Word study
Face
17 Hebrew and 3 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: face, faces, facing, faced. 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 “face” 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)
- פָּנִים pânîmface, beforetranslated this way 293 times of its 1,836 uses · Strong’s H6440Noun · Translated: before 448, face 222, presence 147, before you 123Full study and all 1,671 verses →
Genesis 1:29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit contains seed. They will be yours for food.
Exodus 3:6 Then He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
- פָּנָה pânâhturntranslated this way 18 times of its 128 uses · Strong’s H6437Verb · Translated: turned 27, turn 21, facing 11, turn back 4Full study and all 122 verses →
1 Kings 7:25 The Sea stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The Sea rested on them, with all their hindquarters toward the center.
2 Chronicles 4:4 The Sea stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The Sea rested on them, with all their hindquarters toward the center.
- עַיִן ayineyetranslated this way 7 times of its 764 uses · Strong’s H5869Noun · Translated: eyes 383, sight 186, eye 38, presence 13Full study and all 731 verses →
Exodus 10:5 They will cover the face of the land so that no one can see it. They will devour whatever is left after the hail and eat every tree that grows in your fields.
Numbers 14:14 And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have already heard that You, O LORD, are in the midst of this people, that You, O LORD, have been seen face to face, that Your cloud stands over them, and that You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
- פֶּה pehmouthtranslated this way 7 times of its 423 uses · Strong’s H6310Noun · Translated: mouth 207, mouths 43, command 38, lips 10Full study and all 396 verses →
Numbers 12:8 I speak with him face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you unafraid to speak against My servant Moses?”
Jeremiah 32:4 Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape from the hands of the Chaldeans, but he will surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.
- אֵל êlmotion totranslated this way 6 times of its 4,199 uses · Strong’s H413Preposition · Translated: to 1,941, to me 285, to you 149, to him 137Full study and all 3,455 verses →
- עַל alheighttranslated this way 5 times of its 4,859 uses · Strong’s H5921Preposition · Translated: on 777, over 297, in 218, against 216Full study and all 3,996 verses →
- נֹכַח nôkachfronttranslated this way 5 times of its 21 uses · Strong’s H5227Preposition · Translated: facing 4, opposite 3, before 3, in 2Full study and all 20 verses →
Joshua 15:7 Then the border went up to Debir from the Valley of Achor, turning north to Gilgal, which faces the Ascent of Adummim south of the ravine. It continued along the waters of En-shemesh and came out at En-rogel.
1 Kings 22:35 The battle raged throughout that day, and the king was propped up in his chariot facing the Arameans. And the blood from his wound ran out onto the floor of the chariot, and that evening he died.
- זִיו zîvbrightness, splendourtranslated this way 4 times of its 6 uses · Strong’s H2122Noun · Translated: face 4, dazzling 1, splendor 1Full study and all 6 verses →
Daniel 5:6 his face grew pale and his thoughts so alarmed him that his hips gave way and his knees knocked together.
Daniel 5:9 Then King Belshazzar became even more terrified, his face grew even more pale, and his nobles were bewildered.
- אַף aphnostril, nose, face, angertranslated this way 3 times of its 243 uses · Strong’s H639Noun · Translated: anger 165, facedown 14, nostrils 11, nose 10Full study and all 238 verses →
Genesis 42:6 Now Joseph was the ruler of the land; he was the one who sold grain to all its people. So when his brothers arrived, they bowed down before him with their faces to the ground.
2 Chronicles 7:3 When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the LORD above the temple, they bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD: “For He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.”
- נֶגֶד negedwhat is conspicuous or in fronttranslated this way 3 times of its 142 uses · Strong’s H5048Preposition · Translated: before 24, before me 11, opposite 11, presence 9Full study and all 135 verses →
Joshua 8:33 All Israel, foreigners and citizens alike, with their elders, officers, and judges, stood on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the LORD facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded earlier, to bless the people of Israel.
2 Kings 2:7 Then a company of fifty of the sons of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing Elijah and Elisha as the two of them stood by the Jordan.
- דֶּרֶךְ derekway, road, distance, journey, mannertranslated this way 3 times of its 653 uses · Strong’s H1870Noun · Translated: way 204, ways 166, road 54, journey 35Full study and all 595 verses →
- רָאָה rââhseetranslated this way 2 times of its 1,266 uses · Strong’s H7200Verb · Translated: see 354, saw 285, seen 124, look 45Full study and all 1,181 verses →
Genesis 32:20 You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I will appease Esau with the gift that is going before me. After that I can face him, and perhaps he will accept me.”
- לְחִי lechîjaw, cheektranslated this way 2 times of its 21 uses · Strong’s H3895Noun · Translated: cheeks 5, jawbone 4, jaws 3, face 2Full study and all 20 verses →
1 Kings 22:24 Then Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went up, struck Micaiah in the face, and demanded, “Which way did the Spirit of the LORD go when He departed from me to speak with you?”
2 Chronicles 18:23 Then Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went up, struck Micaiah in the face, and demanded, “Which way did the Spirit of the LORD go when He departed from me to speak with you?”
- אֲנַף ănaphfacetranslated this way 2 times of its 2 uses · Strong’s H600Noun · Translated: face 2Full study and all 2 verses →
Daniel 2:46 At this, King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, paid homage to Daniel, and ordered that an offering and incense be presented to him.
Daniel 3:19 At this, Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders to heat the furnace seven times hotter than usual,
- בַּיִת bayithhousetranslated this way 2 times of its 1,913 uses · Strong’s H1004Noun · Translated: house 1,132, temple 176, palace 117, household 93Full study and all 1,624 verses →
- חִיצוֹן chîtsônouter, externaltranslated this way 2 times of its 24 uses · Strong’s H2435Adjective · Translated: outer 14, outside 3, outer sanctuaries 2, faced the outer 2Full study and all 24 verses →
Ezekiel 40:34 Its portico faced the outer court, and its side pillars were decorated with palm trees on each side. Eight steps led up to it.
Ezekiel 40:37 Its portico faced the outer court, and its side pillars were decorated with palm trees on each side. Eight steps led up to it.
- מוּל mûlfront, in front oftranslated this way 2 times of its 30 uses · Strong’s H4136Preposition · Translated: front 15, opposite 3, facing 2, toward 2Full study and all 28 verses →
Deuteronomy 4:46 while they were in the valley across the Jordan facing Beth-peor in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon and was defeated by Moses and the Israelites after they had come out of Egypt.
Deuteronomy 34:6 And He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab facing Beth-peor, and no one to this day knows the location of his grave.
Greek words (New Testament)
- πρόσωπον prósōponthe face, countenance, surfacetranslated this way 37 times of its 56 uses · Strong’s G4383Noun · Translated: face 25, presence 7, faces 6, facedown 4Full study and all 52 verses →
Matthew 6:16 When you fast, do not be somber like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they already have their full reward.
Luke 9:29 And as He was praying, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became radiantly white.
- ὄψις ópsisthe features, outward appearancetranslated this way 2 times of its 3 uses · Strong’s G3799Noun · Translated: face 2, outward appearances 1Full study and all 3 verses →
John 11:44 The man who had been dead came out with his hands and feet bound in strips of linen, and his face wrapped in a cloth. “Unwrap him and let him go,” Jesus told them.
Revelation 1:16 He held in His right hand seven stars, and a sharp double-edged sword came from His mouth. His face was like the sun shining at its brightest.
- ἐν enin, on, amongtranslated this way 2 times of its 2,393 uses · Strong’s G1722Preposition · Translated: in 1,515, by 152, with 144, at 124Full study and all 1,896 verses →
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.
What the Bible says about face: passages by topic →
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.