What does σκοτία · λαλέω mean in the Bible?
σκοτία · λαλέω is a Greek phrase meaning "what you said in darkness".
Greek · G4653, G2980
ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ εἴπατε
Dimness, obscurity (literally or figuratively) · to speak
Reading a lexicon entry
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Words in this compound — expand to study each participant
σκοτίαG4653dimness, obscurity (literally or figuratively)
Pronunciationskotía
Spiritual blindness or moral ignorance, often contrasted with divine light and truth in John's theology
Open lexicon entry →λαλέωG2980to speak
Pronunciationlaléō
Speaking that emphasizes the act of utterance itself rather than the content or meaning of words
Open lexicon entry →What does ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ εἴπατε (en tē skotia eipate) mean in the Bible?
σκοτία · λαλέω is a Greek phrase meaning "what you said in darkness".
Full entry for ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ εἴπατε (G4653, G2980) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How many biblical occurrences are listed for G4653, G2980?
G4653, G2980 is connected to 17 lexical occurrence verses in the lexicon data.
Evidence Summary
Greek phrase. what you said in darkness
Source Gloss
what you said in darkness
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 forms17Case patternDative (10)Number patternSingular (17)
Nominative · Singular · FeminineJohn 1:5 · John 6:17 · John 12:35 · 1 John 1:5 · 1 John 2:8 · 1 John 2:116×
Genitive · Singular · FeminineJohn 20:11×
Dative · Singular · FeminineMatt 4:16 · Matt 10:27 · Luke 12:3 · John 1:5 · John 8:12 · John 12:35 · John 12:46 · 1 John 2:9 · 1 John 2:1110×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 290 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present144aorist91imperfect25future15perfect15
Voice
active268passive22
Mood
indicative158participle69infinitive44subjunctive10imperative9
NT Occurrences
Matthew 9:18λαλοῦντοςpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 9:33ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMatthew 10:19λαλήσητεaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveMatthew 10:19λαλήσητεaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveMatthew 10:20λαλοῦντεςpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 10:20λαλοῦνpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 12:34λαλεῖνpresent active infinitiveinfinitiveMatthew 12:34λαλεῖpresent active indicativeongoingMatthew 12:36λαλήσουσινfuture active indicativeprospectiveMatthew 12:46λαλοῦντοςpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 12:46λαλῆσαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveMatthew 12:47λαλῆσαιaorist active infinitiveinfinitiveMatthew 13:10λαλεῖςpresent active indicativeongoingMatthew 13:13λαλῶpresent active indicativeongoingMatthew 13:3ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMatthew 13:33ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMatthew 13:34ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMatthew 13:34ἐλάλειimperfect active indicativebackgroundMatthew 14:27ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMatthew 15:31λαλοῦνταςpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 17:5λαλοῦντοςpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 23:1ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMatthew 26:13λαληθήσεταιfuture passive indicativeprospectiveMatthew 26:47λαλοῦντοςpresent active participleparticipleMatthew 28:18ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMark 1:34λαλεῖνpresent active infinitiveinfinitiveMark 2:2ἐλάλειimperfect active indicativebackgroundMark 2:7λαλεῖpresent active indicativeongoingMark 4:33ἐλάλειimperfect active indicativebackgroundMark 4:34ἐλάλειimperfect active indicativebackgroundMark 5:35λαλοῦντοςpresent active participleparticipleMark 5:36λαλούμενονpresent passive participleparticipleMark 6:50ἐλάλησενaorist active indicativecompletedMark 7:35ἐλάλειimperfect active indicativebackgroundMark 7:37λαλεῖνpresent active infinitiveinfinitiveMark 8:32ἐλάλειimperfect active indicativebackgroundMark 11:23λαλεῖpresent active indicativeongoingMark 12:1λαλεῖνpresent active infinitiveinfinitiveMark 13:11λαλήσητεaorist active subjunctivesubjunctiveMark 13:11λαλεῖτεpresent active imperativeimperative+250 more occurrences
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
ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ εἴπατε is built from this root: