OliveGrove
Pressing the Word of God for Deeper Understanding.
Greek · G4171 · unreviewed

πόλεμος

Warfare (literally or figuratively; a single encounter or a series)

These lexicon entries are being actively developed. If you notice missing content, incorrect definitions, or have suggestions, we'd love to hear from you. Share a note on our Connect page and include a screenshot if helpful.

πόλεμος G4171
Pronunciation pólemos

What does πόλεμος (pólemos) mean in the Bible?

πόλεμος (pólemos) is a Greek word meaning "warfare (literally or figuratively; a single encounter or a series)". πόλεμος, -ον, ό [in LXX chiefly for מִלְחָמָה ;] __1.

Full entry for πόλεμος (G4171) · Browse the biblical lexicon

Meaning

warfare (literally or figuratively; a single encounter or a series)
Extended definition

War as organized military conflict, distinct from individual fights or personal quarrels.

1war: Mat.24:6, Mrk.13:7, Luk.14:31 21:9, Heb.11:34; π. ποιεῖν, before μετά, with genitive (cf. πολεμέω), Rev.11:7 12:17 13:7 19:19.
2= μάχη, a fight, battle: 1Co.14:8, Rev.9:7, 9 12:7 16:14 20:8; hyperb., of private quarrels (cf. πολεμέω), Jas.4:1.
Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
Grammatical Forms

How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.

Nominative · Plural · Masculine Jas 4:1 1×
Nominative · Singular · Masculine Rev 12:7 1×
Genitive · Plural · Masculine Matt 24:6 · Mark 13:7 2×
Dative · Singular · Masculine Heb 11:34 1×
Accusative · Singular · Masculine Luke 14:31 · 1 Cor 14:8 · Rev 9:7 · Rev 9:9 · Rev 11:7 · Rev 12:17 · Rev 13:7 · Rev 16:14 · Rev 19:19 · Rev 20:8 10×
Accusative · Plural · Masculine Matt 24:6 · Mark 13:7 · Luke 21:9 3×
18 total occurrences across all forms in the biblical text Morphology: MorphGNT SBLGNT — CC BY-SA 3.0
Biblical Occurrences

Each occurrence shows the passage reference, the original language term as it appears in that context, its transliteration, and the contextual sense.

Biblical Witnesses
Luke 14:25-35 war pólemos Accusative · Singular · Masculine
Military conflict in parable about counting costs before engagement
Jeremiah 49:23-27 war pólemos
Literal warfare and military conflict as divine judgment against nations
Proverbs 20:18 war pólemos
Military strategy and planning essential before entering into actual conflict
Proverbs 21:31 war pólemos
Preparation and readiness for battle under divine providence and sovereignty
Appears In

Compound and idiomatic lexemes in which this word is a constituent. Follow a link to study the phrase and its other participating words.

πόλεμος · ἀκαταστασία G4171, G181
wars and disturbances, revolutions, upheavals
συμβάλλω · ἕτερος · βασιλεύς · πόλεμος G4820, G2087, G935, G4171
to meet/engage another king in war
Word Pictures (Robertson)

A.T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) discusses this term in the following chapters. Open any chapter and go to the Word Pictures tab to read his verse-by-verse commentary.

Luke 21 — The Widow’s Gift, Jerusalem’s Fall, and Watchfulness before the Son of Man Mark 13 — Watch and Endure: Temple Judgment, Gospel Witness, Tribulation, the Son of Man, and Readiness Matthew 24 — The Olivet Discourse: Temple Desolation, Coming Judgment, the Son of Man, and Watchful Readiness

A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (1930–31) — public domain

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

STEPBible Data — CC BY 4.0

Full license details