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Colossians 2:8 — Word Study

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N1904Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

BSAdo take heedblepō lest anyonetis yousu there will beeimi whoho is taking captivesulagōgeō [takes advantage of, deceives, as spoil, leads you astray] throughdia <the>ho philosophyphilosophia [human wisdom, worldly reasoning] andkai emptykenos [vain, worthless] deceitapatē [false teachings, lies] according tokata theho traditionparadosis [customs, teachings] <the>ho of men,anthrōpos [man-made, earthly] according tokata theho principlesstoicheion [elemental principles, worldly powers] of theho worldkosmos [the earthly system, human society] andkai notou according tokata [in accordance with, following] Christ;Christos [the Anointed One, the Messiah]

Word
Listen & take awayColossians 2
English ↓ Download MP3 The Berean Standard Bible chapter audio already hosted for the site's Bible section — verse 8 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 (Christos) — no per-word recordings of the Greek exist to link to.
Take it away
Colossians 2:8quick helps
In a sentencePaul warns the Colossians to be vigilant against deceptive philosophies that mislead them away from Christ.
Who is speakingThe Apostle Paul, addressing the church in Colossae.
Where we areThis verse is part of a larger exhortation about remaining rooted in faith.
The hard wordσυλαγωγῶν
Take awayBe cautious of teachings that may lead you astray from the truth of Christ.
8 commentators on this verse Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them › clause subjectτὶς verbβλέπω The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
How rare are these words?in the New Testament

2 of 27 occur nowhere else in the New Testament — words chosen on purpose.

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 2:8

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 Deceptive Teachingsgenerated

7rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
8See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.
9For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form.
10And you have been made complete in Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

Colossians 2:8 cautions believers to be on guard against philosophies and empty deceptions that are rooted in human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world, rather than in Christ. Paul emphasizes the importance of being established in faith and not being misled by teachings that lack the truth of the Gospel, as he continues to elaborate on the fullness found in Christ in the following verses.


Cross References

ReferenceText (BSB)
1Deuteronomy 6:12be careful not to forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
2Matthew 7:15Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
3Matthew 10:17But beware of men; for they will hand you over to their councils and flog you in their synagogues.
4Matthew 16:6“Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
5Philippians 3:2Watch out for those dogs, those workers of evil, those mutilators of the flesh!

The Key Word συλαγωγῶν, sulagōgeōgenerated

The verb συλαγωγέω (*sulagogeo*) means to capture or take captive, often used metaphorically to describe leading someone away from the truth. It is a present active participle, indicating an ongoing action of being led astray.

This term is derived from σύλη (spoil) and ἄγω (to lead), emphasizing the act of leading someone away as if they were spoils of war. Paul uses this word to warn the Colossians against being misled by false teachings.


How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated

In the Berean Standard Bible, the phrase 'takes you captive' is consistent with other translations like the KJV and ASV, which use 'spoil you' and 'maketh spoil of you' respectively.

However, the WEB and YLT use 'rob you,' which carries a more direct connotation of theft, while the BBE phrases it as 'takes you away by force,' suggesting a different nuance in the interpretation of the action.


Sentence Structuregenerated

The main clause is governed by the imperative verb Βλέπετε, See to it, which commands vigilance. This is followed by a subordinate clause that describes the action of being taken captive, detailing the means of this deception.

The structure indicates a warning, with the subject 'anyone' being the potential deceiver, and the object 'you' being the recipients of this warning. The prepositional phrases elaborate on the nature of the deception and its origins.


Septuagint Backgroundgenerated

The word φιλοσοφία appears in the Septuagint but is not directly associated with a specific Hebrew term in the Old Testament. Its use in Proverbs 1:7 emphasizes the contrast between true wisdom and human folly.

The term παράδοσις also has roots in the LXX, where it refers to teachings or customs passed down, highlighting the importance of adhering to divine instruction rather than human tradition.


In plain words — the whole versegenerated

Colossians 2:8 warns believers to be careful not to be misled by philosophies and empty deceptions that come from human traditions and worldly influences instead of the truth found in Christ. Paul emphasizes the need to stay grounded in faith and aware of teachings that may lead them astray.


Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated

What does it mean to be taken captive by philosophy?

Being taken captive by philosophy refers to being misled by ideas that seem wise but ultimately divert one from the truth of Christ.

Why is Paul warning against human traditions?

Paul warns against human traditions because they can lead to empty beliefs that do not align with the teachings of Christ.

How can I recognize empty deception?

Recognizing empty deception involves comparing teachings against the truth of Scripture and being discerning about their origins.

What is the significance of being rooted in Christ?

Being rooted in Christ signifies a strong foundation in faith, which helps believers to withstand false teachings and remain true to the Gospel.


Reflection Questionsgenerated

  1. What are some philosophies or teachings I encounter today that may distract me from my faith in Christ?
  2. How can I ensure that I am grounded in the truth of Scripture?
  3. In what ways can I help others who may be misled by empty deceptions?
  4. Why is it important to be aware of human traditions in relation to my faith?

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

Early church leaders like Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian reference this verse to warn against the dangers of philosophy and false teachings, emphasizing the need for vigilance in faith.

Clement of AlexandriaThe Stromata Book 1 c. 150–215
And again, "Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ; ".
Early Church Fathers on Colossians 2 →
TertullianA Treatise on the Soul c. 155–220
The apostle, so far back as his own time, foresaw, indeed, that philosophy would do violent injury to the truth. This admonition about false philosophy he was induced to offer after he had been at Athens,
Early Church Fathers on Colossians 2 →
TertullianThe Prescription Against Heretics c. 155–220
Writing to the Colossians, he says, "See that no one beguile you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, and contrary to the wisdom of the Holy Ghost." He had been at Athens,
Early Church Fathers on Colossians 2 →

Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse

Each of these wrote on Colossians 2:8 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.

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

Beware lest any man spoil you,.... Or despoil you; rob you of the rich treasure of the Gospel, strip you of your spiritual armour, take away from you the truths and doctrines of Christ, and divest

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

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

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

Beware: the apostle, after his exhortation, considering their danger from seducing spirits lying in wait to deceive by their sleight and craftiness, ,2, doth here reinforce and enlarge his caution he had before suggested, , to engage to a heedful avoidance of all seduction from Christ. Lest any man spoil you; lest their souls should be made a prey, and they be carried for a spoil by those worst of robbers that beset Christ’ s fold, . Through philosophy; either through the abuse of true philosophy in bringing the mystery of Christ under the tribunal of shallow reason, or rather through erroneous, though curious, speculations of some philosophers, as Plato, Pythagoras, Hesiod, &c. then in…

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

8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Ver. 8. Lest any man spoil you] A metaphor either from sheep stealers or plunderers, συλαγωγων. Seducers plunder men of their precious souls. They take them prisoners, 2 Timothy 3:6. They make merchandise of them, 2 Peter 2:3; or bring them into bondage, smiting them on the face, 2 Corinthians 11:20. Constantius the emperor suspecting Julian’ s proneness to paganism, sent him to be carefully grounded in Christianity to Nicomedia; but he frequented by stealth the company of Libanus and Jamblichus the philosophers, who warped him fully to…

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

(8-15) The general exhortation of the previous verses is now emphasised by a solemn warning against deadly speculative error. Now, (1) the character of that error in itself is described with apparently intentional vagueness, as “a philosophy of vain deceit,” “after tradition of men,” after “the rudiments of this world.” Even its Judaic origin, which is made clear below (Colossians 2:16-17), is here only hinted at in the significant allusion to Circumcision, and perhaps in the phrase “the rudiments of the world,” which is also used of the Judaism of Galatia (Galatians 4:3; Galatians 4:9). (2) What is brought out vividly and emphatically is the truth which it contradicts or obscures. First…

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

Verse 8. Beware lest any man spoil you] The word συλαγωγων, from συλη, prey, and αγειν, to lead or carry away, signifies to rob, or spoil of their goods, as if by violence or rapine. Their goods were the salvation they had received from Christ; and both the Gentile and Jewish teachers endeavoured to deprive them of these, by perverting their minds, and leading them off from the truths of Christianity. Philosophy and vain deceit] Or, the vain or empty deceit of philosophy; such philosophizing as the Jewish and Gentile teachers used. As the term philosophy stood in high repute among the Gentiles, the Jews of this time affected it; and both Philo and Josephus use the word to express the whole…

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

8–15. Warning against alien teachings: Christ is all for peace and life8. Beware &c.] Quite lit., “See lest any one shall be your spoiler”; the positive and imminent risk being indicated by the future tense (“shall be”), quite anomalous in such constructions.any man] “This indefinite [expression] is frequently used by St Paul, when speaking of opponents whom he knows well enough but does not care to name” (Lightfoot). Cp. Romans 3:8; 1 Corinthians 11:16; 1 Corinthians 14:37; 1 Corinthians 15:12; 2 Corinthians 3:1; 2 Corinthians 10:2; 2 Corinthians 10:12; 2 Corinthians 11:20-21; Galatians 1:7; Galatians 1:9; above, Colossians 2:4, below Colossians 2:16; 2 Thessalonians 2:3; 2 Thessalonians…

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

Beware lest any man spoil you - The word “spoil” now commonly means, to corrupt, to cause to decay and perish, as fruit is spoiled by keeping too long, or paper by wetting, or hay by a long rain, or crops by mildew.

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

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.

WEBWorld English Bible2000

Be careful that you don’t let anyone rob you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the elemental spirits of the world, and not after Christ.

MSBMajority Standard Bible2022

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.

NETBNew English Translation2006

Be careful not to allow anyone to captivate you through an empty, deceitful philosophy that is according to human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

Tyndale line

KJVKing James Version1611

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

ASVAmerican Standard Version1901

Take heed lest there shall be any one that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ:

RVARevised Version, American1894

Take heed lest there shall be any one that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ:

NWBWebster's Bible1833

Beware lest any man make a prey of you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

GNVGeneva Bible1599

Beware lest there be any man that spoile you through philosophie, and vaine deceit, through the traditions of men, according to the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Strictly literal

DBYDarby Translation1890

See that there be no one who shall lead you away as a prey through philosophy and vain deceit, according to the teaching of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ.

YLTYoung's Literal Translation1862

See that no one shall be carrying you away as spoil through the philosophy and vain deceit, according to the deliverance of men, according to the rudiments of the world, and not according to Christ,

LSVLiteral Standard Version2020

See that no one will be carrying you away as spoil through philosophy and vain deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the rudiments of the world, and not according to Christ,

ULBUnlocked Literal Bible2017

See that no one captures you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, conforming to the elements of the world, and not conforming to Christ.

From the Latin

DRADouay-Rheims (Challoner)1899

Beware lest any man cheat you by philosophy, and vain deceit; according to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ:

Simplified

FBVFree Bible Version2020

Watch out that nobody enslaves you through their philosophy and worthless delusions, following human traditions and concepts of this world, and not following Christ.

BBEBible in Basic English1949

Take care that no one takes you away by force, through man's wisdom and deceit, going after the beliefs of men and the theories of the world, and not after Christ:

Word by word, the decisions they made

ἔσταιeimi there will be G1510 2 different renderings
areBSB MSB
will beLSV
κενῆςkenos empty G2756 3 different renderings
vainASV DBY DRA KJV LSV NWB RVA WEB YLT
emptyBSB MSB NETB ULB
worthlessFBV
παράδοσινparadosis tradition G3862 2 different renderings
traditionASV BSB DRA KJV LSV MSB NWB RVA ULB WEB
traditionsFBV GNV NETB

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.

clauseclauseverbΒλέπετεTake heedclauseμήlestclausesubjectτιςanyonelinking verbἔσταιthere will benoun phrase · predicate-clauseverbσυλαγωγῶνtaking captiveobjectὑμᾶςyouprepositional phrase · adverbialδιὰthroughnoun phraseτῆς-noun phraseφιλοσοφίαςphilosophyκαὶandnoun phraseκενῆςemptyἀπάτηςdeceitprepositional phrase · adverbialprepositional phraseκατὰaccording tonoun phraseτὴνthenoun phraseπαράδοσινtraditionnoun phraseτῶν-ἀνθρώπωνof menprepositional phraseκατὰaccording tonoun phraseτὰthenoun phraseστοιχεῖαprinciplesnoun phraseτοῦof theκόσμουworldκαὶandprepositional phraseοὐnotprepositional phraseκατὰaccording toΧριστόνChristclauseὅτιForclauseclauseprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinαὐτῷHimverbκατοικεῖdwellsnoun phrase · subjectπᾶνallnoun phraseτὸthenoun phraseπλήρωμαfullnessnoun phraseτῆςof theΘεότητοςDeityadverbialσωματικῶςbodilyκαὶandclauseverb phrase · verbἐστὲyou areπεπληρωμένοιcompleteprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinnoun phrasenoun phraseαὐτῷHimclausesubjectὅςwholinking verbἐστινisnoun phrase · predicatethenoun phraseκεφαλὴheadnoun phraseπάσηςof allnoun phraseἀρχῆςruleκαὶandἐξουσίαςauthorityclauseprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinwhomadverbialκαὶalsoverbπεριετμήθητεyou were circumcisednoun phrase · adverbialπεριτομῇwith [the] circumcisionἀχειροποιήτῳmade without handsprepositional phrase · adverbialprepositional phraseἐνinnoun phraseτῇthenoun phraseἀπεκδύσειremovalnoun phraseτοῦof thenoun phraseσώματοςbodynoun phraseτῆςof theσαρκόςfleshprepositional phraseἐνinnoun phraseτῇthenoun phraseπεριτομῇcircumcisionnoun phraseτοῦ-Χριστοῦof Christclause · adverbialverbσυνταφέντεςhaving been buried withadverbialαὐτῷHimprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinnoun phrasenoun phraseτῷ-βαπτίσματιbaptismclauseprepositional phrase · adverbialἐνinwhichadverbialκαὶalsoverbσυνηγέρθητεyou were raised with [Him]prepositional phrase · adverbialδιὰthroughnoun phraseτῆςthenoun phraseπίστεωςfaithnoun phraseτῆςof thenoun phraseἐνεργείαςworkingnoun phrasenoun phraseτοῦ-Θεοῦof Godnoun phraseτοῦthe [One]clauseverbἐγείραντοςhaving raisedobjectαὐτὸνHimprepositional phrase · adverbialἐκout fromνεκρῶνthe dead

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

Videte ne quis vos decipiat per philosophiam, et inanem fallaciam secundum traditionem hominum, secundum elementa mundi, et non secundum Christum :

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

ܐܙܕܗܪܘ ܕܠܡܐ ܐܢܫ ܢܚܠܨܟܘܢ ܒܦܝܠܣܦܘܬܐ ܘܒܛܥܝܘܬܐ ܣܪܝܩܬܐ ܐܝܟ ܝܘܠܦܢܐ ܕܒܢܝܢܫܐ ܘܐܝܟ ܐܣܛܘܟܣܘܗܝ ܕܥܠܡܐ ܘܠܐ ܐܝܟ ܡܫܝܚܐ

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

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

The standard critical text of the New Testament.

Nestle-Aland 27th edition1993 · Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

The previous edition, still widely cited.

SBL Greek New Testament2010 · Michael Holmes

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

The Society of Biblical Literature edition, freely licensed.

Westcott–Hort1881 · Westcott and Hort

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

The edition that turned scholarship toward the earliest manuscripts.

Tregelles1857–1879 · Samuel Prideaux Tregelles

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

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

Tyndale House Greek NT2017 · Tyndale House, Cambridge

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

A recent critical edition following documentary evidence closely.

Byzantine majority text2018 · Robinson–Pierpont

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

The reading of the majority of surviving manuscripts.

Textus Receptus1550/1894 lineage

Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·

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 2:8βλέπωdo take heedo take heedβλέπωμήlestlestμήτὶςanyoneanyoneτὶςσύyouyouσύεἰμίthere will there will beεἰμίwhowhoσυλαγωγέωis taking cis taking captiσυλαγωγέωδιάthroughthroughδιά<the><the>φιλοσοφίαphilosophyphilosophyφιλοσοφίακαίandandκαίκενόςemptyemptyκενόςἀπάτηdeceitdeceitἀπάτηκατάaccording taccording toκατάthetheπαράδοσιςtraditiontraditionπαράδοσις<the><the>ἄνθρωποςof men,of men,ἄνθρωποςκατάaccording taccording toκατάthetheστοιχεῖονprinciplesprinciplesστοιχεῖονof theof theκόσμοςworldworldκόσμοςκαίandandκαίοὐnotnotοὐκατάaccording taccording toκατάΧριστόςChrist;Christ;Χριστόςὀπτάνομαιv. I appeav. I appear, amὀπτάνομαιφιλόσοφοςn.m. a phin.m. a philosopφιλόσοφοςἀπατάωv. I deceiv. I deceive, lἀπατάωπαραδίδωμιv. I hand v. I hand over,παραδίδωμιχρίωv. I anoinv. I anointχρίωοὐNeg.prt. nNeg.prt. no, noοὐσυλάωv. I rob, v. I rob, plundσυλάωἄγωv. I leadv. I leadἄγωἀνήρn.m. a maln.m. a male humἀνήρστοιχέωv. I walkv. I walkστοιχέωκομίζωv. I bringv. I bring, recκομίζωμήNeg.prt. nNeg.prt. not, lμήὄναρn.indcl. an.indcl. a dreaὄναρτάξιςn.f. ordern.f. order, posτάξιςσυνίημιv. I consiv. I consider, συνίημιπότεIrg.prt. wIrg.prt. when, πότεφοβέωv. I fear,v. I fear, am tφοβέωτολμάωv. I dare,v. I dare, enduτολμάω
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 2:8

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.

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
Βλέπετεblepō do take heed G991 Verb · present · active · imperative · second person · plural
133× 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 see means to look at or perceive something, whether physically or mentally, as described in Matthew 12:22 and John 9:7. It involves using one's senses to understand or become aware of something, often with the intention of gaining insight or knowledge.
Tyndale gloss
to see
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word βλέπω (i.e., *blepo*) primarily means 'to see' or 'to look at,' encompassing both physical sight and metaphorical perception. It appears in various contexts in the New Testament, such as in Matthew 12:22 and Acts 9:9, where it denotes both literal and figurative understanding. The word can also imply caution or attention, as seen in references to 'bewaring' in Mark 8:15. No significant disagreements among lexicons were noted.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

βλέπω,

[in LXX chiefly for ראה, also for פּנה, etc. ;]

of bodily sight;

to see, have sight (opp. to τυφλὸς εἶναι): Mt 12:22, Jo 9:7, Ac 9:9, Ro 11:8, Re 3:18, al.;

to perceive, look (at), see: absol., Ac 1:9; c. acc., Mt 7:3, Mk 5:31, Lk 6:41, Jo 1:29, al.; ὅραμα, Ac 12:9; γυναῖκα, Mt 5:28; βιβλίον,

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

βλέπω ; [impf. ἔβλεπον] ; fut. βλέψω ; 1 aor. ἔβλεψα ; [pres. pass. βλέπομαι]; Sept. for ANI, 739, Tin, wan; in Grk. writ. fr. Aeschyl. down; to see, discern; al with the bodily eye; a. to be possessed of sight, have the power of seeing, opp. to τυφλός : Mt. xii. 22: xiii. 16; xy. 31; Jn. ix. 7, 15,19, 25; Acts ix. 9; Ro. xi. 8, 10; Rev. iii. 18, ete. (Soph. Oed. Col. 73; Arstph. Plut. 15; Xen. mem. 1, 3,4; Ael. v. h. 6, 12, ete. Ex. iv. 11; xxiii. 8, ete. Tob. xi. 15). τὸ βλέπειν sight, the power of seeing, Lk. vii. 21 (GL TTrWHom. τό). b. to perceive by the use of the eyes, to see, look, descry; a. absol.: βλεπόντων αὐτῶν while they were looking, Acts i. 9; [xxii 11 Trmrg. WH mrg.]; ἔρχου καὶ βλέπε, Rec. in Rev. vi. 1, 3, 5, 7. β. with ace. of pers. or thing: Mt. vii. 3; xi. 4; xxiv. 2; Mk. v. 31; viii. 23sq.; xiii. 2; Lk. vi. 41; xxiv. 12[T om. L Tr br. WH reject the vs.]; Jn.i. 29…

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

βλέπω. The papyri have added a perfect to the paradigm of this verb: it proves to have been βέβλοφα (P Lond 422!—R.c., 168) (=Witkowski?, p. 63) (see under ἐμβλέπω). It is hard to believe that a form so correct historically, and so distant from any obvious analogy, can be anything but a genuine survival, even if it does meet us only ἴῃ ἃ woman’s letter from Ptolemaic Egypt. If this inference is justifiable, the word has a moral for the argument from silence. Βλέπω has primarily the physical sense, as distinguished from ὁρῶ (cf. our cognate ware): this is well seen in ἀναβλέπω = recover sight. Usage bears this out. Thus P Par 445 (B.c. 153) (= Witkowski?, p. 83) has βλέπω Μενέδημον κατατρέχοντά pe coming after ἐγὼ yap ἐνύπνια ὁρῶ πονηρά. Soin P Hal I. 85 (B.C. 232) a man is incapacitated—8.a τὸ μὴ βλέπειν τὰς νύκτας, and in P Oxy I. 399 (a.p. 52) ὀλίγον βλέπων = ** shortsighted.” An…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

βλέπω (blepō) — to see.

βλέπω,

[Refs 6th c.BC+]: imperfect ἔβλεπον [Refs]: future βλέψομαι [Refs 4th c.BC+], Doric dialect infinitive βλεψεῖσθαι [LXX+2nd c.AD+]aorist ἔβλεψα (see. below): perfect βέβλεφα (ἀπο-) [Refs 5th c.AD+]; βέβλοφα (ἐμ-) [Refs 2nd c.AD+] —passive, aorist ἐβλέφθην (προσ-) [Refs 1st c.AD+]perfect βέβλεμμαι to be supplied in [Refs 2nd c.AD+] —chiefly in present and aorist active in early writers: middle (except future) and passive only late:—see, have the power of sight (distinct from ὁρῶ perceive, be aware of,[Refs 5th c.BC+]; μὴ βλέπων ὁ μάντις ᾖ lest he see too clearly, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ὁ βλέπων the seer, Hebraism in [LXX]; ὀλίγον βλέπων short- sighted, [Refs 1st c.AD+]

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

βλέπω

blepo

a primary verb; to look at (literally or figuratively):--behold,

beware, lie, look (on, to), perceive, regard, see, sight, take heed.

Compare 3700.

see GREEK for 3700

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

βλέπω

v.

I look, see

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

βλέπω blepō 133x

to have the faculty of sight, to see, Mt. 12:22; to exercise sight, to see, Mt. 6:4; to look towards or at, Mt. 22:16; to face, Acts 27:12; to take heed, Mt. 24:4; in NT, βλέπειν ἀπό, to beware of, shun, Mk. 8:15; trans., to cast a look on, Mt. 5:28; to see, behold, Mt. 13:17; to observe, Mt. 7:3; to have an eye to, see to, Mk.…

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Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

βλέπω to see, have the power of sight, Soph.; μὴ βλέπηι ὁ μάντις lest he see too clearly, id. Soph.

to look, εἴς τινα or τι, Aesch., etc.; πῶς βλέπων; with what face? Soph.;—with an adv., ἐχθρῶς βλ. πρός τινα Xen.:—foll. by a noun, φόβον βλ. to look terror, i. e. to look terrible, Aesch.; ἔβλεψε νᾶπυ looked mustard, Ar.; πυρρίχην βλέπων looking like a war-dancer, id. Ar.; πεφροντικὸς βλέπειν to look thoughtful, Eur.

to look to some one from whom help is expected, Soph.; εἴς τινα id. Soph., etc.:— of places, οἰκία πρὸς μεσημβρίαν βλέπουσα looking towards the south, Xen.

to look longingly, expect eagerly, c. inf., Ar.

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-PAM-2P — Verb · present · active · imperative · second person · plural
present active imperative — an action in progress.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

V-PAM-2P Part of Speech: Verb Tense: Present Voice: Active Mood: iMperative Person: second Number: Plural

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

hed: This word, in the sense of giving careful attention ("take heed," "give heed," etc.), represents several Hebrew and Greek words; chief among them shamar, "to watch"; blepo, "to look," horao, "to see." As opposed to thoughtlessness, disregard of God's words, of the counsels of wisdom, of care for one's ways, it is constantly inculcated as a duty of supreme importance in the moral and spiritual life (De 4:9,15,23; 27:9 the King James Version, etc.; Jos 22:5; 23:11; Ps 39:1; Mt 16:6; Mr 4:24; 13:33; Lu 12:15; 1Co…

Across the New Testament16 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 68 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
The Shepherd of Hermas Josephus Philo of Alexandria The Epistle of Barnabas Clement of Rome
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 53c. AD 40

βλέπει γὰρ ἑκάτερος, ὁ μὲν τὰ νοητά, ὁ δὲ τὰ αἰσθητά·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.35c. AD 75–95

βλέπων δὲ τὸν Ἄδαμον οὐκ ἔχοντα κοινωνίαν πρὸς τὸ θῆλυ καὶ συνδιαίτησιν, οὐδὲ γὰρ ἦν, ξενιζόμενον δʼ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ζῴοις οὕτως ἔχουσι, μίαν αὐτοῦ κοιμωμένου πλευρὰν ἐξελὼν ἐξ αὐτῆς ἔπλασε γυναῖκα.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.3c. AD 100

ὅτι ἀληθῶς βλέπω ἐν ὑμῖν ἐκκεχυμένον ἀπὸ τοῦ πλουσίου τῆς πηγῆς κυρίου πνεῦμα ἐφ̓ ὑμᾶς.

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 6th c. AD 4th c. AD
P.Oxy. 2 259OxyrhynchosAD 23

με … ἕως ἑαυτὸν αὐτὸν vestiges ποιήσω, εἰ δὲ μὴ ἐμβέβηκεν. ἔρρωσο. βλέπε με πῶς ἡ μήτηρ ἡμῶν ἔσφαξε χάριν τοῦ χειρογράφου … ω … αφ

P.Oxy. 2 317 descr.AlexandriaAD 52

Σεβαστῆι. ἀπελύθη ὑπὸ Γναίου Οὐεργιλλίου Καπίτωνος τοῦ ἡγεμόνος ἀμφοτέρων Τρύφων Διονυσίου γέρδιος, ὑποκεχυμένος ὀλίγον βλέπων, τῶν ἀπʼ Ὀξυρύγχων τῆς μητροπόλεως. ἐπεκρίθη ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ. ἐπεκρίθη ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ. ἐπικέκριται ἐν…

ἐὰν δὲ μὴ μέλλῃς ἔρχεσθαι, πάλιν μοι ἐξαυτῆς φάσιν πέμψον, ἵνα ὧδε αὐτὰ ἀναβάλω. βλέπε οὖν, μὴ ἄλλως ποιήσῃς. ἔρρωσο. ἔτους β Σερουίου Γάλβα Αὐτοκράτορος Καίσαρος Σεβαστοῦ, Φαῶφι θ.

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
μή lest 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,

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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.…

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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, ‘‘…

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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+]

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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
μήlest1060×
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.

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
τιςtis anyone G5100 Indefinite pronoun · nominative · singular · masculine
529× 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
This pronoun refers to a person or thing in a general sense, as seen in Luke 9:49 and John 11:1. It can mean someone, anyone, or anything. This term is often used to describe an unspecified individual or object.
Tyndale gloss
one
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

τὶς is an enclitic indefinite pronoun meaning 'someone' or 'something.' It can refer to a certain person or object and appears in both singular and plural forms, such as τινός and τινες. The New Testament uses it in various contexts, including Luke 9:49 and Acts 5:25. It is related to the interrogative pronoun τίς, indicating its flexible use in questions and statements.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

τις, neut., τι, gen., τινός,

enclitic indefinite pron., related to interrog. τίς as πού, πως, ποτέ to ποῦ, πῶς, πότε.

As subst.,

one, a certain one: Lk 9:49, Jo 11:1, Ac 5:25, al.; pl., τίνες, certain, some: Lk 13:1, Ac 15:1, Ro 3:8, al.

someone, anyone, something, anything: Mt 12:29, Mk 9:30, Lk 8:46, Jo 2:25, Ac 17:25, Ro…

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

τὶς, τὶ. ἘΣ what follows, εἰ καί lays less emphasis upon it; although it is evident that εἰ καί can often be substituted for καὶ ei.” Cf. Herm. Vig. p. 829 sq.; W. 444 (413); Ellic. on Phil. ii. 17; Schmalfeld, Griech. Syntax, § 41; Paley, Grk. Particles, p. 31]. 8. εἰ μή, a. in a conditional protasis, with the same sequence of moods and tenses as the simple εἰ, see 1. above, if not, unless, except, [W. 477 (444) sqq.; B. 345 (297)]: Mt. xxiv. 22; Jn. ix. 33; | xv. 22, 24; Ro. vii. 7, ete. b. it serves, with the entire. following sentence, to limit or correct what has just been said, only, save that, (Lat. nisi quod), [B. 359 (308) ]: Mk. vi. 5; 1 Co. vii. 17 (where Paul by the addition εἰ μὴ ἑκάστῳ κτλ. strives to prevent any one in applying what had been said a little while before, viz. οὐ δεδούλωται . . ἐν τοιούτοις to his own case, from going too far) ; in ironical answers, unless…

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

τις (indef. pron.), ‘* someone, something’’: P Vat ΑἸ (B.c. 168) (= UPZi. p. 303) πᾶς τις πειρᾶται. . ., P Lond 421° (B.C. 168) (= Selections, p. 10) εἰς πᾶν τι ἐληλυθυῖα διὰ, τὴν τοῦ σίτου τιμήν, ‘having come to the last extremity because of the high price of corn,’’ P Oxy IV. 7421° (B.c. 2) ἐάν τι δύνῃ... δὸς ἐργασίαν, “if you can, give your attention to it’’ (Edd.), 2d. I. 120% (iv/a.D.) τινα ὁρῶντα αἱαυτὸν (/. ἑαυτὸν) ἐν δυστυχίᾳ, ““α man finding himself in adversity,’ 13 ἀποστῖλόν pot τινα ἢ Γοῦνθον ἢ ᾿Αμμώνιον, “send someone to me, either Gunthus or Ammonius” (Edd.). P Oxy VI. 937°" (ili/A.D.) γ]ράψον ἐκεῖ TO kat’ εἶδος ὅτι τι kal τι εἴληφας is translated by the editors ‘* write the list there, that you have received so and so.” They 3) ες remark that it is simpler to take τι καί τι as analogous to τὸ καὶ τό than ‘‘to take τί kal τί as an indirect interrogative, ὅτι being…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

τις (tis) — one.

τις,

τι, Indef. pronoun any one, any thing, enclitic through all cases (for exceptions see below):—but τί; τί; Interrog. pronoun who? what?, oxytone in the monosyllable cases, paroxytone in the others:—Dialectal forms: [Refs 5th c.AD+] σις (si se) [Refs 4th c.AD+] σις (with ?? for σ) [Refs 5th c.BC+]; Thess. κις [Refs], neuter κι in διεκί, ποκκί (which see); neuter plural Doric dialect σά, Boeotian dialect τά, Aeolic dialect dative τίω, τίοισι (see. infr. B). (I.-[Refs 5th c.BC+] q[uglide]i-, cf. Latin quis, quid, etc.; for σά, τά, see at {ἄσσα}, σά μά; with τέο (see. infr. B) cf. OSlav. genitive česo)

__A Indef. pronoun τις, τι, genitive Ionic dialect τεο [Refs 8th c.BC+]; more frequently τευ [Refs 8th c.BC+]; Trag. and Attic dialect του [Refs 5th c.BC+]; του is rare after [NT+4th…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

τὶς

tis

an enclitic indefinite pronoun; some or any person or object:--a (kind

of), any (man, thing, thing at all), certain (thing), divers, he

(every) man, one (X thing), ought, + partly, some (man, -body, -

thing, -what), (+ that no-)thing, what(-soever), X wherewith,

whom(-soever), whose(-soever).

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

τις, τι

Indef.pr.

any one, some one

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

τις tis 534x

enclitic, indefinite pronoun, a certain one, someone, Mt. 12:47; pl. some, certain, several, Lk. 8:2; Acts 9:19; 2 Pet. 3:16; one, a person, Mt. 12:29; Lk. 14:8; Jn. 6:50; combined with the name of an individual, one, Mk. 15:21; as it were in a manner, a kind of, Heb. 10:27; Jas. 1:18; any whatever, Read the full entry →

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

X-NSM Part of Speech: indefinite pronoun Case: Nominative Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
27%anyone
anyone27% · 144×some19% · 102×certain17% · 93×anything9% · 48×any9% · 47×one6% · 34×someone4% · 19×something3% · 18×other renderings7% · 37×

542 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 35 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
subject66%object20%adverbial9%predicate3%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 530 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
εἰCond
καίand, even, also,αὐτόςὅτιthat, since, bec
δέbut, on the other ha
εἰCondεἰμίI am, existλέγωI say, speak
ἐάνCond
καίand, even, also,λέγωI say, speakἐγώ
μήNeg
ἵναin order that, sἐάνCondβλέπωI look, see
καίand, even, also, nam
αὐτόςΦαρισαῖοςa Phariseeὁδόςa way, road, jou
τὶςanyone529×
what comes after →
Article the
γραμματεύςa scribe, town-cμαθητήςa learner, disciἀπό
σύ
λέγωI say, speakπλανάωI lead astray, dἐρωτάωI ask, question,
αὐτός
ἐκὁράωI see, look uponἀπό
ἐκ
αὐτόςArticle theἐγώ
εἰμίI am, exist
ἐνπλούσιοςrichὑδρωπικόςafflicted with d

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

Concordanceτὶς · 529× in the New Testament
Acts Luke John 1 Corinthians Mark 2 Corinthians Hebrews Matthew 1 Timothy Romans James Revelation

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

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

Counted over the 121 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 Josephus The Shepherd of Hermas Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 4c. AD 40

καὶ γὰρ λόγον καὶ ἀκοὴν ὑπερβάλλει μείζω καὶ σεμνότερα ὄντα ἢ ὡς θνητοῦ τινος ὀργάνοις ἐναρμοσθῆναι.

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

ὅτι λιμοῦ τὴν Χαναναίαν καταλαβόντος εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἀπῆρε καὶ διατρίψας ἐν αὐτῇ τινα χρόνον ὑπέστρεψεν ὀπίσω.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 2.5c. AD 100

πλήρης εἰμὶ ὁλοκαυτωμάτων, καὶ στέαρ ἀρνῶν καὶ αἷμα ταύρων καὶ τράγων οὐ βούλομαι, οὐδ̓ ἂν ἔρχησθε ὀφθῆναί μοι, τίς γὰρ ἐξεζήτησεν ταῦτα ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ὑμῶν;

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. BC 3rd c. AD 4th c. AD 6th c. AD

ἂν ὦσι γείτονες πάντοθεν· μὴ ἐξέστω δὲ τῷ καθόλου ἐπὶ τὴν διαθήκην ταύτην ἄλλῳ τινὶ ἐπέρχεσθαι, εἰ δὲ μὴ ἄκυρον ἔστω καὶ προσαποτεισάτω ὁ ἐπιφέρων ὕστερον … ἄλλον τῆς

P.Cair. Cat. 10364 descr.Pathyris126 BC–102 BC

προγεγραμμένου ἵππου, καὶ μὴ ἐπελεύσεσθαί σοι ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ. ἐὰν δὲ ἐπέλθωμεν ἢ ἄλλος τις ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἥ τʼ ἔφοδος ἄκυρος ἔσται καὶ προσαποτείσομέν σοι χαλκοῦ τάλαντα πέντε.

BGU 6 1260Pathyris102 BC

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 αὐτοῦ περὶ

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
ὑμᾶςsu you G4771 Personal pronoun · second person · accusative · plural
2,892× 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 Greek word means 'you' and is used to address someone directly, like in John 1:30 and Matthew 26:64. It's a way to emphasize or contrast the person being spoken to. The KJV Bible translates it as 'thou'.
Tyndale gloss
you
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

σύ is the second-person singular pronoun meaning 'you' in Greek. It has various forms: genitive σοῦ, dative σοί, and accusative σέ. The word can be used for emphasis or contrast, particularly in the New Testament, as seen in verses like Matthew 26:64. It also appears in various dialects and has enclitic forms.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

σύ,

pron. of 2nd pers.,

thou, you, gen., σοῦ, dat., σοί, acc., σέ, pl., ὑμεῖς, -ῶν, -ῖν, -ᾶς (enclitic in oblique cases sing., except after prep. (BL, §48, 3), though πρὸς σέ occurs in Mt 25:39). Nom. for emphasis or contrast: Jo 1:30, 42 4:10 5:33, 39, 44, Ac 4:7, Eph 5:32; so also perhaps σὺ εἶπας, Mt 26:64, al. (M, Pr., 86); before voc., Mt 2:6, Lk 1:76, Jo 17:5, al.; sometimes without emphasis (M, Pr., 85f.), as also

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

σύ, pron. of the second pers. (Dor. and Aeol. τύ, Boeot. Tov), gen. σοῦ, dat. σοί, ace. σέ (which oblique cases are enclitic, unless a preposition precede; yet πρός σε is written [uniformly in Ree. (exe. Mt. xxvi. 18), in Grsb. (exe. Jn. xxi. 22, 23), in Treg. (exc. Mt. xxvi. 18; Acts xxiii. 30), in Lchm. (exe. Mt. xxvi.18; Jn. xvii. 11, 13; xxi. 22, 23; Acts xxiii. 30), in Tdf. (exe. Mt. xxvi. 18; Lk. i. 19; Jn. xvii. 11, 13; Jn. xxi. 22; Acts xxiii. 18, 30; 1 Tim. iii. 14; Tit. iii. 12); also by WH in Mt. xxv. 39], see ἐγώ, 2; Lipsius, Grammat. Untersuch. p. 62 sq. [W. §6, 3; B. 31 (27)]); plur. ὑμεῖς, εἴς. : Lat. tu, ete., vos, ete.; thou, ete., ye,ete. The nominatives ov and ὑμεῖς are expressed for emphasis — before a vocative, as σὺ Βηθλεέμ, Mt. ii. 6; σὺ παιδίον (Leian. dial. deor. 2, 1), Lk. i. 76; add, Jn. xvii. 5; Acts i. 24; 1 Tim. vi. 11, etc.; ὑμεῖς of Φαρισαῖοι, Lk. xi. 39…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

σύ (su) — you.

σύ [ῠ],

thou: pronoun of the second person:—Epic dialect nominative τύνη [ῡ] [Refs 8th c.BC+] (Laconian dialect τούνη [Refs 5th c.AD+]; Aeolic dialect σύ [Refs 7th c.BC+]; Doric dialect τύ [ῠ] [Refs 5th c.BC+]; Boeotian dialect τού [short syllable] [Refs 6th c.BC+] (also τούν [Refs]σύ, [Refs 8th c.BC+]—Gen. σοῦ, [Refs], elsewhere only Attic dialect, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; enclitic σου, [Refs 8th c.BC+] (also in Lyric poetry, [Refs 8th c.BC+] (which also occurs in Lyric poetry, [Refs 7th c.BC+], and as enclitic σευ, [Refs 8th c.BC+], σεο (enclitic) [Refs] σευ (enclitic) [Refs]:—Doric dialect τεῦ, τευ, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]; rarely τέο, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; Boeotian dialect τεῦς [Refs 6th c.BC+]; Doric dialect τεοῦς [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τοι variant in [Refs]; enclitic τεος [Refs 5th c.BC+]; other Doric dialect forms are τίω, τίως, both [Refs 3rd c.BC+]—Dat. σοί, [Refs 8th c.BC+]…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

σύ

su

the person pronoun of the second person singular; thou:-- thou. See

also 4571, 4671, 4675; and for the plural 5209, 5210, 5213, 5216.

see GREEK for 4675

see GREEK for 4571

see GREEK for 4671

see GREEK for 5209

see GREEK for 5210

see GREEK for 5213

see GREEK for 5216

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

σύ, σοῦ, σοί, σέ

Pers.pr.

you

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

σύ sy 2x

you, gen., σοῦ, dat., σοί, acc., σέ, Mt. 1:20; 2:6

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Pron-2AP — Personal pronoun · second person · accusative · plural
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked plural.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

P-2AP Part of Speech: Personal pronoun Person: second Case: Accusative Number: Plural

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
78%you
you78% · 2412×you yourselves7% · 221×you yourself5% · 168×your3% · 87×other renderings3% · 96×other renderings3% · 89×

3,073 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 37 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
subject28%object24%adverbial23%indirect object20%predicate5%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 2,892 occurrences — a word inside a phrase counts towards whatever that phrase is doing.

The phrases it lives inwhat stands either side of it, across the New Testament
← what comes before
λέγωI say, speak
ἀμήνHebrδέbut, on the otheἐγώ
καίand, even, also, nam
ἐγώοὕτωthus, so, in thiμήNeg
ἐν
Article theεἰμίI am, existγίνομαιI come into bein
πρός
ἔρχομαιI come, goἐγώπέμπωI send
δέbut, on the other ha
λέγωI say, speakπαρακαλέωI summon, entreaθέλωI will, wish, de
σύyou2892×
what comes after →
Article the
θεόςGod, a godἐνἁμαρτίαa sin
καίand, even, also, nam
Article theεἰρήνηpeace, peace of οὐNeg
ὅτιthat, since, because
Article theπᾶςall, the whole, οὐNeg
εἰμίI am, exist
Article theκαίand, even, also,ἐν
ἐν
Article theποῖοςIrgΧριστόςanointed, the Me

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

Concordanceσύ · 2,892× in the New Testament
Matthew Luke John Acts Mark 2 Corinthians 1 Corinthians Romans 1 Thessalonians Revelation Hebrews Colossians

16 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
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 450 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 Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome
Philo of AlexandriaAllegorical Interpretation of Genesis 1.48c. AD 40

„οὐ φυτεύσεις σεαυτῷ ἄλσος, πᾶν ξύλον παρὰ τὸ θυσιαστήριον κυρίου τοῦ θεοῦ σου οὐ ποιήσεις σεαυτῷ“ (Deuter.

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.101c. AD 75–95

παύσομαι δὲ τοῦ λοιποῦ μετὰ τοσαύτης ὀργῆς τὰς τιμωρίας ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀδικήμασιν εἰσπραττόμενος καὶ πολὺ μᾶλλον σοῦ παρακαλοῦντος.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.2c. AD 100

Μεγάλων μὲν ὄντων καὶ πλουσίων τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιωμάτων εἰς ὑμᾶς, ὑπέρ τι καὶ καθ̓ ὑπερβολὴν ὑπερευφραίνομαι ἐπὶ τοῖς μακαρίοις καὶ ἐνδόξοις ὑμῶν πνεύμασιν: οὕτως ἔμφυτον τῆς δωρεᾶς πνευματικῆς χάριν εἰλήφατε.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 6th c. AD 4th c. AD 3rd c. BC
P.Grenf. 1 35Ptolemais - Akko (Syrien)103 BC

τοῦ ἀποδοθῆι τὸν ἐπεσταλμένον ἡμῖν κατὰ μῆνα πυρὸν τοῖς παρʼ ἡμῶν. διʼ ἄλλων γεγράφαμεν ὑμῖν ὑπὲρ ὧν βουλόμεθα μηδεμιᾶς προσφωνήσεως προσπεπτωκυίας. ἑαυτῶν δὲ ἐπιμελόμενοι ἵνʼ ὑγιαίνητε, — ἔσμεν ἐν

P.Grenf. 1 32Pelusion103 BC

η Φατρήους καὶ … χαίρειν καὶ ἐρρωμένοις διευτυχεῖν. ἐρρώμεθα δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ ὑμῶν τὴν ἀρίστην μνείαν ποιούμενοι παρὰ τοῖς ἐν Πηλουσίωι θεοῖς. καλῶς ποιήσεις διαλύσας Ἁρκοννῆσιν καὶ

P.Grenf. 1 41Thebais3 BC

παρὰ Πετεύριος διεθέντος μου ὑπάρξει σοι εἰς στέφανον χαλκοῦ τάλαντα δεκάπεντε, τάλαντα ιε. εὐτύχει .

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
ἔσταιeimi there will be G1510 Verb · future · middle deponent · indicative · third person · singular
2,457× 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
To be or exist, a basic verb used to describe something or someone, like God saying 'I am' in John 8:58.
Tyndale gloss
to be
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

εἰμί is a Greek verb meaning 'to be' or 'to exist.' It serves various functions, such as a substantive verb for persons and things, and as a copula linking subjects and predicates. The New Testament frequently uses it in passages like John 1:1 and Matthew 24:3. Notably, it can also express possibility, as seen in Hebrews 9:5.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

εἰμί,

with various uses and significations, like the English verb to be.

As substantive verb.

Of persons and things, to be, exist: Ac 17:28, Jo 1:1 8:58 17:5, al; ὁ ὢν καὶ ὁ ἦν (for past ptcp.), Re 1:4, 8 4:8 11:17 16:5 (v. Swete, Ap., 5; M, Pr., 228); τὰ (μὴ) ὄντα, Ro 4:17, I Co 1:28.

Of times, events, etc., to be, happen, take place: Mt 24:3, Mk 14:2 15:42, Lk 21:23, Jo 4:6, 23 5:10, al.

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

εἰμί (fr. ἔω, whence ἐμέ in inscriptions [7]; Aeol. ἐμμὲ (Curtius (yet ἔμμε, so G. Meyer) 8 564; Veitch p. 2287), impv. ἴσθι, ἔστω, less usual ἤτω, 1 Co. xvi. 22; Jas. v.12; Clem. Rom. 1 Cor. 48,5; [1 Mace. x. 31; Ps. ciii. (civ.) 31]; Plat. rep. 2 p. 361 ¢. [here it has given place to ἔστω (or ἴτω), see Stallb. ad loc.; Veitch p. 200 sq.; 3 pers. plur. ἔστωσαν, Lk. xii. 35; 1 Tim. iii. 12], inf. εἶναι ; impf. —ace. to the more ancient and elegant form, ἦν, 2 pers. ἦσθα (Mt. xxvi. 69; Mk. xiv. 67), rarer form ἧς (Mt. RKV. 1235 dn ΧΙ: 9]. 92); xxI LS. Reyna 15 G@ ΕΣ Tr WH), 3 pers. ἦν, 1 pers. plur. jer, — ace. to the mid. form, com. in later Grk. [ef. Veitch p. 226], ἤμην (Mt. xxv. 35sq.; [on Acts xi. 11 ef. WH. Intr. § 404]; Gal.i.10, etc.), plur. ἤμεθα (Mt. xxiii. 30 G L T Tr WH; Acts xxvii. 37 L T Tr WH; [Gal. iv. 3 TWH Tr mrg.; Eph. ii. 3 T Tr WH; Bar. i. 19]); cf. Lob. ad Phryn.…

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

εἰμί. Middle forms in the flexion of εἰμί other than the present tense (cf. however MGr εἶμαι, -σαι, etc.) begin to appear very early in the dialects and are well established in the papyri. Thus the Ist sing. impf. ἤμην, which always takes the place of the class. ἢ in the NT (but see Ac 2018 D) may be illustrated from PSI IV. 36274 (B.c. 251-0) ἤμην δὲ πρὸς τῶι λαμβάνειν τὸν χαλκόν, P Magd 65 (B.c. 221) ἤμην γυμνός, P Par 57 (B.c. 129) ὧν ἤμην δι᾽ αὐτῶν [π]αραμε[μετ]ρηκ[υῖα, P Oxy IIT. 526% (ii/A.p.) οὐκ ἤμην ἀπαθὴς ἀλόγως σε καταλείπιν. For ist plur. ἤμεθα see P Petr IT. 4 (7)° (B.C. 255-4) τεθλιμμένοι ἤμεθα : cf. Ac 2737, Eph 23, as contrasted with the act. ἦμεν in Ac 111 (NB), 1612, Rom 7° a/.: the two forms are found together in Gal 4% (SDFG). The non-classical ἧς (Lob. Phryx. p. 149) is found sefzes in the NT as compared with ἦσθα (from an old perf. form ἤησθα), which is confined…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

εἰμί (eimi) — to be.

εἰμί

(sum), Aeolic dialect ἔμμι [Refs 7th c.BC+]; Cretan dialect ἠμί [Refs]; 2nd pers. singular εἶ, Epic dialect and Ionic dialect εἰς [Refs 8th c.BC+], Epic dialect and Doric dialect ἐσσί [Refs 8th c.BC+]; 3rd.pers. singular ἐστί, Doric dialect ἐντί [Refs 3rd c.BC+]; 3rd.pers. dual ἐστόν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; 1st pers. plural ἐσμέν, Epic dialect and Ionic dialect εἰμέν (also in [Refs 5th c.BC+], Doric dialect εἰμές [Refs 3rd c.BC+]; 3rd.pers. plural εἰσί (-ίν), Epic dialect and Ionic dialect ἔασι (-ιν) [Refs 8th c.BC+], Doric dialect ἐντί [Refs 5th c.BC+], Epic dialect and Lyric poetry also in middle form ἔσσο [Refs 8th c.BC+]; 3rd.pers. singular ἔστω (ἤτω [LXX+5th c.BC+]; 3rd.pers. plural ἔστωσαν, but ἔστων [Refs 8th c.BC+], and early Attic dialect Inscrr., [Refs 2nd c.BC+]subjunctive ὦ, ᾖς, ᾖ, Epic dialect ἔω [Refs 8th c.BC+]; 3rd.pers. singular ἔῃ [Refs…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

εἰμί

eimi

the first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a

primary and defective verb; I exist (used only when emphatic):--am,

have been, X it is I, was. See also 1488, 1498, 1511, 1527, 2258,

2071, 2070, 2075, 2076, 2771, 2468, 5600.

see GREEK for 1488

see GREEK for 1498

see GREEK for 1511

see GREEK for 1527

see GREEK for 2258

see GREEK for 2071

see GREEK for 2070

see GREEK for 2075

see GREEK for 2076

see GREEK for 2771

see GREEK for 2468

see GREEK for 5600

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

εἰμί

v.

I am, exist

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

εἰμί eimi 2x

to be, to exist, Jn. 1:1; 17:5; Mt. 6:30; Lk. 4:25, freq.; ἐστί[ν], it is possible, proper, Heb. 9:5; a simple linking verb (“copula”) to the subject and predicate, and therefore in itself affecting the force of the sentence only by its tense, mood, etc., Jn. 1:1; 15:1, freq.; it also forms a frequent circumlocution with the participles of the present and perfect of other verbs, Mt. 19:22; Mk. 2:6

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

εἰμί The whole of the pres. ind. (except 2nd sg. εἶ) may be enclitic when εἰμί is the Copula; but the 3rd sg. is written ἔστι in certain cases of emphasis, e. g. ἔστι μοι, I have: when used as Verb Subst., it retains the accent in all persons. as Substantive Verb, to be, to exist, οὐκ ἔσθ᾽ οὗτος ἀνήρ, οὐδ᾽ ἔσσεται Od.; τεθνηῶτος, μηδ᾽ ἔτ᾽ ἐόντος id. Od.; οὐκέτ᾽ ἔστι he is no more, Eur.; θεοὶ αἰὲν ἐόντες Il.; ἐσσόμενοι posterity, id. Il.; ζώντων καὶ ὄντων Ἀθηναίων Dem.:—so of cities, etc., ὄλωλεν, οὐδ᾽ ἔτ᾽ ἔστι Τροία (cf. Troja fuit), Eur.

of things, to be, exist, εἰ ἔστιν ἀληθέως [ἡ τράπεζα] Hdt.; ἕως ἂν ὁ πόλεμος ἦι so long as it last, Thuc.

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Verb-FDI-3S — Verb · future · middle deponent · indicative · third person · singular
future middle deponent indicative — an action still to come.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

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

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

See TESTAMENT.

Nave's Topical Bible

→ THE MENTAL FACULTY

Freedom of, recognized by God Ge 4:6-10; De 5:29; 1Ki 20:42; Isa 1:18-20; 43:26; Jer 36:3,7; Joh 7:17

See BLESSINGS, CONTINGENT UPON OBEDIENCE

See CHOICE

See CONTINGENCY

→ OF GOD, THE SUPREME RULE OF DUTY Mt 6:10; 12:50; 26:39,42; Mr 3:35; 14:36; Lu 11:2; 22:42; Joh 4:34; 5:30; 6:38-40; Ac…

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 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 1.2c. AD 75–95

τινὲς μὲν γὰρ ἐπιδεικνύμενοι λόγων δεινότητα καὶ τὴν ἀπʼ αὐτῆς θηρευόμενοι δόξαν ἐπὶ τοῦτο τῆς παιδείας τὸ μέρος ὁρμῶσιν, ἄλλοι δὲ χάριν ἐκείνοις φέροντες, περὶ ὧν τὴν ἀναγραφὴν εἶναι συμβέβηκε, τὸν εἰς αὐτὴν πόνον καὶ παρὰ δύναμιν ὑπέστησαν·

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.2c. AD 100

Μεγάλων μὲν ὄντων καὶ πλουσίων τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιωμάτων εἰς ὑμᾶς, ὑπέρ τι καὶ καθ̓ ὑπερβολὴν ὑπερευφραίνομαι ἐπὶ τοῖς μακαρίοις καὶ ἐνδόξοις ὑμῶν πνεύμασιν: οὕτως ἔμφυτον τῆς δωρεᾶς πνευματικῆς χάριν εἰλήφατε.

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 6th c. AD
P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

Βερενίκης τῆς ἀδελφῆς θεῶν Φιλομητόρων ἔτους ιε, ἐφʼ ἱερέων καὶ ἱερειῶν καὶ κανηφόρου τῶν ὄντων καὶ οὐσῶν, μηνὸς Ἐπεὶφ κε. ἐν Παθύρει, ἐφʼ Ἑρμίου τοῦ παρὰ Πανίσκου ἀγορανόμου. ἀπέδοτο

P.Adl. 11Pathyris99 BC

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

Βερενίκης τῆς ἀδελφῆς θεῶν φιλομητόρων ἔτους ιϛ, ἐφʼ ἱερέων καὶ ἱερειῶν καὶ κανηφόρου τῶν ὄντων καὶ οὐσῶν, μηνὸς Τῦβι ιη ἐν Παθύρει ἐφʼ Ἑρμίου τοῦ παρὰ Πανίσκου ἀγορανόμου. ἀπέδοτο

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
ho who G3588 Article · nominative · singular · masculine
19,783× 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
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

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
who19783×
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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
συλαγωγῶνsulagōgeō is taking captive G4812 Verb · present · active · participle · nominative · singular · masculine
1× 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 lead someone astray, like capturing a prisoner, as in Colossians 2:8. This is about being misled from what is right.
Amplified meaning
takes advantage of, deceives, as spoil, leads you astray
Tyndale gloss
to capture
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word συλαγωγέω (*sulagogeo*) is built from σύλη (spoil) and ἄγω (to lead). It means to carry off as spoil or lead captive, and is used metaphorically in Colossians 2:8 to describe leading someone away from the truth. There is some debate among lexicographers about whether it should be translated as 'rob' or 'make spoil of' in this context.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

*† συλαγωγέω, -ῶ

(< σύλη, booty + ἄγω),

to carry off as spoil, lead captive (θυγατέρα, Heliod., Aeth., 10, 35): metaph., Col 2:8.†

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

συλαγωγέω, -@; (σύλη booty, spoil, [ef. συλάω, init.], and ἄγω) ; to carry off booty: τινά. to carry one off as a captive (and slave), θυγατέρα, Heliod. 10, 35; παρθένον, Nicet. hist. 5 p. 96; to lead away from the truth and subject to one’s sway [R. V. make spoil of], Col. ii. 8 (Tatian. or. ad Gr. ec. 22, p. 98 ed. Otto).

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

συλαγωγέω. In Col 28, the only place where the verb occurs in the NT, Field (MVofes, Ὁ. 195) prefers the translation ‘‘rob” to the RV ‘‘make spoil of,’’ on the ground that the latter suggests ‘‘the idea of the Colossians themselves being carried off, instead of their (spiritual) treasures,” and by way of illustration he points to Aristaen, #f. II. 22 τοῦτον κατέλαβον, ἄνερ, ἐγχειροῦσα συλαγωγῆσαι τὸν ἡμέτερον οἶκον. But the RV rendering may find support from Heliodor. 10. 35 p. 307 Bekker οὗτός ἐστιν 6 τὴν ἐμὴν θυγατέρα συλαγωγήσας (cited by Dibelius HZNT ad /.).

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

συλαγωγέω (sulagōgeō) — to capture.

σῡλᾰγωγέω,

(σῦλον) carry off as booty, lead captive, τινα [NT+3rd c.AD+]

II. rob, despoil, τὸν οἶκον [Refs 5th c.AD+]

Strong's Greek Dictionary

συλαγωγέω

sulagogeo

from the base of 4813 and (the reduplicated form of) 71; to lead away

as booty, i.e. (figuratively) seduce:--spoil.

see GREEK for 4813

see GREEK for 71

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

συλαγωγέω

v.

I plunder

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

συλαγωγέω sylagōgeō 1x

to carry off as a prey or booty; met. to make victims of fraud, Col. 2:8*

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

συλαγωγέω σῦλον, ἀγωγός to carry off as booty, lead captive, NTest.

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

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

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

kap'-tiv (shebhi, galah; aichmalotos and its derivatives): The frequent references in the Old Testament to captives as men forcibly deported (from the Hebrew root shabhah) or inhabiting a land foreign to them (from Hebrew galah) reflect the universal practice of the ancient world. The treatment of captives was sometimes barbarous (2Sa 8:2) but not always so (2Ki 6:21,22).

See further under ASSIR and WAR.

Figurative: Except in Job 42:10 the figurative use of the idea is confined to the New Testament, where reference is made to the triumphal reign of the Lord Jesus (Lu 4:18; Eph 4:8), or, on the other hand, to the power of the…

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Captive

One taken in war. Captives were often treated with great cruelty and indignity (1 Kings 20:32; Josh. 10:24; Judg. 1:7; 2 Sam. 4:12; Judg. 8:7; 2 Sam. 12:31; 1 Chr. 20:3). When a city was taken by assault, all the men were slain, and the women and children carried away captive and sold as slaves (Isa. 20; 47:3; 2 Chr. 28:9-15; Ps. 44:12; Joel 3:3)…

Smith's Bible Dictionary

A prisoner of war. Such were usually treated with great cruelty by the heathen nations. They were kept for slaves, and often sold; but this was a modification of the ancient cruelty, and a substitute for putting them to death Although the treatment of captives by the Jews seems sometimes to be cruel, it was very much milder than that of the heathen, and was mitigated, as far as possible in the circumstances, by their civil code.

Nave's Topical Bible

→ Prisoner of war Ge 14:12; 1Sa 30:1,2

→ Cruelty to

Putting to death Nu 31:9-20; De 20:13; 21:10; Jos 8:29; 10:15-40; 11:11; Jud 7:25; 8:21; 21:11; 1Sa 15:32,33; 2Sa 8:2; 2Ki 8:12; Jer 39:6

Twenty thousand, by Amaziah 2Ch 25:11,12

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
100%taking captive
taking captive100% · 1×

1 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.

Concordanceσυλαγωγέω · 1× in the New Testament
Colossians
Across the New Testament1 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
διὰdia through G1223 Preposition
667× 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
Means through or because of, like in Matthew 2:12 where the wise men left by another route. It shows cause or occasion, as in 1 Corinthians 3:15, being saved through fire. It can also describe a state or condition, like in Romans.
Tyndale gloss
through/because of
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

διά (dia) is a preposition meaning 'through' and can govern both the genitive and accusative cases. It covers a range of uses, including indicating motion through space or time, causation, and means or instrumentality. In the New Testament, it appears in various contexts, such as in Matthew 2:12 and Romans 8:25. The lexicons do not present significant disagreement regarding its meanings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

διά (before a vowel δ’, exc. Ro 8:10, II Co 5:7, and in pr. names; Tdf., Pr., 94),

prep. c. gen., acc, as in cl.;

c. gen., through;

of Place, after verbs of motion or action: Mt 2:12 12:43, Mk 2:23, Lk 4:30, Jo 4:4, II Co 11:33, al.; σώζεσθαι (διας-) δ. πυρός, ὕδατος, I Co 3:15, I Pe 3:20; βλέπειν δ. ἐσόπτρου, I Co 13:12; metaph., of a state or condition:

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

διὰ παντός [so L WH Tr (exc. Mk. ν. 5; Lk. xxiv. 53)], or written together διαπαντός [so GT (exe. in Mt.) ; ef. W. 46 (45); Lipsius, Gram. Unters. p. 125], continually, always: Mt. xviii. 10; Mk. ν. 5; Lk. xxiv. 53; Acts ii. 25 (fr. Ps. xv. (xvi.) 8); x. 2; xxiv. 16; Ro. xi. 10 (fr. Ps. Ixviii. (Lxix.) 24); 2 Th. iii. 16; Heb. ix. 6; xiii. 15, (often in Grk. writ.). b. of the time within which a thing is done: διὰ τῆς νυκτός (1, Τ Tr WH διὰ νυκτός), by night, Acts ν. 19; xvi. 9; xvii. 10; xxiii. 31, (Palaeph. 1,10); δύ ἡμερῶν τεσσαράκοντα, repeatedly within the space of forty days, Acts i. 3;— (denying this use of the prep., C. F. A. Fritzsche in Fritzschiorum Opusce. p. 164 sq. would refer these instances to the use noted under a. [see Win., Ellic., Mey. u. s.]). 2. of time elapsed, and which has, so to say, been passed through: Gal. ii. 1 [ef. W. 380 (356)]; δὲ ἡμερῶν, (some) days…

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

διά (A.D. 58) ἀπεσχηκυῖαι [παρὰ τοῦ ᾿Αντ]ιφάνους διὰ χειρὸς [ἐϊξ οἴκου ὃ καὶ ἐπε[ίσθη]σαν κεφάλαιον, ‘have received from Antiphanes from hand to hand in cash the sum which they severally consented to accept ” (Edd.). Among other stereotyped phrases may be mentioned διὰ παντός, common in papyri as in Bibl. Greek in place of the obsolescent ἀεί : thus P Lond 42° (B.c. 168) (=I. p. 30, Selections Ὁ. 9) σοῦ διὰ παντὸς μνείαν ποιούμενοι, LGU IV. 1078* (A.p. 39) Σαραπίων Σαραπιάδι τῇ ἀδελφῇ πλεῖστα χαίρειν καὶ διὰ παντὸς ὑγιαίνειν. A rather different temporal use appears in διὰ νυκτός, “by night’ (Ac 519 etc.), as P Ryl II. 1381 (A.D. 34) κατέλαβα τοῦτον διὰ νυκτὸς ἡλμένον ἐξ ὑπερβατῶν els τὠιὸ τῆς οὐσίας ἐποίκιον Δρομήως λεγώμενου (7. ε. -όμενον), “ΕἼ detected him when under cover of night he had sprung into the farmstead” (Edd.): it is hard to imagine Fritzsche (see Grimm) arguing that here…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

διά (dia) — through/because of.

διά,

poetry διαί (Aeolic dialect ζά, which see), preposition governing genitive and accusative — Rad. sense, through; never anastrophic [Prop. δῐᾰ: but [Refs 8th c.BC+] uses ῑ at the beginning of a line, [Refs 8th c.BC+]: also ᾱ, for the sake of meter, frequently in [Refs 8th c.BC+] uses διαί in Lyric poetry, [Refs]

__A WITH GEN.

__A.I of Place or Space:

__A.I.1 of motion in a line, from one end to the other, right through, in [Refs 8th c.BC+] frequently of the effect of weapons, διὰ μὲν ἀσπίδος ἦλθε.. ἔγχος καὶ διὰ θώρηκος.. [Refs 8th c.BC+] out through the Scaean gate, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; δι᾽ ἠέρος αἰθέρ᾽ ἵκανεν quite through the lower air even to the ether, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; διὰ Τρώων πέτετο straight through them,[Refs 5th c.BC+]: also in Compos. with πρό and ἐκ, see at {διαπρό},{διέκ}: in adverbial phrases, διὰ πασῶν (i.e.…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

διά

dia

a primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; through (in very

wide applications, local, causal, or occasional):--after, always,

among, at, to avoid, because of (that), briefly, by, for (cause) ...

fore, from, in, by occasion of, of, by reason of, for sake, that,

thereby, therefore, X though, through(-out), to, wherefore, with

(-in). In composition it retains the same general importance.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

διά

Prep.

through, on account of

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

διά dia 667x

(1) gen., through, used of place or medium, Mt. 7:13; Lk. 6:1; 2 Cor. 11:33; through, of time, during, in the course of, Heb. 2:15; Acts 5:19; through, of immediate agency, causation, instrumentality, by means of, by, Jn. 1:3; Acts 3:18; of means or manner, through, by, with, Lk. 8:4; 2 Cor. 5:7; 8:8; of state or condition, in a state of, Rom.…

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Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

διά through c. gen. through, by means of c. acc.

through.

WITH GEN.:

of Place or Space:

of motion in a line, through, right through, διὰ μὲν ἀσπίδος ἦλθε ἔγχος Il.; δι᾽ ἠέρος αἰθέρ᾽ ἵκανεν quite through the lower air even to the ether, id. Il.; διὰ πάντων ἐλθεῖν to go through all in succession, Xen.

of motion through a space, but not in a line, all through, over, διὰ πεδίοιο Il.; δι᾽ ἄστεος Od.

of Intervals of Space, διὰ δέκα ἐπάλξεων at every 10th battlement, Thuc.; διὰ πέντε σταδίων at a distance of 5 stades, Hdt.

of Time:

throughout, during, διὰ παντὸς τοῦ χρόνου Hdt.; δι᾽ ἡμέρης all day long, id. Hdt.; διὰ παντός continually, Aesch.; δι᾽ ὀλίγου for a short time, Thuc.

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Prep — Preposition
preposition — its sense depends on the case of the word it governs.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

PREP PREPosition

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
57%through
through57% · 391×because of22% · 153×on account of10% · 67×for2% · 14×the sake of2% · 14×other renderings6% · 44×

683 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 21 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
adverbial96%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 667 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
θεόςGod, a godπᾶςall, the whole, καυματίζωI burn, scorch
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakμαθητήςa learner, disciἐνώπιονbefore the face
θεόςGod, a god
Article theδέbut, on the otheσοφόςwise
σύ
ἐνπρόςδίδωμιI offer, give
ἐγώ
καίand, even, also,εἶπονI say, speakἐνώπιονbefore the face
διάthrough667×
what comes after →
Article the
λόγοςa word, speech, ὄνομαname, character,προφήτηςa prophet, poet
οὗτος
λέγωI say, speakArticle theκαίand, even, also,
ὅς
Article theαἰτίαa cause, reason,καίand, even, also,
αὐτός
Article theγίνομαιI come into beinκαίand, even, also,
τίςIrg
οὐNegArticle theμετά

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

Concordanceδιά · 667× in the New Testament
Romans Acts John Matthew Hebrews 2 Corinthians 1 Corinthians Luke Mark Ephesians Galatians 1 Peter

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

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

Counted over the 663 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 5c. AD 40

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

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.4c. 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 1.7c. AD 100

ἐγνώρισεν γὰρ ἡμῖν ὁ δεσπότης διὰ τῶν προφητῶν τὰ παρεληλυθότα καὶ τὰ ἐνεστῶτα, καὶ τῶν μελλόντων δοὺς ἀπαρχὰς ἡμῖν γεύσεως, ὧν τὰ καθ̓ ἕκαστα βλέποντες ἐνεργούμενα, καθὼς ἐλάλησεν, ὀφείλομεν πλουσιώτερον καὶ ὑψηλότερον προσάγειν τῷ φόβῳ αὐτοῦ.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 6th c. AD 4th c. AD 1st c. AD
P.Adl. 12Pathyris102 BC

ἀρουρῶν ἑπτὰ ἀρούρας τρεῖς · γείτονες μιᾶς μὲν νότου γῆ Πατήφιος, βορρᾶ γῆ Πακοίβιος διὰ τῶν Φίβιος υἱῶν, ἀπηλιώτου ὁδὸς βασιλική, λιβὸς γῆ Ψεμμώνθου τοῦ Πανεχάτου καὶ τῶν μετόχων,

P.Adl. 14Pathyris101 BC

ἐν σφραγῖσι δυσίν , ὧν γείτονες μιᾶς μὲν νότου γῆ Πατήφιος, βορρᾶ γῆ Πακοίβιος διὰ τῶν Φίβιος υἱῶν, ἀπηλιώτου ὁδὸς βασιλική, λιβὸς γῆ Ψεμμώνθου τοῦ Πανεχάτου καὶ τῶν μετόχων,

P.Amh. 2 51Pathyris89 BC

ἀπὸ ἀπηλιώτου μέρει Παθύρεως οἰκίαν ᾠκοδομημένην καὶ δεδοκωμένην καὶ τεθυρωμένην ἧς αἱ γειτνίαι δεδήλωνται διὰ τῆς ὠνῆς.

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
τῆςho <the> G3588 Article · genitive · singular · feminine
19,783× 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
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-GSF — Article · genitive · singular · feminine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked singular feminine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

T-GSF Part of Speech: definite arTicle Case: Genitive Number: Singular Gender: Feminine

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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
φιλοσοφίαςphilosophia philosophy G5385 Noun · genitive · singular · feminine
1× 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 refers to philosophy, or the study of wisdom and truth. In Colossians 2:8, it warns against false teachings that claim to be wise but are actually misleading. It's about seeking knowledge and understanding.
Amplified meaning
human wisdom, worldly reasoning
Tyndale gloss
philosophy
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word φιλοσοφία (philosophia) means the love and pursuit of wisdom or knowledge, often associated with philosophy. It covers a range of meanings, including systematic study and speculation. In the New Testament, it specifically refers to the philosophy of certain Jewish-Christian ascetics, particularly in Colossians 2:8, where it is linked to false teachings.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

** Φιλο-σοφία, -ας, ἡ

(< φιλόσοφος),

[in LXX: IV Mac 1:1 5:10, 22 7:9, 21 * ;]

the love and pursuit of wisdom; hence, philosophy, investi­gation of truth and nature: of the so-called philosophy of false teachers, Col 2:8 (v. Lft., ICC, in l.).†

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

φιλοσοφία, -as, ἡ, (fr. φιλόσοφος), prop. love (and pursuit) of wisdom; used in the Grk. writ. of either zeal for or skill in any art or science, any branch of knowledge, see Passow 8. v. [cf. L.and S.s.v.]. Once in the N. T. of the theology, or rather theosophy, of certain JewishChristian ascetics, which busied itself with refined and speculative inquiries into the nature and classes of angels, into the ritual of the Mosaic law and the regulations of Jewish tradition respecting practical life: Col. fi. 8; see Grimm on 4 Mace. i. 1 p. 298 sq.; [Bp. Lehtft. on Col. |. c., and Prof. Westcott in B. D. 8. v. Philosophy].

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

φιλοσοφία occurs in the NT only in Col 25, where it is not ‘‘ philosophy” in general that is condemned, but the particular system (note the art.), associated as it was with κενὴ ἀπάτη : see Hort /Judazstic Christianity, p. 119. For the word in its direct application to mode of life, cf. Musonius p. τοῦ ἐπιστήμη δὲ περὶ βίον οὐχ ἑτέρα τις ἡ φιλοσοφία ἐστι.

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

φιλοσοφία (philosophia) — philosophy.

φῐλοσοφ-ία, ἡ,

love of knowledge, pursuit there of, speculation, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; defined as ἄσκησις ἐπιτηδείου τέχνης, Stoic. in [Refs]

2. systematic, methodical treatment of a subject, ἐμπειρίᾳ μέτιθι καὶ φιλοσοφίᾳ [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἡ περὶ τὰς ἔριδας φ. scientific treatment of argumentation, [Refs]; ἡ περὶ τοὺς λόγους φ. the study of oratory, [Refs 5th c.BC+]

3. philosophy, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; sometimes also in [Refs 5th c.BC+], and so later, διὰ τῆς φ. καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης [NT]; but more frequently without Article, τοῖς ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ ζῶσιν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; except when an adjective or some qualifying word is added to ἡ θεία φ. [Refs 5th c.BC+]; so later ἡ Ἰωνικὴ φ. [Refs 1st c.AD+]metaphysic, [Refs 4th…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

φιλοσοφία

philosophia

from 5386; "philosophy", i.e. (specially), Jewish

sophistry:--philosophy.

see GREEK for 5386

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

φιλοσοφία, ας, ἡ

n.f.

love of wisdom, philosophy

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

φιλοσοφία philosophia 1x

a love of science; systematic philosophy; in NT the philosophy of the Jewish gnosis, Col. 2:8*

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

φιλοσοφία φι^λοσοφία, ἡ, love of knowledge and wisdom, pursuit thereof, speculation, study, Plat., etc.

the systematic treatment of a subject, investigation, Isocr.

philosophy, the investigation of truth and nature, Plat., etc.

from φι^λόσοφος

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-GSF — Noun · genitive · singular · feminine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked singular feminine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-GSF Part of Speech: Noun Case: Genitive Number: Singular Gender: Feminine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

fi-los'-o-fi (philosophia):

1. Definition and Scope

(1) Intuitive Philosophy Is Universal

(2) Speculative Philosophy Belongs Mainly to Western Thought

2. Greek Philosophy

3. Philosophy in Old Testament and Judaism

(1) Of Nature

(2) Of History

(3) Post-exilic

(4) Alexandrian

4. Philosophy in the New Testament

(1) The Teaching of Jesus Christ

(2) Apostolic Teaching

(3) Attitude of New Testament Writers toward Philosophy

LITERATURE

1. Definition and Scope: Only found in Col 2:8; literally, the love and pursuit of wisdom and knowledge. In its technical sense, the term is now used for the conscious endeavor of thought, by speculative process, to interpret the whole of human experience, as a consistent and systematic unity, which would be the ultimate truth of all that may be known. The term is also used, in a wider sense, of all interpretations of…

Smith's Bible Dictionary

It is the object of the following article to give some account (I.) of that development of thought among the Jews which answered to the philosophy of the West; (II.) of the systematic progress of Greek philosophy as forming a complete whole; and (III.) of the contact of Christianity with philosophy. I. THE PHILOSOPHIC DISCIPLINE OF THE JEWS. --Philosophy, if we limit the word strictly to describe the free pursuit of knowledge of which truth is the one complete end is essentially of western growth. In the East the search after wisdom has always been connected with practice. The history of the Jews offers no exception to this remark: there is no Jewish philosophy, properly so called. The method of Greece was to proceed from life to God; the method of Israel (so to speak) was to proceed from God to life. The axioms of one system are the conclusions of the other. The one led to the…

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

Love of Wisdom, in the New Testament means the vain and pernicious speculations of human reason; the wisdom of this world, and "science falsely so called," 1Co 1:18-27 1Ti 6:20, in opposition to gospel truth. Paul cautioned the Colossians lest any man should spoil or plunder them through "philosophy," Col 2:8; and it is one of the most melancholy proofs of the depravity of the human heart, that it has been able so to pervert that noble faculty, the reason. The loftiest human intellects have often been the blindest as to religious truth; and the range and vigor of men’s reasoning powers have been the measure, not of their knowledge and love of God, but of their pride, rebellion, and folly,

→ Is not sufficient for an adequate knowledge of God 1Co 1:21,22

→ Is not enough for salvation through the atonement of Jesus Christ 1Co 2:6-10

→ Employment of, was not Paul's method of preaching the gospel 1Co 1:17,19,21; 2:1-5,13

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
100%philosophy
philosophy100% · 1×

1 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.

Concordanceφιλοσοφία · 1× in the New Testament
Colossians
Across the New Testament1 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Philo of Alexandria Josephus
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 8c. AD 40

Μωυσῆς δὲ καὶ φιλοσοφίας ἐπ’ αὐτὴν φθάσας ἀκρότητα καὶ χρησμοῖς τὰ πολλὰ καὶ συνεκτικώτατα τῶν τῆς φύσεως ἀναδιδαχθεὶς ἔγνω δή, ὅτι ἀναγκαιότατόν ἐστιν ἐν τοῖς οὖσι τὸ μὲν εἶναι δραστήριον αἴτιον, τὸ δὲ παθητόν, καὶ ὅτι τὸ μὲν δραστήριον ὁ τῶν ὅλων…

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 18.9c. AD 75–95

οὕτως ἄρα ἡ τῶν πατρίων καίνισις καὶ μεταβολὴ μεγάλας ἔχει ῥοπὰς τοῦ ἀπολουμένου τοῖς συνελθοῦσιν, εἴ γε καὶ Ἰούδας καὶ Σάδδωκος τετάρτην φιλοσοφίαν ἐπείσακτον ἡμῖν ἐγείραντες καὶ ταύτης ἐραστῶν εὐπορηθέντες πρός τε τὸ παρὸν θορύβων τὴν πολιτείαν…

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
καὶkai and G2532 Conjunction
8,978× 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
And or also, a connecting word used to join ideas or words, like in Matthew 2:18 and Hebrews 1:1.
Tyndale gloss
and
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

καί (kai) is a conjunction meaning 'and,' used to connect words, phrases, and clauses. It serves various functions, including copulative and adjunctive uses, and can express cumulative ideas like 'also' or 'even.' The New Testament frequently employs it to link terms and sentences, as seen in verses like Matthew 2:18 and John 10:3. Abbott-Smith notes its use in both simple and complex structures, while Thayer emphasizes its role as the most common particle in the New Testament.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

καί,

conj.,

and.

Copulative.

Connecting single words;

in general: Mt 2:18 16:1, Mk 2:15, Lk 8:15, He 1:1, al. mult.; repeated before each of the terms in a series, Mt 23:23, Lk 14:21, Ro 7:12 9:4, al.;

connecting numerals (WM, § 37, 4): Jo 2:20, Ac 13:20;

joining terms which are not mutually exclusive, as the part with the whole: Mt 8:33 26:59, Mk 16:17,

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

καί, a conj., and; the most freq. by far of all the particles in the N. T. [On its uses see W. § 53, 3sqq.; B. 361 (310) sqq., and ef. Ellicott on Phil. iv. 12; on the difference between it and τέ see 8. v. τέ ad init. ] I. It serves as a copulative i.e. to connect (Lat. et, atque, Germ. und) ; 1. it connects single words or terms: a. univ., as of Φαρισαῖοι καὶ Σαδδουκαῖοι, Mt. xvi. 1; ὁ θεὸς καὶ πατήρ, he who is God and Father (see θεός, 3); ἐν καρδίᾳ καλῇ καὶ ἀγαθῇ, Lk. viii. 15; πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως, ΗΘ}. 1. 1; it is repeated before single terms, to each of which its own force and weight is thus given: ἡ υἱοθεσία καὶ ἡ δόξα καὶ ai διαθῆκαι καὶ ἡ νομοθεσία καὶ ἡ λατρεία καὶ αἱ ἐπαγγελίαι, Ro. ix. 4 ; ἁγία καὶ δικαία καὶ ἀγαθή, Ro. vii. 12; add, Mt. xxiii. 23; Lk. xiv. 21; Jn. xvi. 8; Acts xv. 20, 29; xxi. 25; Heb. ix. 10; Rey. v. 12; xviii. 12 sq.; ef. W. 519 sq. (484). b. it…

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

και. In LAE p. 129 ff. Deissmann discusses the thoroughly popular character of the Johannine style with its short paratactic sentences, introduced by kal. . . καί. To illustrate this, he cites amongst other exx. a Dream from the Serapeum, P Par 51 (B.C. 160) (= Selections, p. 18 ff. : see especially the amended readings in Archiv vi. p. 204), which runs—** ὦμ[ην] βατί -- δ)ίζειν pe [ἀπ]ὸ λειβὸς ἕως ἀ[ πηλι]ώτου, καὶ ἀναπίπτομαι ἐπ᾿ ἄχυρον" καὶ [ἄν]θρωπ[ος9] ἀπὸ λιβός μου, ἐχόμενός μου’ ἀναπίπτει καὶ αὐτός, καὶ ὥσπερ κεκλειμμ[évot] μου ἦσαν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί μου, καὶ ἐξαί[φνης] ἀνύγω τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς pov, καὶ ὁρῶ kTA., “ I dreamed that I was going from West to East, and I lie down upon chaff. And there | αὐτὸ (deleted in the original) Σεμφθεῖ. | ἐκ καινῆς ἐν Σομολ(ῶ)…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

καί (kai) — and.

καί,

conjunction, copulative, joining words and sentences,

__A and; also adverb, even, also, just, frequently expressing emphatic assertion or assent, corresponding as positive to the negative οὐ (μή) or οὐδέ (μηδέ). copulative, and,

__A.I joining words or sentences to those preceding, ἦ, καὶ κυανέῃσιν ἐπ᾽ ὀφρύσινεῦσε Κρονίων [Refs 8th c.BC+]: repeated with two or more Nouns, αἱ δὲ ἔλαφοι κ. δορκάδες κ. οἱ ἄγριοι οἶες κ. οἱ ὄνοι οἱ ἄγριοι [Refs 5th c.BC+]; joining only the last pair, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ὁ ὄχλος πλείων κ. πλείων ἐπέρρει more and more, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; to add epithets after πολύς, πολλὰ κ. ἐσθλά [Refs 8th c.BC+]

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

καί

kai

apparently, a primary particle, having a copulative and sometimes also

a cumulative force; and, also, even, so then, too, etc.; often used in

connection (or composition) with other particles or small words:--and,

also, both, but, even, for, if, or, so, that, then, therefore, when,

yet.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

καί

Cj.

and, even, also, namely

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

καί kai 9x

(1) and, Mt. 2:2, 3, 11; 4:22; (2) καί ... καί, both ... and; (3) as a cumulative particle, also, too, Mt. 5:39; Jn. 8:19; 1 Cor. 11:6; (4) emphatic, even, also, Mt. 10:30; 1 Cor. 2:10; in NT adversative, but, Mt. 11:19; also introductory of the apodosis of a sentence, Gal. 3:28; Jas. 2:4

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

CONJ CONJunction or conjunctive particle

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
89%and
and89% · 8448×also8% · 714×other renderings2% · 191×other renderings1% · 124×

9,477 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 42 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
adverbial16%subject13%object10%predicate3%verb2%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 8,978 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
αὐτός
ἐνἐπίπρός
σύ
χάριςgrace, favor, kiπρόςπατήρfather, Father,
ἐγώ
πατήρfather, Father, πρόςθεόςGod, a god
εἰμίI am, exist
αὐτόςArticle theἐγώ
θεόςGod, a god
Article theθέλημαwill, wish, desiδέbut, on the othe
καίand8978×
what comes after →
Article the
ἀδελφόςa brotherπατήρfather, Father, μήτηρa mother
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςArticle theπρός
οὐNeg
εἰμίI am, existμήNegδύναμαιI am powerful, a
ὁράωI see, look upon, ex
Article theαὐτόςἀνήρa male human bei
ἐν
Article theπᾶςall, the whole, ὅλοςall, the whole,

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

Concordanceκαί · 8,978× in the New Testament
Luke Matthew Revelation Acts Mark John 1 Corinthians Romans Hebrews 2 Corinthians Ephesians 1 John

3 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 Ignatius of Antioch
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

ἡ 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 4th c. AD 1st c. AD 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 καὶ κανηφόρου τῶν

P.Adl. 11Pathyris99 BC

1 ἔτους ιζ Θῶυθ κη ἀπέδοτο Πετεσοῦχος Φίβιος καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ τὸ ὕπαρχον αὐτοῖς ἥμισυ περιστερῶνος τοῦ ὄντος ἐν τῶι ἀπὸ βορρᾶ μέρει

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
κενῆςkenos empty G2756 Adjective · genitive · singular · feminine
18× 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 something is empty, either literally or figuratively, as seen in Ephesians 5:6 and Colossians 2:8. It can describe empty words or actions that have no purpose or value. The Bible uses this word to emphasize the importance of meaningful actions.
Amplified meaning
vain, worthless
Tyndale gloss
empty
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

κενός is an adjective meaning 'empty' or 'vain.' It can describe things that contain nothing or are devoid of value, as seen in various contexts in the New Testament, such as in Mark 12:3 and 1 Corinthians 15:10. The term also applies to people, indicating being empty-handed or lacking spiritual substance, as noted in James 2:20. The lexicons agree on its primary meanings, with no significant disagreement.

Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament — κενός, μάταιος from a scan

THESE words nowhere in the N.T. occur together; but on several occasions in the Septuagint, as for instance at Job xx. Seen Xk es οὐ! 1%. Δ. clos ἐσ ie nC lemontaor Rome, Cor. 6; and not unfrequently in classical Greek; as in Sophocles (Hlec. 324); in Aristotle (Hthic. Nic. i. 2. 1); and in Plutarch (Adv. Colot. 17). We deal with them here solely in their ethical use; for seeing that μάταιος knows, at least in Scripture, no other use, it is only as ethically employed that κενός can be brought into comparison with it, or the words made the subject of discrimination. The first, κενός, is ‘ empty,’ ‘ leer,’ ‘ gehaltlos,’ ‘ inanis’ ; the second, μάταιος, ‘ vain,’ ‘ eitel ’ (‘idle’), ‘ erfolglos,’ ‘ vanus.’ In the first is characterized the hollowness, in the second the aimlessness, or, if we may use the word, the resultlessness, connected as it is with μάτην, of that to which this epithet…

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Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

κενός, -ή, -όν,

[in LXX chiefly for ריק and cognate forms;]

empty (Ge 37:24, Jg 7:16). Metaph.,

empty, vain: λόγοι, Eph 5:6; ἀπάτη, Col 2:8; κήρυγμα, πίστις, I Co 15:14;

vain, fruitless: ἡ χάρις, I Co 15:10; κόπος, I Co 15:58; ἡ εἴσοδος, I Th 2:1; κενά, Ac 4:25(LXX); εἰς κενόν, in vain, to no purpose (Diod., LXX; cl. διὰ κενῆς),

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

κενός, -7, -όν, [fr. Hom. down], Sept. for DP, Ps PD ete., empty ; 1. prop. of places, vessels, ete., which contain nothing (Judg. vii. 16; Gen. xxxvii. 24); metaph. empty, vain; devoid of truth: λόγοι, Eph. v. 6 (Ex. v. 9); ἀπάτη. Col. ii. 8; κήρυγμα, πίστις, 1 Co. xy. 14. 57 of men, empty-handed; without a gift: ἀποστέλλειν and ἐξαποστέλλειν τινὰ κενόν (Gen. xxxi. 42; Deut. xv. 13; xvi. 16), Mk. xii.3; Lk.i.53; xx.10sq.; metaph. des¢itute of spiritual wealth, of one who boasts of his faith as a transcendent possession, yet is without the fruits of faith, Jas. ii. 20. 3. metaph. of endeavors, labors, acts, which result in nothing, vain, fruitless, without effect: ἡ χάρις. 1 Co. xv. 10; κόπος, ib. 58; ἡ εἴσοδος, 1 Th. ii. 1; neut. plur. κενά, things that will not succeed, Acts iv. 25 (fr. Ps. ii. 1); εἰς κενόν, in vain, to no purpose, [ef. W. 592 (551)]: 2 Co. vi.1; Gal. ii. 2; Phil.…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

κενός (kenos) — empty.

κενός, ή, όν,

Ionic dialect and poetry κεινός [Refs 8th c.BC+]; Epic dialect also κενεός, as always in [Refs 8th c.BC+] (except in Il.[same places], and κενός [Refs 8th c.BC+], and in Doric dialect, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; Aeolic dialect κέννος, accusative to Greg. Cor.p.610 [Refs 5th c.BC+]; but οἱ Αἰολεῖς.. οὐ λέγουσι κέννος Choerob.in [Refs], from κενϝος, kenevos,[Refs 5th c.AD+] κενευϝός [Refs]

I. mostly of things, empty, opposed to πλέως, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; opposed to πλήρης, [Refs]; opposed to μεστός, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; τὸ κ. (i.e. τάλαντον) the empty one, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; χώματα κεινά, ={κενοτάφια}, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; κατέθισαν ἐπὶ κενευϝῶν (i.e. τάφων genitive singular) [Refs 5th c.AD+]; κ. χρόνος a pause in music, Anon.[Refs 1st c.AD+]; of wool and wine, uncertain meaning in…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

κενός

kenos

apparently a primary word; empty (literally or figuratively):--empty,

(in) vain.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

κενός, ή, όν

Adj

empty, vain, hollow

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

κενός kenos 18x

empty; having nothing, empty-handed, Mk. 12:3; met. vain, fruitless, void of effect, Acts 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:10; εἰς κενόν, in vain, to no purpose, 2 Cor. 6:1; hollow, fallacious, false, Eph. 5:6; Col. 2:8; inconsiderate, foolish, 1 Thess. 3:5; Jas. 2:20

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

κενός of things, empty, opp. to πλέως or πλήρης, Hom., Hdt., attic

metaph. empty, vain, κενὰ εὔγματα Od.; κ. ἐλπίς Aesch., etc.:—in adverbial usages, neut. pl., κενεὰ πνεύσας Pind.; διὰ κενῆς to no purpose, in vain, Ar., Thuc.

of persons,

c. gen. void, destitute, bereft, τοῦ νοῦ, φρενῶν Soph.; συμμάζων Eur.

empty-handed, Hom., Hdt., attic:— bereft of her mate, λέαινα Soph.: — empty of wit, empty-headed, id. Soph., Ar.

comp. and Sup. κενώτερος, -ώτατος, Plat., etc.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Adj-GSF — Adjective · genitive · singular · feminine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked singular feminine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

A-GSF Part of Speech: Adjective Case: Genitive Number: Singular Gender: Feminine

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
39%vain
vain39% · 7×void17% · 3×empty17% · 3×empty-handed17% · 3×vain things?6% · 1×foolish6% · 1×

18 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 6 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
adverbial50%predicate28%second object11%object6%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 18 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
εἰς
μήNegπῶςοὐNeg
ἐξαποστέλλωI send forth
πλουτέωI become richἀτιμάζωI disgrace, dish
οὐNeg
ἐγώὅτιthat, since, bec
ἀποστέλλωI send forth, send,
καίand, even, also,
δέρωI flay, flog, scourg
αὐτός
κενόςempty18×
what comes after →
γίνομαιI come into being, a
ἀλλάbut, exceptArticle the
τρέχωI run, exercise myse
DisjοὐδέNeg
ἄραDisj
Article the
καίand, even, also, nam
Article the
ἐν
κύριοςlord, Lord, mast

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

Concordanceκενός · 18× in the New Testament
1 Corinthians Luke 1 Thessalonians Philippians 2 Corinthians Acts Colossians Ephesians Galatians James Mark
Across the New Testament11 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 51 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 Josephus The Shepherd of Hermas Polycarp The Didache
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 29c. AD 40

ὧν τὸ μὲν ἐπεφήμισε σκότος, ἐπειδὴ μέλας ὁ ἀὴρ τῇ φύσει, τὴν δ’ ἄβυσσον, πολύβυθον γὰρ τό γε κενὸν καὶ ἀχανές·

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.166c. AD 75–95

Τῶν γὰρ Αἰγυπτίων διαφόροις ἀρεσκομένων ἔθεσι καὶ τὰ παρʼ ἀλλήλοις ἐκφαυλιζόντων νόμιμα καὶ διὰ τοῦτο δυσμενῶς ἐχόντων πρὸς ἀλλήλους, συμβαλὼν αὐτῶν ἑκάστοις καὶ διαπτύων τοὺς λόγους οὓς ἐποιοῦντο περὶ τῶν ἰδίων κενοὺς καὶ μηδὲν ἔχοντας ἀληθὲς…

The DidacheThe Didache 2.5c. AD 100

οὐκ ἔσται ὁ λόγος σου ψευδής, οὐ κενός, ἀλλὰ μεμεστωμένος πράξει,

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 6th c. AD
JJP 16 - 17 (1971), p. 137 [9758]Karanis (Arsinoites)AD 147

παρέσχηκε διὰ πύλης Καρανίδος ἐρημοφυλακίας Σύρος ἐξάγων καμήλους κενοὺς δύο . ἔτους δεκάτου Ἀντωνείνου Καίσαρος τοῦ κυρίου Φαρμοῦθι ἑβδόμῃ καὶ εἰκάδι κζ Καρανίδοσ

P.Ross.Georg. 2 29AD 101–AD 200

δ κνήκου κεράμια β φακοῦ ἀρτάβη α χορτοσπέρμου ἀρτάβη α ἄλλα ὁμοίως ἐν σφυρῖδι κενῇ μέτρα βόες τέλειαι δ μόσχος τέλειος α ἄλλοι ὑποδεέστεροι β

P.Stras. 8 790Theadelphia (Arsinoites)AD 160

καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἀριστοδήμου ἀρουρ δ προσόδων ἑξηκονταρούρου ἀρουρ α 𐅵 … ἐν τοῖς κενοῖς ἐδάφεσι ἀρουρ δ καὶ ἐν τῷ Ἀριστοδήμου ἀρουρ δ προσόδων ἑξηκονταρούρου ἀρουρ … 𐅵

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
ἀπάτηςapatē deceit G539 Noun · genitive · singular · feminine
7× 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
Deceit or delusion, as warned against in Colossians 2:8 and 2 Thessalonians 2:10. It refers to the act of deceiving or misleading someone, often with false or misleading information.
Amplified meaning
false teachings, lies
Tyndale gloss
deceit
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word ἀπάτη (i.e., *apatē*) means deceit or deception. It is derived from a root related to trickery and covers a range of meanings including fraud and guile. In the New Testament, it appears in contexts discussing deceitfulness related to wealth, sin, and desires. While most sources agree on its primary meanings, some note a rare usage implying pleasure, indicating a broader semantic range.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ἀπάτη, -ης, ἡ,

[in LXX: Ec 9:6 א (no Heb. equiv.), Jth 9:3, 10, 13 16:8, IV Mac 18:8*;]

deceit, deceitfulness: Col 2:8; τοῦ πλούτου, Mt 13:22, Mk 4:19 (MM, VGT, s.v.); τῆς ἀδικίας, II Th 2:10; τῆς ἁμαρτίας, He 3:13; αἱ ἐπιθυμίαι τῆς ἀ., Eph 4:22. pl., ἀπάται (v. M, II Th. 2:10; NTD, 75; MM, VGT, s.v.): II Pe 2:13 (WH, mg., R., txt., ἐν…

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

ἀπάτη, -ys, ἡ. [fr- Hom. down], deceit, deceitfulness : Col. ii. 8; rod πλούτου, Mt. xiii. 22; Mk. iv. 19 ; τῆς ἀδικίας, 2 Th. ii. 10; τῆς ἁμαρτίας, Heb. iii. 13; ai ἐπιθυμίαι τῆς ἀπάτης the lusts excited by deceit, i.e. by deceitful influences seducing to sin, Eph. iv. 22, (others, ‘deceitful lusts’; but cf. Mey. ad loc.). Plur. ἀπάται: 2 Pet. ii. 13 (where L Tr txt. WH mrg. ἐν ἀγάπαις), by a paragram (or verbal play) applied to the agapae or love-feasts (cf. ἀγάπη, 2), because these were transformed by base men into seductive revels.

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

ἀπάτη. For ἀ. = ‘‘deceit”’ (as 4 Macc 188, 2 Th 219, Heb 3:5) cf. P Oxy VII. 10207f (A.D. 198-201) εἰ τὴν ἐκ τῆς ἡ[λικίας] ἔχεις βοήθιαν, τὸν ἀγῶνα τῆς ἀπάτης ὁ ἡγούμ[ε]νος τοῦ ἔθνους ἐκδι[κ]ήσει, ““1 you can claim the assistance due to immature age, the prefect of the province shall decide the suit for fraud” (Ed.). So CPHerm 6° viv δὲ οἱ μὲν [μετ᾿ ἀπάτης εἰσποιοῦ[ντ]αι, if the supplement is right. Attention may be called to Deissmann’s note in his Hellenisterung des semvttischen Monothetsmus (Neue Jahrb. f. d. klass. Altertum, 1903), Ρ. 165 n.: he recalls the fact that ἀπάτη in popular Hellenistic had the meaning ‘‘ pleasure,” and finds this in Mt 1323 = Mk 413 (cf. Lk 8132) and 2 Pet 2!8: cf. Polyb.:ii. 5612 and Moeris’ definition (p. 65)—Amarn’ ἡ πλάνη παρ᾽ Artikois .. . ἡ τέρψις map’ “Ἕλλησιν. Of this rare sense Rouffac (p. 38…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

ἀπάτη (apatē) — deceit.

ἀπᾰτ-η, ἡ,

trick, fraud, deceit, νῦν δὲ κακὴν ἀπάτην βουλεύσατο[Refs 8th c.BC+]: in plural, wiles, οὐκ ἄρ᾽ ἔμελλες.. λήξειν ἀπατάων, says Athena to Ulysses, [Refs 8th c.BC+]

2. guile, treachery, ἄταν ἀπάτᾳ μεταγνούς[Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἀ. εὐπρεπής, opposed to βία ἐμφανής, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἀ. λεχέων a being cheated out of the marriage, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἄνευ δόλου καὶ ἀπάτης 'without fraud or covin', [Refs 5th c.BC+]

3. Ἀπάτη, personified, [Refs 8th c.BC+]

II. beguiling of time, pastime (not Attic dialect, [Refs 4th c.BC+]

III. as name of a plant, falsa lectio for{ἀπάπη} (which see).

Strong's Greek Dictionary

ἀπάτη

apate

from 538; delusion:--deceit(-ful, -fulness), deceivableness(-ving).

see GREEK for 538

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ἀπάτη, ης, ἡ

n.f.

deceit, deception

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ἀπάτη apatē 7x

deceit, deception, delusion

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

ἀπάτη prob. from ἅπτομαι, cf. ἀπαφίσκω a trick, fraud, deceit, Il.: a stratagem, Thuc.: in pl. wiles, Hom.

guile, fraud, deceit, treachery, Hdt., attic

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-GSF — Noun · genitive · singular · feminine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked singular feminine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-GSF Part of Speech: Noun Case: Genitive Number: Singular Gender: Feminine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

de-set' (mirmah; (dolos)): The intentional misleading or beguiling of another; in Scripture represented as a companion of many other forms of wickedness, as cursing (Ps 10:7), hatred (Pr 26:24), theft, covetousness, adultery, murder (Mr 7:22; Ro 1:29). The Revised Version (British and American) introduces the word in Pr 14:25; 2Th 2:10; but in such passages as Ps 55:11; Pr 20:17; 26:26; 1Th 2:3, renders a…

Nave's Topical Bible

→ Is falsehood Ps 119:118

→ The tongue is an instrument of Ro 3:13

→ Comes from the heart Mr 7:22

→ Characteristic of the heart Jer 17:9

→ God abhors Ps 5:6

→ Forbidden Pr 24:28; 1Pe 3:10

→ Christ was perfectly free from Isa 53:9; with 1Pe 2:22

→ Saints

Free from Ps 24:4; Zep 3:13;

Torrey's New Topical Textbook

- Is falsehood

Ps 119:118

- The tongue, the instrument of

Ro 3:13

- Comes from the heart

Mr 7:22

- Characteristic of the heart

Jer 17:9

- God abhors

Ps 5:6

- Forbidden

Pr 24:28; 1Pe 3:10

- Christ was perfectly free from

Isa 53:9; 1Pe 2:22

- SAINTS

. Free from

Ps 24:4; Zep 3:13;

Across the New Testament7 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
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 155c. AD 40

ὡς δὲ εἶδε ῥέπουσαν μὲν ἐπὶ πανουργίαν, εὐσεβείας δὲ καὶ ὁσιότητος ὀλιγωροῦσαν, ἐξ ὧν ἡ ἀθάνατος ζωὴ περιγίνεται, προὐβάλετο κατὰ τὸ εἰκὸς καὶ ἐφυγάδευσεν ἐκ τοῦ παραδείσου, μηδ’ ἐλπίδα τῆς εἰσαῦθις ἐπανόδου δυσίατα καὶ ἀθεράπευτα πλημμελούσῃ ψυχῇ…

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 2.284c. AD 75–95

ὁ δʼ ἀγανακτήσας πονηρὸν μὲν αὐτὸν ἀπεκάλει καὶ πρότερον φυγόντα τὴν παρʼ Αἰγυπτίοις δουλείαν καὶ νῦν ἐξ ἀπάτης αὐτοῦ τὴν ἄφιξιν πεποιημένον καὶ τερατουργίαις καὶ μαγείαις καταπλήξειν ἐπικεχειρηκότα.

The Shepherd of HermasThe Shepherd of Hermas 13.1.5c. AD 140

Καί γε πολλά, φησίν, ἔστιν, ἀφ̓ ὧν δεῖ τὸν δοῦλον τοῦ θεοῦ ἐγκρατεύεσθαι: κλέμμα, ψεῦδος, ἀποστέρησις, ψευδομαρτυρία, πλεονεξία, ἐπιθυμία πονηρά, ἀπάτη, κενοδοξία, ἀλαζονεία καὶ ὅσα τούτοις ὅμοιά εἰσιν.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
6th c. AD 7th c. AD 2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 4th c. AD

ἐλαΐνων φυτῶν καὶ φοινίκων ἐν ᾗ τυγχάνεις ἔχειν ἐν μισθώσει πω … ων … ἀπάτῃ περὶ τὸ Ἔξω Ψεῦρ, ἡμῶν ἀποδιδόντων σὺν σοὶ … κατὰ τὸ ἐπιβάλλον ἑκάστου ἡμῶν

ἐλαΐνων φυτῶν καὶ φοινίκων ἐν ᾗ τυγχάνεις ἔχειν ἐν μισθώσει πω … … … ἀπάτῃ περὶ τὸ Ἔξω Ψεῦρ, ἡμῶν ἀποδιδόντων σὺν σοὶ … κατὰ τὸ ἐπιβάλλον ἑκάστου ἡμῶν

CPR 7 40HermopolitesAD 492

μου τῆς ἐγγράφου ἀσφαλείας ἑκὼν καὶ πεπεισμένος δίχα δόλου καὶ φόβου καὶ βίας καὶ ἀπάτης καὶ ἀνάγκης ἐσχηκέναι καὶ δεδανεῖσθαι παρὰ σοῦ τοῦ εἰρημένου Ἀχιλλέως στρατιώτου εἰς ἰδίαν μου

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
κατὰkata according to G2596 Preposition
473× 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
According to means following or matching something. In the Bible, it's used to talk about things happening in line with God's plan or will, like in Matthew 8:32 and Mark 5:13.
Tyndale gloss
according to
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

κατά (kata) is a preposition used with the genitive and accusative cases, primarily meaning 'down' or 'against.' It indicates direction, motion, or relation, appearing in various contexts such as 'down from' (e.g., Mt 8:32) and 'against' (e.g., Mk 9:40). The word also conveys meanings like 'throughout' and 'according to.' Lexicons note its frequent use in the New Testament, with some variations in application.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

κατά (bef. a vowel κατ’, καθ’; on the freq. neglect of elision, v. Tdf., Pr., 95; WH, App., 146a),

prep. c. gen., acc.,

down, downwards.

C. gen. (WM, § 47, k; Bl., § 42, 2).

C. gen. rei, in local sense;

down, down from: Mt 8:32, Mk 5:13, Lk 8:33, I Co 11:4;

throughout (late usage; Bl., § 42, 2): κ. ὅλης κ.τ.λ., Lk 4:14 23:5, Ac 9:31 10:37;

in a peculiar adjectival phrase: ἡ κ. βάθους πτωχεία, deep or extreme poverty, II Co 8:2.

C. gen. pers., usually in hostile sense;

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

κατά, [on its neglect of elision before a vowel see Tf. Proleg. p. 95; cf. W. § 5, 1a.; B.10; WH. App. p. 1405], a preposition denoting motion or diffusion or direction from the higher to the lower; as in class. Grk., joined with the gen. and the acc. I. With the Genitive (W. § 47, k. p. 381 (357); [B. § 147, 20]); 1. prop. a. down from, down: κατὰ κατά 8 τοῦ κρημνοῦ, Mt. viii. 32; ΜΚ. v.13; Lk. viii. 33; κατέχεεν κατὰ τῆς κεφαλῆς (so that it flowed down from his head [οἷς W. 381 (357) note]; but it is more correct here to omit κατά with LT Tr WH; see καταχέω), Mk. xiv. 3; hence κατὰ κεφαλῆς (a veil hanging down from his head) ἔχων, 1 Co. xi. 4 ([Δ. V. having his head covered] cf. καταπέτασμα [or rather κάλυμμα (q. v.), but 566 ἔχω I. 1b.]). Ὁ. down upon (down into) anything: Acts xxvii. 14 [W. 381 (357) note!; ef. B.D. Am. ed. s. ν. Crete]; trop. 7 κατὰ βάθους πτωχεία reaching down…

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

κατά, the favourite preposition of Polybius, by whom it is often used in place of ἐν, eis, and περί (Krebs Pra. p. 4), is also found with considerable variety of application in the NT, where it occurs 73 times c. gen., and 391 times c. acc. (cf. Proleg. p. 105). Brugmann (Awrze Vergletchende Grammazk, p. 479) considers that the earliest use of the word was “‘along ” something, so as to remain in connexion and contact with the object, and from this most of the senses found in the NT can be derived. I. (1) Turning to the construction c. gen. we find that the meaning ‘‘along” has passed into ‘‘down,” a usage not found in ΜΟΥ, in such passages as P Petr II. 18(26)!° (B.c. a ἐπιπεσὼν ἔτυπτεν [ad]t[o]v κατὰ τοῦ τραχήλου, Chest. τοῦ πνοήν: ἐξ Mt 8%, r Cor 114, 2 Cor 8%. (2) This in turn becomes ‘‘ against,” as in Mt τοῦδ, Mk 14°5, e.g. P Eleph 115 (B.c. 311-0) (= Se/ections, p. 4) ὅπου ἂν…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

κατά (kata) — according to.

κατά [κᾰτᾰ],

poetry καταί accusative to [Refs 2nd c.AD+]: preposition with genitive or accusative:— downwards.

__A WITH GEN.,

__A.I denoting motion from above, down from, βῆ δὲ κατ᾽ Οὐλύμποιο καρήνων, κατ᾽ Ἰδαίων ὀρέων, βαλέειν κ. πέτρης, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; καθ᾽ ἵππων ἀΐξαντε[Refs 5th c.BC+] — for κατ᾽ ἄκρης see.{ἄκρα}: Μοῖσα κ. στόματος Χέε νέκταρ [Refs 3rd c.BC+]

__A.II denoting downward motion,

__A.II.1 down upon or over, κ. Χθονὸς ὄμματα πήξας [Refs 8th c.BC+]; of the dying, κατὰ.. ὀφθαλμῶν κέχυτ᾽ ἀχλύς a cloud settled upon the eyes, [Refs]; φᾶρος κὰκ κεφαλῆς εἴρυσσε down over.. , [Refs 8th c.BC+]; [κόπρος] κ. σπείους κέχυτο.. πολλή [Refs]; ὕδωρ κ. Χειρός, see at {Χεί; μύρον κ. τῆς κεφαλῆς καταχέαντες} [Refs…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

κατά

kata

a primary particle; (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in

varied relations (according to the case (genitive, dative or

accusative) with which it is joined):--about, according as (to),

after, against, (when they were) X alone, among, and, X apart, (even,

like) as (concerning, pertaining to touching), X aside, at, before,

beyond, by, to the charge of, (charita-)bly, concerning, + covered,

(dai-)ly, down, every, (+ far more) exceeding, X more excellent, for,

from ... to, godly, in(-asmuch, divers, every, -to, respect of), ...

by, after the manner of, + by any means, beyond (out of) measure, X

mightily, more, X natural, of (up-)on (X part), out (of every), over

against, (+ your) X own, + particularly, so, through(-oughout,

-oughout every), thus, (un-)to(-gether, -ward), X uttermost,

where(-by), with. In composition it retains many of these

Read the full entry →
Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

κατά

Prep.

down from, against, according to, throughout, during

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

κατά kata 473x

down from, Mt. 8:32; down upon, upon, Mk. 14:3; Acts 27:14; down into; κατὰ βάθους, profound, deepest, 2 Cor. 8:2; down over, throughout a space, Lk. 4:14; 23:5; concerning, in cases of pointed allegation, 1 Cor. 15:15; against, Mt. 12:30; by, in oaths, Mt. 26:63; with an acc. of place, in the quarter of, about, near, at, Lk. 10;32; Acts 2:10; throughout, Read the full entry →

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Prep — Preposition
preposition — its sense depends on the case of the word it governs.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

PREP PREPosition

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
45%according to
according to45% · 215×against12% · 57×in9% · 42×every5% · 24×by5% · 23×on3% · 13×other renderings15% · 72×other renderings7% · 34×

480 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 48 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
adverbial86%object5%predicate5%subject3%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 473 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
καίand, even, also,πᾶςall, the whole, ἄνθρωποςa man, one of th
αὐτός
ποιέωI do, makeγυνήa woman, wife, mλαλέωI speak, say
καίand, even, also, nam
ἑκατόνIndecμέγαςσύ
οὐNeg
καίand, even, also,ἀλλάbut, exceptἔρχομαιI come, go
ἐγώ
μετάσυλλαμβάνωI seize, appreheγίνομαιI come into bein
κατάaccording to473×
what comes after →
Article the
νόμοςa law, the Mosaiἔργονwork, labor, actαὐτός
σάρξflesh, body
περιπατέωI walk, conduct ζάωI liveοὐNeg
ἴδιοςone’s own, private,
λέγωI say, speakκαίand, even, also,δέbut, on the othe
ἡμέραa day
ἐνεἰμίI am, existκαίand, even, also,
αὐτός
ὅπωςhow, in order thκαίand, even, also,λέγωI say, speak

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

Concordanceκατά · 473× in the New Testament
Acts Romans Luke Hebrews Matthew 2 Corinthians 1 Corinthians Ephesians Mark Galatians Colossians Philippians

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament26 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome The Shepherd of Hermas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 3c. AD 40

ἡ δ’ ἀρχή, καθάπερ ἔφην, ἐστὶ θαυμασιωτάτη κοσμοποιίαν περιέχουσα, ὡς καὶ τοῦ κόσμου τῷ νόμῳ καὶ τοῦ νόμου τῷ κόσμῳ συνᾴδοντος καὶ τοῦ νομίμου ἀνδρὸς εὐθὺς ὄντος κοσμοπολίτου πρὸς τὸ βούλημα τῆς φύσεως τὰς πράξεις ἀπευθύνοντος, καθ’ ἣν καὶ ὁ σύμπας…

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.7c. AD 75–95

ἀλλʼ ἐπειδὴ μείζων ἦν ἡ τοῦδε τοῦ λόγου περιβολή, κατʼ αὐτὸν ἐκεῖνον χωρίσας ταῖς ἰδίαις ἀρχαῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ τέλει τὴν γραφὴν συνεμέτρησα·

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.2c. AD 100

Μεγάλων μὲν ὄντων καὶ πλουσίων τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιωμάτων εἰς ὑμᾶς, ὑπέρ τι καὶ καθ̓ ὑπερβολὴν ὑπερευφραίνομαι ἐπὶ τοῖς μακαρίοις καὶ ἐνδόξοις ὑμῶν πνεύμασιν: οὕτως ἔμφυτον τῆς δωρεᾶς πνευματικῆς χάριν εἰλήφατε.

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 2nd c. BC 6th c. AD 3rd c. BC
P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

ἐπρίατο Πετεαρσεμθεὺς Πανοβχούνιος ὡς ἐτῶν μ χαλκοῦ τάλαντα δύο . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Πετεαρσεμθεὺς ὁ ἀποδόμενος, ὃν ἐδέξατο Πετεαρσεμθεὺς ὁ πριάμενος. Ἑρμίας ὁ

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

ἐπρίατο Πακοῖβις Πατοῦτος ὡς ἐτῶν λ χαλκοῦ δραχμῶν τρισχιλίων . προπωληταὶ καὶ βεβαιωταὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Νεχούτης καὶ ὁ σὺν αὐτῷ οἱ ἀποδόμενοι, ὃν ἐδέξατο Πακοῖβις

BGU 3 1000Pathyris99 BC

μελίχρως τετανὸς μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν χαλκοῦ δραχμὰς δισχιλίας καὶ διακοσίας . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Πανοβχοῦνις ὁ ἀποδόμενος, ὃν ἐδέξατο Εὔνους ὁ πριάμενος. Ἑρμίας ὁ

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
τὴνho the G3588 Article · accusative · singular · feminine
19,783× 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
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-ASF — Article · accusative · singular · feminine
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked singular feminine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

T-ASF Part of Speech: definite arTicle Case: Accusative Number: Singular Gender: Feminine

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
the19783×
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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
παράδοσινparadosis tradition G3862 Noun · accusative · singular · feminine
13× 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
The Greek word for tradition, referring to a teaching or law passed down, is used in Matthew 15:2-3 to describe the Jewish traditionary law. It also appears in 1 Corinthians 11:2 and Galatians 1:14. This concept is about handing down or transferring teachings.
Amplified meaning
customs, teachings
Tyndale gloss
tradition
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

παράδοσις (paradosis) means a handing down or transmission, often referring to traditions or teachings, particularly in a religious context. It encompasses both the act of delivering instructions and the content of those teachings, as seen in various New Testament passages like Matthew 15:2 and 2 Thessalonians 2:15. The term can also imply surrender or giving up, but its primary focus in the New Testament is on doctrinal traditions.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

παρά-δοσις, -εως, ἡ

(< παραδίδωμι),

[in LXX: Es 7:26 (אֱסוּר), Je 39 (32):4 (נתן ni.), Je 41 (34):2*;]

a handing down or over, transfer, transmission (Arist., Polyb., al., LXX).

tradition of doctrine (Plat., Epict., al.); by meton., of the doctrine itself : Mt 15:2, 3, 6, Mk 7:3 ff., I Co 11:2, Ga 1:14, Col 2:8, II Th 2:15 3:9.†

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

παρά-δοσις, -ews, ἡ, (παραδίδωμι), α giving over, giving up; i. 6. 1. the act of giving up, the surrender: of cities, Polyb. 9, 25,5; Joseph. b. j. 1, 8, 6; χρημάτων, Aristot. pol. 5, 7, 11 p. 1809", 10. 2. a giving over which is done by word of mouth or in writing, i. e. tradition by instruction, narrative, precept, ete. (see mapaδίδωμι, 4); hence i. q. instruction, Epict. diss. 2, 23, 40; joined with διδασκαλία, Plat. legg. 7 p. 803 a. objectively, what is delivered, the substance of the teaching: so of Paul’s teaching, 2 Th. iii. 6 ; in plur. of the particular injunctions of Paul’s instruction, 1 Co. xi. 2; 2 Th. ii. 15. used in the sing. of a written narrative, Joseph. 6. Ap. 1,9, 2; 10,2; again, of the body of precepts, esp. ritual, which in the opinion of the later Jews were orally delivered by Moses and orally transmitted in unbroken succession to subsequent generations, which…

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

παράδοσις in itself signifies an act of “" transmission” or ‘‘ delivery’ as in P Grenf IT. 46 (a)® (A.D. 139) παρέτυχον τῇ γενομένηι παραδόσει, in connexion with the official inspection of a freight, BGU IV. 1047'"""! (time of Hadrian) τὴν yeyovu[ta]y αὐτοῖς παράδοσιν, P Oxy X. 12627 (A.D. 197) ἐπὶ παραλήμψεω(ς) kal παραδόσεως σπερμάτ(ων), ‘for the receiving and delivery of seed” (cf. Phil 418), and P Fay 1295 (ili/A.D.) ἐτάξατο πάντως καταβῆναι τῇ ἑνδεκάτῃ καὶ τὴν παράδοσιν ποιήσασθαι, “he appointed for certain the

Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

παράδοσις (paradosis) — tradition.

παρά-δοσις, εως, ἡ,

handing down, bequeathing, transmission, τοῦ σκήπτρου [Refs 5th c.BC+]; handing over, transfer, ἡ π. τῶν χρημάτων [Refs 5th c.BC+]; σίτου, etc., [Refs 3rd c.AD+]; τῆς βασιλείας [Refs 1st c.AD+]; ἐν παραδόσει παραλαμβάνειν ἀεί, of a reserve fund, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]

2. transmission of legends, doctrines, etc., tradition, διδασκαλία καὶ π. [Refs 5th c.BC+]; treatment, exposition, ὅπως πᾶσιν εὐπαρακολούθητος γένηται ἡ π. [Refs 2nd c.BC+]; ἡ βοτανικὴ π. the subject of botany, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; σύντομος π. succinct account, [Refs 5th c.AD+]

2. b in military sense, transmission of orders, [Refs 2nd c.AD+]

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

παράδοσις

paradosis

from 3860; transmission, i.e. (concretely) a precept; specially, the

Jewish traditionary law:--ordinance, tradition.

see GREEK for 3860

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

παράδοσις, εως, ἡ

n.f.

an instruction, tradition

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

παράδοσις paradosis 13x

delivery, handing over, transmission; in NT what is transmitted in the way of teaching, precept, doctrine, 1 Cor. 11:2; 2 Thess. 2:15; 3:6; tradition, traditionary law, handed down from age to age, Mt. 15:2, 3, 6

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

παράδοσις παράδοσις, εως, παραδίδωμι a handing down, transmission, Thuc.

the transmission of legends and doctrines, tradition, Plat., etc.:—also that which is so handed down, a tradition, NTest.

a giving up, surrender, Thuc.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-ASF — Noun · accusative · singular · feminine
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked singular feminine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-ASF Part of Speech: Noun Case: Accusative Number: Singular Gender: Feminine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

tra-dish'-un: The Greek word is paradosis, "a giving over," either by word of mouth or in writing; then that which is given over, i.e. tradition, the teaching that is handed down from one to another. The word does not occur in the Hebrew Old Testament (except in Jer 39 (32):4; 41 (34):2, used in another sense), or in the Septuagint or the Apocrypha (except in 2 Esdras 7:26, used in a different sense), but is found 13 times in the New Testament (Mt 15:2,3,6; Mr 7:3,5,8,9,13; 1Co 11:2; Ga 1:14; Col 2:8; 2Th 2:15; 3:6).

1. Meaning in Jewish Theology:

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Tradition

Any kind of teaching, written or spoken, handed down from generation to generation. In Mark 7:3, 9, 13, Col. 2:8, this word refers to the arbitrary interpretations of the Jews. In 2 Thess. 2:15; 3:6, it is used in a good sense. Peter (1 Pet. 1:18) uses this word with reference to the degenerate Judaism of the “strangers scattered” whom he addresses (comp. Acts 15:10; Matt. 15:2-6; Gal. 1:14).

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

Col 2:8 Tit 1:14, a doctrine, sentiment, or custom not found in the Bible, but transmitted orally from generation to generation from some presumed inspired authority. In patriarchal times, much that was valuable and obligatory was thus preserved. But tradition has long been superseded by the successive and completed revelations of God’s will which form the inspired Scriptures, the only perfect and sufficient rule of belief and practice. With this, even before the time of the Savior, Isa 8:20, all traditions were to be compared, as being of no value if they conflicted with it, added to it, or took from it, Re 22:19. The Jews had numerous unwritten traditions, which they…

Nave's Topical Bible

→ The decisions and minor precepts taught by Paul 1Co 11:2

→ R. V.) 2Th 2:15; 3:6

→ Commandments of men Mt 12:1-8; 15:2-6; Mr 7:3-9; Lu 6:1-11; Col 2:8; 1Pe 1:18

→ Not authoritative Mt 15:3-20; 1Ti 1:4; 4:7

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
77%tradition
tradition77% · 10×traditions15% · 2×teachings8% · 1×

13 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
object46%adverbial46%predicate8%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 13 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
κρατέωI lay hold of, oκατάδιά
ἐγώ
πατρικόςpaternal, ancest
παράδοσιςtradition13×
what comes after →
Article the
πρεσβύτεροςelderἄνθρωποςa man, one of th
σύ
τηρέωI keep, guard, oὅς
ὅς
διδάσκωI teachπαραλαμβάνωI take, receive
κατέχωI hold fast, bind, r

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

Concordanceπαράδοσις · 13× in the New Testament
Mark Matthew 2 Thessalonians 1 Corinthians Colossians Galatians
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 Drunkenness 120c. AD 40

παραδόσεις γὰρ καὶ ὑφηγήσεις βραδεῖαι μὲν αἱ δι’ ἀνθρώπων, ὀξύταται δ’ αἱ διὰ θεοῦ, φθάνουσαι καὶ τὴν ὀξυτάτην χρόνου κίνησιν.

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 10.51c. AD 75–95

ταῦτα δʼ ἔπραττε σοφίᾳ καὶ ἐπινοίᾳ τῆς φύσεως χρώμενος καὶ τῇ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων πειθόμενος συμβουλίᾳ καὶ παραδόσει·

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
4th c. AD 2nd c. AD 3rd c. AD 2nd c. BC 1st c. AD
P.Mil.Vogl. 6 267Tebtynis (Arsinoites)AD 125–AD 126

, ἃς καὶ ἀποδώσω ὑμῖν τῷ ἐσχάτῳ ἔτει τῆς μισθώσεως ἅμα τῇ τῶν ἐκφορίων παραδόσει ἀτοκὶ καὶ ἀνυπερθέτως, καὶ μετὰ τὸν χρόνον παραδώσω τὸ μισθούμενον ἥμισυ μέρος καθαρὸν ἀπὸ

P.Mil.Vogl. 2 104Tebtynis (Arsinoites)AD 127

ἃς καὶ ἀποδώσω σοι ἀτοκὶ τῷ ἐσχάτῳ ἔτει τῆς μισθώσεως ἅμα τῇ τῶν ἐκφορίων παραδόσει ἀνυπερθέτως, καὶ μετὰ τὸν χρόνον παραδώσω τὸ μισθούμενον ἥμισυ μέρος καθαρὸν ἀπὸ ἀγρώστεως δείσηςπάσης.

P.Grenf. 2 46 aArsinoitesAD 139

κατακομισθέντος ἐκ τῆς ὑπὸ σοὶ μερίδος διὰ Βησαρίωνος Ἥρωνος οἱ ἐπίπλοοι παρέτυχον τῇ γενομένηι παραδόσει καὶ ζυγοστασίαι χωρὶς ὄντοσ ἀπελευθεύρου Σαλλωνίου Παπεῖτος Σαταβοῦτος ἐρρῶσθαί σε εὔχομαι. ἔτους β Αὐτοκράτορος

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
τῶνho <the> G3588 Article · genitive · plural · masculine
19,783× 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
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-GPM — Article · genitive · plural · masculine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked plural masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

T-GPM Part of Speech: definite arTicle Case: Genitive Number: Plural 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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
ἀνθρώπων,anthrōpos of men, G444 Noun · genitive · plural · masculine
548× 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
This word means a human being, and is used in the Bible to describe people, like in John 16:21 and Romans 7:1.
Amplified meaning
man-made, earthly
Tyndale gloss
a human
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word ἄνθρωπος (i.e., *anthropos*) means 'man' or 'human being,' encompassing both males and females. It is derived from roots meaning 'man-faced' and is used in various contexts throughout the New Testament, such as to distinguish humans from God and animals. The term can imply human frailty and is often used in phrases that reflect human nature or condition.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

ἄνθρωπος, -ου, ὁ,

[in LXX chiefly for אָדָם, אִישׁ, also for אֱנוֹשׁ, etc.;]

man:

generically, a human being, male or female (Lat. homo): Jo 16:21; c. art., Mt 4:4 12:35, Mk 2:27, Jo 2:25, Ro 7:1, al; disting. from God, Mt 19:6, Jo 10:33, Col 3:23, al.; from animals, etc., Mt 4:19, Lk 5:10, Re 9:4, al.; implying human frailty and imperfection, I Co 3:4; σοφία ἀνθρώπων,

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

ἄνθρωπος, -ov, 6, [perh. fr. ἀνήρ and oy, i. e. man’s face; Curtius § 422; Vaniéek p.9. From Hom. down]; man. Tt is used 1. univ., with ref. to the genus or nature, without distinction of sex, a human being, whether male or female: Jn. xvi. 31. And in this sense a. with the article, generically, so as to include all human individuals: Mt. iv. 4 (ἐπ᾿ ἄρτῳ ζήσεται 6 ἄνθρωπος) ; Mt. xii. 35 (ὁ ἀγαθὸς ἄνθ. every good person); Mt. xv. 11, 18; Mk. ii. 27; vil. 15, 18, 20; Lk.iv.4; Jn. ii. 25 [W. § 18, 8]; vii. 51; Ro. vii.1,ete. b. so that a man is distinguished from beings of a different race or order; a. from animals, plants, ete.: Lk. v.10; Mt.iv.19; xii. 12; 2 Pet. ii. 16; Rev. ix. 4, 7, 10, 15,18; xi. 13, ete. β. from God, from Christ as divine, and from angels: Mt. x. 32; xix. 6; Mk. x. 9; Lk. 11. 15 [Ὁ WH om., L Tr br.] (opp. to angels); Jn. x. 33; Acts x. 26; xiv.11; 1 Th. ii. 13…

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

ἄνθρωπος, like ἀνήρ, has kept its differentia practically unchanged from Homer to MGr. It is interesting to notice its philosophical abstract ἀνθρωπότης vouched for as fairly popular Greek by Vettius Valens (p. 346%, in antith. to ἀθανασία), passing into Christian theology (see LS and Sophocles Zex.), and current in MGr. The NT has no trace of the curious misuse by which the principal difference between a. and ἀνήρ is ignored: Tob 65 ἀνθρώπου ἢ γυναικός. P Flor |. 61 (a.p. 86-8) ἄξιος μ[ὲ]ν ἧς μαστιγωθῆναι, διὰ σεαυτοῦ [κ]Ἰατασχὼν ἄνθρωπον εἰσχήμονα καὶ yuv[ai]kas is not parallel, as a. only means as little is Jn 772. (Grimm). Another case of ἄνθρωπος invading the sphere of ἀνήρ is the Matthzean locution ἄ, οἰκοδεσπότης, βασιλεύς, φαγός etc. though not Attic: Mt may have got it from LXX (so Lev 21° ἀνθρώπου ἱερέως). Some papyrus passages may be cited, though little is needed. The…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos) — a human.

ἄνθρωπος, ἡ,

Attic dialect crasis ἅνθρωπος, Ionic dialect ὥνθρωπος, for ὁ ἄνθρ-:— man, both as a generic term and of individuals, [Refs 8th c.BC+], opposed to gods, ἀθανάτων τε θεῶν χαμαὶ ἐρχομένων τ᾽ ἀνθρώπων[Refs 8th c.BC+]; πρὸς ἠοίων ἢ ἑσπερίων ἀνθρώπων the men of the east or of the west, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; even of the dead in the Isles of the Blest,[Refs 5th c.BC+]

2. [Refs 5th c.BC+] uses it both with and without the Article to denote man generically, ὁ ἄ. θείας μετέσχε μοίρας[Refs]; ὁ ἄ. the ideal man, humanity, ἀπώλεσας τὸν ἄ., οὐκ ἐπλήρωσας τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν[Refs 2nd c.AD+]

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

ἄνθρωπος

anthropos

from 435 and ops (the countenance; from 3700); man-faced, i.e. a human

being:--certain, man.

see GREEK for 435

see GREEK for 3700

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

ἄνθρωπος, ου, ὁ

n.m.

a man, one of the human race

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos 550x

a human being, Jn. 16:21; Phil. 2:7; an individual, Rom. 3:28, et al. freq.; used also pleonastically with other words, Mt. 11:19; et al.; met. the spiritual frame of the inner man, Rom. 7:22; Eph. 3:16; 1 Pet. 3:4

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

ἄνθρωπος prob. from ἀνήρ, ὤψ, manfaced man, Lat. homo (not vir), opp. to gods, ἀθανάτων τε θεῶν, χαμαὶ ἐρχομένων τ᾽ ἀνθρώπων Il.

with or without the Art. to denote man generally, Plat., etc.

in pl. mankind, ἀνθρώπων, ἀνδρῶν ἠδὲ γυναικῶν Il.; ὁ ἄριστος ἐν ἀνθρώποις ὄρτυξ the best quail in the world, Plat.; μάλιστα, ἥκιστα ἀνθρώπων most, least of all, Hdt., etc.

with another Subst., to give it a contemptuous sense, ἄνθρ. ὑπογραμματεύς, συκοφάντης, Oratt.; so homo histrio Cic.:—so, ἄνθρωπος or ὁ ἄνθρωπος was used alone, the man, the fellow, Plat.:— also in vocat. it was addressed contemptuously to slaves, ἄνθρωπε or ὦ 'νθρωπε, sirrah! you sir! Hdt., Plat.

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Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-GPM — Noun · genitive · plural · masculine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked plural masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-GPM Part of Speech: Noun Case: Genitive Number: Plural Gender: Masculine

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
59%man
man59% · 328×men33% · 185×a man2% · 13×other renderings6% · 33×

559 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 21 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
subject43%adverbial24%object17%predicate9%indirect object5%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 548 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
υἱόςa son, descendenκοινόωI make unclean, ἀπό
πᾶςall, the whole, ever
εἰςπρόςδέbut, on the othe
ὁράωI see, look upon, ex
καίand, even, also,ἐξέρχομαιI go out, come oλέγωI say, speak
ἐκ
DisjλέγωI say, speakεἰμίI am, exist
ἐγώ
γάρforὅτιthat, since, becΠαῦλοςPaul
ἄνθρωποςof men,548×
what comes after →
Article the
δέbut, on the otheπατήρfather, Father, Article the
οὗτος
ὅςδίκαιοςjust, righteous,καίand, even, also,
καίand, even, also, nam
Article theλέγωI say, speakεἰμίI am, exist
εἰμίI am, exist
ὑπόκαίand, even, also,Article the
ἐν
Article theμαλακόςsoft, effeminateπνεῦμαwind, breath, sp

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

Concordanceἄνθρωπος · 548× in the New Testament
Matthew Luke John Mark Acts 1 Corinthians Romans Revelation Galatians 1 Timothy Hebrews Ephesians

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament24 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 708 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 Josephus The Shepherd of Hermas Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 25c. AD 40

τὴν γοῦν ἀνθρώπου γένεσιν ἀναγράφων ἐν τοῖς ἔπειτα διαρρήδην ὁμολογεῖ, ὡς ἄρα κατ’ εἰκόνα θεοῦ διετυπώθη (Gen.

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.16c. AD 75–95

γέγονε γὰρ πρὸ ἐτῶν δισχιλίων, ἐφʼ ὅσον πλῆθος αἰῶνος οὐδʼ αὐτῶν οἱ ποιηταὶ τὰς γενέσεις τῶν θεῶν, μήτι γε τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων πράξεις ἢ τοὺς νόμους ἀνενεγκεῖν ἐτόλμησαν.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 3.1c. AD 100

οὐ ταύτην τὴν νηστείαν ἐγὼ ἐξελεξάμην, λέγει κύριος, οὐκ ἄνθρωπον ταπεινοῦντα τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ,

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 4th c. AD 3rd c. BC 3rd c. AD
P.Cair. Zen. 3 59301Philadelphia (Arsinoites)251 BC

Ψύχεως. καλῶς ἂν οὖν ποιήσαις διέμενος αὐτόν, καθὰ ἐν πόλει μοι ἐπηγγείλω. ἔστιν γὰρ ἄνθρωπος ἡμῖν χρήσιμος. ἔρρωσο. ἔτους λϛ, Παχώνς.

P.Giss. 1 39Theben206 BC–181 BC

ἀεὶ χρόνου. ἐὰν δέ τίς σοι ἐπέλθηι ἔκ τε τοῦ ἐμοῦ ὀνόματος ἢ ἄλλου ἀνθρώπου, ἀνεπιεικὲς ἐκστήσω αὐτὸν ἀπὸ σοῦ περὶ αὐτῶν καὶ βεβαιώσω σοι αὐτὰ ἀπὸ συναλλαγμάτων καὶ

P.Grenf. 1 37Thebais109 BC

ντων ὑμῶν διαλήψεως … καὶ οὐδὲ μέχρι τοῦ νῦν οὐδενός … ς ἀξιοῦμεν … ἀνθρώπου ἀλόγως … ὀφείλει ἡμῖν διάφορα … θαι ἀλλʼ ἀποστερέσαι … ησας ἀλλά … τας

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
κατὰkata according to G2596 Preposition
473× 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
According to means following or matching something. In the Bible, it's used to talk about things happening in line with God's plan or will, like in Matthew 8:32 and Mark 5:13.
Tyndale gloss
according to
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

κατά (kata) is a preposition used with the genitive and accusative cases, primarily meaning 'down' or 'against.' It indicates direction, motion, or relation, appearing in various contexts such as 'down from' (e.g., Mt 8:32) and 'against' (e.g., Mk 9:40). The word also conveys meanings like 'throughout' and 'according to.' Lexicons note its frequent use in the New Testament, with some variations in application.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

κατά (bef. a vowel κατ’, καθ’; on the freq. neglect of elision, v. Tdf., Pr., 95; WH, App., 146a),

prep. c. gen., acc.,

down, downwards.

C. gen. (WM, § 47, k; Bl., § 42, 2).

C. gen. rei, in local sense;

down, down from: Mt 8:32, Mk 5:13, Lk 8:33, I Co 11:4;

throughout (late usage; Bl., § 42, 2): κ. ὅλης κ.τ.λ., Lk 4:14 23:5, Ac 9:31 10:37;

in a peculiar adjectival phrase: ἡ κ. βάθους πτωχεία, deep or extreme poverty, II Co 8:2.

C. gen. pers., usually in hostile sense;

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

κατά, [on its neglect of elision before a vowel see Tf. Proleg. p. 95; cf. W. § 5, 1a.; B.10; WH. App. p. 1405], a preposition denoting motion or diffusion or direction from the higher to the lower; as in class. Grk., joined with the gen. and the acc. I. With the Genitive (W. § 47, k. p. 381 (357); [B. § 147, 20]); 1. prop. a. down from, down: κατὰ κατά 8 τοῦ κρημνοῦ, Mt. viii. 32; ΜΚ. v.13; Lk. viii. 33; κατέχεεν κατὰ τῆς κεφαλῆς (so that it flowed down from his head [οἷς W. 381 (357) note]; but it is more correct here to omit κατά with LT Tr WH; see καταχέω), Mk. xiv. 3; hence κατὰ κεφαλῆς (a veil hanging down from his head) ἔχων, 1 Co. xi. 4 ([Δ. V. having his head covered] cf. καταπέτασμα [or rather κάλυμμα (q. v.), but 566 ἔχω I. 1b.]). Ὁ. down upon (down into) anything: Acts xxvii. 14 [W. 381 (357) note!; ef. B.D. Am. ed. s. ν. Crete]; trop. 7 κατὰ βάθους πτωχεία reaching down…

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

κατά, the favourite preposition of Polybius, by whom it is often used in place of ἐν, eis, and περί (Krebs Pra. p. 4), is also found with considerable variety of application in the NT, where it occurs 73 times c. gen., and 391 times c. acc. (cf. Proleg. p. 105). Brugmann (Awrze Vergletchende Grammazk, p. 479) considers that the earliest use of the word was “‘along ” something, so as to remain in connexion and contact with the object, and from this most of the senses found in the NT can be derived. I. (1) Turning to the construction c. gen. we find that the meaning ‘‘along” has passed into ‘‘down,” a usage not found in ΜΟΥ, in such passages as P Petr II. 18(26)!° (B.c. a ἐπιπεσὼν ἔτυπτεν [ad]t[o]v κατὰ τοῦ τραχήλου, Chest. τοῦ πνοήν: ἐξ Mt 8%, r Cor 114, 2 Cor 8%. (2) This in turn becomes ‘‘ against,” as in Mt τοῦδ, Mk 14°5, e.g. P Eleph 115 (B.c. 311-0) (= Se/ections, p. 4) ὅπου ἂν…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

κατά (kata) — according to.

κατά [κᾰτᾰ],

poetry καταί accusative to [Refs 2nd c.AD+]: preposition with genitive or accusative:— downwards.

__A WITH GEN.,

__A.I denoting motion from above, down from, βῆ δὲ κατ᾽ Οὐλύμποιο καρήνων, κατ᾽ Ἰδαίων ὀρέων, βαλέειν κ. πέτρης, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; καθ᾽ ἵππων ἀΐξαντε[Refs 5th c.BC+] — for κατ᾽ ἄκρης see.{ἄκρα}: Μοῖσα κ. στόματος Χέε νέκταρ [Refs 3rd c.BC+]

__A.II denoting downward motion,

__A.II.1 down upon or over, κ. Χθονὸς ὄμματα πήξας [Refs 8th c.BC+]; of the dying, κατὰ.. ὀφθαλμῶν κέχυτ᾽ ἀχλύς a cloud settled upon the eyes, [Refs]; φᾶρος κὰκ κεφαλῆς εἴρυσσε down over.. , [Refs 8th c.BC+]; [κόπρος] κ. σπείους κέχυτο.. πολλή [Refs]; ὕδωρ κ. Χειρός, see at {Χεί; μύρον κ. τῆς κεφαλῆς καταχέαντες} [Refs…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

κατά

kata

a primary particle; (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in

varied relations (according to the case (genitive, dative or

accusative) with which it is joined):--about, according as (to),

after, against, (when they were) X alone, among, and, X apart, (even,

like) as (concerning, pertaining to touching), X aside, at, before,

beyond, by, to the charge of, (charita-)bly, concerning, + covered,

(dai-)ly, down, every, (+ far more) exceeding, X more excellent, for,

from ... to, godly, in(-asmuch, divers, every, -to, respect of), ...

by, after the manner of, + by any means, beyond (out of) measure, X

mightily, more, X natural, of (up-)on (X part), out (of every), over

against, (+ your) X own, + particularly, so, through(-oughout,

-oughout every), thus, (un-)to(-gether, -ward), X uttermost,

where(-by), with. In composition it retains many of these

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Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

κατά

Prep.

down from, against, according to, throughout, during

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

κατά kata 473x

down from, Mt. 8:32; down upon, upon, Mk. 14:3; Acts 27:14; down into; κατὰ βάθους, profound, deepest, 2 Cor. 8:2; down over, throughout a space, Lk. 4:14; 23:5; concerning, in cases of pointed allegation, 1 Cor. 15:15; against, Mt. 12:30; by, in oaths, Mt. 26:63; with an acc. of place, in the quarter of, about, near, at, Lk. 10;32; Acts 2:10; throughout, Read the full entry →

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Prep — Preposition
preposition — its sense depends on the case of the word it governs.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

PREP PREPosition

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
45%according to
according to45% · 215×against12% · 57×in9% · 42×every5% · 24×by5% · 23×on3% · 13×other renderings15% · 72×other renderings7% · 34×

480 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 48 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
adverbial86%object5%predicate5%subject3%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 473 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
καίand, even, also,πᾶςall, the whole, ἄνθρωποςa man, one of th
αὐτός
ποιέωI do, makeγυνήa woman, wife, mλαλέωI speak, say
καίand, even, also, nam
ἑκατόνIndecμέγαςσύ
οὐNeg
καίand, even, also,ἀλλάbut, exceptἔρχομαιI come, go
ἐγώ
μετάσυλλαμβάνωI seize, appreheγίνομαιI come into bein
κατάaccording to473×
what comes after →
Article the
νόμοςa law, the Mosaiἔργονwork, labor, actαὐτός
σάρξflesh, body
περιπατέωI walk, conduct ζάωI liveοὐNeg
ἴδιοςone’s own, private,
λέγωI say, speakκαίand, even, also,δέbut, on the othe
ἡμέραa day
ἐνεἰμίI am, existκαίand, even, also,
αὐτός
ὅπωςhow, in order thκαίand, even, also,λέγωI say, speak

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

Concordanceκατά · 473× in the New Testament
Acts Romans Luke Hebrews Matthew 2 Corinthians 1 Corinthians Ephesians Mark Galatians Colossians Philippians

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament26 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome The Shepherd of Hermas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 3c. AD 40

ἡ δ’ ἀρχή, καθάπερ ἔφην, ἐστὶ θαυμασιωτάτη κοσμοποιίαν περιέχουσα, ὡς καὶ τοῦ κόσμου τῷ νόμῳ καὶ τοῦ νόμου τῷ κόσμῳ συνᾴδοντος καὶ τοῦ νομίμου ἀνδρὸς εὐθὺς ὄντος κοσμοπολίτου πρὸς τὸ βούλημα τῆς φύσεως τὰς πράξεις ἀπευθύνοντος, καθ’ ἣν καὶ ὁ σύμπας…

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.7c. AD 75–95

ἀλλʼ ἐπειδὴ μείζων ἦν ἡ τοῦδε τοῦ λόγου περιβολή, κατʼ αὐτὸν ἐκεῖνον χωρίσας ταῖς ἰδίαις ἀρχαῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ τέλει τὴν γραφὴν συνεμέτρησα·

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.2c. AD 100

Μεγάλων μὲν ὄντων καὶ πλουσίων τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιωμάτων εἰς ὑμᾶς, ὑπέρ τι καὶ καθ̓ ὑπερβολὴν ὑπερευφραίνομαι ἐπὶ τοῖς μακαρίοις καὶ ἐνδόξοις ὑμῶν πνεύμασιν: οὕτως ἔμφυτον τῆς δωρεᾶς πνευματικῆς χάριν εἰλήφατε.

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 2nd c. BC 6th c. AD 3rd c. BC
P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

ἐπρίατο Πετεαρσεμθεὺς Πανοβχούνιος ὡς ἐτῶν μ χαλκοῦ τάλαντα δύο . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Πετεαρσεμθεὺς ὁ ἀποδόμενος, ὃν ἐδέξατο Πετεαρσεμθεὺς ὁ πριάμενος. Ἑρμίας ὁ

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

ἐπρίατο Πακοῖβις Πατοῦτος ὡς ἐτῶν λ χαλκοῦ δραχμῶν τρισχιλίων . προπωληταὶ καὶ βεβαιωταὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Νεχούτης καὶ ὁ σὺν αὐτῷ οἱ ἀποδόμενοι, ὃν ἐδέξατο Πακοῖβις

BGU 3 1000Pathyris99 BC

μελίχρως τετανὸς μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν χαλκοῦ δραχμὰς δισχιλίας καὶ διακοσίας . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Πανοβχοῦνις ὁ ἀποδόμενος, ὃν ἐδέξατο Εὔνους ὁ πριάμενος. Ἑρμίας ὁ

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
τὰho the G3588 Article · accusative · plural · neuter
19,783× 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
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-APN — Article · accusative · plural · neuter
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked plural neuter.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

T-APN Part of Speech: definite arTicle Case: Accusative Number: Plural Gender: Neuter

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
the19783×
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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
στοιχεῖαstoicheion principles G4747 Noun · accusative · plural · neuter
7× 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
A fundamental principle or element, like a basic building block of knowledge. In Galatians 4:3 and Colossians 2:8, it refers to the basic principles of the world.
Amplified meaning
elemental principles, worldly powers
Tyndale gloss
principle
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

στοιχεῖον is derived from στοῖχος, meaning a row or series. It encompasses various meanings, including elementary sounds, the basic components of knowledge, and the material elements of the universe. In the New Testament, it appears in contexts discussing rudiments of faith (Hebrews 5:12) and the elements of the world (Galatians 4:3, 9; Colossians 2:8, 20). Some sources suggest it can refer to heavenly bodies, but interpretations vary.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

** στοιχεῖον, -ου, τό

[in LXX: Wi 7:17 19:18, IV Mac 12:13 * ;]

prop., one of a row (στοῖχος) or series, hence,

the shadow-line of a dial (Aristoph.).

an elementary sound or letter of the alphabet (Anth., Plut., π.).

the elements or rudiments of knowledge (Arist., al.) He 5:12; πτωχὰ σ., Ga 4:9; σ. τοῦ κόσμου, ib. 3, Col 2:8, 20 (but v. infr.).

The material elements of the universe (Plat.; LXX, ll. c.): II Pe 3:10, 12.

The heavenly bodies (Diog. Laert.).

The demons or tutelary spirits of nature (Enoch., Test., Sol., al.; for this sense in Ga, Col, ll. c., v. ICC on Col 2:8; Enc. Bibl., s.v. "…

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

στοιχεῖον, -ov, τό, (fr. στοῖχος a row, rank, series; hence prop. that which belongs to any orotyos, that of which a orotyos is composed; hence), any first thing, from which the others belonging to some series or composite whole take their rise; an element, first principle. The word denotes spec. 1. the letters of the alphabet as the elements of speech, not however the written characters (which are called γράμματα), but the spoken sounds: στοιχεῖον φωνῆς φωνὴ ἀσύνθετος, Plat. defin. p. 414e.; τὸ ῥῶ τὸ στοιχεῖον, id. Crat. p. 420 d.; στοιχεῖόν ἐστι φωνὴ ἀδιαίρετος, ov πᾶσα δέ, GAN ἐξ ἧς πέφυκε συνετὴ γίγνεσθαι φωνή, Aristot. poet. 20, p. 1496, 22. 2. the elements from which all things have come, the material causes of the universe (ἔστι δὲ στοιχεῖον, ἐξ οὗ πρώτου γίνεται τὰ γινόμενα καὶ εἰς ὃ ἔσχατον ἀναλύεται νος τὸ πῦρ. τὸ ὕδωρ, ὁ ἀήρ, ἡ γῆ, Diog. Laért. Zeno 69, 137); so very often…

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

στοιχεῖον. It is not possible to trace here in detail the history of this interesting word. The utmost that can be attempted is to indicate some of its varied meanings, especially those which throw light on its NT occurrences. The root meaning starts from στοῖχος, a ‘‘row” or “‘rank,”’ and from this the word passes to denote sounds which can be arranged in a series such as the letters of the alphabet: cf. BGU III. 959? (a.p. 148) στοιχί(είου) € κολ(λήματος) if, and see P Par 631° (B.C. 164) στοιχειωδῶς, “letter by letter.” Cf. Avth. Pal. ix. 547 (like Nos. 538, 539) to which Mr. H. Lang Jones kindly refers us, nonsense verses containing all the letters of the Greek alphabet— AAHAON Ta εἴκοσι τέσσαρα στοιχεῖα Τρηχὺν δ᾽ ὑπερβὰς φραγμὸν ἐξήνθιζε κλώψ. From this it is an easy transition to the thought of ‘elementary principles,’’ the ABC of a science, as in Heb 51°, and in this connexion…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

στοιχεῖον (stoicheion) — principle.

στοιχεῖον, τό:

I. in a form of sun-dial, the shadow of the gnomon, the length of which in feet indicated the time of day, ὅταν ᾖ δεκάπουν τὸ σ. when the shadow is ten feet long, [Refs 5th c.BC+], see [Refs 4th c.BC+]

II. element,

II.1. a simple sound of speech, as the first component of the syllable, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τὸ ῥῶ τὸ σ[Refs 4th c.BC+] —στοιχεῖα therefore, strictly, were different from letters (γράμματα), [Refs 2nd c.BC+], but are frequently not clearly distinguished from them, as by [Refs 5th c.BC+]; σ. ε ¯ letter ε (in a filing-system), [Refs 2nd c.AD+]; ἀκουόμενα σ. letters which are pronounced, [Refs 2nd c.AD+]; γράμματα and ς. are expressly identified by [Refs 2nd c.BC+]; the ς. and its name are confused by [Refs 2nd c.BC+] — κατὰ στοιχεῖον in the order of the letters, alphabetically, [Refs 1st…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

στοιχεῖον

stoicheion

neuter of a presumed derivative of the base of 4748; something orderly

in arrangement, i.e. (by implication) a serial (basal, fundamental,

initial) constituent (literally), proposition

(figuratively):--element, principle, rudiment.

see GREEK for 4748

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

στοιχεῖον, ου, τό

n.n.

a heavenly body, an element

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

στοιχεῖον stoicheion 7x

an element; an element of the natural universe, 2 Pet. 3:10, 12; an element or rudiment of any intellectual or religious system, Gal. 4:3, 9; Col. 2:8, 20; Heb. 5:12*

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

στοιχεῖον στοιχεῖον, ου, τό, στοῖχος properly, one of a row: hence,

in the sun-dial, the shadow of the gnomon, Ar.

generally, one of a series, an elementary sound of the voice, a letter, Plat.:— κατὰ στοιχεῖον in the order of the letters, alphabetically, Anth.

in pl. the elements, Plat., etc.

the elements of knowledge, rudiments, ἀρξάμενοι ἀπὸ τῶν στ. Xen.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-APN — Noun · accusative · plural · neuter
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked plural neuter.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-APN Part of Speech: Noun Case: Accusative Number: Plural Gender: Neuter

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

prin'-si-p'-lz: Found twice (Heb 5:12; 6:1). The Greek word (stoicheion) is also translated in the King James Version as "elements" and "rudiments." As rendered in He, its meaning is clearly related to the elementary knowledge of Christian truth or doctrine.

See ELEMENTS; RUDIMENTS.

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
57%principles
principles57% · 4×elements29% · 2×basic principles14% · 1×

7 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
adverbial57%subject29%second object14%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 7 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
ὑπόκατάἀπό
πτωχόςpoor, destitute
καίand, even, also,
παρέρχομαιI pass by
ῥοιζηδόνwith a great noi
καίand, even, also, nam
λύωI loose, untie,
στοιχεῖονprinciples
what comes after →
Article the
κόσμοςthe world, univeἀρχήruler, beginning
ὅς
πάλινagain, further,
δέbut, on the other ha
καυσόωI burn up
καυσόωI burn up
τήκωI make liquid, m

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

Concordanceστοιχεῖον · 7× in the New Testament
2 Peter Colossians Galatians Hebrews
Across the New Testament4 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
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 52c. AD 40

τὰ γὰρ τέτταρα στοιχεῖα, ἐξ ὧν τόδε τὸ πᾶν ἐδημιουργήθη, καθάπερ ἀπὸ πηγῆς ἐρρύη τῆς ἐν ἀριθμοῖς τετράδος·

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

ἡ τοῦ κόσμου σύστασις καὶ διάταξις τῶν στοιχείων.

The Shepherd of HermasThe Shepherd of Hermas 3.13.3c. AD 140

καὶ ὅτι ἐπὶ συμψελίου εἶδες καθημένην, ἰσχυρὰ ἡ θέσις, ὅτι τέσσαρας πόδας ἔχει τὸ συμψέλιον καὶ ἰσχυρῶς ἕστηκεν: καὶ γὰρ ὁ κόσμος διὰ τεσσάρων στοιχείων κρατεῖται.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
3rd c. AD 6th c. AD
Stud.Pal. 5 125 fr. 2Hermopolis (HermopolitesAD 267–AD 268

σοι πανταχοῦ συναραμένου πρὸς τὴν ἐπάνοδον ὥστε καὶ γαληνὸν ἔχειν τὸ πέλαγος κατὰ πᾶν στοιχεῖον … ιαμα τῆς λαμπροτάτης Ἀλεξανδρείας … ι ἔτι πλέον δριμυτέρῳ κατέσχε … σε ἀπολαμβάνειν

P.Petra 3 25Petra (Tertia Palaestina Salutaris)AD 559

καὶ τοῦ ἐμοῦ πατρὸς προσηγορίαν διὰ τὸ ἐμὲ μὴ ἠκριβῶσθαι καλῶς γράφειν καὶ κατὰ στοιχεῖον γράφοντα περιωδυνεῖν. Ελ … … λίου διάκονος. ἠξίωσεν ὁ θεοφιλέστατος Φιλούμενος Γεροντίου πρεσβύτερος τὸν

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
τοῦho of the G3588 Article · genitive · singular · masculine
19,783× 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
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-GSM — Article · genitive · singular · masculine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

T-GSM Part of Speech: definite arTicle Case: Genitive Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ov:

(1) In Anglo-Saxon, had the meaning "from," "away from" (as the strengthened form "off" has still), and was not used for genitive or possessive relations, these being expressed by special case-forms. In the Norman period, however, "of" was taken to represent the French de (a use well developed by the time of Chaucer), and in the Elizabethan period both senses of "of" were in common use. But after about 1600 the later force of the word became predominant, and in the earlier sense (which is now practically obsolete) it was replaced by other prepositions. In consequence the King James Version (and in some cases the Revised Version (British and American)) contains many uses of "of" that are no longer familiar--most of them, to be sure, causing no difficulty, but there still being a few responsible for real obscurities.

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

OF, preposition ov. [Gr.]

1. From or out of; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author or agent bestowing.

I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered to you. 1 Corinthians 11:1.

For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Joshua 11:1.

It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed.

Lamentations 3:1.

The whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:1.

Go, inquire of the Lord for me. 2 Chronicles 34:2.

That holy thing that shall be born of thee. Luke 1:1.

Hence of is the sign of the genitive case, the case that denotes production; as the son of man, the son proceeding from man, produced from man. This is the primary sense, although we now say, produced by man. 'Part of these were slain; ' that is, a number separate, for part denotes a division; the sense then is, a number from or out of the whole were slain. So also, 'some of these were slain; ' that is…

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
of the19783×
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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
κόσμουkosmos world G2889 Noun · genitive · singular · masculine
185× 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
The Greek word for world can mean an orderly arrangement or decoration, but also refers to the world and its inhabitants, as seen in Acts 17:24 and Romans 4:13.
Amplified meaning
the earthly system, human society
Tyndale gloss
world
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

κόσμος (kosmos) is derived from a root meaning 'order' or 'decoration.' It encompasses a range of meanings from 'ornament' to 'the universe' and 'mankind.' In the New Testament, it refers to the material world, human society, and worldly affairs, with verses such as 1 Peter 3:3 highlighting its use for adornment. The term also carries ethical connotations, often contrasting the godly with the ungodly.

Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament — κόσμος, αἰών from a scan

Κόσμος our Translators have rendered ‘ world’ in every instance but one (1 Pet. iii. 3); αἰών often, though by no means invariably so; for (not to speak of εἰς αἰῶνα) see Ephes. ii. 2, 7; Col.i. 26. It may be a question whether we might not have made more use of ‘age’ in our Version: we have employed it but rarely,—only, indeed, in the two places which I have cited last. ‘Age’ may sound to us inadequate now: but it is quite possible that, so used, it would little by little have expanded and adapted itself to the larger meaning of the Greek word for which it stood. One must regret that, by this or some other like device, our Translators did not mark the difference between κόσμος (=mundus), the world contemplated under aspects of space, and αἰών (=seculum), the same contemplated under aspects of time; for the Latin, no less than the Greek, has two words, where we have, or have acted as…

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Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

κόσμος, -ου, ὁ

[in LXX: Ge 2:1, De 4:19 17:3, Is 24:21 40:26 (צבא), Ex 33:5, 6, Je 2:32 4:30, Ez 7:20 16:11 23:40 (עֲדִי), Is 61:10 (כְּלִי), al., Wi 2:24 and freq., Si 6:30, al;]

order (Hom., Plat., al.).

ornament, adornment, esp. of women (Hom., al.): I Pe 3:3.

Later, the world or universe, as an ordered system (Plat., al.): Ac 17:24, Ro…

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

κόσμος, -ου, ὃ; 1. in Grk. writ. fr. Hom. down, an apt and harmonious arrangement or constitution, order. 2. asin Grk. writ. fr. Hom. down, ornament, decoration, adornment: évdicews ἱματίων, 1 Pet. iii. 3 (Sir. vi. 30; xxi. 21; 2 Mace. ii. 2: Sept. for nay of the arrangement of the stars, ‘the heavenly hosts,’ as the ornament of the heavens, Gen. ii. 1; Deut. iv. 19; xvii. 3; Is. xxiv. 21; xl. 26; besides occasionally for “y; twice for NINDA, Prov. xx. 29; Is. iii. 19). 3. the world, i. e. the universe (quem κόσμον Graeci nomine ornamenti appellarunt, eum nos a perfecta absolutaque elegantia mundum, Plin. h. n. 2, 3; in which sense Pythagoras is said to have been the first to use the word, Plut. de place. philos. 2, 1, 1 p. 886 ¢.; but ace. to other accounts he used it of the heavens, Diog. L. 8, 48, of which it is used several times also by other Grk. writ. [see Menag. on Diog.…

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

κόσμος. Interesting exx. of ὁ κόσμος, ‘‘ the world,” are afforded by OG/S 4583 (c. B.C. 9) (= Priene 105), where the birthday of the divine Augustus is referred to as the beginning of good news to the world—ptev δὲ τῶι κόσμωι τῶν δι᾽ αὐτὸν εὐανγελίζων ἡ γενέθλιος] τοῦ θεοῦ, and Sy// 376%! where, on the occasion of the proclamation of the freedom of all the Greeks at the Isthmian games in a.D. 67, the Emperor Nero is described as 6 τοῦ παντὸς κόσμου κύριος Νέρων. With the hyperbolical usage in Rom 15. we may compare a sepulchral inscr, from Egypt, in which a certain Seratus states that he lies between mother and brother—éy καὶ ἡ σωφροσύνη κατὰ τὸν κόσμον λελάληται (Archiv ν. p. 169, No. 245): see also P Lond 98110 (iv/a.p.) (= III. p. 242, Chrest. I. p. 157) ἡ yap εὐφημία σου, πάτερ, περιεκύκλωσεν τὸν κ[όσ]μον ὅλον ὡς ἀγαθὸν marépa—a letter to a bishop. Other exx. of the word are ΟΟ 15…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

κόσμος (kosmos) — world.

κόσμος, ὁ,

order, κατὰ κόσμον in order, duly, εὖ κατὰ κ. [Refs 8th c.BC+]; οὐ κατὰ κ. shamefully, [Refs 8th c.BC+] to sit in order, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; κ. φέρειν bear becomingly, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; κόσμῳ οὐδενὶ κοσμηθέντες in no sort of order, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; φεύγειν, ἀπιέναι οὐδενὶ κ., [Refs], etc.; ἀτάκτως καὶ οὐδενὶ κ. [Refs 5th c.BC+]; οὐκέτι τὸν αὐτὸν κ. no longer in the same order, [Refs 5th c.BC+]: generally, of things, natural order, γίνεται τῶν τεταρταίων ἡ κατάστασις ἐκ τούτου τοῦ κ. [Refs 5th c.BC+]

2. good order, good behaviour [Refs 5th c.BC+]; κ. χείρ, of a beggar, [Refs 2nd c.AD+]; κοῖλος μήν short month, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ἐξηγεομένων.. τὸν κ. αὐτοῦ the…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

κόσμος

kosmos

probably from the base of 2865; orderly arrangement, i.e. decoration;

by implication, the world (in a wide or narrow sense, including its

inhabitants, literally or figuratively (morally)):--adorning, world.

see GREEK for 2865

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

κόσμος, ου, ὁ

n.m.

the world, universe

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

κόσμος kosmos 186x

(1) pr. order, regular disposition; ornament, decoration, embellishment, 1 Pet. 3:3; (2) the world, the material universe, Mt. 13:35; the world, the aggregate of sensitive existence, 1 Cor. 4:9; the lower world, the earth, Mk. 16:15; the world, the aggregate of mankind, Mt. 5:14; the world, the public, Jn. 7:4; in NT the present order of things, the secular world, Jn. 18:36; the human race external to the Jewish nation, the heathen world, Read the full entry →

Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones

κόσμος κόσμος, ου, order, κόσμῳ and κατὰ κόσμον in order, duly, Il., etc.; μὰψ ἀτὰρ οὐ κατὰ κόσμον id. Il.; οὐδενὶ κόσμῳ in no sort of order, Hdt., attic

good order, good behaviour, decency, Aesch., Dem.

the form, fashion of a thing, Od., Hdt.

of states, order, government, Hdt., Thuc.

an ornament, decoration, embellishment, dress, Il., etc.; esp. of women, Lat. mundus muliebris, id. Il., Hes., etc.:—in pl. ornaments, Aesch., etc.

metaph. honour, credit, Hdt., Soph., etc.

a regulator, title of the chief magistrate in Crete, Arist.

the world or universe, from its perfect order, Lat. mundus, Plat., etc.

mankind, as we use "the world," NTest.

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-GSM — Noun · genitive · singular · masculine
genitive — of, from, belonging to.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-GSM Part of Speech: Noun Case: Genitive Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

The earth on which we dwell, 1Sa 2:8; its inhabitants, Joh 3:16, or a large number of them, Joh 12:19. In several places it is equivalent to "land," meaning the Roman Empire, or Judea and its vicinity, Lu 2:1 4:3 Ac 11:28. It also denotes the objects and interests of time and sense, Ga 6:14 1Jo 2:15.

Nave's Topical Bible

→ See EARTH

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
98%world
world98% · 183×other renderings2% · 4×

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

What it does in the sentencefrom the Nestle 1904 treebank
adverbial34%subject23%object21%predicate18%indirect object4%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 185 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
εἰςἐνἐκ
καταβολήa foundation, deposi
ἀπόπρό
ἐν
εἰμίI am, existεἴδωλονan idol, false gφωστήρa light, brillia
ἀρχήruler, beginning
ἀπό
δέbut, on the other ha
Article the
κόσμοςworld185×
what comes after →
καίand, even, also, nam
Article theὅςἀγαπάωI love
οὗτος
ἔρχομαιI come, goβλέπωI look, seeεἰς
εἰμίI am, exist
ἐγώκαίand, even, also,φῶςlight, a source
Article the
δέbut, on the otheἀκολουθέωI accompany, attποίημαa thing made
οὐNeg
εἰμίI am, existδύναμαιI am powerful, aφείδομαιI spare, abstain

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

Concordanceκόσμος · 185× in the New Testament
John 1 John 1 Corinthians Romans Matthew 2 Peter Hebrews James Colossians 1 Peter 1 Timothy 2 Corinthians

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament20 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 24 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 Josephus Clement of Rome The Shepherd of Hermas Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 3c. AD 40

ἡ δ’ ἀρχή, καθάπερ ἔφην, ἐστὶ θαυμασιωτάτη κοσμοποιίαν περιέχουσα, ὡς καὶ τοῦ κόσμου τῷ νόμῳ καὶ τοῦ νόμου τῷ κόσμῳ συνᾴδοντος καὶ τοῦ νομίμου ἀνδρὸς εὐθὺς ὄντος κοσμοπολίτου πρὸς τὸ βούλημα τῆς φύσεως τὰς πράξεις ἀπευθύνοντος, καθ’ ἣν καὶ ὁ σύμπας…

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

ἡ τοῦ κόσμου σύστασις καὶ διάταξις τῶν στοιχείων.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 4.12c. AD 100

ὁ κύριος ἀπροσωπολήμπτως κρινεῖ τὸν κόσμον.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
2nd c. AD 4th c. AD 3rd c. AD 1st c. AD 2nd c. BC
P.Oxy. 76 5098OxyrhynchosAD 1–AD 100

τοῦ κόσμου φυλάξας … … βοηθείας υ … … … ον … δὲ καὶ τοῦ μηδενα

P. Münch. 3 80Soknopaiu Nesos (Arsinoites)AD 103–AD 114

τῶν ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων τέκνων μέρη δύο ἀκολούθως τῇ τῶν … ων γνώμῃ παρέξ γυναικείου κόσμου, ἐφʼ ὃν χρόνον περίεστι ὁ εἷς καὶ ἕκαστος αὐτῶν ὁλοσχερῆ ἐξουσίαν πωλεῖν ὑποτίθεσθαι χρᾶσθαι

P.Mil.Vogl. 2 84Tebtynis (Arsinoites)AD 138

δὲ δυσὶ θυγατρᾶσι Ταορσενούφι καὶ Τεφορσάϊτι, χωρὶς οὗ προφέρεται κατεσκευακέναι αὐταῖς χρυσοῦ καὶ ἀργύρου κόσμου καὶ ἱματισμοῦ, δοῦναι εἰς θαλλισμοῦ λόγον ἑκάστῃ ἀργυρίου δραχμὰς ε … , πρὸς τοὺς

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
καὶkai and G2532 Conjunction
8,978× 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
And or also, a connecting word used to join ideas or words, like in Matthew 2:18 and Hebrews 1:1.
Tyndale gloss
and
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

καί (kai) is a conjunction meaning 'and,' used to connect words, phrases, and clauses. It serves various functions, including copulative and adjunctive uses, and can express cumulative ideas like 'also' or 'even.' The New Testament frequently employs it to link terms and sentences, as seen in verses like Matthew 2:18 and John 10:3. Abbott-Smith notes its use in both simple and complex structures, while Thayer emphasizes its role as the most common particle in the New Testament.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

καί,

conj.,

and.

Copulative.

Connecting single words;

in general: Mt 2:18 16:1, Mk 2:15, Lk 8:15, He 1:1, al. mult.; repeated before each of the terms in a series, Mt 23:23, Lk 14:21, Ro 7:12 9:4, al.;

connecting numerals (WM, § 37, 4): Jo 2:20, Ac 13:20;

joining terms which are not mutually exclusive, as the part with the whole: Mt 8:33 26:59, Mk 16:17,

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

καί, a conj., and; the most freq. by far of all the particles in the N. T. [On its uses see W. § 53, 3sqq.; B. 361 (310) sqq., and ef. Ellicott on Phil. iv. 12; on the difference between it and τέ see 8. v. τέ ad init. ] I. It serves as a copulative i.e. to connect (Lat. et, atque, Germ. und) ; 1. it connects single words or terms: a. univ., as of Φαρισαῖοι καὶ Σαδδουκαῖοι, Mt. xvi. 1; ὁ θεὸς καὶ πατήρ, he who is God and Father (see θεός, 3); ἐν καρδίᾳ καλῇ καὶ ἀγαθῇ, Lk. viii. 15; πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως, ΗΘ}. 1. 1; it is repeated before single terms, to each of which its own force and weight is thus given: ἡ υἱοθεσία καὶ ἡ δόξα καὶ ai διαθῆκαι καὶ ἡ νομοθεσία καὶ ἡ λατρεία καὶ αἱ ἐπαγγελίαι, Ro. ix. 4 ; ἁγία καὶ δικαία καὶ ἀγαθή, Ro. vii. 12; add, Mt. xxiii. 23; Lk. xiv. 21; Jn. xvi. 8; Acts xv. 20, 29; xxi. 25; Heb. ix. 10; Rey. v. 12; xviii. 12 sq.; ef. W. 519 sq. (484). b. it…

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

και. In LAE p. 129 ff. Deissmann discusses the thoroughly popular character of the Johannine style with its short paratactic sentences, introduced by kal. . . καί. To illustrate this, he cites amongst other exx. a Dream from the Serapeum, P Par 51 (B.C. 160) (= Selections, p. 18 ff. : see especially the amended readings in Archiv vi. p. 204), which runs—** ὦμ[ην] βατί -- δ)ίζειν pe [ἀπ]ὸ λειβὸς ἕως ἀ[ πηλι]ώτου, καὶ ἀναπίπτομαι ἐπ᾿ ἄχυρον" καὶ [ἄν]θρωπ[ος9] ἀπὸ λιβός μου, ἐχόμενός μου’ ἀναπίπτει καὶ αὐτός, καὶ ὥσπερ κεκλειμμ[évot] μου ἦσαν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί μου, καὶ ἐξαί[φνης] ἀνύγω τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς pov, καὶ ὁρῶ kTA., “ I dreamed that I was going from West to East, and I lie down upon chaff. And there | αὐτὸ (deleted in the original) Σεμφθεῖ. | ἐκ καινῆς ἐν Σομολ(ῶ)…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

καί (kai) — and.

καί,

conjunction, copulative, joining words and sentences,

__A and; also adverb, even, also, just, frequently expressing emphatic assertion or assent, corresponding as positive to the negative οὐ (μή) or οὐδέ (μηδέ). copulative, and,

__A.I joining words or sentences to those preceding, ἦ, καὶ κυανέῃσιν ἐπ᾽ ὀφρύσινεῦσε Κρονίων [Refs 8th c.BC+]: repeated with two or more Nouns, αἱ δὲ ἔλαφοι κ. δορκάδες κ. οἱ ἄγριοι οἶες κ. οἱ ὄνοι οἱ ἄγριοι [Refs 5th c.BC+]; joining only the last pair, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ὁ ὄχλος πλείων κ. πλείων ἐπέρρει more and more, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; to add epithets after πολύς, πολλὰ κ. ἐσθλά [Refs 8th c.BC+]

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

καί

kai

apparently, a primary particle, having a copulative and sometimes also

a cumulative force; and, also, even, so then, too, etc.; often used in

connection (or composition) with other particles or small words:--and,

also, both, but, even, for, if, or, so, that, then, therefore, when,

yet.

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

καί

Cj.

and, even, also, namely

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

καί kai 9x

(1) and, Mt. 2:2, 3, 11; 4:22; (2) καί ... καί, both ... and; (3) as a cumulative particle, also, too, Mt. 5:39; Jn. 8:19; 1 Cor. 11:6; (4) emphatic, even, also, Mt. 10:30; 1 Cor. 2:10; in NT adversative, but, Mt. 11:19; also introductory of the apodosis of a sentence, Gal. 3:28; Jas. 2:4

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

CONJ CONJunction or conjunctive particle

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
89%and
and89% · 8448×also8% · 714×other renderings2% · 191×other renderings1% · 124×

9,477 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 42 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
adverbial16%subject13%object10%predicate3%verb2%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 8,978 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
αὐτός
ἐνἐπίπρός
σύ
χάριςgrace, favor, kiπρόςπατήρfather, Father,
ἐγώ
πατήρfather, Father, πρόςθεόςGod, a god
εἰμίI am, exist
αὐτόςArticle theἐγώ
θεόςGod, a god
Article theθέλημαwill, wish, desiδέbut, on the othe
καίand8978×
what comes after →
Article the
ἀδελφόςa brotherπατήρfather, Father, μήτηρa mother
λέγωI say, speak
αὐτόςArticle theπρός
οὐNeg
εἰμίI am, existμήNegδύναμαιI am powerful, a
ὁράωI see, look upon, ex
Article theαὐτόςἀνήρa male human bei
ἐν
Article theπᾶςall, the whole, ὅλοςall, the whole,

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

Concordanceκαί · 8,978× in the New Testament
Luke Matthew Revelation Acts Mark John 1 Corinthians Romans Hebrews 2 Corinthians Ephesians 1 John

3 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 Ignatius of Antioch
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

ἡ 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 4th c. AD 1st c. AD 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 καὶ κανηφόρου τῶν

P.Adl. 11Pathyris99 BC

1 ἔτους ιζ Θῶυθ κη ἀπέδοτο Πετεσοῦχος Φίβιος καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ τὸ ὕπαρχον αὐτοῖς ἥμισυ περιστερῶνος τοῦ ὄντος ἐν τῶι ἀπὸ βορρᾶ μέρει

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

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

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
οὐou not G3756 Particle · negative
1,622× in the NT scale is logarithmic — ὁ, the commonest word, appears 19,867×
rarer in Colossians than elsewhere in the New Testament
In plain English
Meaning
This is a strong 'no', used to deny something completely. It appears in the New Testament, such as in Matthew 13:29 and John 1:21. It is a negative answer to a question.
Tyndale gloss
no
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Greek word οὐ (transliterated as ou) is a primary negative particle meaning 'not' or 'no.' It is used to negate verbs or statements, often appearing in various forms depending on the following sound. In the New Testament, it frequently serves to deny facts and is distinct from another negative particle, μή (transliterated as ), which is used for prohibitions or wishes.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

οὐ, before a vowel with smooth breathing οὐκ, before one with rough breathing οὐχ (but improperly οὐχ ἰδού, Ac 2:7, WH, mg.; cf. WH, Intr., § 409; M, Pr., 44, 244),

[in LXX for לֹא, אַיִן, אֵין;]

neg. particle,

not, no, used generally c. indic. and for a denial of fact (cf . μή);

absol. (accented), οὔ, no: Mt 13:29, Jo 1:21 21:5; οὒ οὔ, Mt 5:37, Ja 5:12.

Most freq. negativing a verb or other word, Mt 1:25 10:26, 38, Mk 3:25 9:37, Jo 8:29, Ac 7:5, Ro 1:16, Phl 3:3, al.; in…

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

οὐ before a consonant, οὐκ before a vowel with a smooth breathing, and ody before an aspirated vowel ; but sometimes in the best codd. οὐχ occurs even before a smooth breathing; accordingly LT WH mrg. have adopted οὐχ ἰδού, Acts ii. 7; LT οὐχ ᾿Ιουδαϊκῶς, Gal. ii. 14 (see WH. Introd. § 409); L οὐχ ὀλίγος, Acts xix. 23; οὐχ ἠγάπησαν, Rev. xii. 11; and contrariwise οὐκ before an aspirate, as οὐκ ἕστηκεν, Jn. viii. 44 T; [οὐκ ἕνεκεν, 2 Co. vii. 12 T]; (οὐκ εὗρον, Lk. xxiv. 3; [οὐκ ὑπάρχει, Acts iii. 6] in cod. x [alsoC*; ef. cod. Alex. in 1 ἔβαν. iv. 2,12; Job xix. 16; xxxviiil. 11, 26]); cf. W. $5, 14d. 14; Β. τ; [A. v. Schiitz, Hist. Alphab. Att., Berol. 1875, pp: 54-58 ; Sophocles, Hist. of Grk. Alphab., 1st ed. 1848, p- 64 sq. (on the breathing); Tdf Sept., ed. 4, Proleg. pp: Xxxiii. xxxiv.; Scrivener, Collation ete., 2d ed., p. lv. no. 9; id. cod. Bezae p. xlvii. no. 11 (ef. p. xlii.…

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

ου to make the voyage” (Edd.), and P Amh II. 78?! (a.p. 184) τοιαύτης ο[ὖ]ν αὐθαδίας ἐν αὐτῷ οὔσης οὐ δυνάμενος [ἐν]καρτερεῖν ἐπιδίδωμι, ‘“ his audacity having reached this pitch I can endure no longer and present this petition.” See further Proleg. p. 231 f. In support of the translation ‘‘ I determined not to know” in 1 Cor 2, we may cite P Par 2657 (B.c. 163) (= UPZi. Ρ-. 248) οὐκ ἐκρίναμεν καταχωρῆσαι, ‘we determined not to record,” P Tebt I. 124° (c. B.c. 118) οὐκ (ἐκδρίναμεν ἐξαρ[ιθ]μεῖ[σθαι, “we determined not to be counted,” and the classical formula in P Hamb I. 27° (B.c. 250 (249)) οὐκ ἔφη εἰδέναι, ‘he said that he did not know.” The origin of the double negative οὐ μή is fully discussed by Moulton Pro/eg. p. 187 ff. When we pass to its actual occurrences in the NT, we find that these for the most part are found in passages derived from the OT and in the Sayings of our Lord…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

οὐ (ou) — no.

οὐ,

the negative of fact and statement, as μή of will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective. —The same differences hold for all compounds of οὐ and μή, and some examples of οὐδέ and οὐδείς are included below.—As to the Form, see infr. G. USAG[Refs 5th c.BC+]

I. as the negative of single words,

II. as the negative of the sentence.

I. οὐ adhering to single words so as to form a quasi-compound with them:—with Verbs: οὐ δίδωμι withhold, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; οὐκ εἰῶ prevent, [Refs]; οὐκ ἐθέλω refuse, [Refs]; οὔ φημι deny, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; but sometimes οὐ is retained, εἰ δ᾽ ἂν.. οὐκ ἐθέλωσιν [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ἐάντε.. οὐ (variant{μή}) φῆτε ἐάντε φῆτε [Refs 8th c.BC+] —On the use of οὐ in contrasts, see below [Refs 5th…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

οὐ

ou

ouk ook, and (before an aspirate)

ouch ookh

a primary word; the absolute negative (compare 3361) adverb; no or

not:--+ long, nay, neither, never, no (X man), none, (can-)not, +

nothing, + special, un(-worthy), when, + without, + yet but. See also

3364, 3372.

see GREEK for 3361

see GREEK for 3364

see GREEK for 3372

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

οὐ

Neg.prt.

no, not

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

οὐ ou 1x

negative adverb, originally the gen. of ὅς, spelled οὐκ if followed by a word beginning with a vowel and a smooth breathing, οὐχ if followed by a vowel and rough breathing, not, no, Mt. 5:37; 12:43; 23:37; for the peculiarities of its usage (especially as distinct from μή) consult a grammar

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
82%not
not82% · 1383×certainly6% · 96×surely4% · 70×no longer3% · 50×no2% · 39×other renderings3% · 51×

1,689 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 17 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
adverbial82%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 1,622 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
εἰμίI am, existἐγώαὐτός
ὅς
ἐγώθερίζωI reap, gatherδέbut, on the othe
ὅτιthat, since, because
σύαὐτόςἐγώ
αὐτός
λέγωI say, speakἐνἐπί
σύ
λέγωI say, speakγάρforὅς
οὐnot1622×
what comes after →
εἰμίI am, exist
ἐκArticle theἐγώ
μήNeg
παρέρχομαιI pass byεἰσέρχομαιI go in, come inπίνωI drink, imbibe
οἶδαI know, remember
ὅτιthat, since, becArticle theτίςIrg
γάρfor
εἰμίI am, existθέλωI will, wish, deArticle the
δύναμαιI am powerful, am ab
ἔρχομαιI come, goσῴζωI save, healArticle 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

Concordanceοὐ · 1,622× in the New Testament
John Matthew Luke 1 Corinthians Romans Mark Acts 2 Corinthians Revelation Hebrews 1 John Galatians

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

Across the New Testament26 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Philo of Alexandria Josephus The Shepherd of Hermas Clement of Rome Ignatius of Antioch
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 6c. AD 40

ὡς γὰρ τῶν κολοσσιαίων μεγεθῶν τὰς ἐμφάσεις καὶ ἡ βραχυτάτη σφραγὶς τυπωθεῖσα δέχεται, οὕτως τάχα που καὶ τὰ τῆς ἀναγραφείσης ἐν τοῖς νόμοις κοσμοποιίας ὑπερβάλλοντα κάλλη καὶ ταῖς μαρμαρυγαῖς τὰς τῶν ἐντυγχανόντων ψυχὰς ἐπισκιάζοντα βραχυτέροις…

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.11c. AD 75–95

ὁ δὲ τῶν παρʼ ἡμῖν ἀρχιερέων οὐδενὸς ἀρετῇ δεύτερος Ἐλεάζαρος τῷ προειρημένῳ βασιλεῖ ταύτης ἀπολαῦσαι τῆς ὠφελείας οὐκ ἐφθόνησε πάντως ἀντειπὼν ἄν, εἰ μὴ πάτριον ἦν ἡμῖν τὸ μηδὲν ἔχειν τῶν καλῶν ἀπόρρητον.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.8c. AD 100

ἐγὼ δὲ οὐχ ὡς διδάσκαλος, ἀλλ̓ ὧς εἰς ἐξ ὑμῶν ὑποδείξω ὀλίγα, δἰ ὧν ἐν τοῖς παροῦσιν εὐφρανθήσεσθε.

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 6th c. AD

δὲ γενόμεναι κατὰ τὸ ἀναγκαῖον κληρονομήσασαι ταξάμεναι τὰ καθήκοντα τέλη θεᾶι Βερενίκηι κυριεύομεν. ὅθεν οὐκ ἀποδιδόντων τὰ ἡμέτερα ἐπεδώκαμεν ἐν τῶι λ ἔτει προσανγελίαν Ἡρακλείδει γενομένωι ἀρχιφυλακίτηι τοῦ Παθυρίτου

C.Erbstreit16Diospolis Magna (Theben)135 BC

ι ἀρουρῶν πρόκτησιν … ένου αὐτὸν ἐν συνεδρίωι καὶ συγχώρησιν … ειν, ἐν ἧι οὐκ εὐδοκεῖ ὁ πατήρ. ὅθεν καταβεβραβευμένοι … ήρου συνεριου ἀξιοῦμεν, ἐὰν φαίνηται, συντάξαι γράψαι, οἷς

P.Adl. 2Pathyris125 BC

ὠνῆς ἐν πίστει διὰ τῶν περὶ τὸν Πανεβχοῦνιν ἐκτελειωθεῖσαν τῶι … ἔτει ἀντὶ ὀφειλημάτων, οὐκ ἐπελευσομένους τὸν Πανερέα καὶ τὴν Σενενοῦπιν περὶ ὀφειλημάτων μηδὲ περὶ ἄλλου μηδενός. ταῦτα δὲ

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
κατὰkata according to G2596 Preposition
473× 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
According to means following or matching something. In the Bible, it's used to talk about things happening in line with God's plan or will, like in Matthew 8:32 and Mark 5:13.
Amplified meaning
in accordance with, following
Tyndale gloss
according to
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

κατά (kata) is a preposition used with the genitive and accusative cases, primarily meaning 'down' or 'against.' It indicates direction, motion, or relation, appearing in various contexts such as 'down from' (e.g., Mt 8:32) and 'against' (e.g., Mk 9:40). The word also conveys meanings like 'throughout' and 'according to.' Lexicons note its frequent use in the New Testament, with some variations in application.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

κατά (bef. a vowel κατ’, καθ’; on the freq. neglect of elision, v. Tdf., Pr., 95; WH, App., 146a),

prep. c. gen., acc.,

down, downwards.

C. gen. (WM, § 47, k; Bl., § 42, 2).

C. gen. rei, in local sense;

down, down from: Mt 8:32, Mk 5:13, Lk 8:33, I Co 11:4;

throughout (late usage; Bl., § 42, 2): κ. ὅλης κ.τ.λ., Lk 4:14 23:5, Ac 9:31 10:37;

in a peculiar adjectival phrase: ἡ κ. βάθους πτωχεία, deep or extreme poverty, II Co 8:2.

C. gen. pers., usually in hostile sense;

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

κατά, [on its neglect of elision before a vowel see Tf. Proleg. p. 95; cf. W. § 5, 1a.; B.10; WH. App. p. 1405], a preposition denoting motion or diffusion or direction from the higher to the lower; as in class. Grk., joined with the gen. and the acc. I. With the Genitive (W. § 47, k. p. 381 (357); [B. § 147, 20]); 1. prop. a. down from, down: κατὰ κατά 8 τοῦ κρημνοῦ, Mt. viii. 32; ΜΚ. v.13; Lk. viii. 33; κατέχεεν κατὰ τῆς κεφαλῆς (so that it flowed down from his head [οἷς W. 381 (357) note]; but it is more correct here to omit κατά with LT Tr WH; see καταχέω), Mk. xiv. 3; hence κατὰ κεφαλῆς (a veil hanging down from his head) ἔχων, 1 Co. xi. 4 ([Δ. V. having his head covered] cf. καταπέτασμα [or rather κάλυμμα (q. v.), but 566 ἔχω I. 1b.]). Ὁ. down upon (down into) anything: Acts xxvii. 14 [W. 381 (357) note!; ef. B.D. Am. ed. s. ν. Crete]; trop. 7 κατὰ βάθους πτωχεία reaching down…

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

κατά, the favourite preposition of Polybius, by whom it is often used in place of ἐν, eis, and περί (Krebs Pra. p. 4), is also found with considerable variety of application in the NT, where it occurs 73 times c. gen., and 391 times c. acc. (cf. Proleg. p. 105). Brugmann (Awrze Vergletchende Grammazk, p. 479) considers that the earliest use of the word was “‘along ” something, so as to remain in connexion and contact with the object, and from this most of the senses found in the NT can be derived. I. (1) Turning to the construction c. gen. we find that the meaning ‘‘along” has passed into ‘‘down,” a usage not found in ΜΟΥ, in such passages as P Petr II. 18(26)!° (B.c. a ἐπιπεσὼν ἔτυπτεν [ad]t[o]v κατὰ τοῦ τραχήλου, Chest. τοῦ πνοήν: ἐξ Mt 8%, r Cor 114, 2 Cor 8%. (2) This in turn becomes ‘‘ against,” as in Mt τοῦδ, Mk 14°5, e.g. P Eleph 115 (B.c. 311-0) (= Se/ections, p. 4) ὅπου ἂν…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

κατά (kata) — according to.

κατά [κᾰτᾰ],

poetry καταί accusative to [Refs 2nd c.AD+]: preposition with genitive or accusative:— downwards.

__A WITH GEN.,

__A.I denoting motion from above, down from, βῆ δὲ κατ᾽ Οὐλύμποιο καρήνων, κατ᾽ Ἰδαίων ὀρέων, βαλέειν κ. πέτρης, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; καθ᾽ ἵππων ἀΐξαντε[Refs 5th c.BC+] — for κατ᾽ ἄκρης see.{ἄκρα}: Μοῖσα κ. στόματος Χέε νέκταρ [Refs 3rd c.BC+]

__A.II denoting downward motion,

__A.II.1 down upon or over, κ. Χθονὸς ὄμματα πήξας [Refs 8th c.BC+]; of the dying, κατὰ.. ὀφθαλμῶν κέχυτ᾽ ἀχλύς a cloud settled upon the eyes, [Refs]; φᾶρος κὰκ κεφαλῆς εἴρυσσε down over.. , [Refs 8th c.BC+]; [κόπρος] κ. σπείους κέχυτο.. πολλή [Refs]; ὕδωρ κ. Χειρός, see at {Χεί; μύρον κ. τῆς κεφαλῆς καταχέαντες} [Refs…

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Strong's Greek Dictionary

κατά

kata

a primary particle; (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in

varied relations (according to the case (genitive, dative or

accusative) with which it is joined):--about, according as (to),

after, against, (when they were) X alone, among, and, X apart, (even,

like) as (concerning, pertaining to touching), X aside, at, before,

beyond, by, to the charge of, (charita-)bly, concerning, + covered,

(dai-)ly, down, every, (+ far more) exceeding, X more excellent, for,

from ... to, godly, in(-asmuch, divers, every, -to, respect of), ...

by, after the manner of, + by any means, beyond (out of) measure, X

mightily, more, X natural, of (up-)on (X part), out (of every), over

against, (+ your) X own, + particularly, so, through(-oughout,

-oughout every), thus, (un-)to(-gether, -ward), X uttermost,

where(-by), with. In composition it retains many of these

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Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

κατά

Prep.

down from, against, according to, throughout, during

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

κατά kata 473x

down from, Mt. 8:32; down upon, upon, Mk. 14:3; Acts 27:14; down into; κατὰ βάθους, profound, deepest, 2 Cor. 8:2; down over, throughout a space, Lk. 4:14; 23:5; concerning, in cases of pointed allegation, 1 Cor. 15:15; against, Mt. 12:30; by, in oaths, Mt. 26:63; with an acc. of place, in the quarter of, about, near, at, Lk. 10;32; Acts 2:10; throughout, Read the full entry →

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Prep — Preposition
preposition — its sense depends on the case of the word it governs.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

PREP PREPosition

Into Englishhow translators actually render it
45%according to
according to45% · 215×against12% · 57×in9% · 42×every5% · 24×by5% · 23×on3% · 13×other renderings15% · 72×other renderings7% · 34×

480 occurrences in the New Testament, rendered 48 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
adverbial86%object5%predicate5%subject3%

Parsing tells you the form; the treebank tells you the job. Counted over all 473 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
καίand, even, also,πᾶςall, the whole, ἄνθρωποςa man, one of th
αὐτός
ποιέωI do, makeγυνήa woman, wife, mλαλέωI speak, say
καίand, even, also, nam
ἑκατόνIndecμέγαςσύ
οὐNeg
καίand, even, also,ἀλλάbut, exceptἔρχομαιI come, go
ἐγώ
μετάσυλλαμβάνωI seize, appreheγίνομαιI come into bein
κατάaccording to473×
what comes after →
Article the
νόμοςa law, the Mosaiἔργονwork, labor, actαὐτός
σάρξflesh, body
περιπατέωI walk, conduct ζάωI liveοὐNeg
ἴδιοςone’s own, private,
λέγωI say, speakκαίand, even, also,δέbut, on the othe
ἡμέραa day
ἐνεἰμίI am, existκαίand, even, also,
αὐτός
ὅπωςhow, in order thκαίand, even, also,λέγωI say, speak

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

Concordanceκατά · 473× in the New Testament
Acts Romans Luke Hebrews Matthew 2 Corinthians 1 Corinthians Ephesians Mark Galatians Colossians Philippians

Every reference is on the Strong's page.

Across the New Testament26 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
Outside the New Testamentthe same word in the Greek of its own century
Josephus Philo of Alexandria Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome The Shepherd of Hermas
Philo of AlexandriaOn the Creation of the World 3c. AD 40

ἡ δ’ ἀρχή, καθάπερ ἔφην, ἐστὶ θαυμασιωτάτη κοσμοποιίαν περιέχουσα, ὡς καὶ τοῦ κόσμου τῷ νόμῳ καὶ τοῦ νόμου τῷ κόσμῳ συνᾴδοντος καὶ τοῦ νομίμου ἀνδρὸς εὐθὺς ὄντος κοσμοπολίτου πρὸς τὸ βούλημα τῆς φύσεως τὰς πράξεις ἀπευθύνοντος, καθ’ ἣν καὶ ὁ σύμπας…

JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1.7c. AD 75–95

ἀλλʼ ἐπειδὴ μείζων ἦν ἡ τοῦδε τοῦ λόγου περιβολή, κατʼ αὐτὸν ἐκεῖνον χωρίσας ταῖς ἰδίαις ἀρχαῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ τέλει τὴν γραφὴν συνεμέτρησα·

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 1.2c. AD 100

Μεγάλων μὲν ὄντων καὶ πλουσίων τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιωμάτων εἰς ὑμᾶς, ὑπέρ τι καὶ καθ̓ ὑπερβολὴν ὑπερευφραίνομαι ἐπὶ τοῖς μακαρίοις καὶ ἐνδόξοις ὑμῶν πνεύμασιν: οὕτως ἔμφυτον τῆς δωρεᾶς πνευματικῆς χάριν εἰλήφατε.

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 2nd c. BC 6th c. AD 3rd c. BC
P.Stras. 2 89Pathyris100 BC

ἐπρίατο Πετεαρσεμθεὺς Πανοβχούνιος ὡς ἐτῶν μ χαλκοῦ τάλαντα δύο . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Πετεαρσεμθεὺς ὁ ἀποδόμενος, ὃν ἐδέξατο Πετεαρσεμθεὺς ὁ πριάμενος. Ἑρμίας ὁ

P.Grenf. 2 35Pathyris99 BC

ἐπρίατο Πακοῖβις Πατοῦτος ὡς ἐτῶν λ χαλκοῦ δραχμῶν τρισχιλίων . προπωληταὶ καὶ βεβαιωταὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Νεχούτης καὶ ὁ σὺν αὐτῷ οἱ ἀποδόμενοι, ὃν ἐδέξατο Πακοῖβις

BGU 3 1000Pathyris99 BC

μελίχρως τετανὸς μακροπρόσωπος εὐθύριν χαλκοῦ δραχμὰς δισχιλίας καὶ διακοσίας . προπωλητὴς καὶ βεβαιωτὴς τῶν κατὰ τὴν ὠνὴν ταύτην πάντων Πανοβχοῦνις ὁ ἀποδόμενος, ὃν ἐδέξατο Εὔνους ὁ πριάμενος. Ἑρμίας ὁ

do take heed lest anyone you there will be who is taking captive through <the> philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition <the> of men, according to the principles of the world and not according to Christ;
Χριστόν·Christos Christ; G5547 Noun · accusative · singular · masculine
529× 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
Christ means anointed, referring to Jesus as the Messiah, as seen in Luke 2:11 and John 1:41.
Amplified meaning
the Anointed One, the Messiah
Tyndale gloss
Christ
Greek lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

Χριστός (Christos) means 'anointed' and refers specifically to the Messiah, a title used for Jesus in the New Testament. The term is derived from the verb χρίω (to anoint) and appears in various contexts, including references to anointing oil and the anointed kings of Israel. It is used substantively as 'the Christ' in many New Testament verses, such as Matthew 2:4 and John 1:20.

Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon of the NT

χριστός (Χρ-), -ή, -όν

(< χρίω),

[in LXX for מָשִׁיחַ and cogn. forms ;]

as adj.,

of things, anointing, to be used as ointment (Æsch., Eur., al.; τ. ἔλαιον τὸ χ., Le 21:10);

of persons, anointed (ὁ ἰερεὺς ὁ χ., Le 4:5; οἱ χ. ἰευρεῖς, II Mac 1:10): ὁ χ. τοῦ κυρίου or Θεοῦ (I Ki 2:10, Ps 2:2, al.), of the Messiah (Aram., מְשִׁיחָא; cf. Dalman, Words, 289 ff.), Lk 2:11, 26 Jo 1:41, Ac 2:36 4:26, al.

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

Χριστός, τή, -dv, (xpiw), Sept. for mw, anointed: 6 | ἱερεὺς ὁ χριστός, Lev. iv. 5; vi. 22; of χριστοὶ ἱερεῖς, 2 Mace. i. 10; the patriarchs are called, substantively, of χριστοὶ θεοῦ, Ps. civ. (cv.) 15; the sing. 6 χριστὸς τοῦ κυρίου (177 Mw) in the O. T. often of the king of Israel (see χρίσμα), as 1 S. ii. 10, 35; [xxiv. 11; xxvi. 9, 11, 23]; 2.5. 1. 14; Ps. ii. 2; xvii. (xviii.) 51; Hab. iii. 13; [2 Chr. xxii. 7]; also of a foreign king, Cyrus, as sent of God, Is. xlv. 1; of the coming king whom the Jews expected to be the saviour of their nation and the author of their highest felicity: the name ὁ χριστός (mw, Chald. xmw>) is not found in the O. T. but is first used of him in the Book of Enoch 48, 10 [ef. Schodde’s note]; 52, 4 (for the arguments by which some have attempted to prove that the section containing these passages is of Christian origin are not convincing [cf. υἱὸς τοῦ…

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Liddell-Scott-Jones, full edition

Χριστός (Christos) — Christ.

χριστός, ή, όν,

(χρίω) to be rubbed on, used as ointment or salve, opposed to πιστός, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τὸ ἔλαιον τὸ χ. anointing oil, [LXX]

II. of persons, anointed, ὁ ἱερεύς ὁ χ. [LXX]

II.2. especially of the Kings of Israel, ὁ χ. Κυρίου[LXX]; plural, of the patriarchs, [LXX]

II.3. in NT, ὁ χ. the Messiah, [NT]; then used as proper name of Jesus, Ἰησοῦς χ. [NT]

Strong's Greek Dictionary

Χριστός

Christos

from 5548; anointed, i.e. the Messiah, an epithet of Jesus:--Christ.

see GREEK for 5548

Dodson Greek-English Lexicon

Χριστός, οῦ, ὁ

n.m.

anointed, the Messiah, the Christ

Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary

Χριστός Christos 529x

pr. anointed; ὁ Χριστός, the Christ, the Anointed One, i.e. Μεσσίας, the Messiah, Mt. 1:16, 17; Jn. 1:20, 25, 42; meton. Christ, the word or doctrine of Christ, 2 Cor. 1:19; 21; Eph. 4:20; Christ, a truly Christian frame of doctrine and affection, Rom. 8:10; Gal. 4:19; Christ, the Church of Christ, 1 Cor. 12:12; Christ the distinctive privileges of the Gospel of Christ, Gal. 3:27; Phil.…

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Noun-ASM — Noun · accusative · singular · masculine
accusative — the one it is done to — the object.
Agrees with anything else marked singular masculine.
Robinson's Morphological Analysis Codes

N-ASM Part of Speech: Noun Case: Accusative Number: Singular Gender: Masculine

Bible dictionarieson the English sense
Easton's Bible Dictionary

Christ

Anointed, the Greek translation of the Hebrew word rendered “Messiah” (q.v.), the official title of our Lord, occurring five hundred and fourteen times in the New Testament. It denotes that he was anointed or consecrated to his great redemptive work as Prophet, Priest, and King of his people. He is Jesus the Christ (Acts 17:3; 18:5; Matt. 22:42), the Anointed One. He is thus spoken of by Isaiah (61:1), and by Daniel (9:24-26), who styles him “Messiah the Prince.”

The Messiah is the same person as “the seed of the woman” (Gen. 3:15), “the seed of Abraham” (Gen. 22:18), the “Prophet like unto Moses” (Deut.…

Across the New Testament26 of 27 books
MtMkLkJnAcRo1Co2CoGaEphPhpCol1Th2Th1Ti2TiTitPhmHebJas1Pe2Pe1Jn2Jn3JnJudRev
The Hebrew behind itwhat the Septuagint translators were rendering

Counted over the 16 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
Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome Polycarp Josephus The Epistle of Barnabas
JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 8.137c. AD 75–95

τὸ δὲ ἄλλο μέχρι τῆς στέγης χριστὸν ἦν καὶ καταπεποικιλμένον χρώμασι καὶ βαφαῖς.

The Epistle of BarnabasThe Epistle of Barnabas 2.6c. AD 100

ταῦτα οὖν κατήργησεν, ἵνα ὁ καινὸς νόμος τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἄνευ ζυγοῦ ἀνάγκης ὤν, μὴ ἀνθρωποποίητον ἔχῃ τὴν προσφοράν.

Clement of RomeFirst Clement preface.1c. AD 96

Ἡ ἐκκλησία τοῦ θεοῦ ἡ παροικοῦσα Ῥώμην τῆ ἐκκλησίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ τῇ παροικούσῃ Κόρινθον, κλητοῖς ἡγιασμένοις ἐν θελήματι θεοῦ διὰ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.

In the everyday Greek (the secular world, not the church)letters, leases, receipts — nobody writing one is trying to sound biblical
7th c. AD 6th c. AD 4th c. AD 5th c. AD 8th c. AD

τὸ μῆκος πήχεις πέντε πλάτος πήχεις τέσσαρες ἥμισυ· βάψον δὲ εἰς τὸ βῆλον σημεῖον Χριστοῦ … … ἐπάνω τ … . προσαγορεύω πάντας τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς κατʼ ὄνομα ἀπὸ μικρῶν

P.Petra 3 29Petra (Tertia Palaestina Salutaris)AD 582–AD 592

r βασιλείας τοῦ δεσπότου ἡμῶν Φλαουίου Μαυρικίου πιστοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ ἡμέρου μεγίστου εὐεργέτου καὶ αὐτοκράτορος Αὐγούστου ἔτους … … … … … … ημερ

P.Petra 3 31Petra (Tertia Palaestina Salutaris)AD 582–AD 592

βασιλείας τοῦ δεσπότου ἡμῶν Φλαουίου Μαυρικίου Τιβερίου πιστοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ ἡμέρου μεγίστου εὐεργέτου καὶ αὐτοκράτορος Αὐγούστου ἔτους … … … … … … τήνδε

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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