What does κατισχύω (katischýō) mean in the Bible?
κατισχύω (katischýō): To gain strength against opposition; to prevail over resistance through superior force.
Greek · G2729
κατισχύω
To overpower
Reading a lexicon entry
What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
Strong's number: The Strong's code (H- or G-) is the standard reference number for this word. It connects this entry to chapter and passage language tabs.
Where it appears: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
This lexicon entry is part of our ongoing editorial review. If you notice missing content, unclear wording, or a possible correction, please send us a note through the Connect page. Screenshots are helpful.
κατισχύω G2729
Pronunciation katischýō
What does κατισχύω (katischýō) mean in the Bible?
κατισχύω (katischýō): To gain strength against opposition; to prevail over resistance through superior force.
Full entry for κατισχύω (G2729) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G2729?
The BSB source-word alignment has 3 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include prevailed (1), will not prevail against (1), you may have the strength (1).
Where does κατισχύω (katischýō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 16:18. Its strongest book concentrations include Luke (2), Matthew (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It prevailed 1× Luke 23:23
will not prevail against 1× Matthew 16:18
you may have the strength 1× Luke 21:36
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 16:18 κατισχύσουσιν to will not prevail against Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Luke 21:36 κατισχύσητε to you may have the strength Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural Luke 23:23 κατίσχυον to prevailed Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 16:18
Aligned rows 3
Books represented 2
Matthew 1 Luke 2
Source forms
κατίσχυον 1x katischyon Luke 23:23
κατισχύσητε 1x katischysēte Luke 21:36
κατισχύσουσιν 1x katischysousin Matthew 16:18
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural 1x Luke 21:36
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 1x Matthew 16:18
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 1x Luke 23:23
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To gain strength against opposition; to prevail over resistance through superior force.
Strong's G2729
Lexical occurrences 3 verses Greek text appearances 2 times Word forms 2 forms 3 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
to overpower
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
2 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 16:18 Verb Third Person Plural Future Active Indicative
κατισχύσουσιν katiscusousin
I prevail against, overpower, am able
Read verse Luke 23:23 Verb Third Person Plural Imperfect Active Indicative
κατίσχυον katiscuon
I prevail against, overpower, am able
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 groups 2 Aligned forms 3 Tenses Future, Aorist, Imperfect Voices Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 2×
Future Active Matt 16:18 1×
Imperfect Active Luke 23:23 1×
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 1×
Aorist Active Luke 21:36 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 3 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist 1 imperfect 1 future 1
Voice
active 3
Mood
indicative 2 subjunctive 1
NT 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 Origins
κατισχύω is built from these roots:
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
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain