What does αὐξάνω (auxánō) mean in the Bible?
Αὐξάνω means to grow, increase, enlarge, or cause growth. Jesus points to lilies growing under the Father's providence and to seed that rises and multiplies in good soil.
Greek · G837
αὐξάνω
To grow
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αὐξάνω G837
Pronunciation auxánō
What does αὐξάνω (auxánō) mean in the Bible?
Αὐξάνω means to grow, increase, enlarge, or cause growth. Jesus points to lilies growing under the Father's providence and to seed that rises and multiplies in good soil.
Reader summary
Full entry for αὐξάνω (G837) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G837?
The BSB source-word alignment has 23 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include continued to spread (3), grow (3), grew (2), growing (2), [and] grows (1).
Where does αὐξάνω (auxánō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 6:28. Its strongest book concentrations include Acts (4), Luke (4), Colossians (3), 1 Corinthians (2).
What This Word Actually Means
Αὐξάνω means to grow, increase, enlarge, or cause growth. Jesus points to lilies growing under the Father's providence and to seed that rises and multiplies in good soil. Luke uses it for John maturing physically and becoming strong in spirit before public ministry. John the Baptist says Jesus must increase while he must decrease, naming the fitting shift of attention as the Messiah's ministry comes forward.
Acts says God's word increases and disciples multiply, describing gospel advance through proclamation and Spirit-given fruit. Growth is not automatically healthy or measurable by size alone. The subject, source, direction, fruit, and God-appointed season determine whether increase means maturation, multiplication, influence, or providential development.
How the Bible Uses It
Αὐξάνω describes growth given or sustained beyond mere human control. Flowers, seed, a maturing prophet, Christ's public prominence, and gospel advance reveal distinct patterns of increase.
- Matt.6.28
And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin.
Lilies grow without managing textile production, and their beauty directs anxious disciples toward the Father's provision rather than passive neglect of responsibility.
- Mark.4.8
Still other seed fell on good soil, where it sprouted, grew up, and produced a crop—one bearing thirtyfold, another sixtyfold, and another a hundredfold.”
Seed in good soil grows and bears varied abundance, placing increase within Jesus' account of hearing, receiving, and fruitfulness.
- Luke.1.80
And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until the time of his public appearance to Israel.
John's growth includes bodily maturation and spiritual strengthening during a hidden season before his appointed appearance to Israel.
- John.3.30
He must increase; I must decrease.
The Baptist welcomes Jesus' increase and his own decrease because the bridegroom and heaven-sent Son rightly hold the central place.
- Acts.6.7
So the word of God continued to spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem grew rapidly, and a great number of priests became obedient to the faith.
The word of God increases as disciples multiply and even priests obey the faith, presenting gospel growth through proclamation, service, and divine blessing.
Passage context
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 continued to spread 3× Acts 6:7, Acts 12:24, Acts 19:20
grow 3× Matthew 6:28, Luke 12:27, 2 Peter 3:18
grew 2× Luke 1:80, Luke 2:40
growing 2× Colossians 1:6, Colossians 1:10
[and] grows 1× Ephesians 2:21
grew up 1× Mark 4:8
grow up 1× Ephesians 4:15
grows 1× Colossians 2:19
increase 1× John 3:30
increased 1× Acts 7:17
increases 1× 2 Corinthians 10:15
It grew 1× Luke 13:19
it grows into 1× Matthew 13:32
made [ it ] grow 1× 1 Corinthians 3:6
makes [things] grow 1× 1 Corinthians 3:7
will increase 1× 2 Corinthians 9:10
you may grow up 1× 1 Peter 2:2
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 6:28 αὐξάνουσιν to grow Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Matthew 13:32 αὐξηθῇ to it grows into Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 3rd Person Singular Mark 4:8 αὐξανόμενα to grew up Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Nominative Neuter Plural Luke 1:80 ηὔξανεν to grew Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 2:40 ηὔξανεν to grew Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 12:27 αὐξάνει to grow Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 13:19 ηὔξησεν to It grew Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular John 3:30 αὐξάνειν to increase Verb - Present Infinitive Active Acts 6:7 ηὔξανεν to continued to spread Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Acts 7:17 ηὔξησεν to increased Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 6:28
Aligned rows 23
Books represented 11
Matthew 2 Mark 1 Luke 4 John 1 Acts 4 1 Corinthians 2 2 Corinthians 2 Ephesians 2 Colossians 3 1 Peter 1 2 Peter 1
Source forms
ηὔξανεν 6x ēuxanen Luke 1:80, Luke 2:40, Acts 6:7, Acts 12:24
αὔξει 2x auxei Ephesians 2:21, Colossians 2:19
ηὔξησεν 2x ēuxēsen Luke 13:19, Acts 7:17
αὐξάνει 1x auxanei Luke 12:27
αὐξάνειν 1x auxanein John 3:30
αὐξάνετε 1x auxanete 2 Peter 3:18
αὐξανόμενα 1x auxanomena Mark 4:8
αὐξανομένης 1x auxanomenēs 2 Corinthians 10:15
Parsing patterns
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 6x Luke 1:80, Luke 2:40, Acts 6:7, Acts 12:24
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 3x Luke 12:27, Ephesians 2:21, Colossians 2:19
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 2x Luke 13:19, Acts 7:17
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 1st Person Plural 1x Ephesians 4:15
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 2nd Person Plural 1x 1 Peter 2:2
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Passive - 3rd Person Singular 1x Matthew 13:32
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x 2 Corinthians 9:10
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural 1x 2 Peter 3:18
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Do not treat attendance, revenue, reach, or visibility as self-authenticating growth; ask whether truth, holiness, love, and durable discipleship are increasing.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that αὐξάνω promises uninterrupted visible expansion for every faithful ministry.
- Do not use John's decrease to erase a servant's dignity, voice, safety, or legitimate responsibility.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. Organic increase toward maturity or fullness, whether of plants, persons, communities, or spiritual character.
Strong's G837
Lexical occurrences 21 verses Greek text appearances 22 times 16 shown below Word forms 5 forms 21 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
to grow
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 22 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 6:28 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
αὐξάνει· auxanei
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Matthew 13:32 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Passive Subjunctive
αὐξηθῇ, auxhqh
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Mark 4:8 Verb Present Active Participle Accusative Singular Masculine
αὐξάνοντα, auxanonta
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Luke 1:80 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ηὔξανε huxanen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Luke 2:40 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ηὔξανε, huxanen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Luke 12:27 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
αὐξάνει· auxanei
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Luke 13:19 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ηὔξησε, huxhsen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse John 3:30 Verb Present Active Infinitive
αὐξάνειν, auxanein
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Acts 6:7 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ηὔξανε, huxanen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Acts 7:17 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ηὔξησεν huxhsen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Acts 12:24 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ηὔξανε huxanen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse Acts 19:20 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ηὔξανε huxanen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse 1 Corinthians 3:6 Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ηὔξανεν. huxanen
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse 1 Corinthians 3:7 Verb Present Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine
αὐξάνων auxanwn
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse 2 Corinthians 9:10 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Optative
αὐξήσαι auxhsai
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
Read verse 2 Corinthians 10:15 Verb Present Passive Participle Genitive Singular Feminine
αὐξανομένης auxanomenhv
I cause to increase, become greater, grow
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 5 Aligned forms 21 Tenses Imperfect, Aorist, Present, Future Voices Active, Passive
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 11×
Imperfect Active Luke 1:80 · Luke 2:40 · Acts 6:7 · Acts 12:24 · Acts 19:20 · 1 Cor 3:6 6×
Aorist Active Luke 13:19 · Acts 7:17 2×
Present Active Matt 6:28 · Luke 12:27 2×
Future Active 2 Cor 9:10 1×
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 3×
Aorist Passive Matt 13:32 · 1 Pet 2:2 2×
Aorist Active Eph 4:15 1×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 5×
Present Passive Mark 4:8 · 2 Cor 10:15 · Col 1:6 · Col 1:10 4×
Present Active 1 Cor 3:7 1×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 1×
Present Active John 3:30 1×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Present Active 2 Pet 3:18 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 18 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
present 9 imperfect 4 aorist 4 future 1
Voice
active 14 passive 4
Mood
indicative 10 participle 3 subjunctive 3 imperative 1 infinitive 1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 6:28 αὐξάνουσιν present active indicative ongoing Matthew 13:32 αὐξηθῇ aorist passive subjunctive subjunctive Luke 1:80 ηὔξανε imperfect active indicative background Luke 2:40 ηὔξανεν imperfect active indicative background Luke 12:27 αὐξάνει present active indicative ongoing Luke 13:19 ηὔξησεν aorist active indicative completed John 3:30 αὐξάνειν present active infinitive infinitive Acts 6:7 ηὔξανεν imperfect active indicative background 1 Corinthians 3:6 ηὔξανεν imperfect active indicative background 1 Corinthians 3:7 αὐξάνων present active participle participle 2 Corinthians 9:10 αὐξήσει future active indicative prospective 2 Corinthians 10:15 αὐξανομένης present passive participle participle Ephesians 2:21 αὔξει present active indicative ongoing Ephesians 4:15 αὐξήσωμεν aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Colossians 1:10 αὐξανόμενοι present passive participle participle Colossians 2:19 αὔξει present active indicative ongoing 1 Peter 2:2 αὐξηθῆτε aorist passive subjunctive subjunctive 2 Peter 3:18 αὐξάνετε present active imperative imperative
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 Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Witnesses
Luke 1:80 ηὔξανεν auxánō
Was growing
Luke 2:39–40 ηὔξανεν auxánō
Was growing
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 21 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
αὐξάνω is a primary verb - no further derivation.
For the Preacher and Teacher
Biblical growth is living, dependent, and directed. Lilies grow under providence without anxious self-sufficiency. Seed grows in receptive soil and produces fruit that confirms genuine hearing. John matures in obscurity before the time God appoints, then gladly yields public prominence to Jesus because the Messiah, not the messenger, is the center. Acts describes the word increasing through a church that addresses practical injustice, appoints trustworthy servants, and continues proclamation.
None of these scenes supports growth at any price. God gives life and increase, while servants cultivate, wait, obey, and measure fruit by fidelity to Christ. Churches should welcome numerical and visible growth without sacrificing truth, character, care, or the joyful decrease of personalities before the Lord they announce.
Anchor passage
Matt.6.28
Doctrinal connections
- Matthew 6:25-34, providential growth and freedom from anxiety
- Mark 4:1-20, receptive hearing and fruitful increase
- Luke 1:76-80, hidden preparation of the forerunner
- John 3:22-36, Christ increasing as the bridegroom and Son
- Acts 6:1-7, ordered service and growth of the word
- 1 Corinthians 3:5-9, God giving the increase
Αὐξάνω may be intransitive, something grows, or transitive, someone causes increase. Subjects range from plants and people to the word or a community, so the kind of growth comes from context.
From Old to New Testament
Creation grows by God's blessing, Israel is multiplied by promise, and wisdom compares the righteous to fruitful trees. The New Testament locates mature growth in Christ and His word.
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