If, whether, that, etc.
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” Its work is logical rather than emotional: it places one statement in relation to another so that a conclusion, warning, assurance, or test can be followed. The form alone does not tell readers that a speaker is doubtful.
Reader summary
Full entry for εἰ (G1487) · Open the biblical lexicon
” Its work is logical rather than emotional: it places one statement in relation to another so that a conclusion, warning, assurance, or test can be followed. The form alone does not tell readers that a speaker is doubtful.
The BSB source-word alignment has 502 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include If (308), except (37), vvv (23), . . . (13), Only (13).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 4:3. Its strongest book concentrations include 1 Corinthians (64), Matthew (55), Luke (53), John (49).
Ei introduces a condition or an indirect question, commonly rendered “if” or “whether. ” Its work is logical rather than emotional: it places one statement in relation to another so that a conclusion, warning, assurance, or test can be followed. The form alone does not tell readers that a speaker is doubtful. Romans 8:31 uses a condition to strengthen assurance, while 1 Corinthians 15:17 states a rejected alternative in order to display the necessity of Christ’s resurrection.
Galatians 2:21 exposes what would follow if righteousness came through the law. Faithful reading therefore identifies the condition, its conclusion, and the author’s purpose. Ei serves the argument; it does not decide by itself whether a condition is open, assumed, rhetorical, or contrary to the truth affirmed in the passage.
Ei marks conditional or indirect-question logic. Its contribution becomes clear only when the reader follows both the condition and the result within the author’s argument.
If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first.
Jesus prepares disciples for the world’s hatred by relating their experience to His own. The condition does not predict every individual response; it governs the stated pattern of opposition.
For if, when we were enemies of God, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life!
Paul reasons from the greater difficulty already accomplished to the assured saving outcome. The condition supports confidence in God’s reconciling work.
What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
The condition gathers Paul’s preceding gospel assurances and drives a rhetorical conclusion. It strengthens confidence rather than expressing uncertainty about God’s favor.
By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
Paul joins saving reception of the apostolic gospel to persevering attachment to that message. The warning distinguishes enduring faith from empty profession.
And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.
Paul states the devastating consequence of a denied resurrection. The rejected condition displays how completely Christian hope depends on the risen Christ.
I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.
The condition exposes the contradiction between justification through law and the necessity of Christ’s death. Paul’s conclusion protects grace.
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. Marks logical conditions and indirect questions; distinguishes reality-level assumptions from hypothetical or contrary-to-fact scenarios.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 505 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
if
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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 this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 3 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 502 lexical occurrence verses.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Ei helps a congregation hear the logic of Scripture. In Romans 5, Paul reasons from reconciliation accomplished through the Son’s death to confidence in salvation through His life. Romans 8 turns the conditional form into a rhetorical assurance grounded in God’s saving action. First Corinthians 15 uses conditions to show that the gospel, forgiveness, and resurrection hope stand or fall with Christ’s bodily resurrection.
Galatians 2 uses a condition to expose the impossibility of combining justification through law with the necessity of the cross. These passages do not all use “if” in precisely the same way, yet each requires readers to follow premise and conclusion together. Good teaching neither weakens assurance because a sentence contains ei nor erases a real warning. It traces the author’s reasoning and locates confidence, danger, or correction where the passage places it.
Rom.8.31
Ei can introduce direct conditions, rhetorical conditions, assumed premises, rejected alternatives, and indirect questions. Verb mood, discourse setting, and the relationship between protasis and conclusion determine the force. The local Greek artifact currently groups about 502 occurrences, but frequency does not make the constructions interchangeable.
Scripture frequently teaches through covenant conditions, prophetic alternatives, wisdom tests, and arguments from God’s past faithfulness. Ei belongs to New Testament Greek grammar within that wider canonical pattern. The condition must always be read with the promise, warning, command, or conclusion that gives it theological direction.