What does συγχέω (synchéō) mean in the Bible?
Syncheo describes people being confounded, bewildered or thrown into confusion. Acts supplies five local witnesses whose causes differ sharply.
Greek · G4797
συγχέω
Syncheo describes people being confounded, bewildered or thrown into confusion. Acts supplies five local witnesses whose causes differ sharply.
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συγχέωG4797
Pronunciationsynchéō
What does συγχέω (synchéō) mean in the Bible?
Reader summary
Full entry for συγχέω (G4797) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G4797?
The BSB source-word alignment has 5 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include he confounded (1), in bewilderment (1), in turmoil (1), They stirred up (1), was in turmoil (1).
Where does συγχέω (synchéō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Acts 2:6. Its strongest book concentrations include Acts (5).
What This Word Actually Means
Syncheo describes people being confounded, bewildered or thrown into confusion. Acts supplies five local witnesses whose causes differ sharply. At Pentecost, the crowd is bewildered because each hearer recognizes speech in his own language. Saul confounds his Damascus listeners by demonstrating that Jesus is the Christ. The Ephesian assembly, however, becomes a confused crowd in which many people do not know why they have gathered.
In Jerusalem, accusers stir people against Paul on the basis of an assumption, and turmoil accompanies violence against him. The verb cannot make all these situations spiritually equivalent. Surprise at intelligible testimony, a challenged argument and a manipulated crowd need different explanations. Readers should follow the reported facts, test accusations and refuse to make producing confusion or humiliating others a goal of Christian witness.
How the Bible Uses It
All five direct BSB witnesses occur in Acts. They range from bewilderment at understood languages and confounded argument to an uninformed assembly and violent unrest. The narrative identifies causes and participants instead of assigning one moral value to the verb.
- Acts.2.6
And when this sound rang out, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking his own language.
The crowd is bewildered precisely because each person hears his own language; surprising comprehension must remain distinct from unintelligible speech.
- Acts.9.22
But Saul was empowered all the more, and he confounded the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.
Saul's argument demonstrates that Jesus is the Christ; confounding hearers is the reported effect, not a command to pursue humiliation.
- Acts.19.32
Meanwhile the assembly was in turmoil. Some were shouting one thing and some another, and most of them did not even know why they were there.
The assembled crowd lacks a shared account of its purpose, and the clerk later distinguishes evidence, lawful complaint and rash conduct.
- Acts.21.27
When the seven days were almost over, some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him,
Particular accusers stir the crowd and seize Paul; the next verses reveal an assumption about Trophimus rather than verified temple entry.
- Acts.21.31
While they were trying to kill him, the commander of the Roman regiment received a report that all Jerusalem was in turmoil.
The city's turmoil occurs while people try to kill Paul, and the commander acts without yet possessing a reliable account of events.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Ithe confounded1×Acts 9:22
in bewilderment1×Acts 2:6
in turmoil1×Acts 19:32
They stirred up1×Acts 21:27
was in turmoil1×Acts 21:31
Show sample aligned rows
Acts 2:6συνεχύθηtoin bewildermentVerb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person SingularActs 9:22συνέχυννενtohe confoundedVerb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person SingularActs 19:32συγκεχυμένηtoin turmoilVerb - Perfect Participle Middle or Passive - Nominative Feminine SingularActs 21:27συνέχεονtoThey stirred upVerb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person PluralActs 21:31συνχύννεταιtowas in turmoilVerb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowActs 2:6
Aligned rows5
Books represented1
Acts5
Source forms
συγκεχυμένη1xsynkechymenēActs 19:32
συνέχεον1xsynecheonActs 21:27
συνεχύθη1xsynechythēActs 2:6
συνέχυννεν1xsynechynnenActs 9:22
συνχύννεται1xsynchynnetaiActs 21:31
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular1xActs 2:6
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural1xActs 21:27
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular1xActs 9:22
Verb - Perfect Participle Middle or Passive - Nominative Feminine Singular1xActs 19:32
Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Singular1xActs 21:31
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Test an accusation through evidence before repeating it or allowing collective pressure to determine someone's treatment.
- Offer clear explanations to bewildered hearers instead of treating difficulty understanding as proof of a deficient spiritual identity.
Avoid claiming...
- This verb does not teach that deliberately confusing listeners demonstrates God's presence or a teacher's superior authority.
- The Acts episodes provide no warrant to stereotype Jewish people or any other group as inherently prone to violent confusion.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To pour together into confusion; intensified by prefix implying collective disorder or upheaval.
Strong'sG4797
Lexical occurrences5 versesGreek text appearances5 timesWord forms2 forms5 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Source Gloss
to confound
Extended definitionSource: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
To pour together into confusion; intensified by prefix implying collective disorder or upheaval.
(Rec. συγ-), [in LXX for בָּלַל, רָגַז, etc. ;] to pour together, commingle, confuse; metaphorically, confound, throw into confusion, stir up trouble: Act.21:27 (cf. συν-χύννω).
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.
Acts 2:6Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Passive Indicative
συνεχύθη,sunecuqh
I bewilder, stir up
Read verseActs 9:22Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
συνέχυνεsunecunen
I bewilder, stir up
Read verseActs 19:32Verb Perfect Passive Participle Nominative Singular Feminine
συγκεχυμένη,sugkecumenh
I bewilder, stir up
Read verseActs 21:27Verb Third Person Plural Imperfect Active Indicative
συνέχεονsuneceon
I bewilder, stir up
Read verseActs 21:31Verb Third Person Singular Perfect Passive Indicative
συγκέχυταιsugkecutai
I bewilder, stir up
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 groups2Aligned forms5TensesAorist, Imperfect, Perfect, PresentVoicesPassive, Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicativestates a fact or reality4×
Imperfect ActiveActs 9:22 · Acts 21:272×
Aorist PassiveActs 2:61×
Present PassiveActs 21:311×
Participleverbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality1×
Perfect PassiveActs 19:321×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 4 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
imperfect2aorist1present1
Voice
passive2active2
Mood
indicative4
NT 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
συγχέω is built from this root:
For the Preacher and Teacher
The Ephesian assembly in Acts 19 gives a searching picture of confusion sustained by collective pressure. Demetrius has named his trade's interests, a slogan fills the gathering and many participants do not even know why they are there. The city clerk distinguishes an actual complaint from rash conduct and asks for a proper account of events. Acts 21 repeats the danger of accusation without knowledge when people assume that Paul brought Trophimus into the temple.
Pentecost provides a different kind of bewilderment: hearers recognize their own languages and ask what the event means. These differences matter for teaching. The verb calls attention to disrupted understanding, but the narrative establishes whether the disruption arises from surprising testimony or manipulated hostility. Christian witness should offer clear truth and patient explanation, not cultivate confusion as proof of power.
Anchor passage
Acts.19.32
Doctrinal connections
- Pentecost's hearers recognize the mighty works of God being declared in languages they understand.
- Saul's proclamation centers on demonstrating that Jesus is the Christ rather than displaying personal debating superiority.
- The Ephesian disturbance exposes commercial interests threatened by the rejection of man-made gods.
- Paul's temple arrest follows an unverified accusation, showing the danger of collective certainty without knowledge.
- Gospel witnesses can encounter hostile turmoil without adopting the crowd's methods of accusation and violence.
- Acts distinguishes truthful proclamation from a rallying slogan that leaves many hearers unaware of the gathering's purpose.
Syncheo and the related stem noted in the comparator appear in the governed verbal witnesses for confounding or confusing. The local forms include narrated actions and a description of the assembly's state. Their grammatical setting identifies the effect; it does not make confusion a spiritual gift or a uniform moral verdict.
From Old to New Testament
Genesis 11:1-9 narrates the builders' desire to make a name and God's confusion of language that scatters them. Acts 2 presents hearers recognizing their own languages. This comparison supports attention to speech and understanding, but the Greek verb alone cannot establish a complete reversal of Babel or the permanent removal of every language barrier.