What does πλέκω (plékō) mean in the Bible?
Πλέκω (plékō) means to weave, braid, or twist materials together. The New Testament uses it three times, each in the passion narrative for the soldiers twisting together a crown of thorns (Matt.
Greek · G4120
πλέκω
To twine or braid
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.
πλέκω G4120
Pronunciation plékō
What does πλέκω (plékō) mean in the Bible?
Πλέκω (plékō) means to weave, braid, or twist materials together. The New Testament uses it three times, each in the passion narrative for the soldiers twisting together a crown of thorns (Matt.
Reader summary
Full entry for πλέκω (G4120) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4120?
The BSB source-word alignment has 3 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include twisted together (2), they twisted together (1).
Where does πλέκω (plékō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 27:29. Its strongest book concentrations include John (1), Mark (1), Matthew (1).
What This Word Actually Means
Πλέκω (plékō) means to weave, braid, or twist materials together. The New Testament uses it three times, each in the passion narrative for the soldiers twisting together a crown of thorns (Matt. 27:29; Mark 15:17; John 19:2). The action is deliberate. The soldiers fashion an object meant to parody kingship, place it on Jesus' head, clothe Him in purple, and mock Him as King of the Jews.
John's Gospel surrounds the mock coronation with Pilate's repeated statements that he finds no basis for a charge, the crowd's demand for crucifixion, and the contested truth of Jesus' kingship. The soldiers intend humiliation, yet the narrative confronts readers with the true King wearing the signs of rejected royalty. The verb itself does not mean crown, kingship, curse, or atonement. It simply describes the making of the thorn crown; the theological significance comes from the passion narrative and the Gospel's presentation of Jesus.
Teaching this word should dwell neither on invented botanical detail nor on graphic sensationalism. The crafted crown exposes the calculated nature of human contempt and the patience of the Son who bears shame on the way to the cross. It calls the church to worship the crucified King and to reject mockery, dehumanization, and the use of symbols of power to humiliate others.
Canonical parallelBook contextEditorial synthesis
How the Bible Uses It
All three occurrences describe soldiers twisting a crown of thorns as part of Jesus' mock coronation.
- Matt.27.29
And they twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on His head. They put a staff in His right hand, knelt down before Him, and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
The crafted crown, staff, kneeling, and acclamation form a calculated parody of royal honor.
- Mark.15.17
They dressed Him in a purple robe, twisted together a crown of thorns, and set it on His head.
Mark places the action within the soldiers' abuse before Jesus is led out to crucifixion.
- John.19.2
The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns, set it on His head, and dressed Him in a purple robe.
John's mock coronation contributes to the Gospel's sustained presentation of Jesus' contested but true kingship.
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 twisted together 2× Mark 15:17, John 19:2
they twisted together 1× Matthew 27:29
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 27:29 πλέξαντες to they twisted together Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural Mark 15:17 πλέξαντες to twisted together Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural John 19:2 πλέξαντες to twisted together Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 27:29
Aligned rows 3
Books represented 3
Matthew 1 Mark 1 John 1
Source forms
πλέξαντες 3x plexantes Matthew 27:29, Mark 15:17, John 19:2
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural 3x Matthew 27:29, Mark 15:17, John 19:2
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Keep attention on the Gospel's explicit mock-coronation scene and Jesus' true kingship. Treat proposed botanical or symbolic details as uncertain unless the text establishes them.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that πλέκω means crown, curse, or atonement. It means to weave or twist; the surrounding narrative supplies the theological meaning.
- Do not claim certainty about the thorn plant, crown shape, or number of wounds. The Gospels do not provide those details.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. to twine or braid
Strong's G4120
Lexical occurrences 3 verses Greek text appearances 3 times Word forms 1 form 3 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
to twine or braid
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
3 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 27:29 Verb Aorist Active Participle Nominative Plural Masculine
πλέξαντες plexantev
I weave together, plait
Read verse Mark 15:17 Verb Aorist Active Participle Nominative Plural Masculine
πλέξαντες plexantev
I weave together, plait
Read verse John 19:2 Verb Aorist Active Participle Nominative Plural Masculine
πλέξαντες plexantev
I weave together, plait
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 1 Aligned forms 3 Tenses Aorist Voices Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 3×
Aorist Active Matt 27:29 · Mark 15:17 · John 19:2 3×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 3 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist 3
Voice
active 3
Mood
participle 3
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
πλέκω is a primary word - no further derivation.
For the Preacher and Teacher
The thorn crown did not appear accidentally. Soldiers took time to twist it together, place it on Jesus, add a robe, and perform mocking homage. πλέκω highlights the crafted nature of the humiliation. Human beings use creativity and symbols of authority to degrade the One who possesses true authority. Yet the Gospel does not let the mockers define Him. John's passion narrative keeps returning to kingship, testimony, and the innocence of Jesus.
The church should see both the ugliness of contempt and the patient majesty of the Son. Preaching must resist sensational speculation and instead call people to bow before the true King, reject dehumanizing mockery, and follow His cruciform way of authority.
Anchor passage
John.19.2
Doctrinal connections
- John 18:33-38 - Jesus and Pilate on kingship and truth
- John 19:1-16 - mock coronation and contested kingship
- Matthew 27:27-31 - soldiers mock the King
- Philippians 2:5-11 - humiliation and exaltation
The verb describes the manual act of intertwining material. It does not by itself identify the plant, shape, or symbolic meaning of the crown.
From Old to New Testament
Thorns recall the fallen creation and royal suffering themes may echo the Psalms, but the secure claim is the Gospel's explicit scene of mock kingship, not a hidden meaning in the verb.
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