To accuse
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Katēgoreō means to accuse or bring a charge against someone. In the Synoptic Sabbath controversies, opponents watch Jesus in order to accuse Him, using a suffering man's need as evidence in a case they want to build.
Reader summary
Full entry for κατηγορέω (G2723) · Open the biblical lexicon
Katēgoreō means to accuse or bring a charge against someone. In the Synoptic Sabbath controversies, opponents watch Jesus in order to accuse Him, using a suffering man's need as evidence in a case they want to build.
The BSB source-word alignment has 23 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include accuse (2), accusing (2), to accuse (2), . . . (1), [Paul] was accused (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 12:10. Its strongest book concentrations include Acts (9), Luke (4), John (3), Mark (3).
Katēgoreō means to accuse or bring a charge against someone. In the Synoptic Sabbath controversies, opponents watch Jesus in order to accuse Him, using a suffering man's need as evidence in a case they want to build. In John, Jesus says Moses will accuse those who claim confidence in him while refusing the One about whom he wrote. Acts records Paul brought before the council so a commander can learn the exact accusation.
The verb identifies an adversarial charge, not whether the allegation is true. Accusation may be malicious, evidentially investigated, or arise from rejected revelation. Faithful handling requires attention to accuser, charge, evidence, authority, and opportunity for answer.
Katēgoreō marks the bringing of a charge. Gospel opponents seek grounds against Jesus, Moses' writings expose unbelief, and Roman procedure seeks clarity about accusations against Paul. The existence of a charge never establishes guilt by itself.
And a man with a withered hand was there. In order to accuse Jesus, they asked Him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”
Matthew 12:10 says opponents ask whether healing on the Sabbath is lawful so they may accuse Jesus. Their question instrumentalizes the man with the withered hand and ignores the lawfulness of doing good.
In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see if He would heal on the Sabbath.
Mark 3:2 portrays people watching Jesus closely to see whether He will heal on the Sabbath and thus accuse Him. Jesus' grief at hard hearts contrasts with their case-building posture.
Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, the scribes and Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He would heal on the Sabbath.
Luke 6:7 likewise says scribes and Pharisees watched for an accusation. Jesus knows their thoughts, brings the man forward, and frames the issue as doing good and saving life.
Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, in whom you have put your hope.
John 5:45 says Jesus will not need to accuse His hearers before the Father; Moses, in whom they place hope, accuses them because his writings point to Christ. Claimed scriptural loyalty is tested by response to Jesus.
The next day the commander, wanting to learn the real reason Paul was accused by the Jews, released him and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul down and had him stand before them.
Acts 22:30 says the commander releases Paul and convenes the chief priests and council to learn the exact reason Jews accuse him. The inquiry seeks a defined charge after chaotic violence.
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. Formal accusation before a judge or authority, not casual blame or criticism.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 22 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
Read verseI accuse, charge, prosecute
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 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.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
How this verb appears across 22 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)
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 22 lexical occurrence verses.
κατηγορέω 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.
Katēgoreō shows how accusation can become a weapon before it becomes a search for truth. Jesus' opponents watch a disabled man not chiefly to love him but to collect a charge against the healer. Their posture is legally alert and morally hard. John deepens the irony: the Moses they invoke becomes a witness against their unbelief because his writings point toward Christ.
Acts, by contrast, shows the legitimate need to identify an exact allegation before judgment. Churches should neither dismiss every accusation nor accept one merely because it is forceful, repeated, or attached to authority. They protect complainants, define claims, examine evidence, permit response, and refuse retaliation. Above every human forum, Scripture itself bears witness to Christ and exposes accusations driven by self-protective unbelief.
John.5.45
Katēgoreō means to speak against in a formal or adversarial sense, hence accuse or bring charges. It may occur with a person accused and an explicit or implied charge; truthfulness is not encoded in the verb.
The Law requires multiple witnesses, rejects false testimony, and forbids partial judgment. Prophets are frequently accused by leaders they confront, anticipating the righteous Messiah and apostles facing hostile charges.