verb
sebemō
Greekσέβομαι (sebomai)
Strong’sG4576
I reverence, worship
stem seb-10 times in the New Testamentin 3 of 27 books8 forms occur
Translated as
What it means
σέβω
[in LXX (chiefly for יָרֵא, Jos 4:24, al.) and NT always mid., σέβομαι, exc. IV Mac 5:24;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G4576 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidseb'-om-ahee
to revere, i.e. adore
Frommiddle voice of an apparently primary verb;
King Jamesdevout, religious, worship.
James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, 1890 — public domain. The numbers in it link to the entries here.
Forms in the New Testament
| Form and the Greek behind it | What it is | Usually | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| sebetōσέβεται | happening now · he/she/itpresent middle indicative 3rd person singular | worship | 1× |
| sebelōσέβονταί | happening now · theypresent middle indicative 3rd person plural | worship | 2× |
| seberōσέβεσθαι | happening now · the “to …” formpresent middle infinitive | worship | 1× |
| seberōtasσεβομένη | happening now · subjectpresent middle participle nominative singular feminine | worshiper | 1× |
| seberōtouσεβομένου | happening now · of, belonging topresent middle participle genitive singular masculine | worshiper | 1× |
| seberōtainσεβομένας | happening now · objectpresent middle participle accusative plural feminine | devout | 1× |
| seberōtoiuσεβομένων | happening now · of, belonging topresent middle participle genitive plural masculine | devout | 2× |
| seberōtoiσεβομένοις | happening now · to, forpresent middle participle dative plural masculine | god-fearing | 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, 3 occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sebemō | sebeme | sebemi | sebema | sebemē | sebemelē |
| you 2nd person singular | sebesō | sebese | sebesi | sebesa | sebesē | sebeselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sebetō1×σέβεται | sebete | sebeti | sebeta | sebetē | sebetelē |
| we 1st person plural | sebenō | sebene | sebeni | sebena | sebenē | sebenelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | sebevō | sebeve | sebevi | sebeva | sebevē | sebevelē |
| they 3rd person plural | sebelō2×σέβονταί | sebele | sebeli | sebela | sebelē | sebelelē |
May, might — subjunctive mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sebemeiō | sebemeia | sebemeiē |
| you 2nd person singular | sebeseiō | sebeseia | sebeseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sebeteiō | sebeteia | sebeteiē |
| we 1st person plural | sebeneiō | sebeneia | sebeneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | sebeveiō | sebeveia | sebeveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | sebeleiō | sebeleia | sebeleiē |
Commands — imperative mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | sebesōr | sebesar | sebesēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sebetōr | sebetar | sebetēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | sebevōr | sebevar | sebevēr |
| they 3rd person plural | sebelōr | sebelar | sebelēr |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sebemoiō | sebemoia |
| you 2nd person singular | sebesoiō | sebesoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sebetoiō | sebetoia |
| we 1st person plural | sebenoiō | sebenoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | sebevoiō | sebevoia |
| they 3rd person plural | sebeloiō | sebeloia |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 1 occurrence
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| acts on or for itself middle voice | seberō1×σέβεσθαι | seberi | sebera | seberē |
Used as an adjective — participle, 6 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| acts on or for itself middle voice | seberōtos6× | seberitos | seberatos | seberētos |
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
seb 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
10 occurrences, every one of them listed
sebetō“worship”happening now · he/she/itpresent middle indicative 3rd person singular1×
Acts 19:27“worship”ouk monem de houtem kinduneuatō ni tem merem eis apelegmon erchara, alla kai tem tau megau theau Artemiau hierem eis oudenem logizira, mellarō tē kai kathairirō tau megaleiotau autau, han holas tas Asias kai tas oikoumenas sebetō.There is danger not only that our business will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited and her majesty deposed — she who is worshiped by all the province of Asia and the whole world.”
sebelō“worship”happening now · theypresent middle indicative 3rd person plural2×
Matthew 15:9“worship”matēn de sebelō min, didaskarōtois didaskaliain entalmeim anthrōpoiu.They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’”
Mark 7:7“worship”matēn de sebelō min, didaskarōtois didaskaliain entalmeim anthrōpoiu;They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’
seberō“worship”happening now · the “to …” formpresent middle infinitive1×
Acts 18:13“worship”legarōtois hoti Para ton nomon anapeithatō houtos toin anthrōpoin seberō ton theon.“This man is persuading the people to worship God in ways contrary to the law,” they said.
seberōtas“worshiper”happening now · subjectpresent middle participle nominative singular feminine1×
Acts 16:14“worshiper”kai tinas gunaikas onome Ludias, porfuropōlias politau Thuateireiu seberōtas ton theon, akouate, hau tos kurios dianoigata tan kardian prosecharō tei lalirōtei hupo tou Paulou.Among those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.
seberōtou“worshiper”happening now · of, belonging topresent middle participle genitive singular masculine1×
Acts 18:7“worshiper”kai metabainaratos ekeithen eiserchata eis oikian tinou onome Titiou Ioustou seberōtou ton theon, hou tas oikias ate sunomorarōtas ta sunagōga.So Paul left the synagogue and went next door to the house of Titus Justus, a worshiper of God.
seberōtain“devout”happening now · objectpresent middle participle accusative plural feminine1×
Acts 13:50“devout”tois de Ioudaiois parotrunala tain seberōtain gunaikain tain euschēmōnain kai toin prōtoin tau politau kai epegeirala diōgmon epi ton Paulon kai Barnabaon, kai ekballala autoin apo teiu horeiu autoiu.The Jews, however, incited the religious women of prominence and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their district.
seberōtoiu“devout”happening now · of, belonging topresent middle participle genitive plural masculine2×
Acts 13:43“devout”luiratau de tau sunagōgau akolouthala pollois toiu Ioudaioiu kai toiu seberōtoiu prosēlutoiu to Paulo kai to Barnabao, hotinois proslalarōtois autoi peithale; autoin prosmenarō ta charia tou theou.After the synagogue was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.
Acts 17:4“god-fearing”kai tinois ek autoiu peithila kai prosklērila to Paulo kai to Silao, toiu tē seberōtoiu Hellēnoiu plēthem pollem gunaikaiu tē taiu prōtaiu ouk oligais.Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few leading women.
seberōtoi“god-fearing”happening now · to, forpresent middle participle dative plural masculine1×
Acts 17:17“god-fearing”dialegete men oun en ta sunagōga toi Ioudaioi kai toi seberōtoi kai en ta agora kata pantan hēmeran pros toin paratunchanarōtoin.So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles, and in the marketplace with those he met each day.