see below]: thus, κατέναντι οὗ ἐπίστευσε θεοῦ for xarévavre θεοῦ, ᾧ ἐπίστευσε (See κατέναντι). Ro. iv. 17; φωνῆς, ἧς ἔκραξα (for 7 (al. ἥν, οἴ. W. 164 (154 sq.) Β. 287 (217)}7), Acts xxiv. 21, οἵ. Is. vi. 4; (7γετο δὲ καὶ τῶν ἑαυτοῦ τε πιστῶν, οἷς ἥδετο καὶ ὧν ἠπίστει πολλούς, for καὶ πολλοὺς τούτων, οἷς ἠπίστει, Xen. Cyr. ὅ, 4, 39; ὧν ἐγὼ ἐντετύχηκα οὐδείς; for οὐδεὶς τούτων, οἷς ἐντετ. Plato, Gorg. p. 509 ἃ.; Protag. p. 361 6.; derep.7 p.531e.; παρ᾽ ὧν βοηθεῖς, οὐδεμίαν λήψει…

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

ος is found as a demonstrative pronoun in P Ryl II. 14415 (complaint of assault—a.D. 38) ὃς δὲ ἐκ τοῦ ἐναντίου ἄλογον ἀηδίαν μοι ἐπιχειρήσας παρεχρήσατό μοι πολλὰ καὶ ἄσχημα, ‘“whereupon he opposing me made a brutal and odious attack upon me and subjected me to much shameful mishandling” (Edd.): cf. Mk 15%, Jn 51. For ὃς μέν... ὃς δέ, “the one . . the other,” as in Mt 21° a/., see P Oxy IX. 1189? (c. A.D. 117) ἐπιστολὰς δύο ds ἔγραψα ἣν μὲν σοὶ ἣν δὲ Σαβείνῳ, and for ὃς δέ solétarium see PSI. IV. 313° (iii/iv A.D.) with the editor’s note. Ὃς ἄν (ἐάν) c. conj. = ‘‘ whosoever ” may be illustrated Ly P Par 4622 (B.c. 153) (= Witkowski*, p. 87), περὶ dv ἂν βούληι γράφε, P Grenf I. 30% (B.c. 103) ἐφ} οἷς ἂν οὖν ὑμῶν προσδέωνται, P Oxy IV. 743%% (B.C. 2) ἐν ols ἐὰν σοῦ προσδέηται, °° ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐὰν θέλῃς. For the comparative usage of ὃς ἄν and ὃς ἐάν, see Thackeray Gr. i. p. 68, cited s.v. ἄν.…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

ὅς (hos, hē) — which.

ὅς, ἥ, ὅ,

genitive οὗ, ἧς, οὗ, etc.; dative plural οἷς, αἷς, οἷς, etc.: Epic dialect forms, genitive ὅου (probably replacing Οο) in the phrases ὅου κλέος οὔ ποτ᾽ ὀλεῖται [Refs 8th c.BC+]; feminine ἕης [Refs 8th c.BC+]; elsewhere only ἧς [Refs]; dative plural οἷς, οἷσι, ᾗς, ᾗσι (never αἷς or αἷσι in [Refs 8th c.BC+] — _pronoun_ used,

__A as demonstrative by the side of οὗτος, ὅδε, and the Article ὁ, ἡ, τό: in post-Homeric Gr. this use survived only in a few special phrases.

__B as a Relat. by the side of the Article ὅ, ἥ, τό (see. ὁ, ἡ, τό, c):—this demonstrative and Relat. pronoun must not be confounded with the Possess. ὅς, ἥ, ὅν. (With Gr. Relat. ὅς, ἥ, ὅ cf. Sanskrit Relat. yas, yā, yad, Lithuanian jis, ji (he, she), Oslav. i, ja, je (he, she…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

ὅς ἥ ὅ

hos

he hay, and neuter

ho ho

probably a primary word (or perhaps a form of the article 3588); the

relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, who, which, what,

that:--one, (an-, the) other, some, that, what, which, who(-m, -se),

etc. See also 3757.

see GREEK for 3588

see GREEK for 3757

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ὅς, ἥ, ὅ

Rel.pr.

who, which, what, that

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ὅς hos 1x

who, which, what, that, Mt. 1:16, 23, 25; in NT interrog. ἐφ’ ὅ, wherefore, why, Mt. 26:50; in NT ὅς μὲν ... ὅς δέ, for ὁ μὲν ... ὁ δέ, Mt. 21:35; 2 Cor. 2:16

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Rel-ASN — Relative pronoun · accusative · singular · neuter
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked singular neuter.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

R-ASN Part of Speech: Relative pronoun Case: Accusative Number: Singular Gender: Neuter

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
25%which
which25% · 356×whom20% · 291×who17% · 238×that14% · 199×what8% · 117×whatever2% · 30×whose2% · 29×other renderings10% · 145×other renderings2% · 25×

1,430 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 60 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
object40%subject29%adverbial26%indirect object3%predicate3%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 1,407 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
ἐν
ἡμέραa dayαὐτόςἵναin order that, s
καίand, even, also, nam
αὐτόςἔχωI have, hold, poυἱόςa son, descenden
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakἀπόλλυμιI destroy, lose,δοῦλος (II)
διά
ἐκεῖνοςΧριστόςanointed, the Meαὐτός
εἰς
καίand, even, also,ἐγώοἰκίαa house, househo
ὅςWhat1407×
what comes after →
εἰμίI am, exist
Article theμεθερμηνεύωI translate, intκαίand, even, also,
οὐNeg
εἰμίI am, existἔξεστι(ν)it is permitted,γινώσκωI come to know,
Article the
θεόςGod, a godυἱόςa son, descendenκύριοςlord, Lord, mast
καίand, even, also, nam
σύποιέωI do, makeαὐτός
δέbut, on the other ha
ἄνDisjἑξήκονταIndecτριάκονταIndec

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

Concordanceὅς · 1,407× in the New Testament
Acts Luke John Matthew Romans Mark Hebrews Revelation 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Colossians Ephesians

22 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
Philo of Alexandria Josephus The Shepherd of Hermas Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 33c. AD 40

ἵν’ οὖν μὴ αἰεὶ συμφερόμεναι στασιάζωσι καὶ πόλεμος ἀντ’ εἰρήνης ἐπικρατῇ τὴν ἀκοσμίαν ἐν κόσμῳ τιθείς, οὐ μόνον ἐχώρισε φῶς καὶ σκότος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὅρους ἐν μέσοις ἔθετο διαστήμασιν, οἷς ἀνεῖρξε τῶν ἄκρων ἑκάτερον·

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

πῶς τὸ Σοδομιτῶν ἔθνος θεὸς κατεστρέψατο χολωθεὶς αὐτοῖς ἐφ' οἷς ἡμάρτανον.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 4.8c. AD 100

Μωϋσῆ Μωϋσῆ, κατάβηθι τὸ τάχος, ὅτι ἠνόμησεν ὁ λαός σου, οὓς ἐξήγαγες ἐκ γῆς Αἰγύπτου, καὶ συνῆκεν Μωϋσῆς καὶ ἔριψεν τὰς δύο πλάκας ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ: καὶ συνετρίβη αὐτῶν ἡ διαθήκη, ἵνα ἡ τοῦ ἠγαπημένου Ἰησοῦ ἐγκατασφραγισθῇ εἰς τὴν καρδίαν ἡμῶν…

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 2nd c. BC
P.Grenf. 1 32Pelusion103 BC

θεοῖς. καλῶς ποιήσεις διαλύσας Ἁρκοννῆσιν καὶ Ψενανοῦπιν καὶ … … ελθεῖν ἐπὶ προ … ους καὶ γραψάτωσαν ἡμῖν ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐσπούδασας διὰ τὰς ἡμῶν παρακλήσεις καὶ ση

P.Adl. 15Pathyris (?)101 BC

ἐδάνεισεν Ὧρος Ὥρου Ὥρωι Νεχούτου ὡς ἐτῶν ν μέσος μελίχρως ὑποκλαστὸς ἀναφάλακρος μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν οὖς ἀριστερὸν τετρημένον πυροῦ ἀρτάβας τεσσαράκοντα ἓξ κριθῆς ἑξήκοντα ἐννέα , ἴσους ἀτόκους, ὧν ἀπόδοσιν

P.Adl. 17Krokodilopolis (Pathyrites)100 BC

τῆς ἐπιγονῆς τῶν ἐκ Παθύρεως ὡς ἐτῶν ν μέσος μελίχρως τετανὸς ἀναφάλακρος μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν οὖς ἀριστερὸν τετρημένον χαλκοῦ ταλάντων πέντε . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην

Answered <the> Pilate; What I have written, I have written.
γέγραφα,graphō I have written, G1125 Verb · perfect · active · indicative · first person · singular
192× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in John as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This verb means to write or record something, like in John 8:6 where Jesus writes on the ground. It can also mean to describe or express something in writing, as seen in Luke 1:63 and Galatians 6:11.
Amplified meaning
recorded
Tyndale gloss
to write
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

γράφω (graphō) primarily means 'to write' and is derived from a sense of scratching or engraving. It encompasses various forms of writing, including inscribing letters, recording information, and expressing content in written form. In the New Testament, it appears in contexts such as recording scripture (e.g., Matthew 4:4) and writing letters (e.g., Acts 23:25). The lexicons do not show significant disagreement on its meanings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

γράφω, [in LXX chiefly for כּתב ];

to scrape, graze (Hom.), and later (Hdt.) to sketch, draw.

to write;

of forming or tracing letters on writing material: Jo 8:[6], Ga 6:11, II Th 3:17;

to express in writing, commit to writing, record: Lk 1:63, Jo 19:21, 22 Re 1:11, 19 al.; of scripture as a standing authority (Deiss., BS, 112ff.), γέγραπται, it stands written (Luther), Mt 4:4, Mk 7:6, Lk 4:8, Ro 1:17, I Co…

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

γράφω ; [impf. ἔγραφον]; fut. γράψω; 1 aor. ἔγραψα; pf. γέγραφα; Pass., [pres. γράφομαι]; pf. γέγραμμαι ; [plpf. 3 pers. sing. ἐγέγραπτο, Rev. xvii. 8 Lchm.]; 2 aor. ἐγράφην ; (prop. to grave, scrape, scratch, engrave ; ef. Germ. graben, eingraben ; γράψεν δὲ οἱ ὀστέον ἄχρις αἰχμή, Hom. Il. 17, 599; σήματα γράψας ἐν πίνακι, ib. 6, 169; hence to draw letters), towrite; 1. with reference to the form of the letters; to delineate (or form) letters on a tablet, parchment, paper, or other material: τῷ 8aκτύλῳ ἔγραφεν eis τὴν γῆν made figures on the ground, Jn. viii. 6 Rec. ; οὕτω γράφω so am I accustomed to form my letters, 2 Thess. iii. 17; πηλίκοις γράμμασι ἔγραψα with how large (and so, ill-formed [?]) letters I have written, Gal. vi. 11; ef. Winer, Riickert, Hilgenfeld ad loe. [for the views of those who regard éyp. as covering the close of the Ep. only, see Bp. Lghtft. and Mey.; cf. W.…

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

γράφω. Deissmann (BS, pp. 112 ff. 249 f.) has shown the widespread juristic_use in the papyri of the ‘* biblical” γέγραπται with reference to the regulative and authoritative character

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

γράφω (graphō) — to write.

γράφω [ᾰ],

future -ψω[Refs 5th c.BC+]aorist ἔγραψα, Epic dialect γράψα [Refs 8th c.BC+]: perfect γέγραφα [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—middle, future γράψομαι [Refs 5th c.BC+]: aorist ἐγραψάμην [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—passive, future γρᾰφήσομαι [Refs 5th c.BC+], etc.: aorist ἐγράφην [ᾰ], [Refs 5th c.BC+]: perfect γέγραμμαι (also in middle sense, see near the end), 3rd.pers. singular ἔγραπται [Refs 3rd c.AD+]; participle ἐγραμμένος or ἠγρ- [Refs 1st c.AD+]: 3rd.pers. plural γεγράφαται [Refs], Doric dialect γεγράβανται [Refs]: pluperfect ἐγέγραπτο [Refs 5th c.BC+]: 3rd.pers. plural ἐγεγράφατο [Refs 8th c.BC+] only in aorist active:—scratch, graze, αἰχμὴ γράψεν οἱ ὀστέον ἄχρις [Refs 8th c.BC+]; γράψας ἐν πίνακι πτυκτῷ θυμοφθόρα πολλά having marked or drawn signs thereon, [Refs]represent by lines, draw, paint, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; γῆς περιόδους γ. draw maps, [Refs 5th…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

γράφω

grapho

a primary verb; to "grave", especially to write; figuratively, to

describe:--describe, write(-ing, -ten).

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

γράφω

v.

I write

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

γράφω graphō 191x

to engrave, write, according to the ancient method of writing on plates of metal, waxes tables, etc., Jn. 8:6, 8; to write on parchment, paper, etc., generally, Mt. 27:37, et al.; to write letters to another, Acts 23:25; 2 Cor. 2:9; 13:10, et al.; to describe in writing, Jn. 1:46; Rom. 10:5; to inscribe in a catalogue, etc., Lk. 10:20; Rev. 13:8; 17:8, et al.; to write a law, command, or enact in writing, Read the full entry →

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

γράφω Orig. sense, to scratch, scrape, graze, αἰχμὴ γράψεν ὀστέον Il.; σήματα γράψας ἐν πίνακι having scratched marks as tokens on a tablet, id. Il.:—then, to represent by lines drawn, to delineate, draw, paint, Hdt., Aesch.; εἰκὼν γεγραμμένη Ar.: also in Mid., ζῷα γράφεσθαι ῀ ζωγραφεῖν, Hdt.

to express by written characters, to write, τι id. Hdt.; γο. τινά to write a person's name, Xen.; γ. ἐπιστολήν, etc., id. Xen.; γρ. τι εἰς διφθέρας Hdt.

to inscribe, like ἐπιγράφω, γρ. εἰς στήλην Eur., Dem.

to write down, γρ. τινὰ αἴτιον to set him down as the cause, Hdt.

to register, enrol, γρ. τινὰ τῶν ἱππευόντων among the cavalry, Xen.; Κρέοντος προστάτου γεγράψομαι, as a dependent of Creon…

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-2RAI-1S — Verb · perfect · active · indicative · first person · singular
perfect active indicative — a past action whose result still stands.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-2RAI-1S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: second peRfect Voice: Active Mood: Indicative Person: first Number: Singular

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
30%it has been written
it has been written30% · 61×written19% · 38×do write7% · 15×write6% · 13×it was written6% · 13×i have written5% · 10×i am writing5% · 10×wrote3% · 6×other renderings19% · 39×

205 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 31 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%object2%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 192 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
καθώςjust as, as
ἀλλάbut, exceptὑπάγωI go away, deparθέλωI will, wish, de
Article the
πᾶςall, the whole, εἰμίI am, existοὗτος
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakαἰτίαa cause, reason,ἐπί
σύ
ἔχωI have, hold, poσκληροκαρδίαhardness of hearκαθεξῆςin order, just a
εἰμίI am, exist
καθώςjust as, asοὐNegοὗwhere, whither,
γράφωI have written,192×
what comes after →
σύ
ἀλλάbut, exceptὅτιthat, since, becἵναin order that, s
Article the
ἐμόςὄνομαname, character,οἶκοςa house, househo
γάρfor
ὅτιthat, since, becκύριοςlord, Lord, mastπατάσσωI strike
ἐν
Article theβίβλοςa written book, νόμοςa law, the Mosai
ὅτιthat, since, because
οὗτοςArticle theοὐNeg

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

Concordanceγράφω · 192× in the New Testament
Revelation John Romans Luke 1 Corinthians 1 John Acts 2 Corinthians Matthew Mark Galatians 3 John

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament22 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 111 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 Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome The Epistle of Barnabas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 141c. AD 40

ἀποδεῖ γὰρ τὰ μιμήματα τῶν ἀρχετύπων, τὰ δ’ ἀπὸ τῶν μιμημάτων γραφόμενα καὶ πλαττόμενα πολὺ μᾶλλον, ἅτε μακρὰν ἀφεστῶτα τῆς ἀρχῆς·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.4c. AD 75–95

τὸν μὲν γὰρ πρὸς τοὺς Ῥωμαίους πόλεμον ἡμῖν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις γενόμενον καὶ τὰς ἐν αὐτῷ πράξεις καὶ τὸ τέλος οἷον ἀπέβη πείρᾳ μαθὼν ἐβιάσθην ἐκδιηγήσασθαι διὰ τοὺς ἐν τῷ γράφειν λυμαινομένους τὴν ἀλήθειαν,

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 4.3c. AD 100

τὸ τέλειον σκάνδαλον ἤγγικεν, περὶ οὖ γέγραπται, ὡς Ἐνὼχ λέγει.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 6th c. AD 3rd c. BC 4th c. AD 3rd c. AD
P.Adl. 10Pathyris102 BC

εἰκάδος τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἔτους· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀποδῶι ἐν τῶι ὡρισμένωι χρόνωι ἀποτεισάτω καθὰ γέγραπται παραχρῆμα ἐπάναγκον· ἡ δὲ πρᾶξις ἔστω Ἀγαθίνωι καὶ Πατῆτι ἐκ τοῦ δεδανεισμένου Πανᾶτος καὶ

P.Adl. 15Pathyris (?)101 BC

καὶ παρείληφεν· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀποδῷ ἐν τῷ ὡρισμένῳ χρόνωι ἢ μὴ ποιῇ καθὰ γέγραπται ἀποτεισάτω ἐν τῷ ἐχομένωι μηνὶ παραχρῆμα ἡμιόλιον ἢ τὴν ἐσομένην ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾶι τιμήν,

P.Adl. 19Pathyris99 BC

ιϛ ἔτους· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀποδῶι ἐν τῶι ὡρισμένωι χρόνωι ἢ μὴ ποιήσηι καθὰ γέγραπται ἀποτεισάτω ἐν τῶι ἐχομένωι μηνὶ παραχρῆμα τὰ τοῦ σιδήρου μνᾶς δισχιλίας χμ καὶ ἐπίτιμον

Answered <the> Pilate; What I have written, I have written.
γέγραφα.¶graphō I have written. G1125 Verb · perfect · active · indicative · first person · singular
192× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in John as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This verb means to write or record something, like in John 8:6 where Jesus writes on the ground. It can also mean to describe or express something in writing, as seen in Luke 1:63 and Galatians 6:11.
Amplified meaning
inscribed, will not change
Tyndale gloss
to write
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

γράφω (graphō) primarily means 'to write' and is derived from a sense of scratching or engraving. It encompasses various forms of writing, including inscribing letters, recording information, and expressing content in written form. In the New Testament, it appears in contexts such as recording scripture (e.g., Matthew 4:4) and writing letters (e.g., Acts 23:25). The lexicons do not show significant disagreement on its meanings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

γράφω, [in LXX chiefly for כּתב ];

to scrape, graze (Hom.), and later (Hdt.) to sketch, draw.

to write;

of forming or tracing letters on writing material: Jo 8:[6], Ga 6:11, II Th 3:17;

to express in writing, commit to writing, record: Lk 1:63, Jo 19:21, 22 Re 1:11, 19 al.; of scripture as a standing authority (Deiss., BS, 112ff.), γέγραπται, it stands written (Luther), Mt 4:4, Mk 7:6, Lk 4:8, Ro 1:17, I Co…

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

γράφω ; [impf. ἔγραφον]; fut. γράψω; 1 aor. ἔγραψα; pf. γέγραφα; Pass., [pres. γράφομαι]; pf. γέγραμμαι ; [plpf. 3 pers. sing. ἐγέγραπτο, Rev. xvii. 8 Lchm.]; 2 aor. ἐγράφην ; (prop. to grave, scrape, scratch, engrave ; ef. Germ. graben, eingraben ; γράψεν δὲ οἱ ὀστέον ἄχρις αἰχμή, Hom. Il. 17, 599; σήματα γράψας ἐν πίνακι, ib. 6, 169; hence to draw letters), towrite; 1. with reference to the form of the letters; to delineate (or form) letters on a tablet, parchment, paper, or other material: τῷ 8aκτύλῳ ἔγραφεν eis τὴν γῆν made figures on the ground, Jn. viii. 6 Rec. ; οὕτω γράφω so am I accustomed to form my letters, 2 Thess. iii. 17; πηλίκοις γράμμασι ἔγραψα with how large (and so, ill-formed [?]) letters I have written, Gal. vi. 11; ef. Winer, Riickert, Hilgenfeld ad loe. [for the views of those who regard éyp. as covering the close of the Ep. only, see Bp. Lghtft. and Mey.; cf. W.…

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

γράφω. Deissmann (BS, pp. 112 ff. 249 f.) has shown the widespread juristic_use in the papyri of the ‘* biblical” γέγραπται with reference to the regulative and authoritative character

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

γράφω (graphō) — to write.

γράφω [ᾰ],

future -ψω[Refs 5th c.BC+]aorist ἔγραψα, Epic dialect γράψα [Refs 8th c.BC+]: perfect γέγραφα [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—middle, future γράψομαι [Refs 5th c.BC+]: aorist ἐγραψάμην [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—passive, future γρᾰφήσομαι [Refs 5th c.BC+], etc.: aorist ἐγράφην [ᾰ], [Refs 5th c.BC+]: perfect γέγραμμαι (also in middle sense, see near the end), 3rd.pers. singular ἔγραπται [Refs 3rd c.AD+]; participle ἐγραμμένος or ἠγρ- [Refs 1st c.AD+]: 3rd.pers. plural γεγράφαται [Refs], Doric dialect γεγράβανται [Refs]: pluperfect ἐγέγραπτο [Refs 5th c.BC+]: 3rd.pers. plural ἐγεγράφατο [Refs 8th c.BC+] only in aorist active:—scratch, graze, αἰχμὴ γράψεν οἱ ὀστέον ἄχρις [Refs 8th c.BC+]; γράψας ἐν πίνακι πτυκτῷ θυμοφθόρα πολλά having marked or drawn signs thereon, [Refs]represent by lines, draw, paint, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; γῆς περιόδους γ. draw maps, [Refs 5th…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

γράφω

grapho

a primary verb; to "grave", especially to write; figuratively, to

describe:--describe, write(-ing, -ten).

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

γράφω

v.

I write

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

γράφω graphō 191x

to engrave, write, according to the ancient method of writing on plates of metal, waxes tables, etc., Jn. 8:6, 8; to write on parchment, paper, etc., generally, Mt. 27:37, et al.; to write letters to another, Acts 23:25; 2 Cor. 2:9; 13:10, et al.; to describe in writing, Jn. 1:46; Rom. 10:5; to inscribe in a catalogue, etc., Lk. 10:20; Rev. 13:8; 17:8, et al.; to write a law, command, or enact in writing, Read the full entry →

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

γράφω Orig. sense, to scratch, scrape, graze, αἰχμὴ γράψεν ὀστέον Il.; σήματα γράψας ἐν πίνακι having scratched marks as tokens on a tablet, id. Il.:—then, to represent by lines drawn, to delineate, draw, paint, Hdt., Aesch.; εἰκὼν γεγραμμένη Ar.: also in Mid., ζῷα γράφεσθαι ῀ ζωγραφεῖν, Hdt.

to express by written characters, to write, τι id. Hdt.; γο. τινά to write a person's name, Xen.; γ. ἐπιστολήν, etc., id. Xen.; γρ. τι εἰς διφθέρας Hdt.

to inscribe, like ἐπιγράφω, γρ. εἰς στήλην Eur., Dem.

to write down, γρ. τινὰ αἴτιον to set him down as the cause, Hdt.

to register, enrol, γρ. τινὰ τῶν ἱππευόντων among the cavalry, Xen.; Κρέοντος προστάτου γεγράψομαι, as a dependent of Creon…

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-2RAI-1S — Verb · perfect · active · indicative · first person · singular
perfect active indicative — a past action whose result still stands.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-2RAI-1S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: second peRfect Voice: Active Mood: Indicative Person: first Number: Singular

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
30%it has been written
it has been written30% · 61×written19% · 38×do write7% · 15×write6% · 13×it was written6% · 13×i have written5% · 10×i am writing5% · 10×wrote3% · 6×other renderings19% · 39×

205 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 31 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%object2%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 192 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
καθώςjust as, as
ἀλλάbut, exceptὑπάγωI go away, deparθέλωI will, wish, de
Article the
πᾶςall, the whole, εἰμίI am, existοὗτος
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakαἰτίαa cause, reason,ἐπί
σύ
ἔχωI have, hold, poσκληροκαρδίαhardness of hearκαθεξῆςin order, just a
εἰμίI am, exist
καθώςjust as, asοὐNegοὗwhere, whither,
γράφωI have written.192×
what comes after →
σύ
ἀλλάbut, exceptὅτιthat, since, becἵναin order that, s
Article the
ἐμόςὄνομαname, character,οἶκοςa house, househo
γάρfor
ὅτιthat, since, becκύριοςlord, Lord, mastπατάσσωI strike
ἐν
Article theβίβλοςa written book, νόμοςa law, the Mosai
ὅτιthat, since, because
οὗτοςArticle theοὐNeg

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

Concordanceγράφω · 192× in the New Testament
Revelation John Romans Luke 1 Corinthians 1 John Acts 2 Corinthians Matthew Mark Galatians 3 John

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament22 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 111 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 Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome The Epistle of Barnabas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 141c. AD 40

ἀποδεῖ γὰρ τὰ μιμήματα τῶν ἀρχετύπων, τὰ δ’ ἀπὸ τῶν μιμημάτων γραφόμενα καὶ πλαττόμενα πολὺ μᾶλλον, ἅτε μακρὰν ἀφεστῶτα τῆς ἀρχῆς·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.4c. AD 75–95

τὸν μὲν γὰρ πρὸς τοὺς Ῥωμαίους πόλεμον ἡμῖν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις γενόμενον καὶ τὰς ἐν αὐτῷ πράξεις καὶ τὸ τέλος οἷον ἀπέβη πείρᾳ μαθὼν ἐβιάσθην ἐκδιηγήσασθαι διὰ τοὺς ἐν τῷ γράφειν λυμαινομένους τὴν ἀλήθειαν,

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 4.3c. AD 100

τὸ τέλειον σκάνδαλον ἤγγικεν, περὶ οὖ γέγραπται, ὡς Ἐνὼχ λέγει.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 6th c. AD 3rd c. BC 4th c. AD 3rd c. AD
P.Adl. 10Pathyris102 BC

εἰκάδος τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἔτους· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀποδῶι ἐν τῶι ὡρισμένωι χρόνωι ἀποτεισάτω καθὰ γέγραπται παραχρῆμα ἐπάναγκον· ἡ δὲ πρᾶξις ἔστω Ἀγαθίνωι καὶ Πατῆτι ἐκ τοῦ δεδανεισμένου Πανᾶτος καὶ

P.Adl. 15Pathyris (?)101 BC

καὶ παρείληφεν· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀποδῷ ἐν τῷ ὡρισμένῳ χρόνωι ἢ μὴ ποιῇ καθὰ γέγραπται ἀποτεισάτω ἐν τῷ ἐχομένωι μηνὶ παραχρῆμα ἡμιόλιον ἢ τὴν ἐσομένην ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾶι τιμήν,

P.Adl. 19Pathyris99 BC

ιϛ ἔτους· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ ἀποδῶι ἐν τῶι ὡρισμένωι χρόνωι ἢ μὴ ποιήσηι καθὰ γέγραπται ἀποτεισάτω ἐν τῶι ἐχομένωι μηνὶ παραχρῆμα τὰ τοῦ σιδήρου μνᾶς δισχιλίας χμ καὶ ἐπίτιμον

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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