To look for/into
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ἐρευνάω (ereunaō) means to search, investigate, or examine carefully. John 5 places the verb in a searching indictment: Jesus' hearers pore over the Scriptures because they expect life in them, yet refuse to come to the One about whom those Scriptures testify.
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Full entry for ἐρευνάω (G2045) · Open the biblical lexicon
ἐρευνάω (ereunaō) means to search, investigate, or examine carefully. John 5 places the verb in a searching indictment: Jesus' hearers pore over the Scriptures because they expect life in them, yet refuse to come to the One about whom those Scriptures testify.
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include searches (3), Look into it (1), trying to determine (1), You pore over (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at John 5:39. Its strongest book concentrations include John (2), 1 Corinthians (1), 1 Peter (1), Revelation (1).
ἐρευνάω (ereunaō) means to search, investigate, or examine carefully. John 5 places the verb in a searching indictment: Jesus' hearers pore over the Scriptures because they expect life in them, yet refuse to come to the One about whom those Scriptures testify. The rebuke is not directed against diligent study but against study severed from believing reception.
John 7 shows another danger when leaders tell Nicodemus to investigate while their confident conclusion overlooks the prophetic associations of Galilee and ignores Jesus' actual works. In 1 Corinthians 2, the Spirit searches even the depths of God and reveals what God has prepared for His people. Human examination remains dependent and accountable; the Spirit's searching belongs to His perfect knowledge.
The word commends careful inquiry while exposing investigation governed by pride, predetermined conclusions, or refusal of Christ.
ἐρευνάω can describe human examination of Scripture and evidence or the Spirit's searching knowledge. John's scenes show that diligent investigation can still fail when unbelief controls the conclusion.
You pore over the Scriptures because you presume that by them you possess eternal life. These are the very words that testify about Me,
Jesus affirms the Scriptures' testimony while exposing readers who seek life in textual possession yet refuse to come to Him.
“Aren’t you also from Galilee?” they replied. “Look into it, and you will see that no prophet comes out of Galilee.”
The leaders invoke investigation with contemptuous certainty. Their method cannot be separated from the prejudice and incomplete judgment displayed in the scene.
But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
The Spirit's searching expresses comprehensive divine knowledge and grounds revelation of God's wisdom in Christ.
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. to look for/into
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I search diligently
Read verseI search diligently
Read verseI search diligently
Read verseI search diligently
Read verseI search diligently
Read verseI search diligently
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 verb appears across 6 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
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)
ἐρευνάω is built from this root:
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
ἐρευνάω asks not only whether a person studies but how the search is governed. In John 5, Jesus speaks to readers who search the Scriptures intensely and still refuse Him. The Scriptures are not the obstacle; they testify about Jesus. Their reading fails because love for God is absent, human glory is prized, and Moses is not truly believed. John 7 provides a public example of investigation distorted by status and contempt.
The leaders tell Nicodemus to search, yet their confidence has outrun both the evidence and their willingness to hear. First Corinthians 2 establishes a necessary distinction: the Spirit searches the depths of God and reveals divine wisdom, whereas human readers receive what God makes known. Responsible study therefore rejects both anti-intellectualism and self-sufficient expertise.
It examines texts and claims carefully, welcomes correction, and comes to Christ rather than treating research as a refuge from obedience.
John.5.39-47
The verb denotes active searching or investigation. The object matters: people may search Scripture, examine a claim, or investigate evidence, while the Spirit's searching describes a unique depth of divine knowledge. The verb itself does not guarantee a true method or conclusion.
The Old Testament praises seeking the Lord and attending carefully to His word, while also warning that hardened hearers can possess revelation without obeying it. Jesus brings that tension to its decisive point by identifying Himself as the One to whom the Scriptures testify. The Spirit enables reception of God's wisdom rather than making textual study unnecessary.