Word study
First
12 Hebrew and 6 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “first”. 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 “first” 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)
- רִאשׁוֹן rishônformer, first, chieftranslated this way 102 times of its 171 uses · Strong’s H7223Adjective · Translated: first 85, beginning 10, former 9, former things 6Full study and all 164 verses →
Genesis 8:13 In Noah’s six hundred and first year, on the first day of the first month, the waters had dried up from the earth. So Noah removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry.
Exodus 4:8 And the LORD said, “If they refuse to believe you or heed the witness of the first sign, they may believe that of the second.
- אֶחָד echâdonetranslated this way 45 times of its 855 uses · Strong’s H259Number · Translated: one 278, first 43, and one 43, a 36Full study and all 688 verses →
Genesis 1:5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning — the first day.
Exodus 12:18 In the first month you are to eat unleavened bread, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day.
- רֹאשׁ rôshheadtranslated this way 13 times of its 570 uses · Strong’s H7218Noun · Translated: head 200, heads 113, chief 31, top 29Full study and all 530 verses →
- רֵאשִׁית rêshîthbeginning, chieftranslated this way 8 times of its 49 uses · Strong’s H7225Noun · Translated: firstfruits 12, beginning 11, best 7, first 6Full study and all 47 verses →
Numbers 15:20 From the first of your dough, you are to lift up a cake as a contribution; offer it just like an offering from the threshing floor.
Deuteronomy 18:4 You are to give them the firstfruits of your grain, new wine, and oil, and the first wool sheared from your flock.
- תְּחִלָּה techillâhbeginningtranslated this way 6 times of its 20 uses · Strong’s H8462Noun · Translated: beginning 8, first 4, first time 2, earlier 2Full study and all 20 verses →
Genesis 43:18 But the brothers were frightened that they had been taken to Joseph’s house. “We have been brought here because of the silver that was returned in our bags the first time,” they said. “They intend to overpower us and take us as slaves, along with our donkeys.”
Judges 1:1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites inquired of the LORD, “Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?”
- יוֹם yômdaytranslated this way 5 times of its 2,013 uses · Strong’s H3117Noun · Translated: day 1,009, days 524, today 141, time 72Full study and all 1,744 verses →
Genesis 25:31 “First sell me your birthright,” Jacob replied.
- בִּכּוּר bikkûrfirst-fruitstranslated this way 3 times of its 15 uses · Strong’s H1061Noun · Translated: firstfruits 12, first ripe 1, first 1, first ripe figs 1Full study and all 15 verses →
Numbers 13:20 Is the soil fertile or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous and bring back some of the fruit of the land.” (It was the season for the first ripe grapes.)
2 Kings 4:42 Now a man from Baal-shalishah came to the man of God with a sack of twenty loaves of barley bread from the first ripe grain. “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha.
- חַד chadone, single, firsttranslated this way 3 times of its 9 uses · Strong’s H2298Number · Translated: first 3, a 3, one 2, on one 1Full study and all 9 verses →
Ezra 5:13 In the first year of his reign, however, Cyrus king of Babylon issued a decree to rebuild this house of God.
Daniel 7:1 In the first year of the reign of Belshazzar over Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he lay on his bed. He wrote down the dream, and this is the summary of his account.
- שְׁנַיִם shenayimtwotranslated this way 2 times of its 642 uses · Strong’s H8147Number · Translated: two 364, twelve 68, both 33, 12 25Full study and all 550 verses →
Exodus 25:35 For the six branches that extend from the lampstand, a bud must be under the first pair of branches, a bud under the second pair, and a bud under the third pair.
Exodus 37:21 A bud was under the first pair of branches that extended from the lampstand, a bud under the second pair, and a bud under the third pair.
- פֶּטֶר peṭerthat which separates, first openstranslated this way 2 times of its 12 uses · Strong’s H6363Noun · Translated: firstborn 9, firstborn male 1, first offspring 1, come first 1Full study and all 10 verses →
Exodus 34:19 The first offspring of every womb belongs to Me, including all the firstborn males among your livestock, whether cattle or sheep.
Numbers 8:16 For the Levites have been wholly given to Me from among the sons of Israel. I have taken them for Myself in place of all who come first from the womb, the firstborn of all the sons of Israel.
- חָלַל châlalbore, piercetranslated this way 2 times of its 138 uses · Strong’s H2490Verb · Translated: began 24, profaned 24, profane 14, defile 10Full study and all 129 verses →
1 Samuel 14:35 Then Saul built an altar to the LORD; it was the first time he had built an altar to the LORD.
1 Samuel 22:15 Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Far be it from me! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of my father’s household, for your servant knew nothing of this whole affair — not in part or in whole.”
- קַדְמַי qadmayformer, firsttranslated this way 2 times of its 3 uses · Strong’s H6933Adjective · Translated: first 2, earlier 1Full study and all 3 verses →
Daniel 7:4 The first beast was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man and given the mind of a man.
Daniel 7:8 While I was contemplating the horns, suddenly another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like those of a man and a mouth that spoke words of arrogance.
Greek words (New Testament)
- πρῶτος prōtosfirst, beforetranslated this way 77 times of its 94 uses · Strong’s G4413Adjective · Translated: first 76, leading 3, leaders 3, most important 2Full study and all 89 verses →
Matthew 10:2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
Mark 9:35 Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the last of all and the servant of all.”
- πρῶτον prōtonfirst, beforetranslated this way 43 times of its 48 uses · Strong’s G4412Adverb · Translated: first 43, begin 1, Jew 1, begins 1Full study and all 48 verses →
Matthew 5:24 leave your gift there before the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
Mark 4:28 All by itself the earth produces a crop— first the stalk, then the head, then grain that ripens within.
- εἷς heîsonetranslated this way 9 times of its 312 uses · Strong’s G1520Adjective · Translated: one 223, a 16, single 13, first 9Full study and all 267 verses →
Matthew 28:1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.
Mark 16:2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they went to the tomb.
- ἀρχή archḗruler, beginningtranslated this way 3 times of its 55 uses · Strong’s G746Noun · Translated: beginning 31, rulers 5, first 3, rule 2Full study and all 55 verses →
John 2:11 Jesus performed this, the first of His signs, at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.
Hebrews 2:3 how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? This salvation was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,
- ἀπαρχή aparchḗthe first-fruitstranslated this way 3 times of its 8 uses · Strong’s G536Noun · Translated: firstfruits 5, first part 1, first 1, first converts 1Full study and all 8 verses →
Romans 11:16 If the first part of the dough is holy, so is the whole batch; if the root is holy, so are the branches.
1 Corinthians 16:15 You know that Stephanas and his household were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints. Now I urge you, brothers,
- πρότερον próteronformerly, beforetranslated this way 2 times of its 9 uses · Strong’s G4386Adjective · Translated: first 2, former 2, formerly 2, before 1Full study and all 9 verses →
2 Corinthians 1:15 Confident of this, I planned to visit you first, so that you might receive a double blessing.
Hebrews 7:27 Unlike the other high priests, He does not need to offer daily sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people; He sacrificed for sin once for all when He offered up Himself.
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.