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. Revelation 11:17ἦν · was
    …saying: “We give thanks to You, O Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.
  2. Revelation 13:2ἦν · was
    The beast I saw was like a leopard, with the feet of a bear and the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.
  3. Revelation 13:10ἐστιν · is [a call for]
    “If anyone is destined for captivity, into captivity he will go; if anyone is to die by the sword, by the sword he must be killed.” Here is a call for the perseverance and faith of the saints.
  4. Revelation 13:18ἐστίν · is [a call for]; ἐστίν · it is
    Here is a call for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and that number is 666.
  5. Revelation 14:4εἰσιν · are; εἰσιν · they are
    These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have been redeemed from among men as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.
  6. Revelation 14:5εἰσιν · they are
    And no lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
  7. Revelation 14:12ἐστίν · is [a call for]
    Here is a call for the perseverance of the saints, who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
  8. Revelation 16:5εἶ · are You; ὢν · is; ἦν · was
    And I heard the angel of the waters say: “Righteous are You, O Holy One, who is and was, because You have brought these judgments.
  9. Revelation 16:6εἰσιν · as they
    For they have spilled the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink, as they deserve.”
  10. Revelation 16:14εἰσὶν · [These] are
    These are demonic spirits that perform signs and go out to all the kings of the earth, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.
  11. Revelation 16:21ἐστὶν · was
    And great hailstones weighing almost a hundred pounds each rained down on them from above. And men cursed God for the plague of hail, because it was so horrendous.
  12. Revelation 17:4ἦν · was
    The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls. She held in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality.
  13. Revelation 17:8ἦν · it was; ἔστιν · is; ἦν · was; ἔστιν · is
    The beast that you saw—it was, and now is no more, but is about to come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. And those who dwell on the earth whose names were not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world will marvel when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet will be.
  14. Revelation 17:9εἰσίν · are
    This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits.
  15. Revelation 17:10εἰσιν · There are; ἔστιν · is
    There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. But when he does come, he must remain for only a little while.
  16. Revelation 17:11ἦν · was; ἔστιν · is; ἐστιν · is; ἐστιν · who belongs to
    The beast that was, and now is not, is an eighth king, who belongs to the other seven and is going into destruction.
  17. Revelation 17:12εἰσιν · are
    The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but will receive one hour of authority as kings along with the beast.
  18. Revelation 17:14ἐστὶν · He is
    They will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and He will be accompanied by His called and chosen and faithful ones.”
  19. Revelation 17:15εἰσὶν · are
    Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute was seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.
  20. Revelation 17:18ἔστιν · is
    And the woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”
  21. Revelation 18:7εἰμί · I am
    As much as she has glorified herself and lived in luxury, give her the same measure of torment and grief. In her heart she says, ‘I sit as queen; I am not a widow and will never see grief.’
  22. Revelation 18:23ἦσαν · were
    The light of a lamp will never shine in you again, and the voices of a bride and bridegroom will never call out in you again. For your merchants were the great ones of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.”
  23. Revelation 19:8ἐστίν · is
    She was given clothing of fine linen, bright and pure.” For the fine linen she wears is the righteous acts of the saints.
  24. Revelation 19:9εἰσιν · are
    Then the angel told me to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”
  25. Revelation 19:10εἰμι · I am; ἐστιν · is
    So I fell at his feet to worship him. But he told me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who rely on the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
  26. Revelation 20:2ἐστιν · is
    He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.
  27. Revelation 20:6ἔσονται · they will be
    Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.
  28. Revelation 20:12ἐστιν
    And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And books were opened, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books.
  29. Revelation 20:14ἐστιν · is
    Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death—the lake of fire.
  30. Revelation 21:1ἔστιν · was
    Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
  31. Revelation 21:3ἔσονται · will be; ἔσται · will be
    And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God.
  32. Revelation 21:4ἔσται · there will be; ἔσται
    ‘He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,’ and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away.”
  33. Revelation 21:5εἰσιν · are
    And the One seated on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Then He said, “Write this down, for these words are faithful and true.”
  34. Revelation 21:6εἰμι · am
    And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give freely from the spring of the water of life.
  35. Revelation 21:7ἔσομαι · I will be; ἔσται · will be
    The one who overcomes will inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son.