To be anxious about
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Μεριμνάω means to be anxious, preoccupied, concerned, or actively care for someone or something. Jesus commands disciples not to worry about food, drink, clothing, or lifespan because their Father knows and provides; anxiety cannot secure life.
Reader summary
Full entry for μεριμνάω (G3309) · Open the biblical lexicon
Μεριμνάω means to be anxious, preoccupied, concerned, or actively care for someone or something. Jesus commands disciples not to worry about food, drink, clothing, or lifespan because their Father knows and provides; anxiety cannot secure life.
The BSB source-word alignment has 19 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include is concerned about (4), worry (3), worry about (3), do you worry (2), Be anxious for (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 6:25. Its strongest book concentrations include Matthew (7), 1 Corinthians (5), Luke (5), Philippians (2).
Μεριμνάω means to be anxious, preoccupied, concerned, or actively care for someone or something. Jesus commands disciples not to worry about food, drink, clothing, or lifespan because their Father knows and provides; anxiety cannot secure life. He addresses Martha's many anxious concerns when they distract her from the one necessary thing. Yet Paul uses the same verb positively for undivided concern about the Lord's work and Timothy's genuine care for believers.
The word does not make every concern sinful. Anxiety that fragments attention and attempts control differs from responsible, loving care directed toward another's good. Object, posture, trust, and fruit determine whether concern is corrosive preoccupation or faithful attentiveness.
Μεριμνάω spans anxious worry and genuine care. Jesus redirects fragmented preoccupation toward the Father's kingdom, while Paul commends attentive concern for the Lord and His people.
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
Jesus forbids life-dominating worry by directing disciples to the greater gifts of life and body, the Father's provision, and first pursuit of His kingdom.
“Martha, Martha,” the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things.
Jesus names Martha's anxiety and agitation over many matters while Mary receives His word, correcting distracted service without despising hospitality itself.
I want you to be free from concern. The unmarried man is concerned about the work of the Lord, how he can please the Lord.
Paul values freedom from competing concerns so an unmarried believer may attend to the Lord's work, while the chapter also honors married obligations.
I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs.
Timothy's concern is genuine because he seeks the Philippians' welfare rather than his own interests, making care an expression of Christ-shaped service.
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
Worry cannot add to life's span, exposing its inability to produce the control it promises and redirecting hearers toward trust and present obedience.
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. Anxious worry versus caring concern; context determines whether the emotion is sinful or virtuous.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 19 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I am anxious, distracted
Read verseI am anxious, distracted
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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 18 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)
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 4 selected witnesses from 19 lexical occurrence verses.
μεριμνάω is built from this root:
Identifies anxiety as divided allegiance inconsistent with trust in the Father.
Identifies worry as misplaced trust.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Concern becomes destructive when it divides the heart around imagined control. In Matthew 6, Jesus does not deny bodily needs; He places them under the Father's knowledge and redirects disciples toward today's obedience and God's kingdom. Martha's anxious service has multiplied into distraction from Jesus' word. Paul shows the verb's positive range by commending concern for the Lord and Timothy's genuine care for the church.
Christian freedom from anxiety is therefore not emotional numbness or neglect. It is the release of ultimate control to the Father so attention can become present, loving, and responsible. Churches should offer prayer, companionship, practical support, and appropriate clinical care rather than weaponizing commands against worry to shame sufferers.
Matt.6.25
Μεριμνάω is related to care and divided concern. It can carry negative force as worry or positive force as thoughtful attention; complements identify what occupies the mind.
God carries His people's burdens, wisdom commends prudent care, and the psalms bring anxious thoughts into His presence. Jesus reveals the Father's attentive provision.