verb
latreuamō
Strong’sG3000
I serve, worship
stem latreu-21 times in the New Testamentin 8 of 27 books12 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
λατρεύω means to serve or to worship, in the specific sense of rendering religious service or homage — service done for God, for false gods, or for religious duties such as fasting and prayer 1234. In the New Testament it is always used this way: of serving God with the dative "to God," of worshipping idols, and of worship carried out with a clear conscience, reverence, fasting, or in the spirit 1. The one who renders such service can be called "the worshipper," and the word is also used of the ministerial service performed in connection with the sanctuary 1.
The word's underlying, more basic sense is to work for hire, i.e. paid labor, from a noun meaning a hired servant 13. Classical Greek also used it more broadly for being subject to or enslaved to someone, obeying laws, being ruled by circumstance, or being devoted to something such as beauty 3; these broader uses belong to Greek literature generally and are not the sense found in the Bible.
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
λατρεύω
(< λάτρις, a hired servant), [in LXX (always, as λατρεία, of the service of God or of heathen divinities) chiefly for עבד, Ex 3:12, al.; in Da LXX TH (3:12, al.) for פְּלַח;]
SYN.: λειτουργέω, q.v.
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G3000 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidlat-ryoo'-o
to minister (to God), i.e. render religious homage
Fromfrom λάτρις (a hired menial);
King Jamesserve, do the service, worship(-per).
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
Elean λατρείω (which see), work for hire or pay, Refs 6th c.BC+: to be in servitude, serve, Refs 5th c.BC+
2 λ. τινί to be subject or enslaved to, Refs 5th c.BC+: with accusative person, serve, Refs 5th c.BC+; λ. νόμοις obey, Refs 5th c.BC+; λ. καιρῷ, = Latin temporibus inservire, Refs 1st c.AD+; τῷ κάλλει λ. to be devoted to.., Refs 5th c.BC+
3 serve the gods with prayers and sacrifices, λ. Φοίβῳ Refs 5th c.BC+ render due service, Refs; πόνον.. τόνδ᾽ ἐλάτρευσα θεᾷ Refs
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| latreuamōλατρεύω | happening now · Ipresent active indicative 1st person singular | serve | 4× |
| latreualōλατρεύουσιν | happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural | serve | 2× |
| latreuasiλατρεύσεις | will happen · youfuture active indicative 2nd person singular | serve | 2× |
| latreualiλατρεύσουσίν | will happen · theyfuture active indicative 3rd person plural | serve | 2× |
| latreualaἐλάτρευσαν | happened · theyaorist active indicative 3rd person plural | served | 1× |
| latreuaneiōλατρεύωμεν | happening now · wepresent active subjunctive 1st person plural | serve | 1× |
| latreuarōλατρεύειν | happening now · the “to …” formpresent active infinitive | serve | 3× |
| latreuarōntasλατρεύουσα | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular feminine | serving | 1× |
| latreuarōntemλατρεῦον | happening now · subjectpresent active participle direct singular neuter | serve | 1× |
| latreuarōntonλατρεύοντα | happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative singular masculine | worshiper | 1× |
| latreuarōntoisλατρεύοντες | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative plural masculine | serve | 2× |
| latreuarōntoinλατρεύοντας | happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative plural masculine | worshipers | 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, 11 occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | latreuamō4×λατρεύω | latreuame | latreuami | latreuama | latreuamē | latreuamelē |
| you 2nd person singular | latreuasō | latreuase | latreuasi2×λατρεύσεις | latreuasa | latreuasē | latreuaselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | latreuatō | latreuate | latreuati | latreuata | latreuatē | latreuatelē |
| we 1st person plural | latreuanō | latreuane | latreuani | latreuana | latreuanē | latreuanelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | latreuavō | latreuave | latreuavi | latreuava | latreuavē | latreuavelē |
| they 3rd person plural | latreualō2×λατρεύουσιν | latreuale | latreuali2×λατρεύσουσίν | latreuala1×ἐλάτρευσαν | latreualē | latreualelē |
May, might — subjunctive mood, 1 occurrence
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | latreuameiō | latreuameia | latreuameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | latreuaseiō | latreuaseia | latreuaseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | latreuateiō | latreuateia | latreuateiē |
| we 1st person plural | latreuaneiō1×λατρεύωμεν | latreuaneia | latreuaneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | latreuaveiō | latreuaveia | latreuaveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | latreualeiō | latreualeia | latreualeiē |
Commands — imperative mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | latreuasōr | latreuasar | latreuasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | latreuatōr | latreuatar | latreuatēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | latreuavōr | latreuavar | latreuavēr |
| they 3rd person plural | latreualōr | latreualar | latreualēr |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | latreuamoiō | latreuamoia |
| you 2nd person singular | latreuasoiō | latreuasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | latreuatoiō | latreuatoia |
| we 1st person plural | latreuanoiō | latreuanoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | latreuavoiō | latreuavoia |
| they 3rd person plural | latreualoiō | latreualoia |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 3 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | latreuarō3×λατρεύειν | latreuari | latreuara | latreuarē |
Used as an adjective — participle, 6 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | latreuarōntos6× | latreuarintos | latreuarantos | latreuarēntos |
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
latreu 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.
21 occurrences, every one of them listed
latreuamō“serve”happening now · Ipresent active indicative 1st person singular4×
Acts 24:14… tan hodan han legalō hairesian houtōs latreuamō to patrōo theo, pisteuarōntos pantei tei …… confess to you, however, that I worship the God of our fathers according …
Acts 27:23… tou theou, hou amō, ho kai latreuamō, angelos… whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me
Romans 1:9… gar mu atō tos theos, ho latreuamō en te pneume mu en te …God, whom I serve with my spirit in preaching the …
2 Timothy 1:3Charitan echamō to theo, ho latreuamō apo progonoiu en kathara suneidēsia, hōs …I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as did …
latreualō“serve”happening now · theypresent active indicative 3rd person plural2×
Hebrews 8:5hotinois hupodeigme kai skia latreualō teiu epouraneiu, kathōs chrēmatizotē Mōusos mellarōntos …The place where they serve is a copy and shadow of …
Revelation 7:15… enōpion tou thronou tou theou, kai latreualō auto hēmerau kai nuktau en to …… before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in His …
latreuasi“serve”will happen · youfuture active indicative 2nd person singular2×
Matthew 4:10… theon su proskunasi kai auto mono latreuasi.… Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
Luke 4:8… theon su proskunasi kai auto mono latreuasi.… Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
latreuali“serve”will happen · theyfuture active indicative 3rd person plural2×
Acts 7:7… legata, kai meta houteim exercheli kai latreuali mi en to topo houto.… afterward they will come forth and worship Me in this place.’
Revelation 22:3“serve”… auta eti, kai tois doulois autou latreuali auto,… and of the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him.
latreuala“served”happened · theyaorist active indicative 3rd person plural1×
Romans 1:25… en te pseude, kai sebazila kai latreuala ta ktisia para ton ktizaranton, hos …… for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator …
latreuaneiō“serve”happening now · wepresent active subjunctive 1st person plural1×
Hebrews 12:28“serve”… asaleutan paralabarōntois echaneiō charitan, dia hau latreuaneiō euarestōs to theo meta eulabeiau kai …… we are receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us be filled with gratitude, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.
latreuarō“serve”happening now · the “to …” formpresent active infinitive3×
Luke 1:74afobōs ek cheirau echthroiu ruirantoin latreuarō auto… from hostile hands, that we may serve Him without fear,
Acts 7:42… de tos theos kai paradōata autoin latreuarō ta stratia tou ouranou, kathōs grafotē …… and gave them over to the worship of the host of heaven, as …
Hebrews 9:14… nu apo nekreiu ergeiu eis tem latreuarō theo zōarōnto.… of death, so that we may serve the living God!
latreuarōntas“serving”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular feminine1×
Luke 2:37“serving”… apostēote teu hiereu nēsteiai kai deēsiai latreuarōntas nuktan kai hēmeran.… never left the temple, but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.
latreuarōntem“serve”happening now · subjectpresent active participle direct singular neuter1×
Acts 26:7… nu en ekteneia nuktan kai hēmeran latreuarōntem elpizatō katantara; peri hau elpidau enkalomō …… to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. It is …
latreuarōnton“worshiper”happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative singular masculine1×
Hebrews 9:9… mē dunorōntais kata suneidēsian teleiara ton latreuarōnton,… to cleanse the conscience of the worshiper.
latreuarōntois“serve”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative plural masculine2×
Philippians 3:3… anō tas peritomas, tois pneume theou latreuarōntois kai kauchorōntois en Christo Iēso kai …… who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who …
Hebrews 13:10… ouk echalō exousian tois ta skēna latreuarōntois.… an altar from which those who serve at the tabernacle have no right …
latreuarōntoin“worshipers”happening now · objectpresent active participle accusative plural masculine1×
Hebrews 10:2… mēdenan echarō ēti suneidēsian hamartaiu toin latreuarōntoin hapax katharizorēntoin?… the offerings have ceased? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for …