To eat
Reading a lexicon entry
What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
Strong's number: The Strong's code (H- or G-) is the standard reference number for this word. It connects this entry to chapter and passage language tabs.
Where it appears: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
This lexicon entry is part of our ongoing editorial review. If you notice missing content, unclear wording, or a possible correction, please send us a note through theConnect page. Screenshots are helpful.
G5176 is an eating verb that John concentrates in the bread-of-life discourse and then uses once in the betrayal setting. In John 6, the form describes the one who eats, feeds on, or partakes of Jesus' flesh and drinks His blood.
Reader summary
Full entry for τρώγω (G5176) · Open the biblical lexicon
G5176 is an eating verb that John concentrates in the bread-of-life discourse and then uses once in the betrayal setting. In John 6, the form describes the one who eats, feeds on, or partakes of Jesus' flesh and drinks His blood.
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include eats (3), eating (1), feeds on (1), shares (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 24:38. Its strongest book concentrations include John (5), Matthew (1).
G5176 is an eating verb that John concentrates in the bread-of-life discourse and then uses once in the betrayal setting. In John 6, the form describes the one who eats, feeds on, or partakes of Jesus' flesh and drinks His blood. The language is vivid and must be governed by Jesus' own claims about life, resurrection, abiding, and the living Father. It should not be reduced to a crude image, nor should it be used as a lexical shortcut that bypasses the passage's call to faith in Jesus.
In John 13, the one sharing Jesus' bread lifts his heel against Him, so shared table language can also expose betrayal. The word helps teachers handle reception, union, and treachery with textual care.
G5176 appears in John 6 for eating or feeding on Jesus in the bread-of-life discourse, and in John 13 for the one who shares Jesus' bread while betraying Him.
Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
Whoever eats Jesus' flesh and drinks His blood has eternal life and will be raised at the last day. The word is tied to life and resurrection promise.
Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him.
Whoever eats Jesus' flesh and drinks His blood remains in Him, and He in that person. Eating language is joined to abiding union.
Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
The one who feeds on Jesus will live because of Him, as Jesus lives because of the living Father. The word stands inside the Father-Son life relation.
This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your fathers, who ate the manna and died, the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
The one who eats this bread will live forever, unlike the fathers who ate manna and died. The verb marks the contrast between manna and living bread.
I am not speaking about all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the Scripture: ‘The one who shares My bread has lifted up his heel against Me.’
The one who shares Jesus' bread lifts his heel against Him. Table sharing does not guarantee loyalty when the heart is set on betrayal.
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. Eating with emphasis on the act of chewing or consuming; in John's Gospel, spiritual appropriation of Christ's flesh and blood
Eating with emphasis on the act of chewing or consuming; in John's Gospel, spiritual appropriation of Christ's flesh and blood
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
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 5 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 1 selected witness from 6 lexical occurrence verses.
τρώγω is built from these roots:
Emphasizes ongoing participation in Christ through faith.John 6:41–59
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
G5176 matters because John uses eating language to speak of real reception of Jesus, not casual admiration. In John 6, the verb stands in sentences about eternal life, resurrection at the last day, abiding in Christ, and living because of Him. The imagery is deliberately weighty, but its meaning is controlled by the discourse and by faith in the Son. In John 13, the same field of shared bread is darkened by betrayal, reminding readers that nearness to the table is not the same as faithful allegiance.
Teachers should preserve both truths: Christ gives life to those who receive Him, and outward nearness can still hide treachery.
John.6.56
G5176 can describe eating or feeding. In John 6, its repeated participial form highlights the one who receives Jesus in the discourse's own terms.