noun · masculine
fobos
Strong’sG5401
fear, terror, reverence
stem fob-47 times in the New Testamentin 16 of 27 books5 of 10 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
Fear or terror — the ordinary sense of being afraid, dread, alarm, sometimes intense enough to be paired with trembling or amazement 124. By extension, the word can also stand for the person or thing that causes such fear, the object of dread itself 13.
Reverence or awe — a respectful, submissive fear directed toward God, Christ, or those in positions of authority, distinct from ordinary terror of harm 134.
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
φόβος, -ου, ὁ
[in LXX chiefly for יִרְאָה, also for פַּחַד, אֵימָה, etc.;]
SYN.: v.s. δειλία (and of. DCG, i, 381)
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G5401 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidfob'-os
alarm or fright
Fromfrom a primary φέβομαι (to be put in fear);
King Jamesbe afraid, + exceedingly, fear, terror.
James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, 1890 — public domain. The numbers in it link to the entries here.
Liddell-Scott-Jones — the classical dictionary this word appears in
(φέβομαι) panic flight, the usual sense in Refs 8th c.BC+; φόβονδ᾽ ἔχε μώνυχας ἵππους Refs; μή τι φόβονδ᾽ ἀγόρευε counsel not to flight,Refs 5th c.BC+
2 Φόβος personified, as son of Ares, Refs 8th c.BC+; worshipped at Selinus, Refs
II panic fear, [στρατῷ] φ. ἐμβάλλειν Refs 5th c.BC+; generally, fear, terror (distinguished from δέος (which see)), τορὸς ὀρθόθριξ φ. Refs 5th c.BC+; joined with δέος and δεῖμα, (see entry).; opposed to θάρρος, Refs 5th c.BC+; sometimes in milder sense, doubt, scruple, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἔχει πολλὴν ὑποψίαν καὶ φ. ὡς.. Refs: also, awe, reverence, for a ruler or divine being, τοῦ ἡγεμόνος Refs 3rd c.AD+; θεοῦ LXX+4th c.AD+.—Construction, a. with genitive object, fear or dread of.., Refs 5th c.BC+; φ. περὶ τοῦ καρποῦ fear for or concerning.., Refs 5th c.BC+; τῷ καθ᾽ ἑαντὸν φ. from personal fear, Refs 4th c.BC+infinitive, φόβῳ εἰσορᾶν from fear to see, Refs 5th c.BC+
II.b with Verbs, τεύχειν φόβον Refs 5th c.BC+; φόβους ἐμβάλλειν, φόβον ἐνθεῖναί τινι, to strike terror into one, Refs 5th c.BC+; of the person who feels fear, φόβον λαβεῖν, ἔχειν, Refs 5th c.BC+; τὸν σὸν οὐ ταρβῶ φ. I fear not with thy fear, i.e. not like thee, Refs 5th c.BC+; Ταντάλου φ. φοβεῖσθαι Refs 5th c.BC+; μοι φ. τις εἰσελήλυθ᾽, μ᾽ ὑπῆλθέ τις φ.,Refs 5th c.BC+; διὰ φόβου ἔρχομαι, διὰ φόβων γίγνομαι, Refs 5th c.BC+; φόβου ἀπαλλάξεσθαι to get rid of it,Refs 5th c.BC+; φόβου μεθεῖσα (Valck. φόβον) Refs 5th c.BC+; οὐ φ. μὴ.. Refs; φ. ἐστὶν ὅπως μὴ.. Refs 5th c.BC+; but φόβος εἰ πείσω I fear I shall not persuade.., Refs 5th c.BC+; ἡμέας ἔχειφ. τε καὶ δέος ὅκως χρὴ.. Refs 5th c.BC+ by or through fear, Refs 5th c.BC+: plural, not only in Poets, as Refs 5th c.BC+, but also in Prose, φόβους καὶ δείματα Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2 object or cause of terror, Refs 5th c.BC+; φόβος ἀκοῦσαι a terror to hear, Refs 5th c.BC+
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
Every form this word takes in Biblang, with the Greek it corresponds to and how often the New Testament uses it.
| Job in the sentence case | one singular | more than one plural |
|---|---|---|
| subject nominative | fobos12×φόβος | fobois1×φόβοι |
| object accusative | fobon15×φόβον | foboin |
| direct address vocative | fobor | foboir |
| of, belonging to genitive | fobou9×φόβου | foboiu |
| to, for dative | fobo10×φόβῳ | foboi |
Tinted cells are forms the New Testament never uses, so there is no Greek to show against them — but they are still correct Biblang, built from the slots below like any other.
Why these forms, and no others — the slots that make them
fobo 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
Words built on the same stem
Other words sharing the exact same stem — not merely related in meaning.
Where it appears
Every verse the word appears in, filed under the form it takes there.
47 occurrences, every one of them listed
fobos“fear”subjectnominative singular12×
Luke 1:12kai tarassita Zacharios horarantos, kai fobos epipiptata epi auton.… he was startled and gripped with fear.
Luke 1:65“fear”kai geneta epi pantoin fobos toin perioikarōntoin autoin, kai en hola …All their neighbors were filled with awe, and people throughout the hill …
Luke 7:16“fear”labata de fobos pantoin, kai doxazale ton theon legarōntois …… swept over all of them, and they glorified God. “A great …
Acts 2:43Genote de panta psucha fobos, polleim tē terateim kai sēmeim dia …A sense of awe came over everyone, and the apostles …
Acts 5:5… logoin houtoin piptarantos ekpsuchata; kai geneta fobos megos epi pantoin toin akouarōntoin.… fell down and died. And great fear came over all who heard what …
Acts 5:11kai geneta fobos megos epi holan tan ekklēsan kai …And great fear came over the whole church and …
Acts 19:17… toi katoikarōntoi tan Efesan, kai epipiptata fobos epi pantoin autoin, kai megalunote tem …… and Greeks living in Ephesus, and fear came over all of them. So …
Romans 3:18ouk atō fobos theou apenanti toiu ofthalmoiu autoiu.“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Romans 13:3tois gar archontois ouk alō fobos te agathe erge alla te kakose. …For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad …
1 John 4:18fobos ouk atō en ta agapa, alla …There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives …
1 John 4:18… exō balatō ton fobon, hoti tos fobos kolasian echatō, tos de foborōntos ouk …… perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. The one who fears …
Revelation 11:11… stēala epi toin podoin autoiu, kai fobos megos epipiptata epi toin theōrarōntoin autoin;… stood on their feet, and great fear fell upon those who saw them.
fobon“fear”objectaccusative singular15×
Mark 4:41kai fobila fobon megon, kai legale pros allēloin; Tinos …Overwhelmed with fear, they asked one another, “Who is …
Luke 2:9“a great fear”… doxas kuriou perilampata autoin, kai fobila fobon megon;… and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they …
John 7:13… parrēsia lalate peri autou dia ton fobon toiu Ioudaioiu.… would speak publicly about Him for fear of the Jews.
John 19:38… tou Iēsu kruptorēntos de dia ton fobon toiu Ioudaioiu, hina airateia tem sōmem …… disciple of Jesus (but secretly for fear of the Jews), asked Pilate to …
John 20:19… hopou ale tois mathētois dia ton fobon toiu Ioudaioiu, erchata tos Iēsus kai …… together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and …
Romans 8:15… gar labava pneumem douleiau palin eis fobon, alla labava pneumem huiothesiau en he …… of slavery that returns you to fear, but you received the Spirit of …
Romans 13:7… tem telem tem telem, to ton fobon ton fobon, to tan timan tan …… revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor …
Romans 13:7… tem telem, to ton fobon ton fobon, to tan timan tan timan.… revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor …
2 Corinthians 5:11Oidarēntois oun ton fobon tou kuriou anthrōpoin peithanō, theo de …… we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade …
2 Corinthians 7:11“fear”… spoudan, alla apologian, alla aganaktēsian, alla fobon, alla epipothēsian, alla zēlon, alla ekdikēsian; …… you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what zeal, what vindication …
1 Timothy 5:20… pantoiu elenchasōr, hina kai tois loipois fobon echaleiō.… that the others will stand in fear of sin.
1 Peter 3:14… paschavoiō dia dikaiosunan, makariois. ton de fobon autoiu mē fobiveia mēde tarassiveia,… right, you are blessed. “Do not fear what they fear; do not be shaken.”
1 John 4:18… tas teleias agapas exō balatō ton fobon, hoti tos fobos kolasian echatō, tos …… love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. The one …
Revelation 18:10apo makrothen stēarēntois dia ton fobon tou basanismou autau legarōntois; Ouai ouai, …In fear of her torment, they will stand …
Revelation 18:15… autau, apo makrothen stēeli dia ton fobon tou basanismou autau klaiarōntois kai pentharōntois,… will stand at a distance, in fear of her torment. They will weep …
fobou“fear”of, belonging togenitive singular9×
Matthew 14:26… hoti Fantasmem atō, kai apo tou fobou krazala.… they said, and cried out in fear.
Matthew 28:4apo de tou fobou autou seiila tois tērarōntois kai genila …The guards trembled in fear of him and became like dead …
Matthew 28:8… apercharantais tachu apo teu mnēmeieu meta fobou kai charau megau trechala apangelara toi …… hurried away from the tomb in fear and great joy, and ran to …
Luke 5:26… kai doxazale ton theon, kai pimplēila fobou legarōntois hoti Horana paradoxeim sēmeron.… glorified God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable …
Luke 21:26apopsucharōntoiu anthrōpoiu apo fobou kai prosdokiau teiu eperchorōnteiu ta oikoumena, …Men will faint from fear and anxiety over what is coming …
2 Corinthians 7:15… tan pantoiu vu hupakoan, hōs meta fobou kai tromou decheva auton.… obedient as you welcomed him with fear and trembling.
Ephesians 6:5… hupakouavōr toi kata sarkan kurioi meta fobou kai tromou en haplota tau kardiau …… your earthly masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart, just as …
Philippians 2:12… mallon en ta apousia mu, meta fobou kai tromou tan heautoiu sōtērēan katergazovōr,… to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
1 Peter 3:16“respect”alla meta prautau kai fobou, suneidēsian echarōntois agathan, hina en he …… a clear conscience, so that those who …
fobo“fear”to, fordative singular10×
Luke 8:37… toiu Gerasēnoiu aperchara apo autoiu, hoti fobo mego sunechole; autos de embainarantos eis …… to depart from them, because great fear had taken hold of them. So …
Acts 9:31… echate eirēnan oikodomorōntas, kai poreuorōntas to fobo tou kuriou kai ta paraklēsia teu …… strength and numbers, living in the fear of the Lord and the encouragement …
1 Corinthians 2:3kamis en asthenia kai en fobo kai en tromo pollo genema pros …… came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.
2 Corinthians 7:1… sarkau kai pneumeu, epitelarōntois hagiōsunan en fobo theou.… and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Ephesians 5:21hupotassorōntois allēloi en fobo Christou.Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Hebrews 2:15kai apallaxateia houtoin, hosois fobo thanatou dia panteu teu zōarō enochois …… were held in slavery by their fear of death.
1 Peter 1:17… krinarōnton kata tem hekastou ergem, en fobo ton tau paroikiau vu chronon anastrefivar;… work impartially, conduct yourselves in reverent fear during your stay as foreigners.
1 Peter 2:18Tois oiketoir hupotassorōntois en panto fobo toi despotoi, ouk monem toi agathoi …… yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are …
1 Peter 3:2“respectful”epopteuarantois tan en fobo hagnan anastrofan vu.when they see your pure and reverent …
Jude 1:23… pureu harpazarōntois, hoin de elēavōr en fobo, misarōntois kai ton apo tau sarkau …… still others show mercy tempered with fear, hating even the clothing stained by …
fobois“fears”subjectnominative plural1×
2 Corinthians 7:5… en pante thliborōntois exōthen machais, esōthen fobois… every direction — conflicts on the outside, fears within.