Word study
Prevail
5 Hebrew and 2 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: prevail, prevailed, prevailing. 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 “prevail” 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)
- יָכֹל yâkôlbe able, have power, prevail, enduretranslated this way 16 times of its 116 uses · Strong’s H3201Verb · Translated: able 17, could 11, prevail 10, can 9Full study and all 113 verses →
Genesis 32:28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men, and you have prevailed.”
1 Samuel 17:9 If he is able to fight me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and work for us.”
- גָּבַר gâbarbe strong, mightytranslated this way 10 times of its 25 uses · Strong’s H1396Verb · Translated: prevailed 6, prevail 4, great 2, strengthen 2Full study and all 24 verses →
Genesis 7:19 Finally, the waters completely prevailed upon the earth, so that all the high mountains under all the heavens were covered.
Exodus 17:11 As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel prevailed; but when he lowered them, Amalek prevailed.
- חָזַק châzaqbe or grow firm, strong, strengthentranslated this way 7 times of its 290 uses · Strong’s H2388Verb · Translated: strong 37, made repairs 22, strengthened 16, repaired 15Full study and all 264 verses →
1 Samuel 17:50 Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
2 Samuel 24:4 Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab and against the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army departed from the presence of the king to register the troops of Israel.
- עָזַז âzazbe strongtranslated this way 3 times of its 11 uses · Strong’s H5810Verb · Translated: prevailed 2Full study and all 11 verses →
Judges 3:10 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he became Israel’s judge and went out to war. And the LORD delivered Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram into the hand of Othniel, who prevailed against him.
Psalm 9:19 Rise up, O LORD, do not let man prevail; let the nations be judged in Your presence.
- אָמַץ âmatsbe alerttranslated this way 2 times of its 41 uses · Strong’s H553Verb · Translated: courageous 13, strengthen 3, mighty 2, haste 2Full study and all 41 verses →
2 Chronicles 13:18 Thus the Israelites were subdued at that time, and the men of Judah prevailed because they relied on the LORD, the God of their fathers.
Amos 2:14 Escape will fail the swift, the strong will not prevail by his strength, and the mighty will not save his life.
Greek words (New Testament)
- κατισχύω katischýōI prevail against, overpower, am abletranslated this way 2 times of its 3 uses · Strong’s G2729Verb · Translated: prevail 1, strength 1, prevailed 1Full study and all 3 verses →
Matthew 16:18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
Luke 23:23 But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices for Jesus to be crucified. And their clamor prevailed.
- ἰσχύω ischýōI am strong, abletranslated this way 2 times of its 28 uses · Strong’s G2480Verb · Translated: able 5, unable 5, could 3, healthy 2Full study and all 28 verses →
Acts 19:20 So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.
James 5:16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail.
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.