What does θάπτω (tháptō) mean in the Bible?
θάπτω (tháptō) means to bury, naming the embodied act of placing the dead in a grave. Matthew 14:12 reports John's disciples taking his body, burying it, and then telling Jesus after Herod's violence.
Greek · G2290
θάπτω
θάπτω (tháptō) means to bury, naming the embodied act of placing the dead in a grave. Matthew 14:12 reports John's disciples taking his body, burying it, and then telling Jesus after Herod's violence.
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θάπτωG2290
Pronunciationtháptō
What does θάπτω (tháptō) mean in the Bible?
Reader summary
Full entry for θάπτω (G2290) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G2290?
The BSB source-word alignment has 11 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include bury (3), buried (2), was buried (2), [and] buried [her] (1), [and] buried [him] (1).
Where does θάπτω (tháptō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 8:21. Its strongest book concentrations include Acts (4), Luke (3), Matthew (3), 1 Corinthians (1).
What This Word Actually Means
G2290 means to bury, naming the embodied act of placing the dead in a grave. Matthew 14:12 reports John's disciples taking his body, burying it, and then telling Jesus after Herod's violence. Acts 5:6 describes young men wrapping and burying Ananias, while the sudden sequence must not be turned into a universal model for bypassing family, investigation, or lawful procedure.
First Corinthians 15:4 includes Christ's burial in the received gospel proclamation, confirming the reality of his death before resurrection. Luke 16:22 notes that the rich man died and was buried within Jesus' parable. G2290 gives burial theological and pastoral dignity without prescribing one culture's funeral form or making burial a condition of resurrection.
It supports care for bodies, truthful mourning, remembrance, and hope while respecting legal duties, diverse customs, public-health needs, and families harmed by ambiguous loss.
Passage contextCanonical parallelPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
G2290 marks burial after violent death, ordinary death, sudden judgment, and the death of Christ. Its contexts affirm bodily reality and communal action while leaving funeral form, timing, and moral meaning to the larger passage.
- Matt.14.12
Then John’s disciples came and took his body and buried it. And they went and informed Jesus.
John's disciples recover and bury his body after state violence, then bring the news to Jesus, joining dignity, grief, and truthful witness.
- Acts.5.6
Then the young men stepped forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
Ananias is wrapped, carried out, and buried after sudden death; the narrative reports an exceptional event rather than a complete funeral policy.
- 1Cor.15.4
That He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
Christ's burial belongs to the received gospel sequence of death and resurrection, attesting that his death was real and not apparent.
- Luke.16.22
One day the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. And the rich man also died and was buried.
The rich man dies and is buried within Jesus' parable, where earthly status is overturned and the burial detail does not secure favor.
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 Itbury3×Matthew 8:21, Matthew 8:22, Luke 9:60
buried2×Matthew 14:12, Acts 5:9
was buried2×Luke 16:22, Acts 2:29
[and] buried [her]1×Acts 5:10
[and] buried [him]1×Acts 5:6
[and] bury1×Luke 9:59
He was buried1×1 Corinthians 15:4
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 8:21θάψαιtoburyVerb - Aorist Infinitive ActiveMatthew 8:22θάψαιtoburyVerb - Aorist Infinitive ActiveMatthew 14:12ἔθαψανtoburiedVerb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person PluralLuke 9:59θάψαιto[and] buryVerb - Aorist Infinitive ActiveLuke 9:60θάψαιtoburyVerb - Aorist Infinitive ActiveLuke 16:22ἐτάφηtowas buriedVerb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person SingularActs 2:29ἐτάφηtowas buriedVerb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person SingularActs 5:6ἔθαψανto[and] buried [him]Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person PluralActs 5:9θαψάντωνtoburiedVerb - Aorist Participle Active - Genitive Masculine PluralActs 5:10ἔθαψανto[and] buried [her]Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowMatthew 8:21
Aligned rows11
Books represented4
Matthew3Luke3Acts41 Corinthians1
Source forms
θάψαι4xthapsaiMatthew 8:21, Matthew 8:22, Luke 9:59, Luke 9:60
ἔθαψαν3xethapsanMatthew 14:12, Acts 5:6, Acts 5:10
ἐτάφη3xetaphēLuke 16:22, Acts 2:29, 1 Corinthians 15:4
θαψάντων1xthapsantōnActs 5:9
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active4xMatthew 8:21, Matthew 8:22, Luke 9:59, Luke 9:60
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural3xMatthew 14:12, Acts 5:6, Acts 5:10
Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular3xLuke 16:22, Acts 2:29, 1 Corinthians 15:4
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Genitive Masculine Plural1xActs 5:9
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Follow medical, legal, public-health, cultural, and family responsibilities while preserving dignity and avoiding unnecessary financial pressure.
- Provide grief care for ambiguous loss, traumatic death, inaccessible remains, and complicated family relationships without forcing a standard ceremony.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that burial rather than another lawful disposition is necessary for God to raise the dead.
- Do not claim that a rapid or simple funeral indicates weak love, or that an elaborate burial indicates divine favor.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To bury the dead, often emphasizing the final rite of honoring or disposing of a body.
Strong'sG2290
Lexical occurrences11 versesGreek text appearances11 timesWord forms3 forms11 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Study linkLuke 9:57-62Source Gloss
to bury
Extended definitionSource: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
To bury the dead, often emphasizing the final rite of honoring or disposing of a body.
to bury: with accusative, Mat.8:21-22 14:12, Luk.9:59-60, Act.5:6, 9-10; pass., Luk.16:22, Act.2:29, 1Co.15:4.
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
11 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 8:21Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
θάψαιqayai
I bury
Read verseMatthew 8:22Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
θάψαιqayai
I bury
Read verseMatthew 14:12Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἔθαψανeqayan
I bury
Read verseLuke 9:59Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
θάψαιqayai
I bury
Read verseLuke 9:60Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
θάψαιqayai
I bury
Read verseLuke 16:22Verb Third Person Singular Second Aorist Passive Indicative
ἐτάφη.etafh
I bury
Read verseActs 2:29Verb Third Person Singular Second Aorist Passive Indicative
ἐτάφη,etafh
I bury
Read verseActs 5:6Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἔθαψαν.eqayan
I bury
Read verseActs 5:9Verb Aorist Active Participle Genitive Plural Masculine
θαψάντωνqayantwn
I bury
Read verseActs 5:10Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἔθαψανeqayan
I bury
Read verse1 Corinthians 15:4Verb Third Person Singular Second Aorist Passive Indicative
ἐτάφη·etafh
I bury
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 groups3Aligned forms11TensesAoristVoicesActive, Passive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Infinitiveverbal noun — the action in abstract4×
Aorist ActiveMatt 8:21 · Matt 8:22 · Luke 9:59 · Luke 9:604×
Indicativestates a fact or reality6×
Aorist ActiveMatt 14:12 · Acts 5:6 · Acts 5:103×
Aorist PassiveLuke 16:22 · Acts 2:29 · 1 Cor 15:43×
Participleverbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality1×
Aorist ActiveActs 5:91×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 10 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist10
Voice
active8passive2
Mood
indicative5infinitive4participle1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 8:21θάψαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveMatthew 8:22θάψαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveMatthew 14:12ἔθαψανaorist active indicativecompletedLuke 9:59θάψαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveLuke 9:60θάψαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveLuke 16:22ἐτάφηaorist passive indicativecompletedActs 5:10ἔθαψανaorist active indicativecompletedActs 5:6ἔθαψανaorist active indicativecompletedActs 5:9θαψάντωνaorist active participleparticiple1 Corinthians 15:4ἐτάφηaorist passive indicativecompleted
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.
Biblical Witnesses
Permission to delay discipleship for obligation to bury deceased parent
John the Baptist's disciples took his body and gave it burial after execution
Christ's burial as essential component of gospel proclamation and resurrection
Rich man's body received proper burial despite his rejection of Lazarus
Showing 4 selected witnesses from 11 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
θάπτω is a primary verb - no further derivation.
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
G2290 keeps Christian hope connected to a body that has truly died. John's disciples perform a final act of care after political violence and then carry their grief to Jesus. Their burial does not undo the injustice, but it refuses to let the victim disappear without dignity. Paul's gospel summary includes Christ's burial between death and resurrection, guarding the bodily reality of both.
Acts 5 is more difficult: the rapid burial of Ananias and Sapphira belongs to an extraordinary judgment narrative. It must not justify concealment, denial of due process, exclusion of family, or avoidance of medical and legal investigation today. Burial practices differ across cultures and circumstances, including cremation, disaster recovery, donation, unclaimed remains, and cases where a body is missing.
G2290 does not make one method salvific or imply that God cannot raise those whose remains are lost. Pastoral care should help families make informed, lawful, financially responsible decisions; honor the wishes and dignity of the deceased; preserve evidence when required; and create room for lament and remembrance. Resurrection hope does not eliminate the work of mourning, and funeral expense does not measure love.
Anchor passage
1Cor.15.4
Doctrinal connections
- Matthew 14 shows disciples honoring John's body after lethal abuse of political power.
- Acts 5 reports sudden burial within an exceptional judgment narrative that demands contextual restraint.
- First Corinthians 15 includes Christ's burial in the apostolic proclamation of death and resurrection.
- Luke 16 separates costly earthly status and burial from favor in the life to come.
- Biblical care for the dead affirms creaturely dignity while final hope rests in God's raising power.
- Christian mourning can hold bodily absence, injustice, remembrance, and resurrection hope together.
G2290 is a Greek verb for burying or interring a dead body. Active and passive forms identify those who bury and those who are buried; the word names the act but does not specify funeral ritual, expense, location, or eternal outcome.
From Old to New Testament
Old Testament burial narratives honor bodies, preserve family memory, and sometimes expose disgrace or denied burial. New Testament uses of G2290 continue bodily care and place Jesus' burial within the gospel, while resurrection hope extends beyond the condition or location of remains.
Canonical parallelPastoral application