What does πτέρυξ (ptéryx) mean in the Bible?
Pteryx names a wing. Jesus' lament over Jerusalem compares His desire to gather its children with a hen gathering chicks under her wings, while explicitly naming their unwillingness.
Greek · G4420
πτέρυξ
Pteryx names a wing. Jesus' lament over Jerusalem compares His desire to gather its children with a hen gathering chicks under her wings, while explicitly naming their unwillingness.
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πτέρυξG4420
Pronunciationptéryx
What does πτέρυξ (ptéryx) mean in the Bible?
Reader summary
Full entry for πτέρυξ (G4420) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4420?
The BSB source-word alignment has 5 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include wings (5).
Where does πτέρυξ (ptéryx) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 23:37. Its strongest book concentrations include Revelation (3), Luke (1), Matthew (1).
What This Word Actually Means
Pteryx names a wing. Jesus' lament over Jerusalem compares His desire to gather its children with a hen gathering chicks under her wings, while explicitly naming their unwillingness. Revelation describes wings in several visions: the living creatures around God's throne, the sound of locust-like creatures in the fifth trumpet and the eagle wings given to the woman for flight to her nourished wilderness place.
These descriptions do not make every wing a symbol of the same protection or power. A lamenting invitation, throne worship, frightening judgment imagery and escape from pursuit retain different actions and participants. The noun neither turns God into a bird nor lets a religious leader claim ownership of people under a supposed covering. Readers can attend to Jesus' desire to gather and God's provision in Revelation while preserving the seriousness of refusal, judgment and ongoing conflict rather than promising immediate freedom from every danger.
How the Bible Uses It
Five direct BSB wing witnesses occur in Jesus' hen-and-chicks lament and Revelation's throne creatures, trumpet locusts and eagle-wing flight of the pursued woman.
- Matt.23.37
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
The hen's wings illustrate Jesus' desire to gather Jerusalem's children within a lament that also names the killing of prophets and unwillingness.
- Luke.13.34
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
Jesus' gathering desire is spoken during His determined journey despite Herod's threat, preserving lament rather than a blanket ethnic accusation.
- Rev.4.8
And each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around and within. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”
The creatures' six wings appear within their unceasing declaration of God's holiness and worship around His throne.
- Rev.9.9
They also had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the roar of many horses and chariots rushing into battle.
The wings' roar is compared to horses and chariots within the fifth-trumpet vision, not a description of identified modern equipment.
- Rev.12.14
But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle to fly from the presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.
The woman receives eagle wings to escape the serpent toward the wilderness place where she is nourished, within continuing conflict.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Itwings5×Matthew 23:37, Luke 13:34, Revelation 4:8, Revelation 9:9
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 23:37πτέρυγαςtowingsNoun - Accusative Feminine PluralLuke 13:34πτέρυγαςtowingsNoun - Accusative Feminine PluralRevelation 4:8πτέρυγαςtowingsNoun - Accusative Feminine PluralRevelation 9:9πτερύγωνtowingsNoun - Genitive Feminine PluralRevelation 12:14πτέρυγεςtowingsNoun - Nominative Feminine Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowMatthew 23:37
Aligned rows5
Books represented3
Matthew1Luke1Revelation3
Source forms
πτέρυγας3xpterygasMatthew 23:37, Luke 13:34, Revelation 4:8
πτέρυγες1xpterygesRevelation 12:14
πτερύγων1xpterygōnRevelation 9:9
Parsing patterns
Noun - Accusative Feminine Plural3xMatthew 23:37, Luke 13:34, Revelation 4:8
Noun - Genitive Feminine Plural1xRevelation 9:9
Noun - Nominative Feminine Plural1xRevelation 12:14
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Provide practical refuge with transparent accountability and respect for personal agency.
- Offer protection hope without promising immediate escape from every threatening situation.
Avoid claiming...
- This noun does not identify contemporary machines, nations or a universal prophetic code.
- No human covering claim may replace God or justify coercive control.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Wing as protective covering or gathering place, especially in Jesus's lament over Jerusalem.
Strong'sG4420
Lexical occurrences5 versesGreek text appearances5 timesWord forms3 forms5 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Study linkLuke 13:31-35Source Gloss
a wing
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
5 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 23:37Noun Accusative Plural Feminine
πτέρυγας,pterugav
a wing
Read verseLuke 13:34Noun Accusative Plural Feminine
πτέρυγας,pterugav
a wing
Read verseRevelation 4:8Noun Accusative Plural Feminine
πτέρυγαςpterugav
a wing
Read verseRevelation 9:9Noun Genitive Plural Feminine
πτερύγωνpterugwn
a wing
Read verseRevelation 12:14Noun Nominative Plural Feminine
πτέρυγεςpterugev
a wing
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 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 forms5Case patternAccusative (3)Number patternPlural (5)
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Nominative · Plural · FeminineRev 12:141×
Genitive · Plural · FeminineRev 9:91×
Accusative · Plural · FeminineMatt 23:37 · Luke 13:34 · Rev 4:83×
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
Metaphorical wings of protective gathering, as a hen gathers chicks
Literal wings of a bird in flight, illustrating swift departure of riches
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 5 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
πτέρυξ is built from this root:
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
Jesus' hen comparison gives the lament an image of gathering care without removing the city's unwillingness from the sentence. Matthew places it after warnings about rejected messengers, and Luke places it beside Jesus' resolve to continue despite a threat. That context calls for truthful lament and patient attention rather than contempt toward an entire people.
Revelation's wings serve other scenes. The throne creatures declare God's holiness, the locust-like creatures belong to frightening judgment imagery and the woman receives wings for flight to a place of nourishment. Even the flight does not erase the remaining conflict narrated at the chapter's end. Biblical refuge can strengthen hope without becoming a guarantee of immediate safety or an authorization for human control.
Psalm 91's refuge language and Exodus' eagle-wing deliverance direct dependence toward the Lord. A teacher or institution can provide accountable practical shelter while refusing to present itself as the divine source of protection or to demand submission in exchange for care.
Anchor passage
Matt.23.37
Doctrinal connections
- Jesus expresses a repeated desire to gather Jerusalem's children despite stated unwillingness.
- The lament retains the seriousness of violence against God's sent messengers.
- Revelation's winged throne creatures declare the holiness of the Lord God Almighty.
- The fifth-trumpet wing sound belongs to Revelation's stated judgment imagery.
- The pursued woman receives wings and reaches a place where she is nourished.
- Exodus' eagle-wing deliverance leads Israel toward the Lord who brought them out.
The feminine noun occurs in accusative, genitive and nominative plural forms. Numbered wings and sound comparisons describe each vision's creatures; case and wing counts do not identify modern nations, machines or spiritual ranks.
From Old to New Testament
Exodus 19:1-6 portrays the Lord carrying Israel on eagles' wings and bringing them to Himself, while Psalm 91 speaks of refuge under His wings. These source-bound protection images can accompany the Gospel lament and Revelation's flight without equating their participants or promising immunity from suffering.