Word study

Otherwise

1 Hebrew and 4 Greek words behind this English word

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

Compare the Greek words side by side

Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)

  • פֵּן pênlesttranslated this way 19 times of its 124 uses · Strong’s H6435Conjunction  ·  Translated: or 38, lest 21, Otherwise 19, not 8

    Genesis 38:23 “Let her keep the items,” Judah replied. “Otherwise we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send her this young goat, but you could not find her.”

    Exodus 23:29 I will not drive them out before you in a single year; otherwise the land would become desolate and wild animals would multiply against you.

    Full study and all 119 verses →

Greek words (New Testament)

  • μή mḗnot, lesttranslated this way 9 times of its 411 uses · Strong’s G3361Adverb  ·  Translated: not 284, no 44, without 18, Otherwise 9

    Matthew 5:25 Reconcile quickly with your adversary, while you are still on the way to court. Otherwise, he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison.

    Mark 4:12 so that, ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven.’”

    Full study and all 381 verses →
  • ἐπεί epeíafter, for, since, otherwisetranslated this way 5 times of its 22 uses · Strong’s G1893Conjunction  ·  Translated: since 11, Otherwise 5, because 4, case 1

    Romans 11:6 And if it is by grace, then it is no longer by works. Otherwise, grace would no longer be grace.

    1 Corinthians 7:14 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.

    Full study and all 22 verses →
  • ἀλλά allábut, excepttranslated this way 2 times of its 565 uses · Strong’s G235Conjunction  ·  Translated: but 433, Instead 49, However 9, contrary 8

    Matthew 11:8 Otherwise, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Look, those who wear fine clothing are found in kings’ palaces.

    Luke 7:25 Otherwise, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Look, those who wear elegant clothing and live in luxury are found in palaces.

    Full study and all 541 verses →
  • ἵνα hínain order that, so thattranslated this way 2 times of its 584 uses · Strong’s G2443Conjunction  ·  Translated: so that 226, to 162, that 95, order 23

    Luke 14:29 Otherwise, if he lays the foundation and is unable to finish the work, everyone who sees it will ridicule him,

    Luke 18:5 yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice. Otherwise, she will wear me out with her perpetual requests.’”

    Full study and all 552 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.