What does ἐλάχιστος (eláchistos) mean in the Bible?
G1646 is a Greek superlative that marks what is least, smallest, or very little within a comparison. The comparison may concern rank, amount, apparent significance, or physical size.
Greek · G1646
ἐλάχιστος
Used as equivalent to ; least (in size, amount, dignity, etc.)
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ἐλάχιστοςG1646
Pronunciationeláchistos
What does ἐλάχιστος (eláchistos) mean in the Bible?
G1646 is a Greek superlative that marks what is least, smallest, or very little within a comparison. The comparison may concern rank, amount, apparent significance, or physical size.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἐλάχιστος (G1646) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1646?
The BSB source-word alignment has 13 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include least (6), very little (2), . . . (1), [ to judge ] trivial (1), a very small (1).
Where does ἐλάχιστος (eláchistos) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 2:6. Its strongest book concentrations include Matthew (5), Luke (4), 1 Corinthians (3), James (1).
What This Word Actually Means
G1646 is a Greek superlative that marks what is least, smallest, or very little within a comparison. The comparison may concern rank, amount, apparent significance, or physical size. Paul calls himself the least of the apostles in 1 Corinthians 15:9 because he persecuted the church, yet the next verse directs attention to the grace of God at work in him. Jesus uses the term in Luke 16:10 for faithfulness in very little, where small stewardship exposes character rather than determining a person’s worth.
In Matthew 25:40, “the least of these” names people whose treatment the King receives as treatment of Himself. James 3:4 uses the same lexical family for a very small rudder that directs a large ship. The word therefore does not carry one moral evaluation. Smallness can express humility, an apparently minor responsibility, vulnerable social standing, or a compact instrument with great effect.
Teachers should keep the comparison explicit and resist making “least” a permanent identity assigned to people. G1646 can expose status pride and contempt for small duties, but the surrounding passage determines whether the focus is grace, stewardship, solidarity, or disproportionate influence.
Passage contextgrammaticalPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
G1646 moves among personal humility, modest responsibilities, socially disregarded people, and physically small instruments. Its canonical usefulness comes from showing that God’s grace, judgment, and kingdom attention are not governed by ordinary estimates of rank or size.
- 1Cor.15.9
For I am the least of the apostles and am unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
Paul’s self-description remembers his persecution of the church, but the following testimony to grace prevents humility from becoming denial of God’s transforming work or apostolic calling.
- Luke.16.10
Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
Jesus treats faithfulness in a very small matter as revealing character that will also matter with much, so the verse dignifies ordinary stewardship without promising automatic promotion.
- Matt.25.40
And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’
The King identifies Himself with the treatment given to the least of His brothers, making care for the disregarded a matter of allegiance to Him while the passage defines the group and judgment scene.
- Jas.3.4
Consider ships as well. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot is inclined.
James points to a very small rudder directing a large ship, using physical disproportion to prepare his warning about the tongue’s powerful influence.
Book contextPassage 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 Itleast6×Matthew 2:6, Matthew 5:19, Matthew 25:40, Matthew 25:45
very little2×Luke 16:10
. . .1×1 Corinthians 4:3
[ to judge ] trivial1×1 Corinthians 6:2
a very small1×James 3:4
a very small matter1×Luke 19:17
such a small thing1×Luke 12:26
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 2:6ἐλαχίστηtoleastAdjective - Nominative Feminine Singular - SuperlativeMatthew 5:19ἐλαχίστωνtoleastAdjective - Genitive Feminine Plural - SuperlativeMatthew 5:19ἐλάχιστοςtoleastAdjective - Nominative Masculine Singular - SuperlativeMatthew 25:40ἐλαχίστωνtoleastAdjective - Genitive Masculine Plural - SuperlativeMatthew 25:45ἐλαχίστωνtoleastAdjective - Genitive Masculine Plural - SuperlativeLuke 12:26ἐλάχιστονtosuch a small thingAdjective - Accusative Neuter Singular - SuperlativeLuke 16:10ἐλαχίστῳtovery littleAdjective - Dative Neuter Singular - SuperlativeLuke 16:10ἐλαχίστῳtovery littleAdjective - Dative Neuter Singular - SuperlativeLuke 19:17ἐλαχίστῳtoa very small matterAdjective - Dative Neuter Singular - Superlative1 Corinthians 4:3ἐλάχιστόνto. . .Adjective - Accusative Neuter Singular - Superlative
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowMatthew 2:6
Aligned rows13
Books represented4
Matthew5Luke41 Corinthians3James1
Source forms
ἐλαχίστων4xelachistōnMatthew 5:19, Matthew 25:40, Matthew 25:45, 1 Corinthians 6:2
ἐλαχίστῳ3xelachistōLuke 16:10, Luke 19:17
ἐλάχιστος2xelachistosMatthew 5:19, 1 Corinthians 15:9
ἐλαχίστη1xelachistēMatthew 2:6
ἐλάχιστον1xelachistonLuke 12:26
ἐλάχιστόν1xelachiston1 Corinthians 4:3
ἐλαχίστου1xelachistouJames 3:4
Parsing patterns
Adjective - Dative Neuter Singular - Superlative3xLuke 16:10, Luke 19:17
Adjective - Accusative Neuter Singular - Superlative2xLuke 12:26, 1 Corinthians 4:3
Adjective - Genitive Masculine Plural - Superlative2xMatthew 25:40, Matthew 25:45
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular - Superlative2xMatthew 5:19, 1 Corinthians 15:9
Adjective - Genitive Feminine Plural - Superlative1xMatthew 5:19
Adjective - Genitive Neuter Plural - Superlative1x1 Corinthians 6:2
Adjective - Genitive Neuter Singular - Superlative1xJames 3:4
Adjective - Nominative Feminine Singular - Superlative1xMatthew 2:6
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Honor small acts of faithfulness without using them to demand endless invisible labor from people who lack power.
- Let gospel humility remember grace and responsibility together; it should not erase truthful gifts, calling, boundaries, or injury.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that calling oneself least is always spiritually mature; in context it may express rank, quantity, vulnerability, or physical size.
- Do not claim that Matthew 25 permits leaders to define any disfavored group as least for rhetorical advantage; interpret the King’s words within the passage.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Superlative intensity: smallest in rank or value, often emphasizing contempt or insignificance rather than literal size.
Strong'sG1646
Lexical occurrences14 versesGreek text appearances13 timesWord forms9 forms14 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Study linkLuke 12:26Source Gloss
used as equivalent to ; least (in size, amount, dignity, etc.)
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
13 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 2:6Adjective Nominative Singular Feminine
ἐλαχίστηelacisth
least, smallest, very little
Read verseMatthew 5:19Adjective Genitive Plural Feminine
ἐλαχίστων,elacistwn
least, smallest, very little
Read verseMatthew 5:19Adjective Nominative Singular Masculine
ἐλάχιστοςelacistov
least, smallest, very little
Read verseMatthew 25:40Adjective Genitive Plural Masculine
ἐλαχίστων,elacistwn
least, smallest, very little
Read verseMatthew 25:45Adjective Genitive Plural Masculine
ἐλαχίστων,elacistwn
least, smallest, very little
Read verseLuke 12:26Adjective Accusative Singular Neuter
ἐλάχιστονelaciston
least, smallest, very little
Read verseLuke 16:10Adjective Dative Singular Neuter
ἐλαχίστῳelacistw
least, smallest, very little
Read verseLuke 16:10Adjective Dative Singular Neuter
ἐλαχίστῳelacistw
least, smallest, very little
Read verseLuke 19:17Adjective Dative Singular Neuter
ἐλαχίστῳelacistw
least, smallest, very little
Read verse1 Corinthians 4:3Adjective Accusative Singular Neuter
ἐλάχιστόνelaciston
least, smallest, very little
Read verse1 Corinthians 6:2Adjective Genitive Plural Neuter
ἐλαχίστων;elacistwn
least, smallest, very little
Read verse1 Corinthians 15:9Adjective Nominative Singular Masculine
ἐλάχιστοςelacistov
least, smallest, very little
Read verseJames 3:4Adjective Genitive Singular Neuter
ἐλαχίστουelacistou
least, smallest, very little
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 this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 9 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.
Form patterns9Aligned forms14Case patternGenitive (5)Number patternSingular (10)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Nominative · Singular · MasculineMatt 5:19 · 1 Cor 15:92×
Nominative · Singular · FeminineMatt 2:61×
Genitive · Plural · MasculineMatt 25:40 · Matt 25:452×
Genitive · Plural · FeminineMatt 5:191×
Genitive · Plural · Neuter1 Cor 6:21×
Genitive · Singular · NeuterJas 3:41×
Dative · Singular · NeuterLuke 16:10 · Luke 19:173×
Dative · Singular · MasculineEph 3:81×
Accusative · Singular · NeuterLuke 12:26 · 1 Cor 4:32×
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
Smallest or least significant thing, used in rhetorical argument about worry
Smallest amount or least important matters, contrasted with much in faithfulness
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 14 lexical occurrence verses.
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
G1646 unsettles the human habit of assigning value by rank and scale. Paul can call himself the least of the apostles because his history of persecution remains morally serious, yet he immediately confesses that God’s grace toward him was not empty. His humility is truthful memory under grace, not a refusal of vocation. Jesus’ saying about very little stewardship turns ordinary responsibilities into a field where faithfulness becomes visible, but it does not make worldly advancement the promised reward for every unnoticed task.
In Matthew 25, the King’s solidarity with the least confronts neglect and makes treatment of the disregarded spiritually consequential. James uses smallness differently: a compact rudder can guide a great ship, warning that apparent size does not measure practical influence. Together these passages invite a careful pastoral movement. Do not despise small duties, overlook people of low status, romanticize marginalization, or use self-deprecation as a badge.
Let grace tell the truth about failure, let faithfulness inhabit modest assignments, let Christ’s authority govern care for vulnerable people, and let small instruments remind the church that influence requires accountable direction.
Anchor passage
1Cor.15.9
Doctrinal connections
- First Corinthians 15:9-10 joins remembered guilt, genuine humility, divine grace, and fruitful calling without confusing any of them.
- Luke 16:10 makes small stewardship morally revealing while the wider teaching warns against serving wealth rather than God.
- Matthew 25:40 places the King’s authority behind concrete treatment of people described as least within the judgment scene.
- James 3:4 uses a small rudder to illustrate disproportionate influence and prepare a sober theology of accountable speech.
- Kingdom reversal often challenges status measures, but G1646 alone does not establish every biblical teaching about reversal or rank.
- Pastoral care should honor people whom society minimizes without making vulnerability their total identity or a tool for institutional display.
G1646 is the superlative form associated with smallness or littleness. Depending on its construction, it can function substantivally for the least person, quantify a very small matter, or modify a small object; the comparison class must be supplied by context.
From Old to New Testament
Scripture repeatedly shows God attending to people and responsibilities that dominant cultures minimize, while also calling leaders to truthful humility and faithful stewardship. The New Testament occurrences of G1646 sharpen that pattern around apostolic grace, economic integrity, the King’s solidarity, and the tongue’s influence.
Canonical parallelPastoral application