What does ἀμνός (amnós) mean in the Bible?
Amnos means lamb. In the New Testament, its few occurrences are highly concentrated and theologically weighty.
Greek · G286
ἀμνός
A lamb
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ἀμνός G286
Pronunciation amnós
What does ἀμνός (amnós) mean in the Bible?
Amnos means lamb. In the New Testament, its few occurrences are highly concentrated and theologically weighty.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἀμνός (G286) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G286?
The BSB source-word alignment has 4 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include a lamb (2), Lamb (2).
Where does ἀμνός (amnós) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at John 1:29. Its strongest book concentrations include John (2), 1 Peter (1), Acts (1).
Are there verse guides for ἀμνός (amnós)?
This entry includes 2 verse guides that explain exact original-language forms in context.
What This Word Actually Means
Amnos means lamb. In the New Testament, its few occurrences are highly concentrated and theologically weighty. John the Baptist twice identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God, first adding that He takes away the sin of the world and then simply directing attention to Him. Acts quotes Isaiah's servant language about one led like a sheep and silent like a lamb before the shearer, and the passage becomes the Scripture through which Philip proclaims Jesus to the Ethiopian official.
Peter speaks of Christ's precious blood, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. Amnos therefore helps readers see Jesus through sacrificial, servant, and redemption language. It is not a generic image of gentleness. It points to the innocent, suffering, saving Christ who deals with sin.
How the Bible Uses It
Amnos names a lamb in concentrated Christological witness. John, Acts, and 1 Peter connect the word with Jesus, sin-bearing, suffering, Scripture fulfillment, and redemption.
- John.1.29
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
John the Baptist identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
- John.1.36
When he saw Jesus walking by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
John again points his disciples to Jesus with the words, Look, the Lamb of God.
- Acts.8.32
The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so He did not open His mouth.
Acts quotes the servant passage about a lamb silent before the shearer.
- 1Pet.1.19
But with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or spot.
Peter says believers were redeemed with Christ's precious blood, like a lamb without blemish or spot.
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 a lamb 2× Acts 8:32, 1 Peter 1:19
Lamb 2× John 1:29, John 1:36
Show sample aligned rows
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row John 1:29
Aligned rows 4
Books represented 3
John 2 Acts 1 1 Peter 1
Source forms
Ἀμνὸς 2x Amnos John 1:29, John 1:36
ἀμνὸς 1x amnos Acts 8:32
ἀμνοῦ 1x amnou 1 Peter 1:19
Parsing patterns
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular 3x John 1:29, John 1:36, Acts 8:32
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular 1x 1 Peter 1:19
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Keep Lamb application centered on Christ's saving work before drawing comfort or imitation themes.
- Do not use lamb imagery to sentimentalize suffering apart from redemption and resurrection hope.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that amnos is merely a symbol of gentleness.
- Do not claim that the word itself proves every detail of sacrificial theology apart from the passages and canon.
Key Verse and Form Guides
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
John 1:29 Noun Nominative Singular Masculine
ἀμνὸς amnos a lamb The form sharpens the proclamation by letting John name Jesus with a concrete title, while the context supplies the sacrificial meaning. Read verse guide John 1:36 Noun Nominative Singular Masculine
ἀμνὸς amnos a lamb The form contributes to a concise, memorable identification of Jesus as the Lamb of God, while the context supplies the sacrificial and relational weight. Read verse guide Evidence Summary
Greek word. Lamb symbolizing Christ as the sacrifice for sin in John's Gospel and early Christian theology
Source Gloss
a lamb
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
4 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
amnov
a lamb
Read verse amnov
a lamb
Read verse Acts 8:32 Noun Nominative Singular Masculine
ἀμνὸς amnov
a lamb
Read verse 1 Peter 1:19 Noun Genitive Singular Masculine
ἀμνοῦ amnou
a lamb
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 this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 2 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns 2 Aligned forms 4 Case pattern Nominative (3) Number pattern Singular (4)
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Additional Occurrences
John 1:19-34 ἀμνὸς amnós
lamb
New Testament Witnesses
lamb
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 4 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
ἀμνός is a primary word - no further derivation.
Why This Word Matters
Sacrificial imagery pointing to atonement.
Connects Jesus’ mission to sacrificial atonement. John 1:19–34
Canonical Themes
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
Amnos is rare in the New Testament, but its uses are dense with gospel clarity. John the Baptist does not point to Jesus as a vague religious teacher. He points to the Lamb of God who takes away sin. Acts shows that the suffering-servant Scripture about a lamb silent before the shearer is rightly opened in proclamation of Jesus. First Peter then speaks of Christ's precious blood, like a lamb without blemish or spot, to describe redemption from futile ways.
The word therefore holds innocence and sacrifice together. It teaches that Jesus' saving work addresses real guilt, not merely human sadness or moral confusion. Amnos should lead readers to the person and work of Christ: His purity, His suffering, His blood, and His effective dealing with sin.
Anchor passage
John.1.29
Doctrinal connections
- G142 Airo: John 1 says the Lamb takes away the sin of the world.
- G266 Hamartia: The Lamb language is inseparable from sin and its removal.
- G2889 Kosmos: John 1 widens the Lamb's work to the world without erasing the need for faith.
- G129 Haima: First Peter connects redemption with Christ's precious blood.
- G3084 lytroo: Redemption language in 1 Peter frames the Lamb imagery as deliverance by cost.
- G721 Arnion: Revelation's frequent Lamb language is related but uses a different Greek word and must be handled distinctly.
Amnos is the Greek noun for lamb used in John, Acts, and 1 Peter. It should be distinguished from arnion, the frequent Revelation term often translated Lamb.
From Old to New Testament
Passover, sacrificial lambs, and Isaiah's servant passage form important Old Testament background. Acts 8 explicitly brings Isaiah's lamb language into Christian proclamation of Jesus, and 1 Peter echoes sacrificial purity in redemption language.
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