What does μή · ἐπιστρέφω · ὀπίσω mean in the Bible?
μή · ἐπιστρέφω · ὀπίσω is a Greek phrase meaning "let him not turn back to the things behind".
Greek · G3361, G1994, G3694
μὴ ἐπιστρεψάτω εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω
Not · to revert (literally, figuratively or morally) · after
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Words in this compound — expand to study each participant
μήG3361not
Pronunciationmḗ
Subjective negation: denies what one thinks or believes, not absolute fact; used with non-indicative moods
Open lexicon entry →ἐπιστρέφωG1994to revert (literally, figuratively or morally)
Pronunciationepistréphō
Turning to God or away from sin; moral conversion or repentance, not merely physical turning around.
Open lexicon entry →ὀπίσωG3694after
Pronunciationopísō
Spatial: behind or after; temporal: following in sequence; takes genitive as preposition in NT usage.
Open lexicon entry →What does μὴ ἐπιστρεψάτω εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω (mē epistrepsatō eis ta opisō) mean in the Bible?
μή · ἐπιστρέφω · ὀπίσω is a Greek phrase meaning "let him not turn back to the things behind".
Full entry for μὴ ἐπιστρεψάτω εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω (G3361, G1994, G3694) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How many biblical occurrences are listed for G3361, G1994, G3694?
G3361, G1994, G3694 is connected to 1,036 lexical occurrence verses in the lexicon data.
Evidence Summary
Greek phrase. let him not turn back to the things behind
Source Gloss
let him not turn back to the things behind
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 3 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 patterns3Aligned forms1036
Matt 1:19 · Matt 1:20 · Matt 2:12 · Matt 3:9 · Matt 3:10 · Matt 5:13 · Matt 5:17 · Matt 5:18 · Matt 5:20 · Matt 5:26 · Matt 5:29 · Matt 5:30 · Matt 5:34 · Matt 5:39 · Matt 5:42 · Matt 6:1945×
Matt 7:9 · Matt 7:10 · Matt 9:15 · Matt 11:23 · Mark 2:19 · Luke 5:34 · Luke 10:15 · Luke 17:9 · Luke 18:7 · Luke 22:35 · John 3:4 · John 4:12 · John 4:33 · John 6:67 · John 7:31 · John 7:3557×
Matt 18:10 · Matt 24:4 · Mark 13:5 · Mark 13:36 · Luke 11:35 · Luke 21:8 · Acts 5:26 · Acts 13:40 · Acts 23:10 · Acts 27:17 · Acts 27:29 · Acts 27:42 · 1 Cor 8:9 · 1 Cor 9:27 · 1 Cor 10:12 · 2 Cor 2:734×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 35 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist31present2future2
Voice
active30passive5
Mood
participle11indicative10subjunctive6infinitive4imperative4
NT Occurrences
Matthew 10:13ἐπιστραφήτωaorist passive imperativeimperativeMatthew 12:44ἐπιστρέψωfuture active indicativeprospectiveMatthew 13:15ἐπιστρέψωσινaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveMatthew 24:18ἐπιστρεψάτωaorist active imperativeimperativeMark 4:12ἐπιστρέψωσινaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveMark 5:30ἐπιστραφεὶςaorist passive participleparticipleMark 8:33ἐπιστραφεὶςaorist passive participleparticipleMark 13:16ἐπιστρεψάτωaorist active imperativeimperativeLuke 1:16ἐπιστρέψειfuture active indicativeprospectiveLuke 1:17ἐπιστρέψαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveLuke 2:39ἐπέστρεψανaorist active indicativecompletedLuke 8:55ἐπέστρεψενaorist active indicativecompletedLuke 17:31ἐπιστρεψάτωaorist active imperativeimperativeLuke 17:4ἐπιστρέψῃaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveLuke 22:32ἐπιστρέψαςaorist active participleparticipleJohn 21:20Ἐπιστραφεὶςaorist passive participleparticipleActs 9:35ἐπέστρεψανaorist active indicativecompletedActs 9:40ἐπιστρέψαςaorist active participleparticipleActs 11:21ἐπέστρεψενaorist active indicativecompletedActs 14:15ἐπιστρέφεινaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveActs 15:19ἐπιστρέφουσινpresent active participleparticipleActs 15:36Ἐπιστρέψαντεςaorist active participleparticipleActs 16:18ἐπιστρέψαςaorist active participleparticipleActs 26:18ἐπιστρέψαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveActs 26:20ἐπιστρέφεινaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveActs 28:27ἐπιστρέψωσινaorist active subjunctivesubjunctive2 Corinthians 3:16ἐπιστρέψῃaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveGalatians 4:9ἐπιστρέφετεpresent active indicativeongoing1 Thessalonians 1:9ἐπεστρέψατεaorist active indicativecompletedJames 5:19ἐπιστρέψῃaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveJames 5:20ἐπιστρέψαςaorist active participleparticiple1 Peter 2:25ἐπεστράφητεaorist passive indicativecompleted2 Peter 2:22ἐπιστρέψαςaorist active participleparticipleRevelation 1:12ἐπέστρεψαaorist active indicativecompletedRevelation 1:12ἐπιστρέψαςaorist active participleparticiple
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
μὴ ἐπιστρεψάτω εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω is built from this root: