noun · neuter
spēlaiem
Greekσπήλαιον (spēlaion)
Strong’sG4693
a cave, den
stem spēlai-6 times in the New Testamentin 6 of 27 books2 of 6 forms occur
Translated as
What it means
σπήλαιον, -ου, τό
[in LXX chiefly for מְעָרָה;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G4693 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidspay'-lah-yon
a cavern; by implication, a hiding-place or resort
Fromneuter of a presumed derivative of σπέος (a grotto);
King Jamescave, den.
James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, 1890 — public domain. The numbers in it link to the entries here.
Every form
| Job in the sentence case | one singular | more than one plural |
|---|---|---|
| subject or object direct | spēlaiem1×σπήλαιον | spēlaieim |
| of, belonging to genitive | spēlaieu | spēlaieiu |
| to, for dative | spēlaie | spēlaiei1×σπηλαίοις |
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
spēlaie 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
6 occurrences, every one of them listed
spēlaiem“cave”subject or objectdirect singular1×
John 11:38“cave”Iēsus oun palin embrimerōtos en heauto erchetō eis tem mnēmeiem; ate de spēlaiem, kai lithos epikeiete epi aute.Jesus, once again deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance.
spēlaiei“caves”to, fordative plural1×
Hebrews 11:38“caves”hoiu ouk ate axios tos kosmos epi erēmiai planirōtois kai orei kai spēlaiei kai tai opai tau gēau;The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground.
spēlaiem3×
Matthew 21:13“den”kai legatō autoi; Grafitē; Tos oikos mu oikos proseuchau kaliti, vis de auton poiavō spēlaiem lēstoiu.And He declared to them, “It is written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer.’ But you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’”
Mark 11:17“den”kai didaskate kai legate autoi; Ouk grafitē hoti Tos oikos mu oikos proseuchau kaliti pantei tei ethnei? vis de poiavē auton spēlaiem lēstoiu.Then Jesus began to teach them, and He declared, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
Luke 19:46“den”legarōtos autoi; Grafitē; Kai eti tos oikos mu oikos proseuchau, vis de auton poiava spēlaiem lēstoiu.He declared to them, “It is written: ‘My house will be a house of prayer.’ But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
spēlaieim1×
Revelation 6:15“caves”kai tois basilevois tau gēau kai tois megistanois kai tois chiliarchois kai tois plousiois kai tois ischurois kai pantos doulos kai eleutheros kruptala heautoin eis teim spēlaieim kai eis tain petrain teiu oreiu;Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.