What does διαδίδωμι (diadídōmi) mean in the Bible?
G1239 means to distribute or give out among recipients. In John 6:11, Jesus takes the loaves, gives thanks, and distributes to those seated as much as they want.
Greek · G1239
διαδίδωμι
To distribute
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διαδίδωμι G1239
Pronunciation diadídōmi
What does διαδίδωμι (diadídōmi) mean in the Bible?
G1239 means to distribute or give out among recipients. In John 6:11, Jesus takes the loaves, gives thanks, and distributes to those seated as much as they want.
Reader summary
Full entry for διαδίδωμι (G1239) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1239?
The BSB source-word alignment has 4 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include [and] distributed (1), for distribution (1), give (1), he divides up (1).
Where does διαδίδωμι (diadídōmi) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Luke 11:22. Its strongest book concentrations include Luke (2), Acts (1), John (1).
What This Word Actually Means
G1239 means to distribute or give out among recipients. In John 6:11, Jesus takes the loaves, gives thanks, and distributes to those seated as much as they want. John presents the action within the feeding sign and the crowd's response. The verb names the distribution; the following Bread of Life discourse supplies the larger christological teaching.
Luke 18:22 uses the verb in Jesus' specific command to the rich ruler to distribute to the poor and follow him. Acts 4:35 describes proceeds being distributed to anyone according to need. Luke 11:22 uses the same verb for distributing a defeated strong man's plunder. These settings share allocation among recipients but not one moral evaluation or social arrangement.
Application should preserve the differences. The command to the ruler exposes his attachment and cannot be reduced to a universal financial formula by the verb alone. Acts describes organized care according to need without granting leaders ownership of the resources or immunity from accountability. John 6 portrays Jesus distributing the loaves directly in this Gospel's account. Churches may learn generosity, attention to need, and transparent administration from these passages without coercing gifts or treating recipients as instruments of a ministry's reputation.
Passage contextBook contextCanonical parallelPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
The verb describes distribution of plunder, wealth to the poor, bread in Jesus' sign, and resources according to need in the early church.
- Luke.18.22
On hearing this, Jesus told him, “You still lack one thing: Sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”
Distribution to the poor exposes the ruler's attachment and is joined directly to Jesus' call to follow Him.
- John.6.11
Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted.
Jesus directs abundant provision in the sign that precedes the bread of life discourse.
- Acts.4.35
And lay them at the apostles’ feet for distribution to anyone as he had need.
Voluntary generosity is administered toward concrete need within the Spirit-formed community.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It [and] distributed 1× John 6:11
for distribution 1× Acts 4:35
give 1× Luke 18:22
he divides up 1× Luke 11:22
Show sample aligned rows
Luke 11:22 διαδίδωσιν to he divides up Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 18:22 διάδος to give Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular John 6:11 διέδωκεν to [and] distributed Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Acts 4:35 διεδίδετο to for distribution Verb - Imperfect Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Luke 11:22
Aligned rows 4
Books represented 3
Luke 2 John 1 Acts 1
Source forms
διαδίδωσιν 1x diadidōsin Luke 11:22
διάδος 1x diados Luke 18:22
διεδίδετο 1x diedideto Acts 4:35
διέδωκεν 1x diedōken John 6:11
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular 1x Luke 18:22
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x John 6:11
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Acts 4:35
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x Luke 11:22
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Apply distribution texts through generosity, transparency, real need, and dignity. No leader should use them to demand unaccountable control of others' resources.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that διαδίδωμι commands identical distribution in every church or household. The passages address distinct settings and purposes.
- Do not claim that John 6:11 teaches material provision apart from Jesus' identity. John presents the feeding as a sign that leads into His bread of life teaching.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. to distribute
Strong's G1239
Lexical occurrences 4 verses Greek text appearances 5 times Word forms 2 forms 4 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
to distribute
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
5 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Luke 11:22 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
διαδίδωσιν. diadidwsin
I offer here and there, distribute, divide
Read verse Luke 18:22 Verb Second Person Singular Second Aorist Active Imperative
διάδος diadov
I offer here and there, distribute, divide
Read verse John 6:11 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
διέδωκε diedwken
I offer here and there, distribute, divide
Read verse Acts 4:35 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Passive Indicative
διεδίδοτο diedidoto
I offer here and there, distribute, divide
Read verse Revelation 17:13 Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Indicative
διαδιδώσουσιν. diadidwsousin
I offer here and there, distribute, divide
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 2 Aligned forms 4 Tenses Present, Aorist, Imperfect Voices Active, Passive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 3×
Present Active Luke 11:22 1×
Aorist Active John 6:11 1×
Imperfect Passive Acts 4:35 1×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Aorist Active Luke 18:22 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 4 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist 2 imperfect 1 present 1
Voice
active 3 passive 1
Mood
indicative 3 imperative 1
NT Occurrences
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
Word Origins
διαδίδωμι is built from these roots:
For the Preacher and Teacher
G1239 directs attention to what is distributed, by whom, to whom, and for what purpose. John 6 narrates Jesus giving bread within a sign. Luke 18 records a searching command to one wealthy ruler. Acts 4 describes proceeds administered according to need. Luke 11 uses the verb for plunder, proving that distribution is not automatically charitable or holy. Responsible teaching should therefore resist extracting an economic system from the gloss.
The passages can support generous care and accountable administration, but they also require attention to agency and power. Leaders must not use distribution language to demand control, conceal finances, enrich themselves, or make assistance conditional on loyalty. Recipients remain neighbors with dignity, not evidence for an institution's success.
Anchor passage
John.6.11
Doctrinal connections
- John 6:1-15 - provision and the sign
- John 6:22-59 - Jesus the bread of life
- Luke 18:18-30 - wealth and following Jesus
- Acts 4:32-37 - shared life and need
G1239 is a verb for distributing or giving out among recipients. The local discourse artifact records about four occurrences. The object, recipients, agent, and narrative setting determine whether the distribution concerns food, wealth, need, or plunder; the verb itself does not supply the moral evaluation.
From Old to New Testament
God's provision in the wilderness and laws for the poor supply a canonical background for Jesus' feeding sign and the church's care, while each passage retains its own covenant setting.
Canonical parallelPastoral applicationLexical sourcelocal_artifact
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain