Word study

Obedient

1 Hebrew and 6 Greek words behind this English word

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

Compare the Greek words side by side

Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)

  • שָׁמַע shâmaheartranslated this way 2 times of its 1,132 uses · Strong’s H8085Verb  ·  Translated: heard 311, hear 253, listen 218, obey 60

    Exodus 24:7 Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people, who replied, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”

    Full study and all 1,063 verses →

Greek words (New Testament)

  • ὑπακοή hypakoḗobediencetranslated this way 4 times of its 15 uses · Strong’s G5218Noun  ·  Translated: obedience 11, obedient 3, make it obedient 1

    Romans 6:16 Do you not know that when you offer yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin leading to death, or to obedience leading to righteousness?

    2 Corinthians 7:15 And his affection for you is even greater when he remembers that you were all obedient as you welcomed him with fear and trembling.

    Full study and all 14 verses →
  • ὑπήκοος hypḗkooslistening to, obedienttranslated this way 2 times of its 3 uses · Strong’s G5255Adjective  ·  Translated: obedient 2, obey 1

    2 Corinthians 2:9 My purpose in writing you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything.

    Philippians 2:8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross.

    Full study and all 3 verses →
  • ὑποτάσσω hypotássōI place under, subject totranslated this way 1 time of its 38 uses · Strong’s G5293Verb  ·  Translated: submit 17, subjected 5, subject 4, put 4

    Luke 2:51 Then He went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But His mother treasured up all these things in her heart.

    Full study and all 31 verses →
  • ὑπακούω hypakoúōI listen, obeytranslated this way 1 time of its 21 uses · Strong’s G5219Verb  ·  Translated: obey 14, obeyed 2

    Acts 6:7 So the word of God continued to spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem grew rapidly, and a great number of priests became obedient to the faith.

    Full study and all 21 verses →
  • ὑποταγή hypotagḗsubjection, submissiontranslated this way 1 time of its 3 uses · Strong’s G5292Noun  ·  Translated: obedient 1, submissiveness 1, control 1

    2 Corinthians 9:13 Because of the proof this ministry provides, the saints will glorify God for your obedient confession of the gospel of Christ, and for the generosity of your contribution to them and to all the others.

    Full study and all 3 verses →
  • πειθαρχέω peitharchéōI obey one in authoritytranslated this way 1 time of its 4 uses · Strong’s G3980Verb  ·  Translated: obey 2, followed my advice 1, obedient 1

    Titus 3:1 Remind the believers to submit to rulers and authorities, to be obedient and ready for every good work,

    Full study and all 4 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. 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.