Word study
Serve
14 Hebrew and 4 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: serve, served, serving, serves. 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 “serve” 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)
- עָבַד âbadwork, servetranslated this way 164 times of its 286 uses · Strong’s H5647Verb · Translated: serve 110, served 44, worship 32, work 9Full study and all 259 verses →
Genesis 15:14 But I will judge the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will depart with many possessions.
Exodus 14:5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have released Israel from serving us.”
- הָיָה hâyâhfall out, come to pass, become, betranslated this way 26 times of its 2,848 uses · Strong’s H1961Verb · Translated: will be 206, become 178, came 169, was 151Full study and all 2,573 verses →
Genesis 1:15 And let them serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth.” And it was so.
Exodus 13:16 So it shall serve as a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead, for with a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”
- כָּהַן kâhanact as priesttranslated this way 17 times of its 23 uses · Strong’s H3547Verb · Translated: serve me as priests 8, serve as priests 4, priests 3, served as priests 2Full study and all 23 verses →
Exodus 28:1 “Next, have your brother Aaron brought to you from among the Israelites, along with his sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar, to serve Me as priests.
Numbers 3:3 These were Aaron’s sons, the anointed priests, who were ordained to serve as priests.
- שָׁרַת shârathminister, servetranslated this way 17 times of its 94 uses · Strong’s H8334Verb · Translated: minister 32, serve 9, ministering 6, ministers 6Full study and all 88 verses →
Numbers 4:14 and place on it all the vessels used to serve there: the firepans, meat forks, shovels, and sprinkling bowls— all the equipment of the altar. They are to spread over it a covering of fine leather and insert the poles.
Deuteronomy 10:8 At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name, as they do to this day.
- יָצָא yâtsâgo or come outtranslated this way 16 times of its 1,035 uses · Strong’s H3318Verb · Translated: brought 108, went 103, go 82, came 78Full study and all 975 verses →
Numbers 1:3 You and Aaron are to number those who are twenty years of age or older by their divisions— everyone who can serve in Israel’s army.
Numbers 1:20 From the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, according to the records of their clans and families, counting one by one the names of every male twenty years of age or older who could serve in the army,
- עָמַד âmadtake one's stand, standtranslated this way 10 times of its 508 uses · Strong’s H5975Verb · Translated: stood 99, stand 95, standing 50, stands 12Full study and all 485 verses →
Judges 20:28 and Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, served before it.) The Israelites asked, “Should we again go out to battle against our brothers the Benjamites, or should we stop?” The LORD answered, “Fight, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand.”
1 Kings 12:6 Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How do you advise me to respond to these people?” he asked.
- פְּלַח pelachpay reverence to, servetranslated this way 9 times of its 10 uses · Strong’s H6399Verb · Translated: serve 8, other servants 1, rather than serve 1Full study and all 10 verses →
Daniel 3:12 But there are some Jews you have appointed to manage the province of Babylon — Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego — who have ignored you, O king, and have refused to serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”
Daniel 3:14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is it true that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden statue I have set up?
- צָבָא tsâbâarmy, war, warfaretranslated this way 5 times of its 468 uses · Strong’s H6635Noun · Translated: Hosts 286, army 66, host 23, divisions 21Full study and all 448 verses →
Numbers 4:3 men from thirty to fifty years old— everyone who is qualified to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.
Numbers 4:30 from thirty to fifty years old, counting everyone who comes to serve in the work of the Tent of Meeting.
- צָבָא tsâbâwage war, servetranslated this way 3 times of its 13 uses · Strong’s H6633Verb · Translated: served 2, enlisted 2Full study and all 12 verses →
Exodus 38:8 Next he made the bronze basin and its stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
Numbers 4:23 from thirty to fifty years old, counting everyone who comes to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.
- עָשָׂה âsâhdo, maketranslated this way 3 times of its 2,478 uses · Strong’s H6213Verb · Translated: done 292, made 265, make 143, did 112Full study and all 2,206 verses →
- עֲבֹדָה ăbôdâhlabour, servicetranslated this way 3 times of its 127 uses · Strong’s H5656Noun · Translated: service 56, work 25, labor 8, task 5Full study and all 112 verses →
Numbers 4:47 from thirty to fifty years old who came to do the work of serving and carrying the Tent of Meeting.
2 Chronicles 12:8 Nevertheless, they will become his servants, so that they may learn the difference between serving Me and serving the kings of other lands.”
- נָגַשׁ nâgashdraw near, approachtranslated this way 2 times of its 123 uses · Strong’s H5066Verb · Translated: approached 24, approach 12, come near 9, Bring 9Full study and all 110 verses →
Genesis 27:25 “Serve me,” said Isaac, “and let me eat some of my son’s game, so that I may bless you.” Jacob brought it to him, and he ate; then he brought him wine, and he drank.
1 Samuel 28:25 She served it to Saul and his servants, and they ate. And that night they got up and left.
- שׂוּם sûmput, place, settranslated this way 2 times of its 560 uses · Strong’s H7760Verb · Translated: put 84, set 71, make 45, made 39Full study and all 533 verses →
Genesis 43:31 Then he washed his face and came back out. Regaining his composure, he said, “Serve the meal.”
Genesis 43:32 They separately served Joseph, his brothers, and the Egyptians. They ate separately because the Egyptians would not eat with the Hebrews, since that was detestable to them.
- בַּיִת bayithhousetranslated this way 2 times of its 1,913 uses · Strong’s H1004Noun · Translated: house 1,132, temple 176, palace 117, household 93Full study and all 1,624 verses →
Exodus 25:27 The rings are to be close to the rim, to serve as holders for the poles used to carry the table.
Exodus 37:14 The rings were placed close to the rim, to serve as holders for the poles used to carry the table.
Greek words (New Testament)
- διακονέω diakonéōI wait at table, servetranslated this way 21 times of its 37 uses · Strong’s G1247Verb · Translated: serve 6, serves 6, ministered 5, served 4Full study and all 32 verses →
Matthew 8:15 So He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve Him.
Mark 1:31 So He went to her, took her by the hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to serve them.
- δουλεύω douleúōI am a slave, am subject to, obeytranslated this way 18 times of its 25 uses · Strong’s G1398Verb · Translated: serve 11, served 3, serving 3, slaves 2Full study and all 23 verses →
Matthew 6:24 No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Luke 15:29 But he answered his father, ‘Look, all these years I have served you and never disobeyed a commandment of yours. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.
- λατρεύω latreúōI serve, worshiptranslated this way 12 times of its 21 uses · Strong’s G3000Verb · Translated: serve 10, worship 6Full study and all 21 verses →
Matthew 4:10 “Away from Me, Satan!” Jesus told him. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
Luke 1:74 deliverance from hostile hands, that we may serve Him without fear,
- διακονία diakoníawaiting at table, service, ministrationtranslated this way 4 times of its 34 uses · Strong’s G1248Noun · Translated: ministry 19, service 6, serve 3Full study and all 32 verses →
Romans 12:7 if it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
2 Corinthians 11:8 I robbed other churches by accepting their support in order to serve you.
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.