δειλιάω (deiliáō) is a verb for being timid, fearful, or cowardly. Its one New Testament occurrence is John 14:27, where Jesus tells the disciples not to let their heart be troubled or fearful after giving them his peace.
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Full entry for δειλιάω (G1168) · Open the biblical lexicon
δειλιάω (deiliáō) is a verb for being timid, fearful, or cowardly. Its one New Testament occurrence is John 14:27, where Jesus tells the disciples not to let their heart be troubled or fearful after giving them his peace.
The BSB source-word alignment has 1 aligned row for this entry. Common renderings include be afraid (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at John 14:27. Its strongest book concentrations include John (1).
G1168 is a verb for being timid, fearful, or cowardly. Its one New Testament occurrence is John 14:27, where Jesus tells the disciples not to let their heart be troubled or fearful after giving them his peace. The command belongs to the Farewell Discourse, where Jesus has spoken of his departure, promised the Advocate, and prepared the disciples for what follows. It is not a promise that arrest, grief, opposition, or confusion will disappear.
Because this is a single occurrence, the verse must govern application. Jesus addresses the disciples with a command grounded in his gift, not a detached order to suppress bodily reactions or deny danger. G1168 should not be used to diagnose clinical anxiety, shame trauma responses, prevent wise caution, or pressure someone to remain in an unsafe setting. John 14 presents courage as dependent on Christ's peace and promised presence, while the broader discourse continues to acknowledge sorrow and trouble.
John 14:27 joins a command against fearful shrinking to Jesus' gift of peace. The coming events remain difficult, so the command does not deny danger or sorrow; its stated ground is the peace Jesus gives in the setting of his departure and promised presence.
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid.
The command follows Jesus' gift of his peace and his contrast with what the world gives. The grammar addresses the disciples together and does not isolate fear from the discourse's promises and warnings.
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you.
The preceding verse promises that the Father will send the Advocate in Jesus' name to teach and remind the disciples. This is part of the local setting for the peace command, not a lexical meaning contained in G1168.
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
Isaiah provides a canonical parallel in which a command against fear is grounded in God's presence and help. John does not quote this verse here, so the connection should remain analogical.
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 shrink back in fear or cowardice rather than face difficulty with courage.
To shrink back in fear or cowardice rather than face difficulty with courage.
(δειλία), [in LXX for חתת ni., פּחד, etc. ;] = the more frequently ἀποδ-, to be cowardly, timid, fearful: Jhn.14:27.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
1 Greek text appearance shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I shrink, am fearful
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 1 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)
δειλιάω is built from this root:
Jesus does not tell the disciples that nothing frightening will happen. He gives them his peace and then commands their shared heart not to be troubled or fearful. The order matters pastorally: gift and promise surround the imperative. Christian courage is therefore not pretending danger is harmless, producing calm on demand, or proving faith through emotional control.
John will soon narrate arrest, scattering, grief, and restoration. Teachers can invite trust in Christ without treating fear as a simple moral diagnosis. People may need safety, medical care, patient accompaniment, lament, and practical help while learning to receive peace. G1168 names the fearful shrinking addressed in this one verse; the full discourse supplies the relational and theological ground for responding to it.
John.14.27
G1168 is a verb in the timid, fearful, or cowardly range. The local artifact records one New Testament occurrence, John 14:27. The verse's imperative, coordinated reference to a troubled heart, and preceding peace promise shape the force; the verb alone does not classify every experience of fear.
Isaiah 41:10 and Psalm 23:4 provide canonical parallels in which fear is answered by God's presence and help. John 14:27 is not an explicit quotation of either passage, so Christ's stated gift of peace and the Farewell Discourse remain the direct grounds.