What does μετανοέω (metanoéō) mean in the Bible?
G3340 is the verb commonly translated repent. It calls for a real change of mind and course, but the verse and its object determine the specific scope.
Greek · G3340
μετανοέω
To repent
Reading a lexicon entry
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μετανοέω G3340
Pronunciation metanoéō
What does μετανοέω (metanoéō) mean in the Bible?
G3340 is the verb commonly translated repent. It calls for a real change of mind and course, but the verse and its object determine the specific scope.
Reader summary
Full entry for μετανοέω (G3340) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G3340?
The BSB source-word alignment has 34 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include Repent (11), they did not repent (4), they repented (2), they would have repented (2), who repents (2).
Where does μετανοέω (metanoéō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 3:2. Its strongest book concentrations include Revelation (12), Luke (9), Acts (5), Matthew (5).
Are there verse guides for μετανοέω (metanoéō)?
This entry includes 2 verse guides that explain exact original-language forms in context.
What This Word Actually Means
G3340 is the verb commonly translated repent. It calls for a real change of mind and course, but the verse and its object determine the specific scope. John and Jesus join the command with the nearness of God's kingdom, and Mark 1:15 places repent beside believe the gospel. In Luke 13, Jesus turns reports about death away from ranking victims and toward the hearers' own need to repent.
Luke 15 speaks of heavenly joy over a sinner who repents, while Luke 17 uses the verb in an interpersonal command: rebuke a sinning brother and forgive him if he repents. Acts applies the summons publicly and in particular cases, and Paul later grieves over people who have not repented of serious sins in the Corinthian church. Revelation directs the verb both to churches with named failures and to humanity that refuses to turn from idolatry, murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, and theft.
The word therefore names neither mere regret nor a vague positive change. It marks a context-defined turning that becomes visible in response, allegiance, and conduct.
Lexical sourcePassage contextBook context
How the Bible Uses It
Thirty-four governed forms trace a summons to turn through kingdom preaching, Jesus' warnings and parables, apostolic proclamation, church correction, and Revelation's calls to churches and resistant humanity.
- Matt.3.2
Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.
The command responds to God's approaching reign.
- Mark.1.15
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!
Repentance and believing are coordinated responses to Jesus' gospel announcement.
- Acts.17.30
Although God overlooked the ignorance of earlier times, He now commands all people everywhere to repent.
Paul's address in Athens extends the command to his hearers among the nations and grounds it in coming judgment.
- Rev.2.5
Therefore, keep in mind how far you have fallen. Repent and perform the deeds you did at first.
Christ names remembrance, repentance, and renewed works in His correction of a church.
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 Repent 11× Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15, Acts 2:38
they did not repent 4× Matthew 11:20, Revelation 9:21, Revelation 16:9, Revelation 16:11
they repented 2× Matthew 12:41, Luke 11:32
they would have repented 2× Matthew 11:21, Luke 10:13
who repents 2× Luke 15:7, Luke 15:10
you repent 2× Luke 13:3, Luke 13:5
- 1× Revelation 2:21
[the people] should repent 1× Mark 6:12
have not repented 1× 2 Corinthians 12:21
he repents 1× Luke 17:3
I repent 1× Luke 17:4
still did not repent 1× Revelation 9:20
they repent 1× Revelation 2:22
they should repent 1× Acts 26:20
they will repent 1× Luke 16:30
to repent 1× Acts 17:30
you do not repent 1× Revelation 2:5
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 3:2 Μετανοεῖτε to Repent Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural Matthew 4:17 Μετανοεῖτε to Repent Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural Matthew 11:20 μετενόησαν to they did not repent Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Matthew 11:21 μετενόησαν to they would have repented Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Matthew 12:41 μετενόησαν to they repented Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Mark 1:15 μετανοεῖτε to Repent Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural Mark 6:12 μετανοῶσιν to [the people] should repent Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Plural Luke 10:13 μετενόησαν to they would have repented Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Luke 11:32 μετενόησαν to they repented Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Luke 13:3 μετανοῆτε to you repent Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 3:2
Aligned rows 34
Books represented 6
Matthew 5 Mark 2 Luke 9 Acts 5 2 Corinthians 1 Revelation 12
Source forms
μετενόησαν 9x metenoēsan Matthew 11:20, Matthew 11:21, Matthew 12:41, Luke 10:13
μετανόησον 5x metanoēson Acts 8:22, Revelation 2:5, Revelation 2:16, Revelation 3:3
μετανοεῖν 2x metanoein Acts 17:30, Acts 26:20
Μετανοεῖτε 2x Metanoeite Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17
μετανοήσῃ 2x metanoēsē Luke 17:3, Revelation 2:21
μετανοοῦντι 2x metanoounti Luke 15:7, Luke 15:10
μετανοεῖτε 1x metanoeite Mark 1:15
μετανοῆσαι 1x metanoēsai Revelation 2:21
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 9x Matthew 11:20, Matthew 11:21, Matthew 12:41, Luke 10:13
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular 5x Acts 8:22, Revelation 2:5, Revelation 2:16, Revelation 3:3
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural 3x Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural 2x Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Singular 2x Luke 17:3, Revelation 2:21
Verb - Present Infinitive Active 2x Acts 17:30, Acts 26:20
Verb - Present Participle Active - Dative Masculine Singular 2x Luke 15:7, Luke 15:10
Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural 2x Luke 13:3, Luke 13:5
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Look for truthful turning and appropriate fruit without prescribing one emotional performance for every person.
- When another person says, I repent, respond with grace and wisdom rather than pretending that every consequence or boundary disappears.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that G3340 always refers only to initial conversion.
- Do not claim that repentance earns forgiveness or God's favor.
- Do not claim that remorse and repentance are identical.
- Do not claim that forgiveness requires immediate trust, restored access, or the suppression of protective action.
Key Verse and Form Guides
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Matthew 3:2 Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Imperative
Μετανοεῖτε· Metanoeite to repent The form makes the verse sound urgent and directed, helping the reader hear repentance as a required response to the announced kingdom. Read verse guide Matthew 4:17 Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Imperative
Μετανοεῖτε· Metanoeite to repent The imperative makes repentance the commanded response to kingdom nearness. Read verse guide Greek word. Repentance involving change of mind and amendment of life, not mere regret or sorrow for sin.
Source Gloss
to repent
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 34 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
metanoeite
I repent, change my mind
Read verse metanoeite
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Matthew 11:20 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
μετενόησαν. metenohsan
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Matthew 11:21 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
μετενόησαν. metenohsan
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Matthew 12:41 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
μετενόησαν metenohsan
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Mark 1:15 Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Imperative
μετανοεῖτε, metanoeite
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Mark 6:12 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Subjunctive
μετανοήσωσι· metanohswsin
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 10:13 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
μετενόησαν. metenohsan
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 11:32 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
μετενόησαν metenohsan
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 13:3 Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Subjunctive
μετανοῆτε, metanohte
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 13:5 Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Subjunctive
μετανοῆτε, metanohte
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 15:7 Verb Present Active Participle Dative Singular Masculine
μετανοοῦντι, metanoounti
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 15:10 Verb Present Active Participle Dative Singular Masculine
μετανοοῦντι. metanoounti
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 16:30 Verb Third Person Plural Future Active Indicative
μετανοήσουσιν. metanohsousin
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 17:3 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Subjunctive
μετανοήσῃ, metanohsh
I repent, change my mind
Read verse Luke 17:4 Verb First Person Singular Present Active Indicative
Μετανοῶ, metanow
I repent, change my mind
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 5 Aligned forms 34 Tenses Aorist, Present, Future Voices Active
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 11×
Aorist Active Matt 11:20 · Matt 11:21 · Matt 12:41 · Luke 10:13 · Luke 11:32 · Rev 9:20 · Rev 9:21 · Rev 16:9 · Rev 16:11 9×
Future Active Luke 16:30 1×
Present Active Luke 17:4 1×
Imperative command or strong request 10×
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 7×
Aorist Active Luke 17:3 · Rev 2:21 · Rev 2:5 · Rev 2:22 4×
Present Active Luke 13:3 · Luke 13:5 · Mark 6:12 3×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 3×
Present Active Luke 15:7 · Luke 15:10 2×
Aorist Active 2 Cor 12:21 1×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 3×
Present Active Acts 17:30 · Acts 26:20 2×
Aorist Active Rev 2:21 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 33 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist 21 present 11 future 1
Voice
active 33
Mood
indicative 11 imperative 9 subjunctive 7 participle 3 infinitive 3
NT Occurrences
Matthew 3:2 Μετανοεῖτε present active imperative imperative Matthew 4:17 Μετανοεῖτε present active imperative imperative Matthew 11:20 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Matthew 11:21 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Matthew 12:41 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Mark 1:15 μετανοεῖτε present active imperative imperative Mark 6:12 μετανοῶσιν present active subjunctive subjunctive Luke 10:13 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Luke 11:32 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Luke 13:3 μετανοῆτε present active subjunctive subjunctive Luke 13:5 μετανοῆτε present active subjunctive subjunctive Luke 15:10 μετανοοῦντι present active participle participle Luke 15:7 μετανοοῦντι present active participle participle Luke 16:30 μετανοήσουσιν future active indicative prospective Luke 17:3 μετανοήσῃ aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Luke 17:4 Μετανοῶ present active indicative ongoing Acts 2:38 Μετανοήσατε aorist active imperative imperative Acts 8:22 μετανόησον aorist active imperative imperative Acts 17:30 μετανοεῖν present active infinitive infinitive Acts 26:20 μετανοεῖν present active infinitive infinitive 2 Corinthians 12:21 μετανοησάντων aorist active participle participle Revelation 2:16 μετανόησον aorist active imperative imperative Revelation 2:21 μετανοήσῃ aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Revelation 2:21 μετανοῆσαι aorist active infinitive infinitive Revelation 2:22 μετανοήσωσιν aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Revelation 2:5 μετανόησον aorist active imperative imperative Revelation 2:5 μετανοήσῃς aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Revelation 3:19 μετανόησον aorist active imperative imperative Revelation 3:3 μετανόησον aorist active imperative imperative Revelation 9:20 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Revelation 9:21 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Revelation 16:11 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed Revelation 16:9 μετενόησαν aorist active indicative completed
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)
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
New Testament Witnesses
To change mind and direction.
To change one’s mind and direction, turning from sin toward God.
To change one’s mind and direction.
To change one’s mind and direction, turning from sin toward God.
Change one’s mind and direction.
repented
Additional Occurrences
Luke 10:13–16 μετενόησαν metanoéō
They repented
Luke 11:29–32 μετενόησαν metanoéō
They repented
Showing 8 selected witnesses from 34 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
μετανοέω is built from these roots:
Why This Word Matters
Defines the required response to kingdom revelation. Acts 17:22-31
Repentance is required entrance into the kingdom. Acts 2:14-41
Central message of kingdom proclamation. Acts 26:19-23
Repentance is the necessary response to divine revelation. Acts 3:11-26
Defines the necessary response to avoid perishing. Acts 8:9-25
Describes the turning response that brings heavenly joy. Luke 10:13–16
Defines the required response to God’s revealed authority.
Repentance is the necessary response to the gospel proclamation, marking a decisive break with unbelief.
Defines the necessary human response to the gospel.
Repentance is central to receiving covenant blessing and forgiveness.
Highlights the necessity of inward transformation for true faith.
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
Preach G3340 as a summons whose content comes from God's address in each passage. John and Jesus announce the kingdom, Peter and Paul confront hearers with the gospel and judgment, Jesus teaches disciples about sin and forgiveness, Paul names persistent conduct in the church, and the risen Christ calls congregations to changed works. This range protects two truths at once.
Repentance is more than feeling bad, because the passages point toward changed response and conduct. Yet it is not a work by which people purchase God's welcome, because the call arrives within God's kingdom announcement and saving promise. In pastoral care, repentance can be received seriously without demanding a theatrical display, and forgiveness can be extended without denying truth, safety, restitution, discipline, or lawful reporting.
Anchor passage
Mark.1.15
Doctrinal connections
- G3341 Names repentance as a noun and appears in passages about fruit, forgiveness, God's kindness, and God granting repentance.
- Mark 1:14-15 joins the command to repent with the arrival of God's kingdom and the command to believe the gospel.
- Luke 13:1-5 uses repentance to redirect moral comparison with victims toward every hearer's accountability.
- Acts 17:30-31 connects the universal command to repent with God's appointed judgment through the risen man.
- Revelation 2-3 applies repentance to named congregational failures and joins it with concrete response.
- The Hebrew verb H7725, return or turn back, supplies a canonical comparison for prophetic calls without functioning as a one-to-one lexical equivalent.
The governed witness includes imperatives, infinitives, participles, indicative statements, and conditional subjunctives. These forms let authors command repentance, report it, describe a repenting person, state its possibility, or expose its absence. Etymology may illuminate the history of a word, but the New Testament clauses and their objects govern what the turning entails.
From Old to New Testament
Israel's prophets repeatedly call people to turn back to the Lord, often using H7725. That prophetic pattern provides a canonical background for the New Testament summons, but it should not be presented as a direct lexical equation. In the Gospels and Acts, the call now stands within the announcement of the kingdom and the gospel of Jesus. Revelation carries the call into Christ's correction of churches and the world's accountable refusal.
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