What does ἐπιθυμέω (epithyméō) mean in the Bible?
Ἐπιθυμέω means to desire, long for, or set one's desire upon something. The object and manner of desire determine its moral character.
Greek · G1937
ἐπιθυμέω
To long for
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ἐπιθυμέω G1937
Pronunciation epithyméō
What does ἐπιθυμέω (epithyméō) mean in the Bible?
Ἐπιθυμέω means to desire, long for, or set one's desire upon something. The object and manner of desire determine its moral character.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἐπιθυμέω (G1937) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1937?
The BSB source-word alignment has 16 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include Do not covet (2), [did] (1), craves (1), he desires (1), He longed (1).
Where does ἐπιθυμέω (epithyméō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 5:28. Its strongest book concentrations include Luke (4), Matthew (2), Romans (2), 1 Corinthians (1).
What This Word Actually Means
Ἐπιθυμέω means to desire, long for, or set one's desire upon something. The object and manner of desire determine its moral character. Jesus uses the verb for lustful looking that has already violated marital faithfulness in the heart. The starving son longs for animal food, and Paul denies coveting another person's silver, gold, or clothing. Romans cites the command against coveting to show how the law names sinful desire, while Corinthians warns against craving evil.
Elsewhere the same verb can express worthy longing. The word does not teach that desire itself is evil; it exposes the heart's direction, the object sought, and whether longing submits to God's love and order.
How the Bible Uses It
Ἐπιθυμέω names strong desire, from desperate hunger and corrupt coveting to worthy longing. Context judges desire by its object, posture, and relation to God's command.
- Matt.5.28
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Jesus identifies a deliberately lustful gaze as heart-level adultery, locating sexual faithfulness deeper than outward avoidance alone.
- Luke.15.16
He longed to fill his belly with the pods the pigs were eating, but no one would give him a thing.
The destitute son longs for the pigs' food, a bodily desire that displays the depth of his humiliation before he returns to his father.
- Acts.20.33
I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.
Paul's farewell denies coveting material goods and points to his own labor as a pattern of ministry free from exploitation.
- Rom.7.7
What then shall we say? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed, I would not have been mindful of sin if not for the law. For I would not have been aware of coveting if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”
The command against coveting reveals and provokes awareness of indwelling sin; Paul defends the law while exposing sin's misuse of it.
- 1Cor.10.6
These things took place as examples to keep us from craving evil things as they did.
Israel's cravings become warnings for the church, directing desire away from evil rather than merely restraining public behavior.
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 Do not covet 2× Romans 7:7, Romans 13:9
[did] 1× 1 Corinthians 10:6
craves 1× Galatians 5:17
he desires 1× 1 Timothy 3:1
He longed 1× Luke 15:16
I have eagerly desired 1× Luke 22:15
I have not coveted 1× Acts 20:33
long 1× 1 Peter 1:12
longed 1× Matthew 13:17
longing 1× Luke 16:21
lust after 1× Matthew 5:28
they will long 1× Revelation 9:6
We want 1× Hebrews 6:11
You crave 1× James 4:2
you will long 1× Luke 17:22
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 5:28 ἐπιθυμῆσαι to lust after Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active Matthew 13:17 ἐπεθύμησαν to longed Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Luke 15:16 ἐπεθύμει to He longed Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 16:21 ἐπιθυμῶν to longing Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular Luke 17:22 ἐπιθυμήσετε to you will long Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural Luke 22:15 ἐπεθύμησα to I have eagerly desired Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular Acts 20:33 ἐπεθύμησα to I have not coveted Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular Romans 7:7 ἐπιθυμήσεις to Do not covet Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Singular Romans 13:9 ἐπιθυμήσεις to Do not covet Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Singular 1 Corinthians 10:6 ἐπεθύμησαν to [did] Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 5:28
Aligned rows 16
Books represented 11
Matthew 2 Luke 4 Acts 1 Romans 2 1 Corinthians 1 Galatians 1 1 Timothy 1 Hebrews 1 James 1 1 Peter 1 Revelation 1
Source forms
ἐπεθύμησα 2x epethymēsa Luke 22:15, Acts 20:33
ἐπεθύμησαν 2x epethymēsan Matthew 13:17, 1 Corinthians 10:6
ἐπιθυμεῖ 2x epithymei Galatians 5:17, 1 Timothy 3:1
ἐπιθυμήσεις 2x epithymēseis Romans 7:7, Romans 13:9
ἐπεθύμει 1x epethymei Luke 15:16
ἐπιθυμεῖτε 1x epithymeite James 4:2
ἐπιθυμῆσαι 1x epithymēsai Matthew 5:28
ἐπιθυμήσετε 1x epithymēsete Luke 17:22
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular 2x Luke 22:15, Acts 20:33
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 2x Matthew 13:17, 1 Corinthians 10:6
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Singular 2x Romans 7:7, Romans 13:9
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 2x Galatians 5:17, 1 Timothy 3:1
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active 1x Matthew 5:28
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural 1x Luke 17:22
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 1x Revelation 9:6
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x Luke 15:16
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Address sinful desire without treating people as reducible to temptation; the passage calls the desiring person to repentance, self-government, and covenant love.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that every occurrence of ἐπιθυμέω describes lust or coveting.
- Do not use Matthew 5 to shift blame from the person cultivating a lustful gaze onto the person being viewed.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Intense desire directed toward an object, often with moral disapproval in NT ethical contexts.
Strong's G1937
Lexical occurrences 16 verses Greek text appearances 16 times Word forms 3 forms 16 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link Matthew 5:27–30 Source Gloss
to long for
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 5:28 Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
ἐπιθυμῆσαι epiqumhsai
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Matthew 13:17 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἐπεθύμησαν epequmhsan
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Luke 15:16 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ἐπεθύμει epequmei
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Luke 16:21 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
ἐπιθυμῶν epiqumwn
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Luke 17:22 Verb Second Person Plural Future Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμήσετε epiqumhsete
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Luke 22:15 Verb First Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐπεθύμησα epequmhsa
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Acts 20:33 Verb First Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐπεθύμησα. epequmhsa
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Romans 7:7 Verb Second Person Singular Future Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμήσεις· epiqumhseiv
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Romans 13:9 Verb Second Person Singular Future Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμήσεις, epiqumhseiv
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse 1 Corinthians 10:6 Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἐπεθύμησαν. epequmhsan
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Galatians 5:17 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμεῖ epiqumei
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse 1 Timothy 3:1 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμεῖ. epiqumei
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Hebrews 6:11 Verb First Person Plural Present Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμοῦμεν epiqumoumen
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse James 4:2 Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμεῖτε, epiqumeite
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse 1 Peter 1:12 Verb Third Person Plural Present Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμοῦσιν epiqumousin
I long for, covet, lust after
Read verse Revelation 9:6 Verb Third Person Plural Future Active Indicative
ἐπιθυμήσουσιν epiqumhsousin
I long for, covet, lust after
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 3 Aligned forms 16 Tenses Aorist, Future, Present, Imperfect Voices Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 14×
Present Active Gal 5:17 · 1 Tim 3:1 · Heb 6:11 · Jas 4:2 · 1 Pet 1:12 5×
Aorist Active Matt 13:17 · 1 Cor 10:6 · Luke 22:15 · Acts 20:33 4×
Future Active Rom 7:7 · Rom 13:9 · Luke 17:22 · Rev 9:6 4×
Imperfect Active Luke 15:16 1×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 1×
Aorist Active Matt 5:28 1×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 1×
Present Active Luke 16:21 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 16 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present 6 aorist 5 future 4 imperfect 1
Voice
active 16
Mood
indicative 14 participle 1 infinitive 1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 5:28 ἐπιθυμῆσαι aorist active infinitive infinitive Matthew 13:17 ἐπεθύμησαν aorist active indicative completed Luke 15:16 ἐπεθύμει imperfect active indicative background Luke 16:21 ἐπιθυμῶν present active participle participle Luke 17:22 ἐπιθυμήσετε future active indicative prospective Luke 22:15 ἐπεθύμησα aorist active indicative completed Acts 20:33 ἐπεθύμησα aorist active indicative completed Romans 7:7 ἐπιθυμήσεις future active indicative prospective Romans 13:9 ἐπιθυμήσεις future active indicative prospective 1 Corinthians 10:6 ἐπεθύμησαν aorist active indicative completed Galatians 5:17 ἐπιθυμεῖ present active indicative ongoing 1 Timothy 3:1 ἐπιθυμεῖ present active indicative ongoing Hebrews 6:11 ἐπιθυμοῦμεν present active indicative ongoing James 4:2 ἐπιθυμεῖτε present active indicative ongoing 1 Peter 1:12 ἐπιθυμοῦσιν present active indicative ongoing Revelation 9:6 ἐπιθυμήσουσιν future active indicative prospective
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 Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
New Testament Witnesses
to desire or lust intensely
Showing 1 selected witness from 16 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
ἐπιθυμέω is built from these roots:
Why This Word Matters
Identifies internal craving as covenant violation. Matthew 5:27–30
Canonical Themes
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
Desire reveals what the heart treats as satisfying and available for possession. In Matthew 5, the intentional look feeds sexual desire against another person's covenant dignity; Jesus addresses the inward act before it becomes outward exploitation. Luke 15 shows desire at the level of desperate hunger, while Acts 20 presents ministry uncorrupted by appetite for others' wealth.
Romans 7 explains that the command against coveting makes sin recognizable without making God's law sinful. First Corinthians turns Israel's cravings into warning. Christian formation therefore goes beyond suppression. The Spirit exposes disordered longing, joins believers to Christ, and teaches them to desire holiness, neighborly good, and God's presence rather than using people or possessions as fuel for the self.
Anchor passage
Matt.5.28
Doctrinal connections
- Matthew 5:27-30, heart-level sexual faithfulness
- Luke 15:11-24, hunger, repentance, and welcome
- Acts 20:32-35, ministry free from covetousness
- Romans 7:7-13, law and the exposure of sin
- 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, craving and covenant warning
- Galatians 5:16-24, desires of flesh and Spirit
Ἐπιθυμέω combines a prepositional prefix with desire or passion language. It may take a genitive, infinitive, or clause specifying the object. Neither intensity nor grammar alone determines moral value.
From Old to New Testament
The tenth commandment reaches inward to coveting, while psalms also voice holy longing for God. Jesus and the apostles preserve this moral distinction and call hearts into ordered love.
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