Greek · G4245 · unreviewed

πρεσβύτερος

Elder: Elder

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πρεσβύτερος G4245

Pronunciation presbýteros

What does πρεσβύτερος (presbýteros) mean in the Bible?

πρεσβύτερος (presbýteros) is a Greek word meaning "elder: Elder". πρέσβυς, -εως, ὁ poët. Paul’s command to appoint πρεσβυτέρους in every town shows that shared, qualified leadership is not optional but part of God’s design for church stability and doctrinal fidelity.

Full entry for πρεσβύτερος (G4245) · Browse the biblical lexicon

Meaning

elder: Elder

Extended definition

Denotes both age-based seniority and official religious or civic leadership position, particularly in Jewish and Christian communities.

an old man. Compar., πρεσβύτερος, -α, -ον, [in LXX chiefly for זָקֵן ;]

1of age, elder: ὁ νἱὸς ὁ π., Luk.15:25; as subst., opposite to νεανίσκοι, Act.2:17; to νεώτερος, 1Ti.5:1-2; of the religious leaders of the past, Mat.15:2, Mrk.7:3, 5, Heb.11:2 (= οἱ πατέρες, Heb.1:1).

2Of dignity, rank or office (as found in π. and Inscr. of civil and religious offices, including priesthood, in Asia Minor and in Egypt; see Deiss., BS, 154 ff., 233 If.; LAE, 373);

aamong Jews: Mat.16:21 26:47, 57 27:3, 12 27:20, 41 28:12, Mrk.8:31 11:27 14:43, 53 15:1, Luk.7:3 9:22 20:1 22:52, Jhn.8:9, Act.4:5, 8 4:23 6:12 23:14 24:1; τ. Ἰουνδαίων, Act.25:15; τ. λαοῦ, Mat.21:23 26:3 27:1;

bamong Christians: Act.11:30 14:23 15:2, 4 15:6, 22-23 16:4 21:18, 1Ti.5:17 5:19, Tit.1:5, II Jn 1, 3Jn.1, 1Pe.5:1 5:5; τ. ἐκκλησίας, Act.20:17, Jas.5:14; __(with) in the visions of the Apocalypse: Rev.4:4, 10 5:5-6, 8 5:11, 14 7:11, 13 11:16 14:3 19:4. (On the NT use of this word and its relation to ἐπίσκοπος (which see), cf. Lft., Phi., 93 ff., 189 ff.; CGT, Past. Epp., lvi ff.)

Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith

Why This Word Matters

Paul’s command to appoint πρεσβυτέρους in every town shows that shared, qualified leadership is not optional but part of God’s design for church stability and doctrinal fidelity. Acts 14:21-28

Demonstrates early church structure and shepherding responsibility. Titus 1:5-9

Grammatical Forms

How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.

Nominative · Plural · Masculine Matt 21:23 · Matt 26:3 · Matt 26:57 · Matt 27:1 · Matt 27:20 · Mark 11:27 · Mark 14:53 · Acts 4:23 · Acts 15:6 · Acts 21:18 · Acts 25:15 · 1 Tim 5:17 · Heb 11:2 · Rev 4:10 · Rev 5:8 · Rev 5:14 18×

Nominative · Plural · Masculine Acts 2:17 · Acts 15:23 2×

Nominative · Singular · Masculine 2 John 1:1 · 3 John 1:1 2×

Nominative · Singular · Masculine Luke 15:25 1×

Genitive · Plural · Masculine Matt 15:2 · Matt 16:21 · Matt 26:47 · Matt 27:12 · Matt 27:41 · Matt 28:12 · Mark 7:3 · Mark 7:5 · Mark 8:31 · Mark 14:43 · Mark 15:1 · Luke 9:22 · Acts 15:4 · Acts 16:4 · Acts 24:1 · Rev 5:5 21×

Genitive · Singular · Masculine 1 Tim 5:19 1×

Dative · Plural · Masculine Matt 27:3 · Luke 20:1 · Acts 15:22 · Acts 23:14 4×

Dative · Singular · Masculine 1 Tim 5:1 1×

Dative · Plural · Masculine 1 Pet 5:5 1×

Accusative · Plural · Masculine Luke 7:3 · Luke 22:52 · Acts 4:5 · Acts 6:12 · Acts 11:30 · Acts 14:23 · Acts 15:2 · Acts 20:17 · Titus 1:5 · Jas 5:14 · 1 Pet 5:1 · Rev 4:4 12×

Biblical Occurrences

Each occurrence shows the passage reference, the original language term as it appears in that context, its transliteration, and the contextual sense.

New Testament Witnesses

Acts 14:21-28 Elders presbýteros Accusative · Plural · Masculine

Mature leaders within the church.

Titus 1:5-9 elder presbýteros Accusative · Plural · Masculine

A spiritually mature leader recognized for oversight and shepherding within the local church.

Appears In

Compound and idiomatic lexemes in which this word is a constituent. Follow a link to study the phrase and its other participating words.

Word Pictures (Robertson)

A.T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) discusses this term in the following chapters. Open any chapter and go to the Word Pictures tab to read his verse-by-verse commentary.

Acts 14 — Through Many Hardships into the Kingdom Acts 20 — Paul’s Farewell Charge to Shepherd the Church of God Mark 15 — The Crucified King: Condemnation, Mockery, Death, Confession, and Burial Mark 7 — True Defilement and Boundary-Crossing Mercy Mark 8 — Seeing Jesus Clearly: Bread, Blindness, Confession, Cross, and Discipleship Matthew 15 — Tradition, the Heart, Gentile Faith, and the Compassionate Bread of the Messiah Matthew 16 — The Confession of the Christ, the Church Christ Builds, and the Cross-Shaped Way of Discipleship Matthew 21 — The King Enters Jerusalem, Judges Fruitless Religion, and Exposes Rejected-Son Leadership Matthew 28 — The Resurrection of Jesus and the Great Commission of the Risen King

A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) — public domain

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

STEPBible Data — CC BY 4.0

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