OlivePress
Pressing the Word of God for Deeper Understanding.
Greek · G4561, G3747 · unreviewed

σάρκα καὶ ὀστέα

Flesh · a bone

These lexicon entries are being actively developed. If you notice missing content, incorrect definitions, or have suggestions, we'd love to hear from you. Share a note on our Connect page and include a screenshot if helpful.

Words in this compound — expand to study each participant

σάρξ G4561 flesh
Pronunciation sárx
In Paul, flesh denotes humanity's fallen nature as opposed to God's Spirit, not mere physical body.
Open lexicon entry →
ὀστέον G3747 a bone
Pronunciation ostéon
Physical skeletal structure; used metaphorically for foundational substance or essential nature of something.
Open lexicon entry →

What does σάρκα καὶ ὀστέα (sarka kai ostea) mean in the Bible?

σάρξ · ὀστέον is a Greek word meaning "flesh and bones".

Full entry for σάρκα καὶ ὀστέα (G4561, G3747) · Browse the biblical lexicon

Meaning

flesh and bones
Grammatical Forms

How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.

Nominative · Singular · Feminine Matt 16:17 · Matt 19:6 · Matt 24:22 · Matt 26:41 · Mark 10:8 · Mark 13:20 · Mark 14:38 · Luke 3:6 · John 1:14 · John 3:6 · John 6:51 · John 6:55 · John 6:63 · Acts 2:26 · Acts 2:31 · Rom 3:20 26×
Genitive · Singular · Feminine John 1:13 · John 3:6 · John 17:2 · Rom 6:19 · Rom 8:3 · Rom 8:5 · Rom 8:6 · Rom 8:7 · Rom 9:8 · Rom 13:14 · 1 Cor 5:5 · 2 Cor 7:1 · Gal 4:13 · Gal 5:16 · Gal 5:17 · Gal 5:19 37×
Genitive · Plural · Feminine Rev 19:21 1×
Dative · Singular · Feminine Rom 2:28 · Rom 7:5 · Rom 7:18 · Rom 7:25 · Rom 8:3 · Rom 8:8 · Rom 8:9 · Rom 8:12 · 1 Cor 7:28 · 2 Cor 4:11 · 2 Cor 10:3 · 2 Cor 12:7 · Gal 1:16 · Gal 2:20 · Gal 3:3 · Gal 4:14 39×
Accusative · Singular · Feminine Matt 19:5 · Mark 10:8 · Luke 24:39 · John 6:52 · John 6:53 · John 6:54 · John 6:56 · John 8:15 · Acts 2:17 · Rom 1:3 · Rom 4:1 · Rom 8:4 · Rom 8:5 · Rom 8:12 · Rom 8:13 · Rom 9:3 37×
Accusative · Plural · Feminine Jas 5:3 · Rev 17:16 · Rev 19:18 7×
147 total occurrences across all forms in the biblical text Morphology: MorphGNT SBLGNT — CC BY-SA 3.0
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.

1 Corinthians 5 — Purge the Evil, Keep the Feast, and Guard the Holiness of the Church Galatians 5 — Stand Firm in Freedom: Faith Working Through Love and Life by the Spirit Galatians 6 — Boasting Only in the Cross: Spirit-Shaped Community and New Creation John 1 — The Word Made Flesh, Witnessed, and Followed John 17 — The Son’s High Priestly Prayer: Glory, Preservation, Sanctification, Unity, Mission, and Love John 19 — The Crucified King: Behold the Man, Behold Your King, It Is Finished, and the Pierced Son John 3 — New Birth, Lifted-Up Son, and the Love of God for the World John 6 — The Bread of Life, the Words of Eternal Life, and the Crisis of True Discipleship John 8 — The Light of the World, True Freedom, and the I AM Before Abraham Luke 24 — The Risen Christ Opens the Scriptures, Commissions Witnesses, and Ascends in Blessing Mark 10 — The Way of the Servant King: Marriage, Children, Wealth, Cross, Ransom, and Sight Mark 14 — The Son of Man Handed Over: Anointing, Supper, Gethsemane, Betrayal, Trial, and Denial Matthew 16 — The Confession of the Christ, the Church Christ Builds, and the Cross-Shaped Way of Discipleship Matthew 19 — Marriage from Creation, Children Received, Riches Renounced, and the Reward of Following Christ Matthew 23 — Woes upon Hypocritical Leadership and the Lament over Jerusalem Philippians 3 — Counting All Things Loss and Pressing On Toward Christ Romans 13 — Submission to Governing Authorities, Love as the Fulfillment of the Law, and Life in the Light of the Coming Day Romans 7 — Released from the Law, Exposed by the Law, and Crying Out for Deliverance Romans 8 — No Condemnation, Life in the Spirit, and the Unbreakable Love of God in Christ Romans 9 — God’s Faithfulness, Sovereign Mercy, and Israel’s Stumbling Over Christ

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

Full license details