To come/be present
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Hēkō means to have come, to be present, or to arrive, often emphasizing the resulting presence rather than the journey itself. Jesus speaks of many coming from east and west to share the patriarchal banquet, and Luke repeats the kingdom image of people arriving from every direction.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἥκω (G2240) · Open the biblical lexicon
Hēkō means to have come, to be present, or to arrive, often emphasizing the resulting presence rather than the journey itself. Jesus speaks of many coming from east and west to share the patriarchal banquet, and Luke repeats the kingdom image of people arriving from every direction.
The BSB source-word alignment has 26 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include will come (12), come (2), I have come (2), I will come (2), . . . (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 8:11. Its strongest book concentrations include Revelation (6), Luke (5), John (4), Matthew (4).
Hēkō means to have come, to be present, or to arrive, often emphasizing the resulting presence rather than the journey itself. Jesus speaks of many coming from east and west to share the patriarchal banquet, and Luke repeats the kingdom image of people arriving from every direction. In John, Jesus promises not to cast out anyone who comes to Him. Second Peter warns that the day of the Lord will come with sudden judgment, while Revelation announces plagues arriving in one day upon Babylon.
The verb can therefore mark gracious arrival, eschatological gathering, or unavoidable judgment. It does not tell readers when an event will occur or how a person traveled. Context identifies who has come, where, and with what consequence.
Hēkō focuses on arrival or present coming. People arrive at the kingdom feast, sinners come to Christ and are received, the day of the Lord comes unexpectedly, and Babylon's judgments arrive decisively. Arrival can mean welcome or reckoning depending on the destination and agent.
I say to you that many will come from the east and the west to share the banquet with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 8:11 looks beyond the centurion to many arriving from east and west and reclining with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The saying magnifies unexpected faith and kingdom inclusion while warning presumptuous heirs.
People will come from east and west and north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God.
Luke 13:29 likewise pictures people coming from every compass point to recline in God's kingdom. It follows Jesus' warning about the narrow door and reversals between first and last.
Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never drive away.
John 6:37 promises that the one who comes to Jesus will never be cast out. The assurance stands within the Father's giving and the Son's commitment to preserve and raise His people.
But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare.
Second Peter 3:10 says the day of the Lord will come like a thief. Its arrival is certain and surprising, calling believers to holy conduct rather than date-setting.
Therefore her plagues will come in one day—death and grief and famine—and she will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
Revelation 18:8 announces that Babylon's plagues will come in one day. Her boast of security cannot prevent the sudden arrival of divine judgment.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. to come/be present
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 27 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I have come, am present
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Read verseI have come, am present
Read verseI have come, am present
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Read verseI have come, am present
Read verseI have come, am present
Read verseI have come, am present
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
How mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
How this verb appears across 27 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
ἥκω is a primary verb - no further derivation.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Hēkō places readers at the threshold where coming becomes presence. The kingdom sayings picture surprising guests arriving from every direction while presumed insiders face warning. John 6 offers strong assurance: those who come to Jesus are not received reluctantly or discarded, because the Son carries out the Father's saving will and promises resurrection.
Second Peter and Revelation show another arrival, the day when judgment overturns complacent security. Together these passages hold invitation and accountability without confusion. The church may call all peoples to Christ with confidence in His welcome, yet it must not convert grace into presumption. The promised future should produce holy, expectant living rather than speculative calendars.
What matters is not imaginative detail about the journey, but readiness for the presence that Scripture says will certainly come.
John.6.37
Hēkō commonly means "I have come" or "I am here," with a perfect-like present sense that can stress arrival and resulting presence. It differs in nuance from general motion verbs, though English translations often use "come."
Prophets envision nations streaming to God's saving reign and warn that the day of the Lord will come in judgment. Jesus gathers these hopes around Himself, the kingdom banquet, and the final renewal and reckoning.