To extinguish is to put out something burning, and the selected passages also use that action in imagery. Matthew quotes the servant passage saying that a smoldering wick will not be extinguished until justice is led to victory.
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Full entry for σβέννυμι (G4570) · Open the biblical lexicon
To extinguish is to put out something burning, and the selected passages also use that action in imagery. Matthew quotes the servant passage saying that a smoldering wick will not be extinguished until justice is led to victory.
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).
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).
To extinguish is to put out something burning, and the selected passages also use that action in imagery. Matthew quotes the servant passage saying that a smoldering wick will not be extinguished until justice is led to victory. Ephesians describes the shield of faith extinguishing the evil one's flaming arrows within the call to stand firm. First Thessalonians tells believers not to extinguish the Spirit, immediately adding that they should test all things and hold fast to what is good.
The burning or extinguishing image therefore receives its meaning from its object and surrounding argument. It does not turn neighbors into targets of violence or make every claimed prophecy unquestionable. Readers should preserve the servant's stated care, Paul's defensive imagery and the instruction to test without contempt.
A smoldering wick, flaming arrows and the Spirit receive distinct uses of extinguishing language. Matthew's citation, Ephesians' armor argument and Thessalonians' testing instruction govern their meaning.
A bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not extinguish, till He leads justice to victory.
The smoldering wick is not extinguished in the quoted servant description, alongside the bruised reed and the stated movement toward justice.
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
The shield of faith extinguishes the evil one's flaming arrows within the armor call to stand, with prayer following in the paragraph.
Do not extinguish the Spirit.
The instruction not to extinguish the Spirit stands beside warnings against contempt and the explicit command to test and retain what is good.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. Quench literally suppresses fire; metaphorically suppresses the Holy Spirit's influence and work.
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).
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.
I extinguish, suppress
Read verseI extinguish, suppress
Read verseI extinguish, suppress
Read verseI extinguish, suppress
Read verseI extinguish, suppress
Read verseI extinguish, suppress
Read verseI extinguish, suppress
Read verseI 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.
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.
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
How this verb appears across 6 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
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 passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 6 lexical occurrence verses.
σβέννυμι is a primary verb - no further derivation.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
First Thessalonians refuses a false choice between contempt and discernment. Not extinguishing the Spirit and not despising prophecy are followed by testing all things, holding what is good and avoiding evil. A teacher cannot isolate the first instruction to silence questions about a claimed message. Ephesians uses extinguishing differently, as a defensive image within faith, peace and prayer rather than permission to attack human enemies.
Matthew's servant citation adds care that does not crush a bruised reed or extinguish a smoldering wick while justice advances. These are different objects and arguments. The verb's value is in making each action clear, while the surrounding passage tells readers what is resisted, what is preserved and how discernment remains necessary.
1Thess.5.19
The licensed Greek verb describes extinguishing fire and uses that action metaphorically with the Spirit. Its object, negation and immediate argument determine the explanation; a flame gloss cannot independently judge a person or a claimed message.
Isaiah 42:1-4 supplies the servant description explicitly cited in Matthew 12. The unextinguished wick belongs with that servant's care and justice. This direct citation differs from Ephesians' defensive image and does not promise that every faithful person escapes suffering, as Hebrews' continuation makes clear.