What does σβέννυμι (sbénnymi) mean in the Bible?
σβέννυμι (sbénnymi): Quench literally suppresses fire; metaphorically suppresses the Holy Spirit's influence and work.
Greek · G4570
σβέννυμι
To extinguish (literally or figuratively)
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σβέννυμιG4570
Pronunciationsbénnymi
What does σβέννυμι (sbénnymi) mean in the Bible?
σβέννυμι (sbénnymi): Quench literally suppresses fire; metaphorically suppresses the Holy Spirit's influence and work.
Full entry for σβέννυμι (G4570) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4570?
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include are going out (1), Do not extinguish (1), extinguish (1), He will not extinguish (1), is never quenched (1).
Where does σβέννυμι (sbénnymi) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 12:20. Its strongest book concentrations include Matthew (2), 1 Thessalonians (1), Ephesians (1), Hebrews (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Itare going out1×Matthew 25:8
Do not extinguish1×1 Thessalonians 5:19
extinguish1×Ephesians 6:16
He will not extinguish1×Matthew 12:20
is never quenched1×Mark 9:48
quenched1×Hebrews 11:34
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 12:20σβέσειtoHe will not extinguishVerb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person SingularMatthew 25:8σβέννυνταιtoare going outVerb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person PluralMark 9:48σβέννυταιtois never quenchedVerb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person SingularEphesians 6:16σβέσαιtoextinguishVerb - Aorist Infinitive Active1 Thessalonians 5:19σβέννυτεtoDo not extinguishVerb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person PluralHebrews 11:34ἔσβεσανtoquenchedVerb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowMatthew 12:20
Aligned rows6
Books represented5
Matthew2Mark1Ephesians11 Thessalonians1Hebrews1
Source forms
ἔσβεσαν1xesbesanHebrews 11:34
σβέννυνται1xsbennyntaiMatthew 25:8
σβέννυται1xsbennytaiMark 9:48
σβέννυτε1xsbennyte1 Thessalonians 5:19
σβέσαι1xsbesaiEphesians 6:16
σβέσει1xsbeseiMatthew 12:20
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural1xHebrews 11:34
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active1xEphesians 6:16
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular1xMatthew 12:20
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural1x1 Thessalonians 5:19
Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Plural1xMatthew 25:8
Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular1xMark 9:48
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Quench literally suppresses fire; metaphorically suppresses the Holy Spirit's influence and work.
Strong'sG4570
Lexical occurrences6 versesGreek text appearances8 timesWord forms3 forms6 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Study linkMatthew 12:20Source Gloss
to extinguish (literally or figuratively)
Extended definitionSource: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
Quench literally suppresses fire; metaphorically suppresses the Holy Spirit's influence and work.
of fire or things on fire, to quench: with accusative, Mat.12:20, Eph.6:16, Heb.11:34; pass., Mat.25:8, Mrk.9:48, [44, 46]. Metaphorical (cf. Sng.8:7, 4Ma.16:4): τὸ πνεῦμα, 1Th.5:19. ζβέννυμι, for σβ-, 1Th.5:19 T (see WH, Notes, 148).
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
8 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 12:20Verb Third Person Singular Future Active Indicative
σβέσει·sbesei
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseMatthew 25:8Verb Third Person Plural Present Passive Indicative
σβέννυνται.sbennuntai
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseMark 9:44Verb Third Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
σβέννυται.sbennutai
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseMark 9:46Verb Third Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
σβέννυται.sbennutai
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseMark 9:48Verb Third Person Singular Present Passive Indicative
σβέννυται.sbennutai
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseEphesians 6:16Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
σβέσαι.sbesai
I extinguish, suppress
Read verse1 Thessalonians 5:19Verb Second Person Plural Present Active Imperative
σβέννυτε·sbennute
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseHebrews 11:34Verb Third Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἔσβεσανesbesan
I extinguish, suppress
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 groups3Aligned forms6TensesFuture, Present, AoristVoicesActive, Passive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicativestates a fact or reality4×
Present PassiveMatt 25:8 · Mark 9:482×
Future ActiveMatt 12:201×
Aorist ActiveHeb 11:341×
Infinitiveverbal noun — the action in abstract1×
Aorist ActiveEph 6:161×
Imperativecommand or strong request1×
Present Active1 Thess 5:191×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 6 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present3aorist2future1
Voice
active4passive2
Mood
indicative4imperative1infinitive1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 12:20σβέσειfuture active indicativeprospectiveMatthew 25:8σβέννυνταιpresent passive indicativeongoingMark 9:48σβέννυταιpresent passive indicativeongoingEphesians 6:16σβέσαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitive1 Thessalonians 5:19σβέννυτεpresent active imperativeimperativeHebrews 11:34ἔσβεσανaorist active indicativecompleted
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 Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
extinguish a smoldering wick, literal quenching of fire
extinguish flaming arrows as metaphor for spiritual attacks
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 6 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
σβέννυμι is a primary verb - no further derivation.
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.