eRhema Explore
Word

ἀγρυπνέω

agrypnéō · G69 · Greek · 4 occurrences

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Meanings

  1. to be alert, to be on the lookout for, to be vigilant

    (A figurative extension of meaning of ἀγρυπνέω ‘to keep oneself awake,’ not occurring in the NT) To make an effort to learn of what might be a potential future threat

    Examples

    Mark 13:33 “Watch out, stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is.

    Luke 21:36 “But stay alert at all times, praying that you will have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

    Ephesians 6:18 With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all perseverance and every request for all the saints,

  2. to look after, to take care of

    To take care of or to look after, with the implication of continuous and wakeful concern for

    Examples

    Hebrews 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to them—for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account—so that they may do this with joy, not groaning; for this would be unhelpful for you.

How it’s used In 2 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 3 groups

With prepositionsPrepositional phrases

3 occurrences in 5 groups

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
γρηγορεύω grēgoreúō · G1127 · to stay awake, to be watchful, to be alert
Both terms denote states of vigilant wakefulness. The target emphasizes sleepless vigilance and watchful care specifically, while γρηγορεύω covers staying awake and being alert more broadly, with an additional sense of remaining alive. The core convergence on vigilant wakefulness is genuine, differentiated by whether the emphasis falls on sleeplessness specifically or on alertness generally.
Semantic domains 2 entries
To be alert, to be on the lookout for, to be vigilant27.57
This verb denotes staying watchfully alert, as in Mark 13:33's warning, "Watch out, stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is."
To look after, to take care of35.41
The verb also denotes exercising pastoral care over others, as in Hebrews 13:17's description of leaders who keep watch over the souls of those in their charge, as those who will give an account.
Word family 8 words

Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.

ὕπνος hýpnos · G5258 · to sleep, to be asleep, sleep · 6×ἀγρυπνέωagrypnéō · G69ἀγρυπνία agrypnía · G70 · sleeplessness · 2×ἐνυπνιάζομαι enypniázomai · G1797 · to dream · 2×ἀφυπνόω aphypnóō · G879 · to fall asleep · 1×ἐνύπνιον enýpnion · G1798 · dream · 1×ἐξυπνίζω exypnízō · G1852 · to cause to wake up, to awaken someone, to wake up someone · 1×ἔξυπνος éxypnos · G1853 · having awakened, awake after having slept · 1×
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon (ῶ; (ἄγρυπνος eqluiv. to ἄϋπνος); to be sleepless, keep awake, watch (equivalent to…
(ῶ; (ἄγρυπνος eqluiv. to ἄϋπνος); to be sleepless, keep awake, watch (equivalent to γρηγορέω (see below)); (from Theognis down); tropically, to be circumspect, attentive, ready: Mk 13:33; Lk 21:36; εἰς τί, to be intent upon a thing, Eph 6:18; ὑπέρ τίνος, to exercise constant vigilance over something (an image drawn from shepherds), Heb 13:17. (Synonyms: ἀγρύπνειν, γρηγορεῖν, νήφειν: "ἀγρύπνειν may be taken to express simply... absence of sleep, and, pointedly, the absence of it when due to nature, and thence a wakeful frame of mind as opposed to listlessness; while γρηγορεῖν (the offspring of ἐγρήγορα) represents a waking state as the effect of some arousing effort... i. e. a more stirring image than the former. The group of synonyms is completed by νήφειν, which signifies a state untouched by any slumberous or beclouding influences, and thence, one that is guarded against advances of drowsiness or bewilderment. Thus it becomes a term for wariness (cf. νᾶφε καί μέμνασ' ἀπίστειν) against spiritual dangers and beguilements, 1 Pet 5:8, etc." Green, Critical Notes on the N. T. (note on Mk 13:33f).)

Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (1889), public domain

Topical studies with this word 2 entries
Be Ready To Learn, Pay Attention3 occurrencesCare For, Take Care Of1 occurrence

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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