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Greek · G218 · unreviewed

ἀλείφω

To oil (with perfume)

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ἀλείφω G218
Pronunciation aleíphō

What does ἀλείφω (aleíphō) mean in the Bible?

ἀλείφω (aleíphō) is a Greek word meaning "to oil (with perfume)". ἀλείφω (cf.

Full entry for ἀλείφω (G218) · Browse the biblical lexicon

Meaning

to oil (with perfume)
Extended definition

Anointing with fragrant oil for festive comfort or honor, distinct from religious consecration anointing.

(cf. λίπος, oil), [in LXX: Gen.31:13, Exo.40:15, Num.3:3 (מָשַׁח), Eze.13:10 ff. (טוּחַ), Rut.3:3, 2Ki.12:20 14:2, 4Ki.4:2, 2Ch.28:15, Mic.6:15, Dan LXX TH Dan.10:3 (סוּךְ), Est.2:12, Jdth.16:8 * ;] to anoint, festally or in homage: with accusative of thing(s) or of person(s), Mat.6:17, Jhn.12:3, Mrk.16:1; before dative, ἐλαίῳ, Mrk.6:13, Jas.5:14; μύρῳ, Luk.7:38, 46, Jhn.11:2.

Synonymsχρίω, μυρίζω (against the distinction made bet. ἀ. and χ. in Tr., Syn., § 38, see MM, VGT, see word, ἀ.)
Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
Grammatical Forms

How mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.

Tenses
Aorist Imperfect
Voices
Active Middle
Indicative states a fact or reality 5×
Aorist Active Luke 7:46 · John 12:3 3×
Imperfect Active Mark 6:13 · Luke 7:38 2×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Aorist Middle Matt 6:17 1×
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 1×
Aorist Active Mark 16:1 1×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 2×
Aorist Active John 11:2 · Jas 5:14 2×
9 total occurrences across all forms in the biblical text Morphology: MorphGNT SBLGNT — CC BY-SA 3.0
Discourse Aspect

How this verb appears across 9 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).

Aspect
completed 3 imperative 1 background 2 subjunctive 1 participle 2
Tense
aorist 7 imperfect 2
Voice
active 8 middle 1
Mood
indicative 5 participle 2 subjunctive 1 imperative 1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 6:17 ἄλειψαί aorist middle imperative imperative Mark 6:13 ἤλειφον imperfect active indicative background Mark 16:1 ἀλείψωσιν aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Luke 7:38 ἤλειφεν imperfect active indicative background Luke 7:46 ἤλειψας aorist active indicative completed Luke 7:46 ἤλειψεν aorist active indicative completed John 11:2 ἀλείψασα aorist active participle participle John 12:3 ἤλειψεν aorist active indicative completed James 5:14 ἀλείψαντες aorist active participle participle

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)

Word Pictures (Robertson)

A.T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) discusses this term in the following chapters. Open any chapter and go to the Word Pictures tab to read his verse-by-verse commentary.

John 12 — The Anointed King, the Lifted-Up Son of Man, and the Hour of Glory Mark 16 — He Has Risen: The Empty Tomb, the Angelic Announcement, Galilee Promise, and Trembling Witness Mark 6 — Rejected Prophet, Sending Lord, Wilderness Shepherd, and Divine Son on the Sea

A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) — public domain

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

STEPBible Data — CC BY 4.0

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