Menu

Colossians 2:21 — Word Study

Depth

N1904μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

BSANot you may handlehaptō Notmēde you may tastegeuō [never, under no circumstances, experience, savor] Notmēde you may touch!thinganō [come into contact with, make physical contact, cling to]

Word
Listen & take awayColossians 2
English ↓ Download MP3 The Berean Standard Bible chapter audio already hosted for the site's Bible section — verse 21 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 (thinganō) — no per-word recordings of the Greek exist to link to.
Take it away
Colossians 2:21quick helps
In a sentencePaul warns against human regulations that dictate what to avoid.
Who is speakingThe Apostle Paul, addressing the Colossians.
Where we areIn a section discussing the futility of worldly rules.
The hard wordἅψῃ
Take awayAvoiding these things does not lead to true spirituality.
8 commentators on this verse Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them › clause verbἅπτω 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 — Colossians 2:21

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 — Warnings Against Human Regulationsgenerated

20If you have died with Christ to the spiritual forces of the world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its regulations:
21“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”?
22These will all perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings.
23Such restrictions indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-prescribed worship, their false humility, and their harsh treatment of the body; but they are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.

Colossians 2:21 contains Paul's admonition to the Colossians regarding the regulations imposed by human teachings. He emphasizes that these rules about handling, tasting, and touching are not aligned with the reality of their new life in Christ. This passage is part of a broader argument in which Paul contrasts spiritual freedom with the constraints of worldly traditions, encouraging believers to focus on their relationship with Christ rather than on human doctrines.


Cross References

ReferenceText (BSB)
1Genesis 3:3but about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You must not eat of it or touch it, or you will die.’”
2Isaiah 52:11Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; come out from it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the LORD.
32 Corinthians 6:17“Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”
41 Timothy 4:3They will prohibit marriage and require abstinence from certain foods that God has created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.

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

(Touch not; taste not; handle not;Genesis 3:3 Isaiah 52:11 2 Corinthians 6:17 1 Timothy 4:3

The Key Word ἅψῃ, haptōgenerated

The verb ἅπτω (haptō) means 'to touch' or 'to fasten to'. It can imply physical contact or a more metaphorical sense of clinging to something. In this context, it warns against engaging with certain practices that are deemed unclean or inappropriate according to human standards.

The subjunctive form indicates a prohibition, suggesting that the Colossians should not even consider touching these prohibited things. This reflects a broader theme in Paul's letters where he emphasizes the importance of spiritual discernment over mere adherence to rules.


How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated

In the Berean Standard Bible, the phrase is rendered as “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”. Other translations, like the KJV and ASV, similarly convey the same prohibitive message with slight variations in wording.

All translations agree on the essence of the prohibition, focusing on the negative commands, but differ in their phrasing. The WEB and BBE also emphasize the same restrictions, maintaining the negative structure.


Sentence Structuregenerated

The main clause of the verse is a series of prohibitions, with the finite verb implied in the repeated structure. The commands are presented in a parallel format, emphasizing the actions to avoid: μὴ ἅψῃ, μὴ γεύσῃ, and μὴ θίγῃς.

Each prohibition is structured to reinforce the idea that these actions are not just discouraged but are to be entirely avoided, reflecting a common rhetorical device in Greek that uses repetition for emphasis.


Septuagint Backgroundgenerated

The word ἅπτω does not have a direct equivalent in the Septuagint for this context, but similar prohibitions can be found in the Old Testament, where touching unclean things is often associated with ritual impurity.

The negative particle μὴ aligns with the Hebrew אַל, which serves a similar function of prohibition, emphasizing the importance of adhering to divine commands rather than human traditions.


In plain words — the whole versegenerated

Colossians 2:21 contains a warning from Paul about rules that say not to handle, taste, or touch certain things. He is telling the Colossians that these human regulations are not what truly matters in their faith. Instead, they should focus on their relationship with Christ.


Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated

What does Paul mean by 'Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch'?

Paul is addressing the false teachings that impose strict rules about physical actions, suggesting that such regulations do not contribute to true spirituality.

Why is Paul warning against these regulations?

He emphasizes that these human-made rules are based on traditions that do not lead to a genuine relationship with God and can distract believers from their faith.

How do these prohibitions relate to Christian freedom?

Paul is highlighting that true freedom in Christ means not being bound by external regulations but living in accordance with the Spirit.

What should believers focus on instead of these rules?

Believers should focus on their relationship with Christ and the inner transformation that comes from faith, rather than merely following external rules.


Reflection Questionsgenerated

  1. What are some human regulations I might be following that distract me from my relationship with Christ?
  2. How can I better understand the difference between spiritual freedom and legalistic rules?
  3. In what ways can I encourage others to focus on their faith rather than on external practices?
  4. What does it mean for me to live in the freedom that Christ offers?

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

John Chrysostom comments on this verse, emphasizing the futility of human regulations in the face of true faith.

John ChrysostomHomily on Colossians 7 c. 347–407
"Handle not, nor taste, nor touch; all which things are to perish with the using; after the precepts and doctrines of men." Ye are not in the world, he saith,

Chrysostom highlights that these prohibitions are based on human teachings and not on the true essence of faith.

Early Church Fathers on Colossians 2 →

Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse

Each of these wrote on Colossians 2:21 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.

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

Touch not, taste not, handle not. This the apostle says, not of himself, but in the person of the Jewish doctors; who urging the use of the ceremonial law, to which they added decrees and

Read John Gill on Colossians 2 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary

(Touch not; taste not; handle not; Compare Colossians 2:16. Instances of the "ordinances" (Colossians 2:20) in the words of their imposers. There is an ascending climax of superstitious prohibitions.

Read Robert Jamieson on Colossians 2 →
Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Which he doth here by way of imitation, upbraiding of them, elegantly recite in the words, phrases, or sense of those imposing dogmatists, whose superstition and lust of domineering over the consciences of Christians is taxed, in the gradation which the well skilled in the Greek judge to be in the original. For though the first, and which we render touch not, be sometimes so rendered, yet, considering here the coincidency or tautology will, so rendered, make with the last, the sense of it, as the most judicious and learned have evidenced, seems to be, eat not, as noting they did forbid the eating, i.e. using certain meats at their ordinary meals; (against the reviving of which imposition…

Read Matthew Poole on Colossians 2 →
John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not; Ver. 21. Touch not, taste not, &c.] The words of those impostors, which are here mimetically, or by way of imitation, related. See the like Ecclesiastes 10:14, where the wise man graphically describeth the fool’ s tautologies, "A man cannot tell what shall be, and what shall be, who can tell?" As for the sense, an excellent textman gives it thus: "Touch not;" viz. a woman, 1 Corinthians 7:1; "Taste not;" viz. meat. "Handle not;" viz. money, meddle not with secular contracts. (Dr Sclater.) This was that holy hypocrisy practised by these ancient seducers, and still commended by the Popish padres to their novices, and that with much eagerness, "touch not…

Read John Trapp on Colossians 2 →
Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(21) Touch not; taste not; handle not.—The first and last of these renderings should be inverted. There is in the commands a climax of strictness. “Handle not” (the unclean thing), “taste it not,” “touch it not” with one of your fingers. It will be noted that all these commands are negative, not positive. They are marked by the ordinary ascetic preference of spiritual restraint to spiritual energy.

Read Charles John Ellicott on Colossians 2 →
AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible

Verse 21. Touch not; taste not; handle not] These are forms of expression very frequent among the Jews. In Maccoth, fol. xxi. 1: "If they say to a Nazarite, Don't drink, don't drink; and he, notwithstanding, drinks; he is guilty. If they say, Don't shave, don't shave; and he shaves, notwithstanding; he is guilty. If they say, Don't put on these clothes, don't put on these clothes; and he, notwithstanding, puts on heterogeneous garments; he is guilty." See more in Schoettgen.

Read AdamClarke on Colossians 2 →
CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

21. (touch not; taste not; handle not;] Better (discarding the bracket here), Handle thou not, nor taste, nor touch. This rendering represents exactly the construction of the Greek, and is truer to the shades of meaning of the first and last of the three Greek verbs. The last verb denotes a lighter and less deliberate touch than the first, and so here conveys a climax of prohibition.The prohibitions in question would be those of the Mosaic law, developed and exaggerated by the Pharisaic schools. Schoettgen (Horœ Hebr. in N. T.) quotes from the Talmud just such precepts: “Touch not a vessel, till thou hast washed hands and feet from (its) brim;” “They say to a Nazirite, Drink not … shave not…

Read Cambridge on Colossians 2 →
Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Tough not; taste not; handle not - These words seem intended as a specimen of the kind of ordinances which the apostle refers to, or an imitation of the language of the Jewish teachers in regard to

Read Albert Barnes on Colossians 2 →

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

“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”?

WEBWorld English Bible2000

“Don’t handle, nor taste, nor touch”

MSBMajority Standard Bible2022

“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”?

NETBNew English Translation2006

“Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”

Tyndale line

KJVKing James Version1611

(Touch not; taste not; handle not;

ASVAmerican Standard Version1901

Handle not, nor taste, nor touch

RVARevised Version, American1894

Handle not, nor taste, nor touch

NWBWebster's Bible1833

(Touch not; taste not; handle not;

GNVGeneva Bible1599

As, Touch not, Taste not, Handle not.

Strictly literal

DBYDarby Translation1890

Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch,

YLTYoung's Literal Translation1862

— thou mayest not touch, nor taste, nor handle —

LSVLiteral Standard Version2020

you may not touch, nor taste, nor handle—

ULBUnlocked Literal Bible2017

“Do not handle, nor taste, nor touch”?

From the Latin

DRADouay-Rheims (Challoner)1899

Touch not, taste not, handle not:

Simplified

FBVFree Bible Version2020

Things like: don't handle that, don't taste that, don't touch that!

BBEBible in Basic English1949

Which say there may be no touching, tasting, or taking in your hands,

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.

clauseclauseΕἰIfclauseverbἀπεθάνετεyou have diedprepositional phrase · adverbialσὺνwithΧριστῷChristprepositional phrase · adverbialἀπὸaway fromnoun phraseτῶνthenoun phraseστοιχείωνprinciplesnoun phraseτοῦof theκόσμουworldclauseadverbialτίwhyclause · adverbialὡςas ifclauseverbζῶντεςlivingprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinκόσμῳ[the] worldverbδογματίζεσθεdo you submit to decreesclauseadverbialΜὴNotverb phrase · verbἅψῃyou should handleμηδὲNotγεύσῃyou should tasteμηδὲNotθίγῃςyou should touchclausesubjectwhichlinking verbἐστινarenoun phrase · predicateπάνταallprepositional phraseεἰςuntonoun phraseφθορὰνdecayadverb phrasenoun phraseτῇwith theἀποχρήσειuseprepositional phrase · adverbialκατὰaccording tonoun phraseτὰthenoun phrasenoun phraseἐντάλματαcommandmentsκαὶandδιδασκαλίαςteachingsnoun phraseτῶν-ἀνθρώπωνof menclausesubjectἅτινάwhichlinking verbἐστινareclause · adverbialμὲνindeedclauseverbἔχονταhavingnoun phrase · objectλόγονan appearanceσοφίαςof wisdomprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinnoun phraseἐθελοθρησκίᾳself-imposed worshipκαὶandταπεινοφροσύνῃhumilityκαὶandnoun phraseἀφειδίᾳharsh treatmentσώματοςof [the] bodyadverbialοὐκnotprepositional phrase · predicateἐνofnoun phraseτιμῇhonorτινιa certainprepositional phrase · adverbialπρὸςagainstnoun phraseπλησμονὴν[the] indulgencenoun phraseτῆςof theσαρκόςflesh

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

Ne tetigeritis, neque gustaveritis, neque contrectaveritis :

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

ܠܐ ܠܡ ܬܩܪܘܒ ܘܠܐ ܬܛܥܡ ܘܠܐ ܬܩܦ

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

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

The standard critical text of the New Testament.

Nestle-Aland 27th edition1993 · Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

The previous edition, still widely cited.

SBL Greek New Testament2010 · Michael Holmes

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

The Society of Biblical Literature edition, freely licensed.

Westcott–Hort1881 · Westcott and Hort

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

The edition that turned scholarship toward the earliest manuscripts.

Tregelles1857–1879 · Samuel Prideaux Tregelles

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

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

Tyndale House Greek NT2017 · Tyndale House, Cambridge

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

A recent critical edition following documentary evidence closely.

Byzantine majority text2018 · Robinson–Pierpont

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

The reading of the majority of surviving manuscripts.

Textus Receptus1550/1894 lineage

μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ μηδὲ θίγῃς·

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.

Colossians 2:21μήNotNotμήἅπτωyou may hanyou may handleἅπτωμηδέNotNotμηδέγεύομαιyou may tasyou may tasteγεύομαιμηδέNotNotμηδέθιγγάνωyou may touyou may touch!θιγγάνωμήNeg.prt. nNeg.prt. not, lμήοὐNeg.prt. nNeg.prt. no, noοὐχιτώνn.m. a tunn.m. a tunic, gχιτώνπότεIrg.prt. wIrg.prt. when, πότεφοβέωv. I fear,v. I fear, am tφοβέωλύχνοςn.m. a lamn.m. a lampλύχνοςοὐδείςAdj no oneAdj no one, nonοὐδείςθάνατοςn.m. deathn.m. deathθάνατοςἕωςAdv until,Adv until, as fἕωςμηδέNeg.cj. anNeg.cj. and notμηδέ
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 Colossians 2:21

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.

Not you may handle Not you may taste Not you may touch!
μὴ Not G3361 Particle · negative
1,060× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
about as common in Colossians as anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
Not is a word used to show that something is not true or is not happening, like in phrases that say 'lest' or 'God forbid', as seen in various parts of the New Testament.
Tyndale gloss
not
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

μή () is a Greek negative particle used to express subjective negation, often in conditional or hypothetical contexts. It contrasts with οὐ (ou), which indicates absolute denial. μή can function as an adverb meaning 'not' or as a conjunction meaning 'lest.' It appears in various grammatical constructions, including prohibitions and deliberative questions, and is referenced in verses like Matthew 5:29 and John 3:18.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

μή,

subjective negative particle,

used where the negation depends on a condition or hypothesis, expressed or understood, as distinct from οὐ, which denies absolutely. μή is used where one thinks a thing is not, as distinct from an absolute negation. As a general rule, οὐ negatives the indic., μή the other moods, incl, ptcp. [In LXX for אֵין, אַיִן, אַל.]

As a neg. adv., not;

with ref. to thought or opinion: Jo 3:18, Tit 1:11, II Pe 1:9.

In delib. questions, c. subjc. (M, Pr., 185): Mk 12:14, Ro 3:8.

In conditional and final sentences, after εἰ, ἐάν, ἄν, ἵνα, ὅπως: Mt 10:14,

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

μή, Sept. for Ox, |X, PN, ἃ particle of negation, which differs from οὐ (which is always an adverb) in that ov denies the thing itself (orto speak technically, denies simply, absolutely, categorically, directly, objectively). but μή denies the thought of the thing, or the thing according to the judgment, opinion, will, purpose, preference, of some one (hence, as we say technically, indirectly, hypothetically, subjectively). This distinction holds also of the compounds οὐδείς, μηδείς, οὐκέτι, μηκέτι, ete. But pris either an ad verb of negation, not (Lat. non, ne); or aconjunction, that... not, lest, (Lat. ne); or an interrogative particle, (Lat. num) [i. e. (generally) implying aneg. ans.; in indir. quest. whether nol (suggesting apprehension) ]. Cf. Herm. ad Vig. § 267 p- 802 sqq-; Matthiae § 608; Bitm. Gram. § 148 (cf. Alex. Bttm. N. T. Gr. p. 344 (296) sqq.); Kiihner ii. §§ 512 sq. p.…

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

μή Grenf II. 384 (mid. 1.8.6.) καλῶς οὖ]ν ποιήσις μὴ ἀμελήσ[α]ς α[. . ἀγο]ράσαι. .. , P Oxy I. 3815 (a.p. 49--50) (= Selections, p. 53) τοῦ δὲ Σύρου μὴ βουλομένου ἐνμεῖναι τοῖς κεκριμένοις, “45 Syrus does not wish to abide by what has been decided,” 2d. II. 2755 (A.D. 66) (= Selections, p. 58) ἔγραψα ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ μὴ ἰδότος γράμματα, “1 wrote for him seeing that he was unlettered,” BGU I. 22° (a.p. 114) (= Selections, p. 74) TappovOios . . . τὸ παρὸν μὴ ἔχουσα κύριον, ‘ Tarmuthis at present without a guardian,’ and P Grenf II. 779 (iii/iv A.D.) (= Sedections, p. 120) θαυμάζω πάνυ [ὅτι] ἀλόγως ἀπέστητε μὴ ἄραντες [τὸ σ]ῶμα τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ὑμῶν, “1 wonder exceedingly that you went off so unreasonably, without taking the body of your brother”; cf. P Tor 1. 1¥8-4 (νον 116) εἰ δὲ kal τις θείηι τὸ μὴ ὄν (cf. 1 Cor 1°8)—acc. and inf. follow, P Ryl II. 144°? (Α.Ὁ. 38) ἐπαγαγεῖν αἰτίας τοῦ μὴ ὄντος, ‘‘…

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

μή (mē) — not.

μή,

Elean μά [ᾱ] [Refs 6th c.BC+]. (Cf. Sanskrit mā´, Armenian mi [from I.-[Refs 5th c.BC+] mē´], negative used in prohibitions):—not, the negative of the will and thought, as οὐ of fact and statement; μή rejects, οὐ denies; μή is relative, οὐ absolute; μή subjective, οὐ objective. (A few examples of μηδέ and μηδείς have been included.)

__A in INDEPENDENT sentences, used in expressions of will or wish, command, entreaty, warning,

__A.1 with present imperative, 2 person, μή μ᾽ ἐρέθιζε [Refs 8th c.BC+]: rarely with aorist imperative, μὴ.. ἔνθεο τιμῇ [Refs 8th c.BC+]; in Attic dialect, μὴ ψεῦσον, ὦ Ζεῦ, τῆς.. ἐλπίδος [Refs 8th c.BC+]perfect imperative [Refs 8th c.BC+] person when perfect = present, μὴ κεκράγετε [Refs 5th c.BC+]

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

μή

me

a primary particle of qualified negation (whereas 3756 expresses an

absolute denial); (adverb) not, (conjunction) lest; also (as an

interrogative implying a negative answer (whereas 3756 expects an

affirmative one)) whether:--any but (that), X forbear, + God forbid, +

lack, lest, neither, never, no (X wise in), none, nor, (can-)not,

nothing, that not, un(-taken), without. Often used in compounds in

substantially the same relations. See also 3362, 3363, 3364, 3372,

3373, 3375, 3378.

see GREEK for 3756

see GREEK for 3362

see GREEK for 3363

see GREEK for 3364

see GREEK for 3372

see GREEK for 3373

see GREEK for 3375

see GREEK for 3378

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

μή

Neg.prt.

not, lest

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

μή mē 1x

a negative particle, can function as a conj, not, for the particulars of its usage, especially as distinguished from that of οὐ, consult a grammar; as a conj., lest, that not, Mt. 5:29, 30; 18:10; 24:6; Mk. 13:36; μή, or μήτι, or μήποτε, when prefixed to an interrogative clause, it expresses an intimation either of the reality of the matters respecting which the question is asked, Mt. 12:23; or the contrary, Jn. 4:12

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Particle-N — Particle · negative
particle — a small word colouring the clause; it does not decline.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

PRT-N PaRTicle, disjunctive particle Negative

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
71%not
not71% · 772×except9% · 95×unless5% · 58×surely not4% · 41×lest3% · 32×otherwise2% · 23×other renderings4% · 48×other renderings1% · 16×

1,085 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
adverbial84%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 1,060 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
οὐNeg
καίand, even, also,σύἐγώ
ἵναin order that, so th
αὐτόςσύπροσεύχομαιI pray, pray for
καίand, even, also, nam
ἐγώαὐτόςεἰμίI am, exist
εἰCond
αὐτόςυἱόςa son, descendenκαίand, even, also,
Article the
καίand, even, also,εἰςδιά
μήNot1060×
what comes after →
Article the
πατήρfather, Father, υἱόςa son, descendenσημεῖονa sign, miracle,
ἔχωI have, hold, posses
καίand, even, also,ποιμήνa shepherdβάθοςdepth, a depth,
εἰμίI am, exist
δίδωμιI offer, giveἐνμετά
τὶς
σύὑστερέωI am lacking, faγεννάωI beget, bring f
φοβέωI fear, am terrified
ἀπόArticle theμόνοςalone, but, only

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

Concordanceμή · 1,060× in the New Testament
Luke Matthew John 1 Corinthians Romans Mark Acts Revelation 2 Corinthians Hebrews 1 Timothy Galatians

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

Across the New Testament27 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 1,321 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.

Not you may handle Not you may taste Not you may touch!
ἅψῃhaptō you may handle G681 Verb · aorist · middle · subjunctive · second person · singular
5× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
In plain English
Meaning
To touch or fasten to, like setting a fire or clinging to someone, as seen in Matthew 8:3 and John 20:17.
Tyndale gloss
to touch
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word ἅπτω, transliterated as hapto, primarily means 'to fasten to' and is often used in the context of kindling or lighting a fire. It can also denote clinging to or laying hold of something, and has applications in various contexts, including physical touch, sexual relations, and ceremonial prohibitions. In the New Testament, it appears in several passages, notably relating to healing and interaction with others.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ἅπτω,

[in LXX chiefly for נגע;]

prop., to fasten to; hence, of fire, to kindle, light: Lk 8:16 11:33 15:8, Ac 28:2. Mid., c. gen., to fasten oneself to, cling to, lay hold of (so in π.; MM, s.v.): Mt 8:3, 15, Jo 20:17, al.; of carnal intercourse, I Co 7:1; with reference to levitical and ceremonial prohibitions, II Co 6:17, Col 2:21; of hostile action, I Jo 5:18 (cf. ἀν-, καθ-, περι- άπτω).

SYN.: θιγγάνω, ψηλαφάω. ἅ. is the stronger, θ., to touch, the lighter term. ψ. is to feel, as in search of something (Tr., Syn., § xvii; Lft., Col., 201…

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

ἅπτω:; 1 aor. ptep. ἅψας ; (cf. Lat. apto, Germ. heften) ; [fr. Hom. down]; 1. prop. to fasten to, make adhere to; hence, spec. to fasten fire to a thing, to kindle, set on Jire, (often so in Attic) : λύχνον, Lk. viii. 16 ; xi. 33; xv. 8, (Arstph. nub. 57; Theophr. char. 20 (18); Joseph. antt. 4, 3,4); mip, Lk. xxii. 55 [T Tr txt. WH wepe αψάντων]; πυράν, Acts xxviili.2 LT Tr WH. 2. Mid., [pres. ἅπτομαι]; impf. ἡπτόμην [Mk. vi. 56 RG Tr mrg.]; 1 aor. ἡψάμην; in Sept. generally for 323, 37393; prop. to fasten one’s self to, adhere to, cling to, (Hom. Il. 8, 67); a. to touch, foll. by the obj. in gen. [W. § 80, 8 ο.; B.167 (146); ef. Donaldson p. 483]: Mt. viii. 3; Mk. iii. 10; vii. 33; viii. 22, etc.; Lk. xviii. 15; xxii. 51, very often in Mt., Mk. and Lk. In Jn. xx. 17, μή μου ἅπτου is to be explained thus: Do not handle me to see whether Tam still clothed with a body ; there is no need…

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

ἅπτω (haptō) — to touch.

ἅπτω,

future ἅψω: aorist ἧψα:—passive, perfect ἧμμαι, Ionic dialect ἅμμαι[Refs 5th c.BC+]: future ἅψομαι[Refs 8th c.BC+] (συν-) [Refs 2nd c.AD+] —middle, see.below (compare ἑάφθη):—fasten or bind to, used by [Refs 8th c.BC+]active, ἅψας ἀμφοτέρωθεν.. ἔντερον οἰός (of a lyre-string) [Refs 8th c.BC+]; once in middle, ἁψαμένη βρόχον.. ἀφ᾽ ὑψηλοῖο μελάθρου having fastened the noose to the beam (to hang herself), [Refs]; so later ἅψεται ἀμφὶ βρόχον.. δείρᾳ[Refs 5th c.BC+]:—active, βρόχους ἅ. κρεμαστούς[Refs 5th c.BC+]

2. join, ἅ. χορόν[Refs 4th c.BC+]; πάλην τινὶ ἅ. fasten a contest in wrestling on one, engage with one, [Refs]: —passive, ἅπτεσθαι τὴν Μεγαρέων πόλιν καὶ Κορινθίων τοῖς…

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

ἅπτω

hapto

a primary verb; properly, to fasten to, i.e. (specially) to set on

fire:--kindle, light.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ἅπτω

v.

I kindle, light

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

ἅπτω v. ἑάφθη for ionic perf. pass. Root ΑΠ and ΑΦ to fasten, bind fast, Od., Eur.: Mid. to fasten for oneself, Od., Eur.

to join, χορόν Aesch.; πάλην τινὶ ἅπτειν to fasten a contest in wrestling on one, engage with one, id. Aesch.

Mid. to fasten oneself to, cling to, hang on by, lay hold of, grasp, touch, c. gen., ἅψασθαι γούνων, as a suppliant, Od.; so, ἅψ. γενείου id. Od.; ἅπτεσθαι νηῶν Il., etc.:—absol. to reach the mark, id. Il.

to engage in, take part in, c. gen., βουλευμάτων Soph.; πολέμου Thuc.; ἡμμένος φόνου engaged in . . , Plat.;—but, ἅπτεσθαι τῶν λόγων to lay hold of, dispute the argument of another, id. Plat.; τούτων ἥψατο touched on these points, Thuc.

to set upon, attack, assail, Hdt., Aesch., etc.

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-AMS-2S — Verb · aorist · middle · subjunctive · second person · singular
aorist middle subjunctive — a completed action, viewed as a whole.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-AMS-2S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Aorist Voice: Middle Mood: Subjunctive Person: second Number: Singular

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

han'-d'-l (kaph): The noun occurs once in So 5:5, "handles of the bolt" (the King James Version "lock"). The verb "handle" represents several Hebrew ('achaz, mashakh, taphas, etc.) and Greek (thiggano, Col 2:21; pselaphao, Lu 24:39; 1 Joh 1:1) words in the King James Version, but is also sometimes substituted in the Revised Version (British and American) for other renderings in the King James Version, as in So 3:8 for "hold"; in Lu 20:11, "handled shamefully," for "entreated shamefully"; in 2Ti 2:15, "handling…

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
15%he touched
he touched15% · 6×touched13% · 5×she touched10% · 4×having touched10% · 4×he may touch8% · 3×touch5% · 2×i shall touch5% · 2×they may touch5% · 2×other renderings30% · 12×

40 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 20 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 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
λύχνοςa lamp
δέbut, on the otheοὐδείςno one, none, no
οὐχίIrg
εἷςone
ἐγώ
φιλανθρωπίαlove of mankind,
ἅπτωyou may handle
what comes after →
καλύπτωI veil, hide, concea
αὐτός
εἰς
κρύπτηa cellar, vault
λύχνοςa lamp
καίand, even, also,
δέbut, on the other ha
πῦρfire, trials
γάρfor
πυράa fire

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

Concordanceἅπτω · 5× in the New Testament
Luke Acts
Across the New Testament2 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The company it keepswords that stand beside it more often than chance
In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
3rd c. BC
P.Bingen 28Ptolemais Hormu? (Arsinoites)301 BC–202 BC

εν τοῖς κυρίοις τῶν … … αψας τὸ προσεσφραγισμένον … … κω ιν … … τελειν προνοουμένω … … … ων

Not you may handle Not you may taste Not you may touch!
μηδὲmēde Not G3366 Conjunction · negative
57× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Colossians than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This word means 'nor' or 'not even', used to continue a negative statement. It is often used to list things that are not true, like in Matthew 10:10, where Jesus says the disciples should not take extra clothes or sandals.
Tyndale gloss
nor
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word μηδέ (i.e., *mēde*) is a negative particle that functions primarily as a conjunction meaning 'but not' or 'nor.' It can also serve as an adverb, emphasizing negation with meanings like 'not even.' The word is often used in contexts of continuing a negation or prohibition, appearing frequently in the New Testament, where it connects clauses or reinforces a negative statement.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

μηδέ,

negative particle,

related to οὐδέ as μή to οὐ,

as conjc., continuing a negation or prohibition, but not, and not, nor: preceded by μή, Mt 6:25 22:29, Mk 12:24, Lk 14:12, al.; ἵνα μή, Jo 4:15; ὅπως μή, Lk 16:26; μηδέ . . . μηδέ, neither . . . nor, Mt 10:10, I Co 10:8, 9.

As adv., strengthening a negation, not even: Mk 2:2, I Co 5:11, al.

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

μηδέ, (μή, 4. v., and δέ), [fr. Hom. down], a negative disjunctive conjunction; [cf. W. § 55, 6; B. § 149, 13]; 1. used in continuing a negation or prohibition, but not, and not, neither; preceded by yn, — either so that the two negatives have one verb in common: preceded by μή with a participle, Mt. xxii. 29; Mk. xii. 24; by μή w. a pres. subjune., 1 Co. v. 8 [here Lmre. pres. indic.]; 1 Jn. iii. 18; by μή ν΄. impv., Mt. vi. 25; Lk. x. 4; xii. 22; xiv.12; 1Jn.ii.15; by py w. an aor. subj. 2 pers. plur., Mt. x. 9 sq.; by εἰς τὸ μή, 2 Th. ii. 2 LT Tr WH; —or so that μηδέ has its own verb: preceded by ὃς ἐὰν (ἄν) μή, Mt. x. 14; Mk. vi. 11; by ἵνα μή, ὅπ. ἵν. 15; by ὅπως μή, Lk. xvi. 26; w. a ptep. after μή w.a ptep., Lk. xii.47; 2 Co. iv. 2; w. an impv. after μή w. impv., Jn. xiv. 27; Ro. vi. 12 sq.; Heb. xii. 5; μηδενὶ ἐπιτίθει, foll. by μηδέ w. impy. 1 Tim. v. 22; τ΄. 2 pers. of the…

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

μηδέ. P Lond 42™f (B.c. 168) (=I. p. 30, Selectéons, p. 10) σὲ δὲ μηδ᾽ ἐντεθυμῆσθαι τοῦ παραγενέσθαι μηδ᾽ ἐνβεβλοφέναι εἰς τὴν ἡμετέραν περίστασιν, ‘‘ that you have neither thought of returning, nor spared a look for our helpless state”—the complaint of a wife to her husband who had shut himself up in the Serapeum, P Grenf I. 437* (ii/B.c.) αἸἰὐτοῦ δὲ μηδ᾽ ἀποδεδωκότος ἡμῖν μίηδ]ὲ ἵππον μηδὲ τὴν πορείαν αὐτῆς ἐπ[ιδεἰδωκότος ἐγράψαμέν σοι, ὅπως οὖν εἰδῆ[ις.

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

μηδέ (mēde) — nor.

μηδέ,

(μή, δέ) negative Particle (compare οὐδέ): as conjunction, and not (Epic dialect also, but not), nor, connecting two whole clauses, used with the same constructions as μή, μή τι σὺ ταῦτα.. διείρεο μηδὲ μετάλλα [Refs 8th c.BC+]; τεκνοῦσθαι, μηδ᾽ ἄπαιδα θνῄσκειν [Refs 5th c.BC+]

2. in μηδέ.. μηδέ.. the first μ. may belong to μηδέ A, e.g. [Refs 8th c.BC+]; but μήτε cannot follow μηδέ:—for μηδέ after οὐδέ, see at {οὐ} [Refs 4th c.BC+]

__B as adverb, joined with a single word or phrase, not even, not either, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; repeated emphatically, μηδ᾽ ὅντινα γαστέρι μήτηρ κοῦρον ἐόντα φέροι μηδ᾽ ὃς φύγοι let not the babe unborn —no let not even it escape, [Refs 8th c.BC+] —for μηδέ τι see at…

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

μηδέ

mede

from 3361 and 1161; but not, not even; in a continued negation,

nor:--neither, nor (yet), (no) not (once, so much as).

see GREEK for 3361

see GREEK for 1161

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

μηδέ

Neg.cj.

and not, not even

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

μηδέ mēde 56x

negative disjunctive particle, can function as an adverb and a conj, neither, and repeated, neither-nor, Mt. 6:25; 7:6; 10:9, 10; not even, not so much as, Mk. 2:2

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

μηδέ μή δέ, Negat. Particle, (related to οὐδέ as μή to οὐ):

as Conjunct. but not or and not, nor, μή τι σὺ ταῦτα διείρεο μηδὲ μετάλλα Il.:—more rarely without a negative preceding, τεκνοῦσθαι, μηδ᾽ ἄπαιδα θνήσκειν Aesch.

doubled, μηδέ . . μηδέ . . , Opposing the two clauses of a sentence, Il.:— μηδέ also follows μήτε, Soph., Plat.

as adv., joined with a single word or phrase, not even, Lat. ne . . quidem, Hom., etc.

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

CONJ-N CONJunction or conjunctive particle Negative

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
67%nor
nor67% · 39×neither16% · 9×not10% · 6×not even5% · 3×other renderings2% · 1×

58 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
adverbial30%object25%verb7%subject5%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 57 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
σύ
δέχομαιI take, receive,φίλοςἀδελφόςa brother
γραφήa writing, passage o
Article the
πίνωI drink, imbibe
τίςIrg
κύωνa dog
Article the
χρυσόςanything made of gol
κτάομαιI win, get, buy,
μηδέNot57×
what comes after →
Article the
σῶμαbody, fleshδύναμιςmight, power, maπρός
ἀκούωI hear, listen
Article theσύ
ἐν
ὅςζύμηleaven, ferment
βάλλωI cast, throw, rush,
Article the
ἄργυροςsilver as a metal
μηδέNeg

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

Concordanceμηδέ · 57× in the New Testament
Matthew Luke 1 Corinthians Mark Romans 1 Peter 1 Timothy 1 John 2 Thessalonians Acts Colossians Ephesians
Across the New Testament18 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 70 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 Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 85c. AD 40

τὰς γοῦν πολυζῴους ἀγέλας προβάτων αἰγῶν βοῶν ἄγει ποιμὴν αἰπόλος βουκόλος, ἄνθρωποι μηδὲ τοῖς σώμασιν ἐρρωμένοι καὶ σφριγῶντες, ὡς ἕνεκα γοῦν εὐεξίας ἐμποιῆσαι τοῖς ἰδοῦσι κατάπληξιν·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.23c. AD 75–95

ὁ δʼ ἡμέτερος νομοθέτης ἀκραιφνῆ τὴν ἀρετὴν ἔχοντα τὸν θεὸν ἀποφήνας ᾠήθη δεῖν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐκείνης πειρᾶσθαι μεταλαμβάνειν καὶ τοὺς μὴ ταῦτα φρονοῦντας μηδὲ μὴν πιστεύοντας ἀπαραιτήτως ἐκόλασε.

Clement of RomeFirst Clement 3.4c. AD 96

διὰ τοῦτο πόρρω ἄπεστιν ἡ δικαιοσύνη καὶ εἰρήνη, ἐν τῷ ἀπολιπεῖν ἕκαστον τὸν φόβον τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ ἐν τῇ πίστει αὐτοῦ ἀμβλυωπῆσαι, μηδὲ ἐν τοῖς νομίμοις τῶν προσταγμάτων αὐτοῦ πορεύεσθαι, μηδὲ πολιτεύεσθαι κατὰ τὸ καθῆκον τῷ Χριστῷ, ἀλλὰ ἕκαστον…

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 1st c. AD 3rd c. AD 1st c. BC 2nd c. BC
P.Grenf. 2 30Pathyris103 BC

καὶ τῶν τούτου ἀδελφῶν τὰ τοῦ σημαινομένου χαλκοῦ τάλαντα β, καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσεσθαι Πετεαρσεμθεία μηδʼ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν παρʼ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὸν Πετεαρσεμθέα καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς μηδʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλον

BGU 6 1260Pathyris102 BC

λύτρα τῆς σημαινομένης ἀρούρης μιᾶς , καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσασθαι Νεχθανοῦπιν καὶ τοὺς τούτου υἱοὺς μηδʼ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν παρʼ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὸν Πετεαρσεμθεία μηδʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν παρʼ

P.Adl. 14Pathyris101 BC

εἰς τὸ ἐνλιπὸν μοι ἄπρατον γῆς ἀρουρῶν γ, καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσεσθαι μήτʼ αὐτὸν Κολλούθην μήδʼ ἄλλον μηδένα ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὸν Ὧρον μήδʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλον μηδένα τῶν παρʼ αὐτοῦ

Not you may handle Not you may taste Not you may touch!
γεύσῃgeuō you may taste G1089 Verb · aorist · middle deponent · subjunctive · second person · singular
15× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Colossians than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This word means to taste or eat something, and can also mean to experience good or bad things. It is used in the Bible to describe people eating or tasting food, like in Matthew 27:34. It can also be used figuratively, like in Hebrews 6:4.
Amplified meaning
never, under no circumstances, experience, savor
Tyndale gloss
to taste
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek verb γεύομαι (i.e., *geuomai*) means 'to taste' or 'to experience.' It can refer to both the literal act of tasting food and the metaphorical sense of experiencing something, whether good or bad. In the New Testament, it appears in various contexts, such as tasting food (Acts 10:10) and experiencing death (Hebrews 2:9). The lexicons do not show significant disagreement on its meanings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

γεύω,

[in LXX chiefly for טעם;]

to make to taste. Mid., to taste eat: absol., Ac 10:10 20:11, Col 2:21; c. gen., Mt 27:34, Lk 14:24, Ac 23:14; c. acc. (not cl., but v. Westc, Heb., 2:9; M, Pr., 66, 245), Jo 2:9. Metaph., He 6:4; ῥῆμα θεοῦ, He 6:5 (on case, v. supr., and cf. Milligan, NTD, 68) θανάτου (cf. Talmudic טַעַם מִיתָה), Mt 16:28, Mk 9:1, Lk…

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

γεύω: [οἵ. Lat. gusto, Germ. kosten; Curtius § 131]; to cause to taste, to give one a taste of, τινά (Gen. xxv. 30). In the N. T. only Mid. γεύομαι : fut. γεύσομαι ; 1 aor. ἐγευσάμην; 1. (0 taste, try the flavor of: Mt. xxvii. 34; contrary to better Grk. usage (ef. W. § 30, 7c. [and p. 36; Antuol. Pal. 6, 120]) with ace. of the obj.: Jn. ii.9. 2. to taste, i.e. perceive the flavor of, partake of, enjoy: τινος, Lk. xiv. 24 (yevoerai μου τοῦ δείπνου, i. e. shall paryh take of my banquet); hence, as in Grk. writ. fr. Hom. down, i. q. to feel, make trial of, experience: twos, Heb. vi. 4; ῥῆμα θεοῦ, ib. 5, (τῆς γνώσεως, Clem. Rom. 1 Cor. 36,2). asin Chald., Syr. and Rabbin. writers, γεύεσθαι tov θανάτου [W. 33 (32)]: Mt. xvi. 28; Mk. ix. 1; Lk. ix. 27; Jn. viii. 52; Heb. ii. 9; [ef. Wetstein on Mt. 1. c.; Meyer on Jn. 1. c.; Bleek, Liinem., Alf. on Heb. 1. e.]. foll. by ὅτι: 1 Pet. ii. 3…

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

γεύομαι. For y. with genitive, cf. the standing formula in the ἀφο ὶ of the Decian persecution (A.D. 250) τῶν ἱερῶν ἐγευσάμην, e. g. P Oxy IV. 65812 (= Selections, p. 116). With the acc., as in Jn 2° and in the LXX fairly often, it may be cited from Prezsigke 1106 (Ptolemaic), where sundry officials καὶ οἱ συμπόσιον γευόμενοι join in a complimentary monument to their entertainer. See Abbott, Joh. Gr. p. 76f. ; and on the change of construction in Heb 64! see Milligan Documents, p. 68. The verb is used absolutely (as in Ac 10!) in Preisrgke 1944 (inscr. on a cup—Roman age) ἐκ τούτου ἐγευσάμην. The verbal occurs, negatived, in P Giss I. 1013 (1i/A.D.) ἄ[γ]ευστος ἐκοιμώμην, ‘I was going to bed without bite or sup.” The noun from a compound may be observed in a small undated fragment, CPHerm 27 προσγεύσεως τί . «0: ἀρτοκόπῳ appears just below. MGr has γεύομαι esten tes still, = ‘‘…

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

γεύω (geuō) — to taste.

γεύω,

future γεύσω [Refs 4th c.BC+]: aorist ἔγευσα [Refs 5th c.BC+]: —middle, future γεύσομαι [Refs 8th c.BC+]: aorist ἐγευσάμην [Refs]; γεύσεται, -σόμεθα, Epic dialect for -ηται, -ώμεθα, [Refs 8th c.BC+]: 3rd.pers. plural optative γευσαίατο [Refs 5th c.BC+]: perfect γέγευμαι [Refs 4th c.BC+]: pluperfect ἐγέγευντο [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—give a taste of, γλυκὺν γεύσας τὸν αἰῶνα [Refs 5th c.BC+]

II. middle, γεύομαι, with perfect and pluperfect passive, taste, with genitive, προικὸς γεύσεσθαι Ἀχαιῶν [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ἀλλήλων ἐγέγευντο they had tasted, eaten of.., [Refs 5th c.BC+]

II.2. take food, [NT+5th c.BC+]; dine, PLond. unpublished[Refs 4th c.AD+]

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

γεύομαι

geuomai

a primary verb; to taste; by implication, to eat; figuratively, to

experience (good or ill):--eat, taste.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

γεύομαι

v.

I taste, experience

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

γεύομαι geuomai 15x

to taste, Mt. 27:34; Jn. 2:9; absol. to take food, Acts 10:10, et al.; met. to have perception of, experience, Heb. 6:4, 5; 1 Pet. 2:3; θανάτου γεύεσθαι, to experience death, to die, Mt. 16:28, et al.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-ADS-2S — Verb · aorist · middle deponent · subjunctive · second person · singular
aorist middle deponent subjunctive — a completed action, viewed as a whole.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-ADS-2S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Aorist Voice: middle Deponent Mood: Subjunctive Person: second Number: Singular

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

tast (Hebrew Ta`am, "the sense of taste," "perception," from Ta`am, "to taste," "to perceive"; Aramaic Te`em, "flavor," "taste" (of a thing); Hebrew chekh, "palate," "roof of the mouth" = "taste"; geuomai; noun geusis; in 2 Macc 7:1 the verb is ephaptomai):

(1) Literal:

(a) Gustation, to try by the tongue: "The taste (ta`am) of it manna was like wafers made with honey" (Ex 16:31); "Doth not the ear try words, even as the palate (chekh) tasteth (Ta`am) its food?" (Job 12:11); "Belshazzar, while he tasted (literally, "at the taste of," Te`em) the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar his father had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king and his lords, his wives and his concubines, might drink therefrom" (

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
20%having tasted
having tasted20% · 3×eat13% · 2×may taste13% · 2×having eaten7% · 1×you may taste7% · 1×he may taste7% · 1×you have tasted7% · 1×shall taste7% · 1×other renderings20% · 3×

15 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 11 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
verb87%adverbial7%object7%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 15 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
μήNeg
οὐNeg
καίand, even, also, nam
μίγνυμιI mix, mingleἄρτοςbread, a loaf, f
καλέωI call, invite, name
Article the
δέbut, on the other ha
ὡςas, like as, how
θέλωI will, wish, desire
καίand, even, also,
γεύομαιyou may taste15×
what comes after →
θάνατοςdeath
ἕωςuntil, as far asεἰς
οὐNeg
θέλωI will, wish, de
ἐγώ
Article the
Article the
ἀρχιτρίκλινοςmaster of the fe
παρασκευάζωI prepare
δέbut, on the othe

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

Concordanceγεύομαι · 15× in the New Testament
Acts Hebrews John Luke Matthew 1 Peter Colossians Mark
Across the New Testament8 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 8 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 Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch The Shepherd of Hermas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Cherubim 57c. AD 40

ᾠήθη γὰρ αὑτοῦ πάντ’ εἶναι κτήματα, ὅσα εἶδεν, ὧν ἤκουσεν, ὧν ἐγεύσατο, ὧν ὠσφρήσατο, ὧν ἥψατο, καὶ πάντων ὑπέλαβεν εὑρετὴν καὶ

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.42c. AD 75–95

οἰόμενος δὲ συμφορᾷ περιπεσεῖσθαι παρακούσαντας ἀναπείθει κακοήθως τὴν γυναῖκα γεύσασθαι τοῦ φυτοῦ τῆς φρονήσεως ἐν αὐτῷ λέγων εἶναι τήν τε τἀγαθοῦ καὶ τοῦ κακοῦ διάγνωσιν, ἧς γενομένης αὐτοῖς μακάριον καὶ μηδὲν ἀπολείποντα τοῦ θείου διάξειν βίον.

Clement of RomeFirst Clement 36.2c. AD 96

διὰ τούτου ἀτενίζομεν εἰς τὰ ὕψη τῶν οὐρανῶν, διὰ τούτου ἐνοπτριζόμεθα τὴν ἄμωμον καὶ ὑπερτάτην ὄψιν αὐτοῦ, διὰ τούτου ἠνεῴχθησαν ἡμῶν οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ τῆς καρδίας, διὰ τούτου ἡ ἀσύνετος καὶ ἐσκοτωμένη διάνοια ἡμῶν ἀναθάλλει εἰς τὸ φῶς, διὰ τούτου…

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
3rd c. AD 3rd c. BC 4th c. AD
P.Oxy. 12 1464OxyrhynchosAD 250

τὰ κελευσθέντα ὑπὸ τῆς θείας κρίσεως καὶ νῦν ἐνώπιον ὑμῶν θύων καὶ σπένδων καὶ γευσάμενος τῶν ἱερείων ἅμα Ταῶτι γυναικὶ καὶ Ἀμμωνίῳ καὶ Ἀμμωνιανῷ υἱοῖς καὶ Θέκλᾳ θυγατρὶ διʼ

P.Oxy. 41 2990OxyrhynchosAD 201–AD 300

ὑμᾶς θύοντας καὶ γευομένους. Μάρκος Αὐρήλιος Σεσονγῶσις καὶ ὡς χρηματίζω εἶδον ὑμᾶς θύοντας καὶ γευσαμένους τῶν ἱερείων.

P.Oxy. 12 1576OxyrhynchosAD 201–AD 300

Ὡρίων Δίῳ χαίρειν. τῶι ἀναδιδόντι σοι ταῦτά μου τὰ γράμματα ποίησον αὐτὸν γεύσασθαι τοῦ οἴνου. ἔτους δ Θὼθ ιβ.

Not you may handle Not you may taste Not you may touch!
μηδὲmēde Not G3366 Conjunction · negative
57× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Colossians than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This word means 'nor' or 'not even', used to continue a negative statement. It is often used to list things that are not true, like in Matthew 10:10, where Jesus says the disciples should not take extra clothes or sandals.
Tyndale gloss
nor
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word μηδέ (i.e., *mēde*) is a negative particle that functions primarily as a conjunction meaning 'but not' or 'nor.' It can also serve as an adverb, emphasizing negation with meanings like 'not even.' The word is often used in contexts of continuing a negation or prohibition, appearing frequently in the New Testament, where it connects clauses or reinforces a negative statement.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

μηδέ,

negative particle,

related to οὐδέ as μή to οὐ,

as conjc., continuing a negation or prohibition, but not, and not, nor: preceded by μή, Mt 6:25 22:29, Mk 12:24, Lk 14:12, al.; ἵνα μή, Jo 4:15; ὅπως μή, Lk 16:26; μηδέ . . . μηδέ, neither . . . nor, Mt 10:10, I Co 10:8, 9.

As adv., strengthening a negation, not even: Mk 2:2, I Co 5:11, al.

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

μηδέ, (μή, 4. v., and δέ), [fr. Hom. down], a negative disjunctive conjunction; [cf. W. § 55, 6; B. § 149, 13]; 1. used in continuing a negation or prohibition, but not, and not, neither; preceded by yn, — either so that the two negatives have one verb in common: preceded by μή with a participle, Mt. xxii. 29; Mk. xii. 24; by μή w. a pres. subjune., 1 Co. v. 8 [here Lmre. pres. indic.]; 1 Jn. iii. 18; by μή ν΄. impv., Mt. vi. 25; Lk. x. 4; xii. 22; xiv.12; 1Jn.ii.15; by py w. an aor. subj. 2 pers. plur., Mt. x. 9 sq.; by εἰς τὸ μή, 2 Th. ii. 2 LT Tr WH; —or so that μηδέ has its own verb: preceded by ὃς ἐὰν (ἄν) μή, Mt. x. 14; Mk. vi. 11; by ἵνα μή, ὅπ. ἵν. 15; by ὅπως μή, Lk. xvi. 26; w. a ptep. after μή w.a ptep., Lk. xii.47; 2 Co. iv. 2; w. an impv. after μή w. impv., Jn. xiv. 27; Ro. vi. 12 sq.; Heb. xii. 5; μηδενὶ ἐπιτίθει, foll. by μηδέ w. impy. 1 Tim. v. 22; τ΄. 2 pers. of the…

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

μηδέ. P Lond 42™f (B.c. 168) (=I. p. 30, Selectéons, p. 10) σὲ δὲ μηδ᾽ ἐντεθυμῆσθαι τοῦ παραγενέσθαι μηδ᾽ ἐνβεβλοφέναι εἰς τὴν ἡμετέραν περίστασιν, ‘‘ that you have neither thought of returning, nor spared a look for our helpless state”—the complaint of a wife to her husband who had shut himself up in the Serapeum, P Grenf I. 437* (ii/B.c.) αἸἰὐτοῦ δὲ μηδ᾽ ἀποδεδωκότος ἡμῖν μίηδ]ὲ ἵππον μηδὲ τὴν πορείαν αὐτῆς ἐπ[ιδεἰδωκότος ἐγράψαμέν σοι, ὅπως οὖν εἰδῆ[ις.

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

μηδέ (mēde) — nor.

μηδέ,

(μή, δέ) negative Particle (compare οὐδέ): as conjunction, and not (Epic dialect also, but not), nor, connecting two whole clauses, used with the same constructions as μή, μή τι σὺ ταῦτα.. διείρεο μηδὲ μετάλλα [Refs 8th c.BC+]; τεκνοῦσθαι, μηδ᾽ ἄπαιδα θνῄσκειν [Refs 5th c.BC+]

2. in μηδέ.. μηδέ.. the first μ. may belong to μηδέ A, e.g. [Refs 8th c.BC+]; but μήτε cannot follow μηδέ:—for μηδέ after οὐδέ, see at {οὐ} [Refs 4th c.BC+]

__B as adverb, joined with a single word or phrase, not even, not either, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; repeated emphatically, μηδ᾽ ὅντινα γαστέρι μήτηρ κοῦρον ἐόντα φέροι μηδ᾽ ὃς φύγοι let not the babe unborn —no let not even it escape, [Refs 8th c.BC+] —for μηδέ τι see at…

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

μηδέ

mede

from 3361 and 1161; but not, not even; in a continued negation,

nor:--neither, nor (yet), (no) not (once, so much as).

see GREEK for 3361

see GREEK for 1161

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

μηδέ

Neg.cj.

and not, not even

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

μηδέ mēde 56x

negative disjunctive particle, can function as an adverb and a conj, neither, and repeated, neither-nor, Mt. 6:25; 7:6; 10:9, 10; not even, not so much as, Mk. 2:2

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

μηδέ μή δέ, Negat. Particle, (related to οὐδέ as μή to οὐ):

as Conjunct. but not or and not, nor, μή τι σὺ ταῦτα διείρεο μηδὲ μετάλλα Il.:—more rarely without a negative preceding, τεκνοῦσθαι, μηδ᾽ ἄπαιδα θνήσκειν Aesch.

doubled, μηδέ . . μηδέ . . , Opposing the two clauses of a sentence, Il.:— μηδέ also follows μήτε, Soph., Plat.

as adv., joined with a single word or phrase, not even, Lat. ne . . quidem, Hom., etc.

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

CONJ-N CONJunction or conjunctive particle Negative

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
67%nor
nor67% · 39×neither16% · 9×not10% · 6×not even5% · 3×other renderings2% · 1×

58 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
adverbial30%object25%verb7%subject5%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 57 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
σύ
δέχομαιI take, receive,φίλοςἀδελφόςa brother
γραφήa writing, passage o
Article the
πίνωI drink, imbibe
τίςIrg
κύωνa dog
Article the
χρυσόςanything made of gol
κτάομαιI win, get, buy,
μηδέNot57×
what comes after →
Article the
σῶμαbody, fleshδύναμιςmight, power, maπρός
ἀκούωI hear, listen
Article theσύ
ἐν
ὅςζύμηleaven, ferment
βάλλωI cast, throw, rush,
Article the
ἄργυροςsilver as a metal
μηδέNeg

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

Concordanceμηδέ · 57× in the New Testament
Matthew Luke 1 Corinthians Mark Romans 1 Peter 1 Timothy 1 John 2 Thessalonians Acts Colossians Ephesians
Across the New Testament18 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 70 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 Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 85c. AD 40

τὰς γοῦν πολυζῴους ἀγέλας προβάτων αἰγῶν βοῶν ἄγει ποιμὴν αἰπόλος βουκόλος, ἄνθρωποι μηδὲ τοῖς σώμασιν ἐρρωμένοι καὶ σφριγῶντες, ὡς ἕνεκα γοῦν εὐεξίας ἐμποιῆσαι τοῖς ἰδοῦσι κατάπληξιν·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.23c. AD 75–95

ὁ δʼ ἡμέτερος νομοθέτης ἀκραιφνῆ τὴν ἀρετὴν ἔχοντα τὸν θεὸν ἀποφήνας ᾠήθη δεῖν τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἐκείνης πειρᾶσθαι μεταλαμβάνειν καὶ τοὺς μὴ ταῦτα φρονοῦντας μηδὲ μὴν πιστεύοντας ἀπαραιτήτως ἐκόλασε.

Clement of RomeFirst Clement 3.4c. AD 96

διὰ τοῦτο πόρρω ἄπεστιν ἡ δικαιοσύνη καὶ εἰρήνη, ἐν τῷ ἀπολιπεῖν ἕκαστον τὸν φόβον τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ ἐν τῇ πίστει αὐτοῦ ἀμβλυωπῆσαι, μηδὲ ἐν τοῖς νομίμοις τῶν προσταγμάτων αὐτοῦ πορεύεσθαι, μηδὲ πολιτεύεσθαι κατὰ τὸ καθῆκον τῷ Χριστῷ, ἀλλὰ ἕκαστον…

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 1st c. AD 3rd c. AD 1st c. BC 2nd c. BC
P.Grenf. 2 30Pathyris103 BC

καὶ τῶν τούτου ἀδελφῶν τὰ τοῦ σημαινομένου χαλκοῦ τάλαντα β, καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσεσθαι Πετεαρσεμθεία μηδʼ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν παρʼ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὸν Πετεαρσεμθέα καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς μηδʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλον

BGU 6 1260Pathyris102 BC

λύτρα τῆς σημαινομένης ἀρούρης μιᾶς , καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσασθαι Νεχθανοῦπιν καὶ τοὺς τούτου υἱοὺς μηδʼ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν παρʼ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὸν Πετεαρσεμθεία μηδʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλον τινὰ τῶν παρʼ

P.Adl. 14Pathyris101 BC

εἰς τὸ ἐνλιπὸν μοι ἄπρατον γῆς ἀρουρῶν γ, καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσεσθαι μήτʼ αὐτὸν Κολλούθην μήδʼ ἄλλον μηδένα ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὸν Ὧρον μήδʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλον μηδένα τῶν παρʼ αὐτοῦ

Not you may handle Not you may taste Not you may touch!
θίγῃς·thinganō you may touch! G2345 Verb · second aorist · active · subjunctive · second person · singular
3× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
commoner in Colossians than anywhere else in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
To touch or handle something, like in Colossians 2:21, where it means to manipulate or have to do with. It can also mean to injure, as in Hebrews 11:28, where the Israelites were instructed not to touch Mount Sinai.
Amplified meaning
come into contact with, make physical contact, cling to
Tyndale gloss
to touch
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

θιγγάνω is a Greek verb meaning to touch or handle, often implying a physical interaction. It can also convey the sense of injuring or harming, as seen in Hebrews 11:28. The word has a range of uses in classical literature, from literal touching to metaphorical applications related to emotions and feelings. Notably, it is used in contexts that emphasize both physical and emotional connections.

Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament — θιγγάνω, ἅπτομαι, ψηλαφάω from a scan

AN accurate synonymous distinction will sometimes cause us at once to reject as untenable some interpretation of Scripture, which might, but for this, have won a certain amount of allowance. Thus, many interpreters have explained Heb. xii. 18: “ For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched” (ψηλαφωμένῳ ὄρει), by Ps. civ. 82: “ He towcheth the hills, and they smoke; ”’ and call in aid the fact that, at the giving of the Law, God came down upon mount Sinai, which ‘“‘ was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it” (Exod. xix. 18). But decisively forbidding this is the fact that ψηλαφάω never expresses the so handling of an object as to exercise a moulding, modifying influence upon it, but at most a feeling of its surface (Luke xxiv. 39: 1 John i. 1); this, it may be, with the intention of learning its composition (Gen. xxvii. 12, 21, 22); while not seldom it…

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

θιγγάνω,

[in LXX for נגע, Ex 19:12*;]

to touch, handle: Col 2:21, He 12:20(LXX).

to injure (like Heb. נגע, and as in Eur., Iph. Aul., 1351): c. gen., He 11:28.†

SYN.: v.s. ἅπτω.

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

θιγγάνω [prob. akin to τεῖχος, fingo, fiction, etc.; Curtius § 145]: 2 aor. ἔθιγον ; to touch, handle: μηδὲ θίγῃς touch not sc. impure things, Col. ii. 21 [ef. ἅπτω, 2 c.]; τινός, Heb. xii. 20 ([Aeschyl.], Xen., Plat., Tragg., al.) ; like the Hebr. 333, to do violence to, injure: τινός, Heb. xi. 28 (Eur. Iph. Aul. 1351; ὧν ai βλάβαι αὗται θιγγάνουσι, Act. Thom. § 12). [Sy¥N. see ἅπτω, 2 6

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

θιγγάνω. For this verb, which is classed as un-Attic by Rutherford NP, pp. 169f., 391, cf. P Oxy IX. 1185" (c. A.D. 200) ὀψαρίου μὴ θινγάνειν, ‘do not touch the sauce.’’ For the gen. constr., as in Heb 118, 1229, and LXX, cf. also Aristeas 106 ὅπως μηδενὸς θιγγάνωσιν ὧν οὐ δέον ἐστιν.

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

θιγγάνω (thinganō) — to touch.

θιγγάνω,

future προσ-θίξῃ probably to be read instead of -εις[Refs 5th c.BC+] future τεθίξομαι [Refs]: aorist 2 ἔθῐγον [Refs 7th c.BC+]; Laconian dialect infinitive σιγῆν [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—passive, aorist θιχθῆναι [Refs 2nd c.AD+]:—touch, handle: absolutely, μὴ θίγγανε [Refs 4th c.BC+]; χερσὶ or χερὶ θ. τινός, [Refs 7th c.BC+]; χερσὶ γλαυκᾶς ἐλαίας θιγοῦ[σ᾽ ὄζον] [Refs 2nd c.BC+]:—passive, to be touched, [Refs 4th c.BC+]

2. take hold of, τινος [Refs 5th c.BC+]; θ. ὠλέναισιν τέκνου embrace, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; θ. γυναικός have intercourse with.. , [Refs]; θ. εὐνῆς[Refs 5th c.BC+]; γλίχεται θιγεῖν καὶ συνεῖναι, of man's aspiration after God, [Refs 1st c.BC+]

Read the full entry →
Strong's Greek Dictionary

θιγγάνω

thiggano

a prolonged form of an obsolete primary thigo (to finger); to

manipulate, i.e. have to do with; by implication, to injure:--handle,

touch.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

θιγγάνω

v.

I touch, handle

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

θιγγάνω thinganō 3x

to touch, Col. 2:21; Heb. 12:20; to harm, Heb. 11:28*

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

θιγγάνω cf. Lat. te-tig-i lengthd. from Root ΘΙΓ. to touch, handle, c. gen., Trag.

to take hold of, τινός Soph., etc.; ὠλέναις θ. τινός to embrace, Eur.

to touch, attempt, λόγου γλώσσηι θ. Soph.:—in hostile sense, to attack, θηρός Eur.

metaph. of the feelings, to touch, id. Eur.; ψυχῆς, φρενῶν θ. id. Eur.; πολλὰ θιγγάνει πρὸς ἧπαρ reach to the heart, Aesch.

to reach, gain, win, τινός Pind., etc.:—Pind. uses it in this sense, as he does ψαύω, c. dat.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-2AAS-2S — Verb · second aorist · active · subjunctive · second person · singular
second aorist active subjunctive — a completed action, viewed as a whole.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-2AAS-2S Part of Speech: Verb Tense: second Aorist Voice: Active Mood: Subjunctive Person: second Number: Singular

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
33%you may touch!
you may touch!33% · 1×may touch33% · 1×shall touch33% · 1×

3 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 3 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 3 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
μηδέNeg
γεύομαιI taste, experie
πρωτότοκοςfirst-born
Article the
θηρίονa wild beast, animal
κἄνCond
θιγγάνωyou may touch!
what comes after →
αὐτός
Article the
ὄροςa mountain

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

Concordanceθιγγάνω · 3× in the New Testament
Hebrews Colossians
Across the New Testament2 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The company it keepswords that stand beside it more often than chance
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.

Everything we make is available for free because of a generous community of supporters.

Donate