Keraia
Lexicon

εἰμί

eimito beHow to read Greek
greekNew TestamentVerb2,465 occurrences27 books2,100 verses

Definition

εἰμί,

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

I. As substantive verb.

1. Of persons and things, to be, exist: Acts 17:28, John 1:1; 8:58; 17:5, al; ὁ ὢν καὶ ὁ ἦν (for past ptcp.), Revelation 1:4, 8; 4:8; 11:17; 16:5 (see Swete, Ap., 5; M, Pr., 228); τὰ (μὴ) ὄντα, Romans 4:17, 1 Corinthians 1:28.

2. Of times, events, etc., to be, happen, take place: Matthew 24:3, Mark 14:2; 15:42, Luke 21:23, John 4:6, 23; 5:10, al.

3. to be present, be in a place, have come: Matthew 2:13, 15, Mark 1:45; 5:21; 15:40, Luke 1:80; 5:29, John 7:30, al.; before εἰς, Mark 2:1; before ἐκ, (ἐξ), Matthew 1:20; 21:25, Mark 11:30, John 3:31, al.

4. Impers., ἔστι, ἦν, etc.;

(a) there is (Fr. il y a), was, etc.: Matthew 16:28, Luke 16:19, John 3:1; 5:2, Romans 3:10, al.; with dative (of the possessor; Bl., §37, 3), Matthew 16:22, Luke 1:7, John 18:10, Romans 9:2, al.; ἔστιν ὅς, ὅστις (chiefly in pl), Matthew 16:28; 19:2, Mark 9:1, al.;

(b) with inf., = ἔξεστιν (which see), it is possible: Hebrews 9:5, 1 Corinthians 11:20, RV (but see ICC, in l.).

II. As copula uniting subject and predicate.

1. Expressing simply identity or equivalence: Matthew 5:13; 14:15, Luke 1:18, 19, John 1:1; 4:19, Revelation 3:9, al. mult.

2. Explicative, as in parable, figure, type, etc.: Matthew 13:19, 1 Corinthians 9:2; 10:4; 11:25, Galatians 4:24, Revelation 17:15, al.; ταῦτ᾽ ἔστιν, Matthew 27:46, Mark 7:2, Romans 7:18 al.; ὅ ἐστιν, Mark 3:17, Colossians 1:24, Hebrews 7:2, al.; akin to this is the sacramental usage: Matthew 26:26-28, Mark 14:22, 24, Luke 22:19, 1 Corinthians 11:24 (see ICC on Mk, I Co, ll. with; DB, iii, 148 f.).

3. C. genitive: qual., etc., Mark 5:42, Luke 3:23, 1 Corinthians 14:33, Hebrews 12:11, al.; part., 1 Timothy 1:20, 2 Timothy 1:15; poss., Matthew 5:3, 10, Mark 12:7, Luke 4:7; of service or partisanship, Romans 8:9, 1 Corinthians 1:12, 2 Corinthians 10:7, 2 Timothy 2:19.

4. C. dative (BL, §37, 3): Acts 1:8; 9:15, Romans 4:12, 1 Corinthians 1:18; 2:14, Revelation 21:7, al.

5. C. ptcp., as a periphrasis for the simple verb (Bl., §62, 1, 2; M, Pr., 225 ff.);

(a) with ptcp. pf. (cl.): Matthew 10:30, Luke 9:32, John 3:24, Acts 21:35, 1 Corinthians 15:19, al;

(b) with ptcp. pr. (esp. in impf., as in Heb. and Aram.; Dalman, Words, 35 f.), Matthew 7:29, Mark 1:22, Luke 4:31; 14:1, Acts 1:10, al. mult., id. for imper. (M, Pr., 180f., 182f.), with ellipsis of εἰμί, Romans 12:9, 10, Hebrews 13:5, al.;

(with) with ptcp. aor. (cl), Luke 23:9.

6. Seq. εἰς (cf. Heb. הָיָה לְ), a vernac. usage (M, Pr., 71): Matthew 19:5, Mark 10:8, Hebrews 8:10, al.

7. C. adv.: Matthew 19:20, Mark 4:26, Luke 18:11, al.

8. Ellipses;

(a) of the copula (Bl., §30, 3): Matthew 8:29; 24:32, John 21:22, 23, Hebrews 6:4, al.;

(b) of the predicate: ἐγώ εἰμί, Matthew 14:27, Mark 6:50, al.; absol. (cf. Deuteronomy 32:39; אֲנִי הוּא), Mark 13:6, John 4:26, al. (cf. ἄπ-, ἔν-, πάρ-, συμ-πάρ-, σύν-ειμι).

Hebrew words it translates

The Hebrew words that the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament renders as εἰμί:

Usage patterns

Old TestamentNew Testament

Occurrences

2,465 total
  1. Acts 26:29εἰμι · am
    “Short time or long,” Paul replied, “I wish to God that not only you but all who hear me this day may become what I am, except for these chains.”
  2. Acts 27:2ὄντος · was
    We boarded an Adramyttian ship about to sail for ports along the coast of Asia, and we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us.
  3. Acts 27:4εἶναι · were
    After putting out from there, we sailed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us.
  4. Acts 27:8ἦν
    After we had moved along the coast with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.
  5. Acts 27:9ὄντος · had already become
    By now much time had passed, and the voyage had already become dangerous because it was after the Fast. So Paul advised them,
  6. Acts 27:10ἔσεσθαι · be [filled]
    “Men, I can see that our voyage will be filled with disaster and great loss, not only to ship and cargo, but to our own lives as well.”
  7. Acts 27:22ἔσται · will not experience
    But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because you will not experience any loss of life, but only of the ship.
  8. Acts 27:23εἰμι · belong
    For just last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me
  9. Acts 27:25ἔσται · it will happen
    So take courage, men, for I believe God that it will happen just as He told me.
  10. Acts 27:37ἤμεθα · there were
    In all, there were 276 of us on board.
  11. Acts 28:4ἐστιν · is
    When the islanders saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “Surely this man is a murderer. Although he was saved from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.”
  12. Acts 28:6εἶναι · was
    The islanders were expecting him to swell up or suddenly drop dead. But after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.
  13. Acts 28:17ὄντας
    After three days, he called together the leaders of the Jews. When they had gathered, he said to them, “Brothers, although I have done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, I was taken prisoner in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans.
  14. Acts 28:22ἐστιν
    But we consider your views worth hearing, because we know that people everywhere are speaking against this sect.”
  15. Acts 28:25ὄντες
    They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit was right when He spoke to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:
  16. Acts 28:28ἔστω · Be
    Be advised, therefore, that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!”
  17. Romans 1:6ἐστε · are
    And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.
  18. Romans 1:7οὖσιν
    To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
  19. Romans 1:9ἐστιν · is
    God, whom I serve with my spirit in preaching the gospel of His Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you
  20. Romans 1:12ἐστιν · is
    …that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.
  21. Romans 1:14εἰμί · I am
    I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.
  22. Romans 1:16ἐστιν · it is
    I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, then to the Greek.
  23. Romans 1:19ἐστιν · is
    For what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.
  24. Romans 1:20εἶναι · are
    For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.
  25. Romans 1:22εἶναι · to be
    Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools,
  26. Romans 1:25ἐστιν · is
    They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is forever worthy of praise! Amen.
  27. Romans 1:32εἰσίν · are
    Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things are worthy of death, they not only continue to do these things, but also approve of those who practice them.
  28. Romans 2:1εἶ · You
    You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on another. For on whatever grounds you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.
  29. Romans 2:2ἐστιν · is
    And we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.
  30. Romans 2:11ἐστιν · does not show
    For God does not show favoritism.
  31. Romans 2:14εἰσιν · they are
    Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.
  32. Romans 2:19εἶναι · are
    …if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those in darkness,
  33. Romans 2:25ᾖς · you
    Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.
  34. Romans 2:28ἐστιν · is
    A man is not a Jew because he is one outwardly, nor is circumcision only outward and physical.
  35. Romans 3:8ἐστιν · is
    Why not say, as some slanderously claim that we say, “Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is deserved!
  36. Romans 3:9εἶναι · are
    What then? Are we any better? Not at all. For we have already made the charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin.
  37. Romans 3:10ἔστιν · There is
    As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one.
  38. Romans 3:11ἔστιν · There is; ἔστιν
    There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
  39. Romans 3:12ἔστιν · there is; ἔστιν
    All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
  40. Romans 3:18ἔστιν · There is
    “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
  41. Romans 3:22ἐστιν · There is
    And this righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction,
  42. Romans 3:26εἶναι · to be
    He did this to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and to justify the one who has faith in Jesus.
  43. Romans 4:10ὄντι · [Was it after]
    In what context was it credited? Was it after his circumcision, or before? It was not after, but before.
  44. Romans 4:11εἶναι · is
    And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
  45. Romans 4:13εἶναι · would be
    For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world was not given through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.
  46. Romans 4:15ἔστιν · there is
    …because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law, there is no transgression.
  47. Romans 4:16εἶναι · [and] may be; ἐστιν · is
    Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may rest on grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.