Word study

Nature

6 Greek words behind this English word

The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with “nature”. 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 “nature” or one of its forms.

Compare the Greek words side by side

Greek words (New Testament)

  • φύσις phýsisnature, inherent naturetranslated this way 6 times of its 12 uses · Strong’s G5449Noun  ·  Translated: nature 6, natural 2, unnatural 1, physically 1

    Romans 2:14 Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.

    1 Corinthians 11:14 Doesn’t nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him,

    Full study and all 11 verses →
  • σάρξ sárxflesh, bodytranslated this way 2 times of its 124 uses · Strong’s G4561Noun  ·  Translated: flesh 81, body 15, people 4, in 4

    Colossians 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.

    Colossians 2:13 When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses,

    Full study and all 113 verses →
  • θειότης theiótēsdivinitytranslated this way 1 time of its 1 use · Strong’s G2305Noun  ·  Translated: divine nature 1

    Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.

    Full study and its 1 verse →
  • γῆ gēthe earth, soil, landtranslated this way 1 time of its 238 uses · Strong’s G1093Noun  ·  Translated: earth 156, land 37, ground 19, soil 13

    Colossians 3:5 Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.

    Full study and all 217 verses →
  • ὑπόστασις hypóstasisassurance, substance, realitytranslated this way 1 time of its 5 uses · Strong’s G5287Noun  ·  Translated: confident 2, assurance 2, nature 1

    Hebrews 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

    Full study and all 5 verses →
  • ἀμετάθετος ametáthetosunchanged, unchangeabletranslated this way 1 time of its 2 uses · Strong’s G276Adjective  ·  Translated: unchanging nature 1, unchangeable 1

    Hebrews 6:17 So when God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath.

    Full study and all 2 verses →
How to study a word well
  1. 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.
  2. 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.
  3. Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
  4. 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.
  5. See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
  6. Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
  7. 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. Short definition: Dodson Greek Lexicon (2010, public domain). Full entry: G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922, public domain). Strong’s Greek Dictionary (1890) in the edition by Ulrik Sandborg-Petersen (CC0). 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.