To take off (in various senses)
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G520 is a Greek verb for leading or taking someone away and, in Matthew 7, for a way leading toward an outcome. Matthew 27:31 says soldiers led Jesus away to crucify Him after mockery, placing the verb inside coercive custody and state violence.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἀπάγω (G520) · Open the biblical lexicon
G520 is a Greek verb for leading or taking someone away and, in Matthew 7, for a way leading toward an outcome. Matthew 27:31 says soldiers led Jesus away to crucify Him after mockery, placing the verb inside coercive custody and state violence.
The BSB source-word alignment has 15 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include leads (2), led [Him] away (2), They led (2), [and] led astray (1), [and] they will bring [you] (1).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 7:13. Its strongest book concentrations include Matthew (5), Luke (4), Mark (3), Acts (2).
G520 is a Greek verb for leading or taking someone away and, in Matthew 7, for a way leading toward an outcome. Matthew 27:31 says soldiers led Jesus away to crucify Him after mockery, placing the verb inside coercive custody and state violence. Matthew 7:14 speaks of the narrow way that leads to life, where the image concerns a path's destination rather than admiration for difficulty itself.
Luke 13:15 uses ordinary care as Jesus notes that people untie an ox or donkey and lead it to water on the Sabbath. Other passages describe Jesus taken to religious and civil authorities, Paul sending a young informant to a commander for protection, people formerly led toward mute idols, and Simon compelled along the execution route. G520 opens direction, custody, mercy, influence, idolatry, and consequence while refusing to confuse all forms of being led.
G520 describes a person, animal, or path being conducted away from one place and toward another. The movement may be caring, administrative, coercive, deceptive, judicial, or metaphorical, so destination and authority are essential to interpretation.
After they had mocked Him, they removed the robe and put His own clothes back on Him. Then they led Him away to crucify Him.
Roman soldiers end their mockery and lead Jesus away under coercion to be crucified.
But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Jesus contrasts ways by their destinations, naming the constricted way that leads to life.
“You hypocrites!” the Lord replied. “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it to water?
Jesus appeals to ordinary Sabbath mercy when animals are untied and led to needed water.
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. to take off (in various senses)
to lead away: Luk.13:15, Act.23:17 24:7 (R, mg.), 1Co.12:2; esp. of leading to trial (so as law term in Attic), prison and death (MM, VGT, see word): Mat.26:57 27:2, 31, Mrk.14:44, 53 15:16, Luk.21:12 22:66 23:26, Act.12:19; of the direction of a way: Mat.7:13-14 (cf. συν-απ-άγω).
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
Read verseI lead, carry, take away
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 15 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)
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
G520 makes direction morally visible. Jesus is led from arrest through hostile proceedings and mockery toward crucifixion. His willing faithfulness to the Father's saving purpose does not make betrayal, false accusation, humiliation, or state violence morally innocent. Matthew 7 then uses the verb for ways that lead somewhere. The life-giving way is narrow because allegiance to Jesus shapes action, not because needless danger, secrecy, exhaustion, or authoritarian control is inherently holy.
Luke 13 grounds another kind of leading in mercy: even ordinary animal care recognizes the need to reach water. Paul later uses practical authority to escort a young man carrying information about a murder plot. Churches should ask where their teaching, schedules, money, conflict processes, and leaders are conducting people. A community can use spiritual language while leading toward fear or mute loyalties; another can guide toward truth, water, safety, repentance, and life.
The destination does not excuse abusive means, and a respected guide must still be evaluated by Christ's character and fruit.
Matt.27.31
G520 combines a verb of leading with a prefix expressing movement away. It may describe physical escort or removal, legal custody, ordinary guidance, influence toward idols, or a road whose direction reaches a stated end.
Israel's shepherd, exodus, exile, and royal traditions repeatedly evaluate who leads God's people and where. Jesus is both the unjustly led sufferer and the Lord who calls disciples onto the way of life, while apostolic communities practice protective and accountable guidance.