verb
epizētamō
Strong’sG1934
I seek after, desire, search for
stem epizēt-13 times in the New Testamentin 6 of 27 books8 forms occur
What it means
A plain-English reading of the word, with the lexicons it draws on — Abbott-Smith, Strong's, and Liddell-Scott-Jones — right below it, in full.
AI Summary
ἐπιζητέω means to seek after, inquire for, or wish for something or someone 124. It is used with a direct object naming the thing sought, with a person as the object, or with an infinitive describing the action sought 1. Strong's notes that it can also carry an intensified force, meaning to demand or crave something strongly 2, a nuance also reflected in the classical usage of the word for demanding or requiring something 3.
Sources: 1 Abbott-Smith 2 Strong's 3 LSJ 4 Dodson. Condensed by anthropic/claude-sonnet-5 on 2026-09-23 — it may still misstate what these say; check them yourself if it matters to you.
The lexicons it was drawn from, in full:
Abbott-Smith — the 1922 lexicon entry, in full
ἐπι-ζητέω, -ῶ
[in LXX chiefly for דָּרַשׁ, IV Ki 8:8, Is 62:12, al.; also for בָּקַשׁ, I Ki 20:1, Ec 7:29(28)), Ho 3:5; פָּקַד, IV Ki 3:8;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G1934 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Liddell-Scott-Jones — the classical dictionary this word appears in
seek after, wish for, miss, τινά Refs 5th c.BC+; μηδὲν ἐπιζητείτω let her lack nothing, Refs 3rd c.AD+; ἐ. τὸν ἄν θρωπονmake further search for.. , Refs 4th c.BC+; τῆς αἰτίας αἰτίαν ἐπι ζητούσηςrequiring, Refs 2nd c.BC+ the beaters (for game), Refs 5th c.BC+ —passive, τὰ ἐπιζητούμενα περὶ τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν Refs 4th c.BC+; οἱ -ούμενοι criminals `wanted', Refs 3rd c.AD+
b. request, πρός τινας ὁμολογίαν Refs 6th c.AD+
2. seek for besides, μηδ᾽ ἕτερ᾽ ἐπιζήτει καλά Refs 4th c.BC+; inquire further, περὶ.. Refs 2nd c.AD+
3. passive, ἐπιζητεῖται is matter of question, ἐ. πότερον.. Refs 4th c.BC+
4. demand, require, Refs 3rd c.BC+:—passive, Refs 3rd c.AD+
H. G. Liddell, R. Scott, H. S. Jones, A Greek-English Lexicon (9th ed., 1925–1940) — digitised by the Perseus Digital Library and corrected and expanded by Tyndale House, Cambridge, via STEPBible-Data's TFLSJ table, CC BY 4.0. Covers all of Greek literature, not just the Bible.
Translated as
Every occurrence, sorted by the English it was actually given — the evidence for what the word means, not a gloss of it.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), dedicated to the public domain — berean.bible.
Biblang forms
What the New Testament actually uses, first — the whole system this verb is built from is one click further down.
| Form and the Greek behind it | What it is | Usually | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| epizētamōἐπιζητῶ | happening now · Ipresent active indicative 1st person singular | seek | 2× |
| epizētatōἐπιζητεῖ | happening now · he/she/itpresent active indicative 3rd person singular | seeking | 3× |
| epizētanōἐπιζητοῦμεν | happening now · wepresent active indicative 1st person plural | seek | 1× |
| epizētavōἐπιζητεῖτε | happening now · yepresent active indicative 2nd person plural | want | 1× |
| epizētalōἐπιζητοῦσιν | happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural | seeking | 3× |
| epizētaleἐπεζήτουν | was happening · theyimperfect active indicative 3rd person plural | looking for | 1× |
| epizētataἐπεζήτησεν | happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular | sought | 1× |
| epizētarantosἐπιζητήσας | happened · subjectaorist active participle nominative singular masculine | searched for | 1× |
Every form the New Testament uses, in paradigm order. What the system can build beyond them — the whole of this verb, whether the text happens to use it or not — is in the tables below.
Every form the system can build — all 86, by mood, including the ones the New Testament never uses
Statements — indicative mood, 12 occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | epizētamō2×ἐπιζητῶ | epizētame | epizētami | epizētama | epizētamē | epizētamelē |
| you 2nd person singular | epizētasō | epizētase | epizētasi | epizētasa | epizētasē | epizētaselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | epizētatō3×ἐπιζητεῖ | epizētate | epizētati | epizētata1×ἐπεζήτησεν | epizētatē | epizētatelē |
| we 1st person plural | epizētanō1×ἐπιζητοῦμεν | epizētane | epizētani | epizētana | epizētanē | epizētanelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | epizētavō1×ἐπιζητεῖτε | epizētave | epizētavi | epizētava | epizētavē | epizētavelē |
| they 3rd person plural | epizētalō3×ἐπιζητοῦσιν | epizētale1×ἐπεζήτουν | epizētali | epizētala | epizētalē | epizētalelē |
May, might — subjunctive mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | epizētameiō | epizētameia | epizētameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | epizētaseiō | epizētaseia | epizētaseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | epizētateiō | epizētateia | epizētateiē |
| we 1st person plural | epizētaneiō | epizētaneia | epizētaneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | epizētaveiō | epizētaveia | epizētaveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | epizētaleiō | epizētaleia | epizētaleiē |
Commands — imperative mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | epizētasōr | epizētasar | epizētasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | epizētatōr | epizētatar | epizētatēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | epizētavōr | epizētavar | epizētavēr |
| they 3rd person plural | epizētalōr | epizētalar | epizētalēr |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | epizētamoiō | epizētamoia |
| you 2nd person singular | epizētasoiō | epizētasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | epizētatoiō | epizētatoia |
| we 1st person plural | epizētanoiō | epizētanoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | epizētavoiō | epizētavoia |
| they 3rd person plural | epizētaloiō | epizētaloia |
The “to …” form — infinitive, no occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | epizētarō | epizētari | epizētara | epizētarē |
Used as an adjective — participle, 1 occurrence
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | epizētarōntos | epizētarintos | epizētarantos1×ἐπιζητήσας | epizētarēntos |
Each is given in the form it takes as a subject. From there a participle carries the ordinary noun endings, in every case, number and gender — so these four columns are the whole of what the verb contributes.
How every form is built — the slots that make them
epizēt is this word in every one of its forms. The slots after it make all the rest.
same in every form varies — every value shown
Where it appears
Every verse the word appears in, filed under the form it takes there.
13 occurrences, every one of them listed
epizētamō“seek”happening now · Ipresent active indicative 1st person singular2×
Philippians 4:17“seek”ouk hoti epizētamō tem domem, alla epizētamō ton karpon …Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that …
Philippians 4:17“seek”ouk hoti epizētamō tem domem, alla epizētamō ton karpon ton pleonazarōnton eis logon …Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that may be credited to your account.
epizētatō“seeking”happening now · he/she/itpresent active indicative 3rd person singular3×
Matthew 12:39“asks for”… autoi; Geneas ponēras kai moichalidas sēmem epizētatō, kai sēmem ouk dōiti auta ei …… A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the …
Matthew 16:4“seeks for”Geneas ponēras kai moichalidas sēmem epizētatō, kai sēmem ouk dōiti auta ei …A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah …
Romans 11:7tinem oun? hem epizētatō Israēl, houtem ouk epitunchanata, tas de …What then? What Israel was seeking, it failed to obtain, but the …
epizētanō“seek”happening now · wepresent active indicative 1st person plural1×
Hebrews 13:14“seek”… hōde menarōntan polan, alla tan mellarōntan epizētanō;For here we do not have a permanent city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.
epizētavō“want”happening now · yepresent active indicative 2nd person plural1×
Acts 19:39“want”ei de tinem peraiterō epizētavō, en ta ennoma ekklēsa epiluiti.But if you are seeking anything beyond this, it must be settled in a legal assembly.
epizētalō“seeking”happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural3×
Matthew 6:32“eagerly seek”panteim gar houteim teim ethneim epizētalō; oidatē gar tos patros vu tos …For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you …
Luke 12:30“seek after”… gar panteim teim ethneim tou kosmou epizētalō, vu de tos patros oidatē hoti …For the Gentiles of the world strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need …
Hebrews 11:14… gar toiouteim legarōntois emfanizalō hoti patridan epizētalō.… such things show that they are seeking a country of their own.
epizētale“looking for”was happening · theyimperfect active indicative 3rd person plural1×
Luke 4:42… eis erēmon topon; kai tois ochlois epizētale auton, kai erchala heōs autou, kai …… solitary place, and the crowds were looking for Him. They came to Him and …
epizētata“sought”happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular1×
Acts 13:7“sought”… suneto. houtos proskalerantos Barnabon kai Saulon epizētata akouara ton logon tou theou;… of intelligence, summoned Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God.
epizētarantos“searched for”happened · subjectaorist active participle nominative singular masculine1×
Acts 12:19Hērōdos de epizētarantos auton kai mē heuriskarantos anakrinarantos toin …After Herod had searched for him unsuccessfully, he examined the guards …