παρακολουθέω
parakolouthéō · G3877 · Greek · 4 occurrences
Meanings
-
to follow, to be a follower of, to conform to
To conform in one’s behavior to a particular system of instruction or teaching
Examples1 Timothy 4:6 In pointing out these things to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the good doctrine which you have been following.
2 Timothy 3:10 Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance,
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to trace, to investigate carefully, to diligently check out
(A figurative extension of meaning of παρακολουθέω ‘to follow,’ not occurring in the NT) To make an extensive effort to learn the details and truth about something
ExamplesLuke 1:3 it seemed fitting to me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in an orderly sequence, most excellent Theophilus;
2 Timothy 3:10 Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance,
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to happen along with, to happen at the same time, to accompany
To happen in conjunction with some other happening
ExamplesMark 16:17 “These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues;
How it’s used In 4 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Who or what does itSubject
4 occurrences in 4 groups
- σημεῖονsign 1
- σύyou 1
- Not stated: you (one person) 1
- Not stated (participle) 1
What it acts on, or what is saidObject
2 occurrences in 2 groups
- πᾶςall, every, each 1
- πιστεύωto believe 1
With adverbsAdverbs
1 occurrences in 2 groups
- ἀκριβῶςaccurate 1
- ἄνωθενfrom above 1
Named alongside itApposition
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- διδασκαλίαteaching, doctrine 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 1 word
- μιμέομαι miméomai · G3401 · to imitate, to do as others do
- μιμέομαι means to imitate or follow someone as an example, overlapping with παρακολουθέω's sense of 'conforming to' or 'being a follower of' (domain 36.32). While μιμέομαι emphasizes deliberate imitation, παρακολουθέω focuses on following closely or attending to something, and can also mean tracing out or investigating.
Semantic domains 3 entries
- To happen along with, to happen at the same time, to accompany13.113
- This domain covers παρακολουθέω naming an event occurring together with another, as Jesus promises signs accompanying belief: “‘These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues.’” (Mark 16:17)
- To trace, to investigate carefully, to diligently check out27.38
- Here παρακολουθέω names careful, thorough research into a matter, as Luke describes his own preparation for writing his Gospel: “it seemed fitting to me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in an orderly sequence, most excellent Theophilus.” (Luke 1:3)
- To follow, to be a follower of, to conform to36.32
- Here παρακολουθέω names sustained adherence to a pattern of teaching, as Paul commends Timothy's faithful discipleship: “Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance.” (2 Timothy 3:10)
Word family 6 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon παρακολούθω: future παρακολουθήσω; 1 aorist παρηκολούθησα (1 Tim 4:6 L marginal reading…
1. to follow after; so to follow one as to be always at his side (see παρά, IV. 1); to follow close, accompany (so from Aristophanes and Xenophon down).
2. metaphorically,
a. to be always present, to attend one wherever he goes: τίνι, Mk 16:17 (where Tr WH text ἀκολουθησει, which see).
b. to follow up a thing in mind so as to attain to the knowledge of it, i. e. to understand (cf. our follow a matter up, trace its course, etc.); to examine thoroughly, investigate: πᾶσιν (i. e. πράγμασιν), all things that have taken place, Lk 1:3 (very often so in Greek auth, as Demosthenes, pro cor. c. 53 (p. 285, 23)).
c. to follow faithfully namely, a standard or rule, to conform oneself to: with a dative of the thing, 1 Tim 4:6; 2 Tim 3:10 (2 Macc. 9:27). Cf. the full discussion of this word by Grimm in the Jahrbb. f. deutsche Theol. for 1871, p. 46f.
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (1889), public domain
Topical studies with this word 3 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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