What does Σιλωάμ (Silōám) mean in the Bible?
G4611 is the place name Siloam. Its three governed forms refer to the Pool of Siloam in John 9:7 and 9:11 and to the tower of Siloam in Luke 13:4.
Greek · G4611
Σιλωάμ
Siloam (i.e. Shiloach), a pool of Jerusalem
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Σιλωάμ G4611
Pronunciation Silōám
What does Σιλωάμ (Silōám) mean in the Bible?
G4611 is the place name Siloam. Its three governed forms refer to the Pool of Siloam in John 9:7 and 9:11 and to the tower of Siloam in Luke 13:4.
Reader summary
Full entry for Σιλωάμ (G4611) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4611?
The BSB source-word alignment has 3 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include Siloam (2), of Siloam (1).
Where does Σιλωάμ (Silōám) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Luke 13:4. Its strongest book concentrations include John (2), Luke (1).
What This Word Actually Means
G4611 is the place name Siloam. Its three governed forms refer to the Pool of Siloam in John 9:7 and 9:11 and to the tower of Siloam in Luke 13:4. John translates the pool's name as Sent within the healing of the man born blind. Luke names Siloam while Jesus recalls eighteen people killed when a tower fell and rejects the claim that they were worse sinners than other people in Jerusalem. The same place name therefore belongs to two very different teachings.
John's parenthetical translation invites attention to sent language in a Gospel where Jesus repeatedly speaks of being sent by the Father, but the precise force of the wordplay is a theological synthesis rather than a second dictionary meaning. The man's washing is an instructed action in this sign, not a universal rite or medicinal property of Siloam's water. Luke does not translate the name or connect the tower collapse to John's sign.
Pastorally, John 9 forbids reducing disability to a simple punishment for a person's or parents' sin, and Luke 13 forbids ranking disaster victims as worse sinners. Neither passage promises that repentance prevents accidents, that faithful people will always receive physical healing, or that a sacred location guarantees blessing. Churches should reject victim-blaming, collective blame, superstition, and disaster speculation while supporting disabled people, grieving families, emergency response, medical care, accessible community, honest lament, and practical safety.
Lexical sourcetextual_evidenceBook contexttheological_synthesisPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
Three governed forms name Siloam in a healing sign and in Jesus' response to a fatal tower collapse.
- Luke.13.4
The tower of Siloam collapsed on them
Siloam locates a real tragedy whose victims Jesus refuses to classify as worse sinners.
- John.9.7
The Pool of Siloam (which means Sent)
John identifies and translates the place within the healing sign.
- John.9.11
Go to Siloam and wash
The healed man repeats Jesus' instruction while giving his account of what happened.
Passage context
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 Siloam 2× Luke 13:4, John 9:11
of Siloam 1× John 9:7
Show sample aligned rows
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Luke 13:4
Aligned rows 3
Books represented 2
Luke 1 John 2
Source forms
Σιλωὰμ 2x Silōam Luke 13:4, John 9:11
Σιλωάμ 1x Silōam John 9:7
Parsing patterns
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular 1x John 9:11
Noun - Dative Masculine Singular 1x Luke 13:4
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular 1x John 9:7
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Let Luke reject blame toward disaster victims and let John identify Jesus within the sign without turning Siloam into a formula.
- Respond to suffering with repentance from pride, practical care, truthful lament, accessibility, and safety rather than explanations the passages do not give.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that accident or disaster proves its victims were worse sinners.
- Do not claim that repentance guarantees protection from tragedy or that lack of healing proves deficient faith.
- Do not claim that Siloam's name, water, mud, or location carries independent healing power.
- John 9 must not displace treatment, accessible participation, the healed man's truthful account, or protective action.
Evidence Summary
Messiah
Greek word. Siloam (i.e. Shiloach), a pool of Jerusalem
Strong's G4611
Lexical occurrences 3 verses Greek text appearances 3 times Word forms 3 forms 3 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
Siloam (i.e. Shiloach), a pool of Jerusalem
Extended definition
:--Siloam.
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
3 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Luke 13:4 Proper name
Σιλωὰμ silwam
Siloam
Read verse John 9:7 Proper name
Σιλωάμ silwam
Siloam
Read verse John 9:11 Proper name
Σιλωάμ, silwam
Siloam
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 this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 3 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns 3 Aligned forms 3 Case pattern Accusative (1) Number pattern Singular (3)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Genitive · Singular · Masculine John 9:7 1×
Dative · Singular · Masculine Luke 13:4 1×
Accusative · Singular · Masculine John 9:11 1×
Selected Scripture Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Witnesses
John 9:1-12 Σιλωάμ Silōám
Sent
Showing 1 selected witness from 3 lexical occurrence verses.
Why This Word Matters
Echoes the sending of the Son by the Father.
Canonical Themes
Messiah
Cross-Language Connections
Hebrew roots and equivalents that share conceptual or etymological ground with this Greek word.
For the Preacher and Teacher
A single place name can remind readers not to force one explanation onto every form of suffering. At Siloam, some people die in a falling tower, and another person returns seeing after obeying Jesus' instruction. Jesus does not say the tower victims were worse sinners. John does not say the pool possesses healing power. In both settings, readers are redirected from speculative control toward a truthful response to Jesus.
Repentance is urgent, but it is not a technique for avoiding every tragedy. Hope for healing is real, but it is not permission to blame disabled people or promise outcomes. A congregation shaped by these texts will resist gossip about why calamity happened, care for those affected, improve practical safety where possible, make room for lament, and honor the testimony and agency of disabled people.
Anchor passage
John.9.7
Doctrinal connections
- Luke 13:1-9 - violence, tower collapse, moral comparison, repentance, and patience
- John 9:1-12 - instruction, the pool called Sent, washing, returned sight, neighbors, identity, and account
- John 9:13-41 - investigation, pressure, witness, exclusion, faith, and blindness
- John 5:30-38 - Jesus sent by the Father, works, testimony, and witness
The three proper-noun forms appear in genitive, accusative, and dative cases as their clauses require. John explicitly translates the place name as Sent in 9:7. Case and etymology do not transfer John's wordplay into Luke 13.
From Old to New Testament
Isaiah 8:6 names the gently flowing waters of Shiloah. That geographical connection may inform background, but neither Luke 13 nor John 9 identifies its scene as a direct fulfillment of Isaiah 8.
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