To conceal (properly, by covering)
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Κρύπτω means to hide, conceal, cover, or keep from view. Jesus says a hilltop city cannot be hidden, while His kingdom parable describes leaven concealed within flour until its effect reaches the whole batch.
Reader summary
Full entry for κρύπτω (G2928) · Open the biblical lexicon
Κρύπτω means to hide, conceal, cover, or keep from view. Jesus says a hilltop city cannot be hidden, while His kingdom parable describes leaven concealed within flour until its effect reaches the whole batch.
The BSB source-word alignment has 19 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include hid (3), hidden (3), [and] mixed (1), [and] was hidden (1), be hidden (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 5:14. Its strongest book concentrations include Matthew (7), John (3), Luke (3), Revelation (3).
This entry includes 1 verse guide that explain exact original-language forms in context.
Κρύπτω means to hide, conceal, cover, or keep from view. Jesus says a hilltop city cannot be hidden, while His kingdom parable describes leaven concealed within flour until its effect reaches the whole batch. Jesus Himself is hidden from a violent crowd as He leaves the temple. Paul says believers' life is hidden with Christ in God, awaiting manifestation with Him in glory, and warns that good works cannot remain hidden forever.
Concealment can be impossible, temporary, protective, quietly effective, or eschatologically secure. The verb does not make secrecy sinful or hiddenness spiritual by itself. Agent, object, reason, duration, and promised disclosure determine what the hiding means.
Κρύπτω portrays concealment with varied purposes: visible witness that cannot disappear, hidden kingdom action, protection from violence, secure life in Christ, and deeds eventually disclosed.
You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
A city elevated on a hill cannot be concealed, supporting Jesus' call for disciples' good works to shine toward the Father's glory rather than private reputation.
It is like leaven that a woman took and mixed into three measures of flour, until all of it was leavened.”
The woman hides leaven in a large amount of flour, and its quiet presence eventually permeates the whole, picturing kingdom action not dependent on immediate spectacle.
At this, they picked up stones to throw at Him. But Jesus was hidden and went out of the temple area.
Jesus is hidden and leaves when the crowd takes up stones, showing purposeful withdrawal from murderous violence rather than inability to face His appointed hour.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Believers have died and their life is hidden securely with Christ in God, a present identity that will be manifested when Christ appears in glory.
In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even the ones that are inconspicuous cannot remain hidden.
Good works may initially escape observation, but they cannot remain concealed, encouraging patient faithfulness without requiring self-advertisement.
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.
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Greek word. Hide or conceal by covering; often used metaphorically for concealing truth or knowledge from perception.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
Read verseI hide, conceal, lay up
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.
How this verb appears across 18 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 1 selected witness from 19 lexical occurrence verses.
κρύπτω is a primary verb - no further derivation.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Hiddenness may serve life, growth, or deception, so context must govern it. Jesus' disciples are a city that cannot be hidden because their visible good should direct glory to the Father. Yet the kingdom can work like leaven quietly concealed until its effect becomes comprehensive. Jesus withdraws under concealment from attempted stoning because hostile crowds do not determine His hour.
Colossians locates believers' deepest identity beyond public measurement: their life is secure with Christ and will be revealed with Him. First Timothy encourages good works that need no campaign for recognition. Churches should practice transparent accountability and public witness while honoring quiet faithfulness, legitimate privacy, and protective withdrawal from violence.
Matt.5.14
Κρύπτω is the common verb for hiding or concealing and may take a direct object or appear passively. Physical, social, moral, and theological concealment are determined by context.
God hides servants from danger, exposes secret sin, and works purposes not immediately seen. Christ secures His people while commissioning visible witness.