What does σημαίνω (sēmaínō) mean in the Bible?
σημαίνω (sēmainō) means to indicate, make known by a sign, or signify what is going to occur. In John's Gospel the narrator uses it with unusual precision.
Greek · G4591
σημαίνω
To indicate
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σημαίνω G4591
Pronunciation sēmaínō
What does σημαίνω (sēmaínō) mean in the Bible?
σημαίνω (sēmainō) means to indicate, make known by a sign, or signify what is going to occur. In John's Gospel the narrator uses it with unusual precision.
Reader summary
Full entry for σημαίνω (G4591) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4591?
The BSB source-word alignment has 6 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include to indicate (3), [and] predicted (1), He made it known (1), specifying (1).
Where does σημαίνω (sēmaínō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at John 12:33. Its strongest book concentrations include John (3), Acts (2), Revelation (1).
What This Word Actually Means
σημαίνω (sēmainō) means to indicate, make known by a sign, or signify what is going to occur. In John's Gospel the narrator uses it with unusual precision. Jesus' saying about being lifted up indicates the kind of death He will die. The transfer of Jesus to Roman execution fulfills that prior word because crucifixion, rather than a Jewish form of execution, brings about the indicated death.
In John 21 Jesus' words about Peter's outstretched hands indicate the kind of death by which Peter will glorify God. These are not invitations to uncontrolled symbolism. John supplies the interpretation and ties signification to spoken prediction, narrative fulfillment, death, and discipleship. The verb teaches readers to notice inspired explanations before inventing hidden meanings and to see that both Jesus' death and Peter's costly following remain under the Lord's foreknowledge.
How the Bible Uses It
John uses σημαίνω in narrator-supplied explanations of sayings that indicate a coming manner of death. The verb serves fulfillment and discipleship, not unrestricted allegory.
- John.12.33
He said this to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.
John interprets Jesus' lifted-up saying as an indication of His manner of death, joining crucifixion with the Son drawing people to Himself.
- John.18.32
This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.
Roman custody and execution bring Jesus' earlier word to fulfillment. The legal movement of the trial serves the narrated purpose without excusing its injustice.
- John.21.19
Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.”
Peter's future death is interpreted as a setting in which God will be glorified, and the prediction ends in the present command to follow Jesus.
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 to indicate 3× John 12:33, John 18:32, John 21:19
[and] predicted 1× Acts 11:28
He made it known 1× Revelation 1:1
specifying 1× Acts 25:27
Show sample aligned rows
John 12:33 σημαίνων to to indicate Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular John 18:32 σημαίνων to to indicate Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular John 21:19 σημαίνων to to indicate Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular Acts 11:28 ἐσήμανεν to [and] predicted Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Acts 25:27 σημᾶναι to specifying Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active Revelation 1:1 ἐσήμανεν to He made it known Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row John 12:33
Aligned rows 6
Books represented 3
John 3 Acts 2 Revelation 1
Source forms
σημαίνων 3x sēmainōn John 12:33, John 18:32, John 21:19
ἐσήμανεν 2x esēmanen Acts 11:28, Revelation 1:1
σημᾶναι 1x sēmanai Acts 25:27
Parsing patterns
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular 3x John 12:33, John 18:32, John 21:19
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 2x Acts 11:28, Revelation 1:1
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active 1x Acts 25:27
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Receive the meaning John states before proposing additional symbolic associations.
- Do not use Peter's predicted death to romanticize suffering or predict the path of another disciple.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that σημαίνω means every detail in the passage carries a hidden symbolic code.
- Do not claim that the verb by itself explains every theological dimension of Jesus' or Peter's death.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. to indicate
Strong's G4591
Lexical occurrences 6 verses Greek text appearances 6 times Word forms 3 forms 6 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
to indicate
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
6 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
John 12:33 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
σημαίνων shmainwn
I signify, indicate
Read verse John 18:32 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
σημαίνων shmainwn
I signify, indicate
Read verse John 21:19 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
σημαίνων shmainwn
I signify, indicate
Read verse Acts 11:28 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐσήμανε eshmanen
I signify, indicate
Read verse Acts 25:27 Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
σημᾶναι. shmanai
I signify, indicate
Read verse Revelation 1:1 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐσήμανεν eshmanen
I signify, indicate
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 3 Aligned forms 6 Tenses Present, 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×
Present Active John 12:33 · John 18:32 · John 21:19 3×
Indicative states a fact or reality 2×
Aorist Active Acts 11:28 · Rev 1:1 2×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 1×
Aorist Active Acts 25:27 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 6 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist 3 present 3
Voice
active 6
Mood
participle 3 indicative 2 infinitive 1
NT Occurrences
John 12:33 σημαίνων present active participle participle John 18:32 σημαίνων present active participle participle John 21:19 σημαίνων present active participle participle Acts 11:28 ἐσήμανεν aorist active indicative completed Acts 25:27 σημᾶναι aorist active infinitive infinitive Revelation 1:1 ἐσήμανεν aorist active indicative completed
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
σημαίνω is of uncertain origin - 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.
For the Preacher and Teacher
σημαίνω functions as a guardrail inside John's own storytelling. In John 12, Jesus speaks of being lifted up and drawing all people to Himself. The narrator immediately explains that the saying indicates the kind of death Jesus will die. John 18 returns to that word when Jesus is handed over for Roman crucifixion, showing fulfillment through the grim legal path of the passion.
The verb appears again after the resurrection when Jesus speaks about Peter's future. John identifies the saying as an indication of the death by which Peter will glorify God, then records Jesus' direct command, “Follow Me. ” The theological force comes from the explained relationship among saying, event, fulfillment, and discipleship. Readers do not need to make every nearby detail symbolic.
They need to receive the meaning John gives and see that the crucified and risen Lord knows the path of His witnesses.
Anchor passage
John.12.27-33
Doctrinal connections
- John 3:14-17 - the Son of Man is lifted up for believing life
- John 8:28 - lifting up will disclose Jesus' identity and obedience
- John 12:27-33 - Jesus interprets His approaching death and its saving reach
- John 18:28-19:16 - the trial fulfills Jesus' prior word without excusing human guilt
- John 21:18-22 - Peter's death and present discipleship remain under Jesus' lordship
The verb is related to sign language but does not mean that every object or event is symbolic. It can indicate or make known through a saying or sign. In these Johannine uses, the narrator explicitly supplies the referent: the kind of death in view.
From Old to New Testament
Prophetic signs and enacted words in Israel's Scriptures often point toward events God makes known, but John's uses are governed by Jesus' own sayings and the narrator's explanations. The canonical continuity lies in God indicating and fulfilling His purpose, not in a license to allegorize every narrative detail.
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