What does διακρίνω (diakrínō) mean in the Bible?
Διακρίνω can mean to distinguish, evaluate, make a difference, dispute, hesitate, or waver. Its force changes with grammar and setting.
Greek · G1252
διακρίνω
To judge/doubt
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διακρίνω G1252
Pronunciation diakrínō
What does διακρίνω (diakrínō) mean in the Bible?
Διακρίνω can mean to distinguish, evaluate, make a difference, dispute, hesitate, or waver. Its force changes with grammar and setting.
Reader summary
Full entry for διακρίνω (G1252) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1252?
The BSB source-word alignment has 19 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include doubt (2), hesitation (2), doubting (1), doubts (1), has doubts (1).
Where does διακρίνω (diakrínō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 16:3. Its strongest book concentrations include 1 Corinthians (5), Acts (4), James (3), Jude (2).
What This Word Actually Means
Διακρίνω can mean to distinguish, evaluate, make a difference, dispute, hesitate, or waver. Its force changes with grammar and setting. Jesus rebukes hearers who can distinguish weather signs but fail to discern their decisive time. In sayings about prayer, the verb describes inward wavering that stands against trust in God. Peter is told to accompany Cornelius's messengers without hesitation, and Abraham does not waver at God's promise.
Paul also uses the verb for making distinctions between people, exposing pride that treats received gifts as grounds for superiority. The term therefore cannot be reduced to doubt alone. Context decides whether it concerns sound discernment, divisive discrimination, dispute, or divided confidence.
How the Bible Uses It
Διακρίνω joins the ideas of separating and deciding. It can commend discerning recognition, forbid status-making distinctions, or describe hesitation that divides a person's response to God's word.
- Matt.16.3
And in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but not the signs of the times.
Jesus exposes a failure of moral discernment: practiced observation of weather has not become readiness to recognize God's redemptive action in their own time.
- Mark.11.23
“Truly I tell you that if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and has no doubt in his heart but believes that it will happen, it will be done for him.
The mountain saying contrasts believing prayer with a heart divided by wavering; its promise remains within Jesus' teaching on faith, forgiveness, and God's authority.
- Acts.10.20
So get up! Go downstairs and accompany them without hesitation, because I have sent them.”
The Spirit removes Peter's hesitation before an unexpected Gentile summons, preparing him to witness God's welcome without treating customary boundaries as final.
- Rom.4.20
Yet he did not waver through disbelief in the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,
Abraham does not let unbelief divide his judgment about God's promise; strengthened faith gives glory to the God able to perform what He said.
- 1Cor.4.7
For who makes you so superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?
Paul's question attacks status distinctions in Corinth by reminding every gifted believer that ability is received, not self-created grounds for boasting.
Passage context
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It doubt 2× Matthew 21:21, Jude 1:22
hesitation 2× Acts 10:20, Acts 11:12
doubting 1× James 1:6
doubts 1× James 1:6
has doubts 1× Romans 14:23
has no doubt 1× Mark 11:23
have you not discriminated 1× James 2:4
he did not waver 1× Romans 4:20
he disputed 1× Jude 1:9
He made no distinction 1× Acts 15:9
makes you so superior 1× 1 Corinthians 4:7
recognizing 1× 1 Corinthians 11:29
should weigh carefully [what is said] 1× 1 Corinthians 14:29
to arbitrate 1× 1 Corinthians 6:5
to interpret 1× Matthew 16:3
took issue 1× Acts 11:2
we judged 1× 1 Corinthians 11:31
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 16:3 διακρίνειν to to interpret Verb - Present Infinitive Active Matthew 21:21 διακριθῆτε to doubt Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 2nd Person Plural Mark 11:23 διακριθῇ to has no doubt Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 3rd Person Singular Acts 10:20 διακρινόμενος to hesitation Verb - Present Participle Middle - Nominative Masculine Singular Acts 11:2 διεκρίνοντο to took issue Verb - Imperfect Indicative Middle - 3rd Person Plural Acts 11:12 διακρίναντα to hesitation Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Accusative Masculine Singular Acts 15:9 διέκρινεν to He made no distinction Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Romans 4:20 διεκρίθη to he did not waver Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular Romans 14:23 διακρινόμενος to has doubts Verb - Present Participle Middle - Nominative Masculine Singular 1 Corinthians 4:7 διακρίνει to makes you so superior Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 16:3
Aligned rows 19
Books represented 7
Matthew 2 Mark 1 Acts 4 Romans 2 1 Corinthians 5 James 3 Jude 2
Source forms
διακρινόμενος 5x diakrinomenos Acts 10:20, Romans 14:23, James 1:6, Jude 1:9
διακριθῇ 1x diakrithē Mark 11:23
διακριθῆτε 1x diakrithēte Matthew 21:21
διακρῖναι 1x diakrinai 1 Corinthians 6:5
διακρίναντα 1x diakrinanta Acts 11:12
διακρίνει 1x diakrinei 1 Corinthians 4:7
διακρίνειν 1x diakrinein Matthew 16:3
διακρινέτωσαν 1x diakrinetōsan 1 Corinthians 14:29
Parsing patterns
Verb - Present Participle Middle - Nominative Masculine Singular 5x Acts 10:20, Romans 14:23, James 1:6, Jude 1:9
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x Acts 15:9
Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 2nd Person Plural 1x James 2:4
Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Romans 4:20
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active 1x 1 Corinthians 6:5
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Accusative Masculine Singular 1x Acts 11:12
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 2nd Person Plural 1x Matthew 21:21
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Mark 11:23
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Do not label careful examination as unbelief merely because it takes time; ask whether the person is resisting clear revelation or responsibly seeking to understand it.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that διακρίνω has the same meaning in every occurrence.
- Do not use the mountain saying to imply that mental certainty obligates God to fulfill any requested outcome.
Greek word. To distinguish or discern; in NT also to doubt or hesitate inwardly through divided judgment.
Strong's G1252
Lexical occurrences 19 verses Greek text appearances 19 times 16 shown below Word forms 5 forms 19 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link Acts 10:1-23 Source Gloss
to judge/doubt
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek 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.
Matthew 16:3 Verb Present Active Infinitive
διακρίνειν, diakrinein
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Matthew 21:21 Verb Second Person Plural Aorist Passive Subjunctive
διακριθῆτε, diakriqhte
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Mark 11:23 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Passive Subjunctive
διακριθῇ diakriqh
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Acts 10:20 Verb Present Middle Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
διακρινόμενος· diakrinomenov
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Acts 11:2 Verb Third Person Plural Imperfect Middle Indicative
διεκρίνοντο diekrinonto
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Acts 11:12 Verb Present Middle Participle Accusative Singular Masculine
διακρινόμενον. diakrinomenon
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Acts 15:9 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
διέκρινε diekrinen
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Romans 4:20 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Passive Indicative
διεκρίθη diekriqh
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse Romans 14:23 Verb Present Middle Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
διακρινόμενος, diakrinomenov
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse 1 Corinthians 4:7 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
διακρίνει; diakrinei
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse 1 Corinthians 6:5 Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
διακρῖναι diakrinai
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse 1 Corinthians 11:29 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
διακρίνων diakrinwn
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse 1 Corinthians 11:31 Verb First Person Plural Imperfect Active Indicative
διεκρίνομεν, diekrinomen
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse 1 Corinthians 14:29 Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Imperative
διακρινέτωσαν. diakrinetwsan
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse James 1:6 Verb Present Middle Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
διακρινόμενος· diakrinomenov
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
Read verse James 1:6 Verb Present Middle Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
διακρινόμενος diakrinomenov
I distinguish, discern, doubt, hesitate
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.
Grammatical Forms
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.
Form groups 5 Aligned forms 19 Tenses Present, Aorist, Imperfect Voices Middle, Active, Passive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 8×
Present Middle Acts 10:20 · Rom 14:23 · Jas 1:6 · Jude 1:9 · Jude 1:22 6×
Aorist Active Acts 11:12 1×
Present Active 1 Cor 11:29 1×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 2×
Present Active Matt 16:3 1×
Aorist Active 1 Cor 6:5 1×
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 2×
Aorist Passive Matt 21:21 · Mark 11:23 2×
Indicative states a fact or reality 6×
Aorist Passive Rom 4:20 · Jas 2:4 2×
Imperfect Middle Acts 11:2 1×
Aorist Active Acts 15:9 1×
Present Active 1 Cor 4:7 1×
Imperfect Active 1 Cor 11:31 1×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Present Active 1 Cor 14:29 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 19 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present 10 aorist 7 imperfect 2
Voice
active 8 middle 7 passive 4
Mood
participle 8 indicative 6 infinitive 2 subjunctive 2 imperative 1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 16:3 διακρίνειν present active infinitive infinitive Matthew 21:21 διακριθῆτε aorist passive subjunctive subjunctive Mark 11:23 διακριθῇ aorist passive subjunctive subjunctive Acts 10:20 διακρινόμενος present middle participle participle Acts 11:12 διακρίναντα aorist active participle participle Acts 11:2 διεκρίνοντο imperfect middle indicative background Acts 15:9 διέκρινεν aorist active indicative completed Romans 4:20 διεκρίθη aorist passive indicative completed Romans 14:23 διακρινόμενος present middle participle participle 1 Corinthians 4:7 διακρίνει present active indicative ongoing 1 Corinthians 6:5 διακρῖναι aorist active infinitive infinitive 1 Corinthians 11:29 διακρίνων present active participle participle 1 Corinthians 11:31 διεκρίνομεν imperfect active indicative background 1 Corinthians 14:29 διακρινέτωσαν present active imperative imperative James 1:6 διακρινόμενος present middle participle participle James 1:6 διακρινόμενος present middle participle participle James 2:4 διεκρίθητε aorist passive indicative completed Jude 1:22 διακρινομένους present middle participle participle Jude 1:9 διακρινόμενος present middle participle participle
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 Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
New Testament Witnesses
To doubt or discriminate.
wavering, divided
Additional Occurrences
doubting, wavering, being divided
Mark 11:20–25 διακρίνω diakrínō
to doubt, hesitate, waver
Showing 4 selected witnesses from 19 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
διακρίνω is built from these roots:
Why This Word Matters
Describes internal division that undermines confident trust in God. Acts 10:1-23
The Spirit commands Peter to act without distinction or prejudice. James 1:5–8
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
Discernment and doubt are not opposites simply because English translations use different words. Διακρίνω begins with separation or decision, and context shows whether that process is faithful or fractured. Jesus' hearers fail to discern the signs before them; Peter must stop hesitating about messengers God has sent; Abraham refuses to divide his judgment between visible weakness and God's promise.
Corinth supplies another danger, the making of status distinctions from gifts no one generated independently. Scripture therefore calls believers to thoughtful recognition without proud discrimination and to trusting obedience without pretending every difficult question has vanished. Mature faith tests what must be tested, receives what God has made clear, and remembers that every capacity for judgment is itself received grace.
Anchor passage
Matt.16.3
Doctrinal connections
- Matthew 16:1-4, discerning the signs of the times
- Mark 11:20-25, believing prayer and forgiveness
- Acts 10:9-23, the Spirit overcoming boundary-making hesitation
- Romans 4:18-25, Abraham strengthened in promise-shaped faith
- 1 Corinthians 4:6-7, received gifts and excluded boasting
- James 1:5-8, asking God without divided loyalty
Διακρίνω combines a separating prefix with the verb to judge. Active forms often emphasize distinguishing or deciding; middle or passive forms may express disputing or inward hesitation. Syntax and participants govern the nuance.
From Old to New Testament
Israel's judges are commanded to distinguish faithfully and show no partiality, while the prophets expose people unable to recognize God's ways. The Spirit forms a church that discerns truth without rebuilding ethnic or status barriers Christ has crossed.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain