OliveGrove
Pressing the Word of God for Deeper Understanding.
Greek · G2573, G4160 · unreviewed

καλῶς ποιεῖν

Well (usually morally) · to make or do (in a very wide application, more or less direct)

These lexicon entries are being actively developed. If you notice missing content, incorrect definitions, or have suggestions, we'd love to hear from you. Share a note on our Connect page and include a screenshot if helpful.

Words in this compound — expand to study each participant

καλῶς G2573 well (usually morally)
Pronunciation kalōs
Open lexicon entry →
ποιέω G4160 to make or do (in a very wide application, more or less direct)
Pronunciation poiéō
Creates or performs action; πράσσω (prássō) denotes habitual practice versus specific deed.
Open lexicon entry →

What does καλῶς ποιεῖν (kalōs poiein) mean in the Bible?

καλῶς · ποιέω is a Greek word meaning "to do good".

Full entry for καλῶς ποιεῖν (G2573, G4160) · Browse the biblical lexicon

Meaning

to do good
Grammatical Forms

How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.

Matt 12:12 · Matt 15:7 · Mark 7:6 · Mark 7:9 · Mark 7:37 · Mark 12:28 · Mark 12:32 · Mark 16:18 · Luke 6:26 · Luke 6:27 · Luke 6:48 · Luke 20:39 · John 4:17 · John 8:48 · John 13:13 · John 18:23 36×
36 total occurrences across all forms in the biblical text Morphology: MorphGNT SBLGNT — CC BY-SA 3.0
Discourse Aspect

How this verb appears across 552 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).

Aspect
completed 117 ongoing 97 prospective 40 resultant 10 imperative 43 background 18 subjunctive 61 infinitive 74 participle 91 optative 1
Tense
aorist 258 present 220 future 41 imperfect 18 perfect 14 pluperfect 1
Voice
active 530 middle 20 passive 2
Mood
indicative 282 participle 91 infinitive 74 subjunctive 61 imperative 43 optative 1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 1:24 ἐποίησεν aorist active indicative completed Matthew 3:10 ποιοῦν present active participle participle Matthew 3:3 ποιεῖτε present active imperative imperative Matthew 3:8 ποιήσατε aorist active imperative imperative Matthew 4:19 ποιήσω future active indicative prospective Matthew 5:19 ποιήσῃ aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Matthew 5:32 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 5:36 ποιῆσαι aorist active infinitive infinitive Matthew 5:46 ποιοῦσιν present active indicative ongoing Matthew 5:47 ποιεῖτε present active indicative ongoing Matthew 5:47 ποιοῦσιν present active indicative ongoing Matthew 6:1 ποιεῖν present active infinitive infinitive Matthew 6:2 ποιῇς present active subjunctive subjunctive Matthew 6:2 ποιοῦσιν present active indicative ongoing Matthew 6:3 ποιοῦντος present active participle participle Matthew 6:3 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 7:12 ποιῶσιν present active subjunctive subjunctive Matthew 7:12 ποιεῖτε present active imperative imperative Matthew 7:17 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 7:17 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 7:18 ποιεῖν present active infinitive infinitive Matthew 7:18 ποιεῖν present active infinitive infinitive Matthew 7:19 ποιοῦν present active participle participle Matthew 7:21 ποιῶν present active participle participle Matthew 7:22 ἐποιήσαμεν aorist active indicative completed Matthew 7:24 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 7:26 ποιῶν present active participle participle Matthew 8:9 Ποίησον aorist active imperative imperative Matthew 8:9 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 9:28 ποιῆσαι aorist active infinitive infinitive Matthew 12:12 ποιεῖν present active infinitive infinitive Matthew 12:16 ποιήσωσιν aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Matthew 12:2 ποιοῦσιν present active indicative ongoing Matthew 12:2 ποιεῖν present active infinitive infinitive Matthew 12:3 ἐποίησεν aorist active indicative completed Matthew 12:33 ποιήσατε aorist active imperative imperative Matthew 12:33 ποιήσατε aorist active imperative imperative Matthew 12:50 ποιήσῃ aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Matthew 13:23 ποιεῖ present active indicative ongoing Matthew 13:26 ἐποίησεν aorist active indicative completed +512 more occurrences

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.

Acts 14 — Through Many Hardships into the Kingdom Acts 17 — The Gospel Reasoned from Scripture and Proclaimed to the Nations Galatians 6 — Boasting Only in the Cross: Spirit-Shaped Community and New Creation John 14 — The Way, the Truth, and the Life, the Father Revealed in the Son, and the Promise of the Spirit John 18 — The Arrested King: Betrayal, Sovereign Surrender, Denial, Trial, and the Kingdom Not of This World Luke 10 — The Kingdom Mission Expanded, Mercy Defined, and the Better Portion Chosen Luke 6 — The Lord of the Sabbath Forms a Kingdom People Luke 8 — The Word Heard, the Kingdom Revealed, and the Lord’s Authority Displayed Mark 15 — The Crucified King: Condemnation, Mockery, Death, Confession, and Burial Mark 3 — The Servant-King Confronted: Sabbath Mercy, Demonic Accusation, and the Family of God Mark 7 — True Defilement and Boundary-Crossing Mercy Matthew 12 — The Lord of the Sabbath, the Servant of the Lord, and the Crisis of Unbelief Matthew 21 — The King Enters Jerusalem, Judges Fruitless Religion, and Exposes Rejected-Son Leadership Matthew 23 — Woes upon Hypocritical Leadership and the Lament over Jerusalem Matthew 3 — The Forerunner, the Kingdom, and the Beloved Son Matthew 6 — Hidden Righteousness, the Father’s Reward, and Seeking First the Kingdom Matthew 7 — Kingdom Discernment, the Narrow Way, and the Wise Builder

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

Full license details