Word study
Administer
4 Hebrew and 3 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: administer, administered. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.
At a glance
How often each original word is translated “administer” or one of its forms.
Compare the Hebrew words side by side Compare the Greek words side by side
Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)
- עָשָׂה âsâhdo, maketranslated this way 8 times of its 2,478 uses · Strong’s H6213Verb · Translated: done 292, made 265, make 143, did 112Full study and all 2,206 verses →
- שָׁמַע shâmaheartranslated this way 1 time of its 1,132 uses · Strong’s H8085Verb · Translated: heard 311, hear 253, listen 218, obey 60Full study and all 1,063 verses →
1 Kings 3:11 So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this instead of requesting long life or wealth for yourself or death for your enemies — but you have asked for discernment to administer justice —
- דִּין dînjudgetranslated this way 1 time of its 23 uses · Strong’s H1777Verb · Translated: judge 7, vindicate 3, contend 2, judges 2Full study and all 23 verses →
Jeremiah 21:12 O house of David, this is what the LORD says: ‘Administer justice every morning, and rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor, or My wrath will go forth like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it because of their evil deeds.
- שָׁפַט shâphaṭjudge, governtranslated this way 1 time of its 199 uses · Strong’s H8199Verb · Translated: judge 81, judges 35, judged 15, vindicate 7Full study and all 181 verses →
Zechariah 7:9 “This is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Administer true justice. Show loving devotion and compassion to one another.
Greek words (New Testament)
- διακονέω diakonéōI wait at table, servetranslated this way 2 times of its 37 uses · Strong’s G1247Verb · Translated: serve 6, serves 6, ministered 5, served 4Full study and all 32 verses →
2 Corinthians 8:19 More than that, this brother was chosen by the churches to accompany us with the gracious offering we administer to honor the Lord Himself and to show our eagerness to help.
2 Corinthians 8:20 We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this generous gift .
- διατάσσω diatássōI give orders to, prescribetranslated this way 1 time of its 16 uses · Strong’s G1299Verb · Translated: directed 4, ordered 2Full study and all 16 verses →
Galatians 3:19 Why then was the law given ? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the seed to whom the promise referred. It was administered through angels by a mediator.
- ἐργάζομαι ergázomaiI word, trade, dotranslated this way 1 time of its 39 uses · Strong’s G2038Verb · Translated: work 10, doing 4, worked 4, done 2Full study and all 37 verses →
Hebrews 11:33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,
How to study a word well
- Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
- Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.
Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Full entry: Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906, public domain), in the digital edition Brown-Driver-Briggs Enhanced by unfoldingWord (Joel Ruark, J. de Joode), based on data by Eliran Wong and Stephen Ku; its additions are used under CC BY 4.0. Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project, CC BY 4.0. Hebrew-to-English verse numbering: original work of the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible available at https://github.com/openscriptures/morphhb, CC BY 4.0. We reformatted the data, linked the references to this site’s Bible text and left out words in other scripts that the source holds only as images. These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.