What does ἐπιποθέω (epipothéō) mean in the Bible?
Ἐπιποθέω means to long for, yearn after, or deeply desire. Paul's uses honor affectionate bonds and resurrection hope.
Greek · G1971
ἐπιποθέω
To long for
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ἐπιποθέω G1971
Pronunciation epipothéō
What does ἐπιποθέω (epipothéō) mean in the Bible?
Ἐπιποθέω means to long for, yearn after, or deeply desire. Paul's uses honor affectionate bonds and resurrection hope.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἐπιποθέω (G1971) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1971?
The BSB source-word alignment has 9 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include I long (2), longing (2), crave (1), I long for (1), longing for (1).
Where does ἐπιποθέω (epipothéō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Romans 1:11. Its strongest book concentrations include 2 Corinthians (2), Philippians (2), 1 Peter (1), 1 Thessalonians (1).
What This Word Actually Means
Ἐπιποθέω means to long for, yearn after, or deeply desire. Paul's uses honor affectionate bonds and resurrection hope. In 1 Thessalonians 3, mutual longing to meet again confirms that forced separation has not broken gospel fellowship. Second Timothy 1 joins Paul's longing to see Timothy with remembered tears and the hope of renewed joy. Second Corinthians 5 directs longing beyond reunion with friends toward being clothed with the heavenly dwelling, the transformed embodied life for which God has prepared believers and given the Spirit as a pledge.
The verb does not make every strong desire holy. These longings are formed by love, gospel partnership, and God's resurrection promise rather than possession, fantasy, or escape from creaturely responsibility.
How the Bible Uses It
Paul uses ἐπιποθέω for deep longing toward beloved coworkers and promised resurrection life. Gospel desire values presence while ultimately hoping in God's completed redemption.
- 1Thess.3.6
But just now, Timothy has returned from his visit with the good news about your faith, your love, and the fond memories you have preserved, longing to see us just as we long to see you.
Mutual longing confirms living faith and love across separation, encouraging Paul amid affliction and deepening his desire to strengthen the church.
- 2Cor.5.2
For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling,
The groaning longing is to be clothed with resurrection life, not to become an unembodied spirit or flee God's creation.
- 2Tim.1.4
Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy.
Paul's longing to see Timothy is personal and covenantal, joining remembered tears, sincere faith, prayer, and anticipated joy.
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 It I long 2× Romans 1:11, 2 Timothy 1:4
longing 2× 2 Corinthians 5:2, 1 Thessalonians 3:6
crave 1× 1 Peter 2:2
I long for 1× Philippians 1:8
longing for 1× Philippians 2:26
will express their affection 1× 2 Corinthians 9:14
yearns 1× James 4:5
Show sample aligned rows
Romans 1:11 ἐπιποθῶ to I long Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular 2 Corinthians 5:2 ἐπιποθοῦντες to longing Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural 2 Corinthians 9:14 ἐπιποθούντων to will express their affection Verb - Present Participle Active - Genitive Masculine Plural Philippians 1:8 ἐπιποθῶ to I long for Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular Philippians 2:26 ἐπιποθῶν to longing for Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular 1 Thessalonians 3:6 ἐπιποθοῦντες to longing Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural 2 Timothy 1:4 ἐπιποθῶν to I long Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular James 4:5 ἐπιποθεῖ to yearns Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1 Peter 2:2 ἐπιποθήσατε to crave Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Romans 1:11
Aligned rows 9
Books represented 7
Romans 1 2 Corinthians 2 Philippians 2 1 Thessalonians 1 2 Timothy 1 James 1 1 Peter 1
Source forms
ἐπιποθοῦντες 2x epipothountes 2 Corinthians 5:2, 1 Thessalonians 3:6
ἐπιποθῶ 2x epipothō Romans 1:11, Philippians 1:8
ἐπιποθῶν 2x epipothōn Philippians 2:26, 2 Timothy 1:4
ἐπιποθεῖ 1x epipothei James 4:5
ἐπιποθήσατε 1x epipothēsate 1 Peter 2:2
ἐπιποθούντων 1x epipothountōn 2 Corinthians 9:14
Parsing patterns
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular 2x Romans 1:11, Philippians 1:8
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural 2x 2 Corinthians 5:2, 1 Thessalonians 3:6
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular 2x Philippians 2:26, 2 Timothy 1:4
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural 1x 1 Peter 2:2
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x James 4:5
Verb - Present Participle Active - Genitive Masculine Plural 1x 2 Corinthians 9:14
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Honor strong affection while testing whether the longing seeks the other person's good and remains submitted to Christ.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not use ἐπιποθέω to romanticize possessiveness, dependency, or disregard for another person's boundaries.
- Do not read 2 Corinthians 5 as longing to escape the body; Paul longs to be clothed with resurrection life.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Intense, yearning desire that goes beyond casual wanting; often for absent persons or spiritual realities.
Strong's G1971
Lexical occurrences 9 verses Greek text appearances 9 times Word forms 3 forms 9 references Verse guides 0 guides
Study link 1 Peter 2:1-10 Source Gloss
to long for
Extended definition Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
Intense, yearning desire that goes beyond casual wanting; often for absent persons or spiritual realities.
to long for, desire: with inf., Rom.1:11, 2Co.5:2, 1Th.3:6, 2Ti.1:4, Php.2:26 (WH, [txt.]); with accusative of thing(s), 1Pe.2:2; with accusative of person(s), 2Co.9:14, Php.1:8 2:26 (WH, mg); absol., Jas.4:5 (see Mayor, in l).
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
9 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Romans 1:11 Verb First Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ἐπιποθῶ epipoqw
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse 2 Corinthians 5:2 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Plural Masculine
ἐπιποθοῦντες· epipoqountev
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse 2 Corinthians 9:14 Verb Present Active Participle Genitive Plural Masculine
ἐπιποθούντων epipoqountwn
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse Philippians 1:8 Verb First Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ἐπιποθῶ epipoqw
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse Philippians 2:26 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
ἐπιποθῶν epipoqwn
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse 1 Thessalonians 3:6 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Plural Masculine
ἐπιποθοῦντες epipoqountev
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse 2 Timothy 1:4 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
ἐπιποθῶν epipoqwn
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse James 4:5 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
ἐπιποθεῖ epipoqei
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
Read verse 1 Peter 2:2 Verb Second Person Plural Aorist Active Imperative
ἐπιποθήσατε, epipoqhsate
I long for, strain after, desire greatly
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 9 Tenses Present, Aorist 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 3×
Present Active Rom 1:11 · Phil 1:8 · Jas 4:5 3×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 5×
Present Active 2 Cor 5:2 · 1 Thess 3:6 · Phil 2:26 · 2 Tim 1:4 · 2 Cor 9:14 5×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Aorist Active 1 Pet 2:2 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 8 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present 7 aorist 1
Voice
active 8
Mood
participle 4 indicative 3 imperative 1
NT Occurrences
Romans 1:11 ἐπιποθῶ present active indicative ongoing 2 Corinthians 5:2 ἐπιποθοῦντες present active participle participle 2 Corinthians 9:14 ἐπιποθούντων present active participle participle Philippians 1:8 ἐπιποθῶ present active indicative ongoing 1 Thessalonians 3:6 ἐπιποθοῦντες present active participle participle 2 Timothy 1:4 ἐπιποθῶν present active participle participle James 4:5 ἐπιποθεῖ present active indicative ongoing 1 Peter 2:2 ἐπιποθήσατε aorist active imperative imperative
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 earnestly desire
diligently
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 9 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
ἐπιποθέω is built from this root:
Why This Word Matters
Highlights the intensity of divine pursuit. 1 Peter 2:1-10
Shows that spiritual growth requires active craving for gospel nourishment. Luke 15:8–10
For the Preacher and Teacher
Paul does not present maturity as emotional distance. He longs for churches and coworkers, remembers tears, and receives news of mutual affection as genuine comfort. Such longing honors embodied presence; letters and reports help, but face-to-face fellowship remains precious. Second Corinthians 5 stretches the same verb toward resurrection. The believer groans not because embodiment is evil but because mortality will be swallowed up by life.
God Himself prepares His people for this and gives the Spirit as pledge. Christian longing can therefore be tender and hopeful without becoming possessive or escapist. Churches should make room for grief over absence, desire for reunion, and hope for restored embodied communion. At the same time, desire must remain under Christ's lordship, respecting another's good and present responsibilities.
The deepest longing is fulfilled not by controlling circumstances but by God's promised presence and resurrection life.
Anchor passage
1Thess.3.6
Doctrinal connections
- 1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:13, separation, mutual longing, and strengthening love
- 2 Timothy 1:3-7, tears, sincere faith, and desired reunion
- 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:10, groaning, resurrection clothing, and the Spirit's pledge
- Psalm 42:1-5, longing for the living God
- Psalm 84:1-4, yearning for the Lord's courts
- Philippians 1:8-11, longing with the affection of Christ Jesus
Ἐπιποθέω intensifies the idea of desire or longing. Its object may be a person, spiritual nourishment, or promised future condition. Emotional strength alone does not decide whether the longing is holy; the context identifies its object and character.
From Old to New Testament
The Psalms voice deep longing for God and His dwelling while Israel hopes for restoration from exile. In Christ, believers long for one another with gospel affection and await resurrection presence in the renewed creation.
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