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Greek · G2205 · unreviewed

ζῆλος

Zeal

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ζῆλος G2205
Pronunciation zēlos

What does ζῆλος (zēlos) mean in the Bible?

ζῆλος (zēlos) is a Greek word meaning "zeal". ζῆλος, -ου, ὁ and in late Gk. Reflects righteous passion for God's holiness. This term runs through the canonical themes of Holiness, Justice.

Full entry for ζῆλος (G2205) · Browse the biblical lexicon

Meaning

zeal
Extended definition

Passionate intensity directed at a cause, ranging from noble devotion to destructive jealousy.

1zeal: 2Co.7:11 9:2; κατά ζῆλος, Php.3:6; with genitive obj., Jhn.2:17 (LXX), Rom.10:2; before ὑπέρ, 2Co.7:7; with genitive subj., θεοῦ, 2Co.11:2; πυρός, Heb.10:27 (cf. Isa.26:11, Wis.5:18, and cf. Westc., in l).
2jealousy: Rom.13:13, 1Co.3:3 3:2 2Co.12:20, Gal.5:20 (WH, txt, RV), Jas.3:14, 16; πλησθῆναι ζήλου Act.5:17 13:45; pl., ζῆλοι (see B1., § 32, 6), Gal.5:20, WH, mg.
Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
Why This Word Matters
Reflects righteous passion for God's holiness. Acts 5:17-26
Expresses covenantal passion for pure worship. John 2:13–25
The leaders’ motive is revealed as jealousy, highlighting spiritual resistance to gospel growth.
Grammatical Forms

How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.

Nominative · Singular · Masculine John 2:17 · 1 Cor 3:3 · 2 Cor 12:20 · Gal 5:20 · Heb 10:27 · Jas 3:16 6×
Nominative · Singular · Neuter 2 Cor 9:2 1×
Genitive · Singular · Masculine Acts 5:17 · Acts 13:45 2×
Dative · Singular · Masculine Rom 13:13 · 2 Cor 11:2 2×
Accusative · Singular · Masculine Rom 10:2 · 2 Cor 7:7 · 2 Cor 7:11 · Jas 3:14 4×
Accusative · Singular · Neuter Phil 3:6 1×
16 total occurrences across all forms in the biblical text Morphology: MorphGNT SBLGNT — CC BY-SA 3.0
Canonical Themes
Holiness Justice
Biblical Occurrences

Each occurrence shows the passage reference, the original language term as it appears in that context, its transliteration, and the contextual sense.

New Testament Witnesses
Acts 5:17-26 Jealousy zēlos Genitive · Singular · Masculine
Envy or intense rivalry.
John 2:13–25 ζῆλος zēlos Nominative · Singular · Masculine
zeal
Additional Occurrences
John 2:13-25 ζῆλος zēlos
zeal, fervor
Appears In

Compound and idiomatic lexemes in which this word is a constituent. Follow a link to study the phrase and its other participating words.

ζῆλος · πικρός G2205, G4089
bitter jealousy or envy
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.

1 Corinthians 3 — God’s Field, God’s Building, God’s Temple Acts 13 — The Spirit Sends the Mission and the Word Turns to the Gentiles Acts 5 — Holy Fear, Bold Witness, and Joyful Suffering John 2 — The First Sign, the True Temple, and the Glory of Jesus Revealed Romans 10 — Christ the End of the Law and the Righteousness Received by Faith Romans 13 — Submission to Governing Authorities, Love as the Fulfillment of the Law, and Life in the Light of the Coming Day

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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