Limited to 1 Cor. 15:32, the Greek verb “theriomacheo” meant “fight wild animals.” Scholarship is divided on whether Paul used this term literally or figuratively. For a discussion of this subject, see my commentary on 1 Cor. 15.
Category Archives: Greek word studies
The Greek verb “θηρεύω”
Limited to Lk. 11:54, the Greek verb “thereuo” means “catch” or “hunt.” When used figuratively as we see from Lk. 11 (some Pharisees were plotting against the Lord), the meaning is “strive to ensnare,” “lay wait for,” or “catch artfully.”
The Greek noun “θήρα”
Limited to Rom. 11:9 and joined with a quote from Ps. 69:22-23, the Greek noun “thera” described a net or trap used in hunting.
Who or what is a woman?
Limited to Mt. 19:4; Mk. 10:6; Rom. 1:26-27; Gal. 3:28, the Greek adjective “thelus” meant “woman” or “female.” In a world where some say we cannot know who or what a woman is, the Bible clearly says God has made mankind male and female.
The Greek verb “θηλάζω”
Limited to Mt. 21:16; 24:19; Mk. 13:17; Lk. 11:27; 21:23; 23:29, the Greek verb “thelazo” meant “nurse,” “give suck,” “to nurse a baby.”
The Greek noun “θήκη”
Limited to Jn. 18:11, the Greek noun “theke” meant “sheath,” “scabbard,” “receptacle.” Jesus told Peter to put his sword back into its “sheath.”
The Greek noun“θεωρία”
Limited to Lk. 23:48, the Greek noun “theoria” meant “sight” or “spectacle.” Luke described some who witnessed the “sight” or “spectacle” of Jesus’ crucifixion.
The Greek verb “θεωρέω”
Found most often in John and Acts, but also used in Mt. 27:55; 28:1; Mk. 3:11; 5:15, 38; 12:41; 15:40, 47; 16:4; Lk. 10:18; 14:29; 21:6; 23:35, 48; 24:37, 39; Heb. 7:4; 1 Jn. 3:17; Rev. 11:11-12, the Greek verb “theoreo” meant “perceive,” “look at,” “observe.” This term can describe literal sight (Acts 17:16; 20:38) or observation and mental perception (Acts 17:22; 21:20; 1 Jn. 3:17). In Jn. 20:6, this word “moves beyond the basic meaning of literal seeing of an object to the level of an indication that ‘points to the resurrection’” (Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament, 2:147, quoting Schnackenburg III, 312).
Θευδᾶς
Limited to Acts 5:36, “Theudas” was an unsuccessful insurrectionist referenced by Gamaliel.
Θεσσαλονίκη
Limited to Acts 17:1, 11, 13; Phil. 4:16; 2 Tim. 4:10, “Thessalonica” was a Macedonian seaport which was evangelized by Paul during this apostle’s second missionary journey.