What does βασιλεύω (basileúō) mean in the Bible?
Βασιλεύω means to reign or exercise kingly rule. The New Testament applies it to human rulers, hostile powers, believers' exaggerated claims, and the everlasting kingship of Christ.
Greek · G936
βασιλεύω
To rule (literally or figuratively)
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βασιλεύω G936
Pronunciation basileúō
What does βασιλεύω (basileúō) mean in the Bible?
Βασιλεύω means to reign or exercise kingly rule. The New Testament applies it to human rulers, hostile powers, believers' exaggerated claims, and the everlasting kingship of Christ.
Reader summary
Full entry for βασιλεύω (G936) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G936?
The BSB source-word alignment has 21 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include reigned (4), He will reign (2), reign (2), they will reign (2), to rule (2).
Where does βασιλεύω (basileúō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 2:22. Its strongest book concentrations include Revelation (7), Romans (6), 1 Corinthians (3), Luke (3).
Are there verse guides for βασιλεύω (basileúō)?
This entry includes 1 verse guide that explain exact original-language forms in context.
What This Word Actually Means
Βασιλεύω means to reign or exercise kingly rule. The New Testament applies it to human rulers, hostile powers, believers' exaggerated claims, and the everlasting kingship of Christ. Archelaus reigns in Judea and becomes a concrete danger to the child Jesus. Death reigns from Adam to Moses in Paul's account of sin's dominion, while grace later reigns through righteousness to eternal life.
Corinth claims to have begun reigning, and Paul answers with irony that exposes triumphalism detached from apostolic suffering. Above every temporary or hostile reign stands Jesus, David's promised Son, whose kingdom has no end, and the blessed Sovereign who displays His authority in His own time. The verb names rule; the subject, realm, means, and outcome reveal its moral character.
How the Bible Uses It
Βασιλεύω names kingly rule, whether human, hostile, ironic, gracious, or messianic. Scripture directs every reign toward the everlasting kingship of Christ.
- Matt.2.22
But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee,
Archelaus's reign is ordinary political rule marked by inherited Herodian danger, prompting Joseph's divinely guided withdrawal.
- Luke.1.33
And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end!”
Gabriel announces the Davidic Son's everlasting reign over Jacob, fulfilling covenant promise in Jesus.
- Rom.5.14
Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who did not sin in the way that Adam transgressed. He is a pattern of the One to come.
Death's reign describes the dominion unleashed through Adam even before Sinai, preparing Paul's contrast with grace and life in Christ.
- 1Cor.4.8
Already you have all you want. Already you have become rich. Without us, you have become kings. How I wish you really were kings, so that we might be kings with you!
Paul's irony exposes Corinthian claims to spiritual arrival that ignore the cross-shaped weakness of apostolic ministry.
- 1Tim.6.15
Which the blessed and only Sovereign One—the King of kings and Lord of lords—will bring about in His own time.
The only Sovereign will reveal Christ's appearing in His own time, relativizing every earthly authority.
Book contextCanonical parallelPassage 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 reigned 4× Romans 5:14, Romans 5:17, Romans 5:21, Revelation 20:4
He will reign 2× Luke 1:33, Revelation 11:15
reign 2× Romans 5:17, 1 Corinthians 15:25
they will reign 2× Revelation 5:10, Revelation 22:5
to rule 2× Luke 19:14, Luke 19:27
do not let sin reign 1× Romans 6:12
have begun to reign 1× Revelation 11:17
kings 1× 1 Timothy 6:15
might reign 1× Romans 5:21
reigns 1× Revelation 19:6
was reigning in 1× Matthew 2:22
will reign 1× Revelation 20:6
you have become kings 1× 1 Corinthians 4:8
you really were kings 1× 1 Corinthians 4:8
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 2:22 βασιλεύει to was reigning in Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 1:33 βασιλεύσει to He will reign Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Luke 19:14 βασιλεῦσαι to to rule Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active Luke 19:27 βασιλεῦσαι to to rule Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active Romans 5:14 ἐβασίλευσεν to reigned Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Romans 5:17 ἐβασίλευσεν to reigned Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Romans 5:17 βασιλεύσουσιν to reign Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural Romans 5:21 ἐβασίλευσεν to reigned Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular Romans 5:21 βασιλεύσῃ to might reign Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Singular Romans 6:12 βασιλευέτω to do not let sin reign Verb - Present Imperative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 2:22
Aligned rows 21
Books represented 6
Matthew 1 Luke 3 Romans 6 1 Corinthians 3 1 Timothy 1 Revelation 7
Source forms
βασιλεύσουσιν 4x basileusousin Romans 5:17, Revelation 5:10, Revelation 20:6, Revelation 22:5
ἐβασίλευσεν 4x ebasileusen Romans 5:14, Romans 5:17, Romans 5:21, Revelation 19:6
βασιλεῦσαι 2x basileusai Luke 19:14, Luke 19:27
βασιλεύσει 2x basileusei Luke 1:33, Revelation 11:15
ἐβασιλεύσατε 2x ebasileusate 1 Corinthians 4:8
βασιλεύει 1x basileuei Matthew 2:22
βασιλεύειν 1x basileuein 1 Corinthians 15:25
βασιλευέτω 1x basileuetō Romans 6:12
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 4x Romans 5:14, Romans 5:17, Romans 5:21, Revelation 19:6
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 4x Romans 5:17, Revelation 5:10, Revelation 20:6, Revelation 22:5
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural 2x 1 Corinthians 4:8
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Active 2x Luke 19:14, Luke 19:27
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular 2x Luke 1:33, Revelation 11:15
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 2nd Person Singular 1x Revelation 11:17
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural 1x Revelation 20:4
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Singular 1x Romans 5:21
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Distinguish Christ's reign, human government, metaphorical dominion, and ironic claims before combining passages.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not identify any earthly ruler, party, or nation with the unqualified reign of Christ.
- Do not use believers' future reign to promise present domination, wealth, or freedom from suffering.
Key Verse and Form Guides
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To reign or rule with authority; applied to God, Christ, sin, death, and Christians in eschatological contexts.
Source Gloss
to rule (literally or figuratively)
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 21 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 2:22 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Indicative
βασιλεύει basileuei
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Luke 1:33 Verb Third Person Singular Future Active Indicative
βασιλεύσει basileusei
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Luke 19:14 Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
βασιλεῦσαι basileusai
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Luke 19:27 Verb Aorist Active Infinitive
βασιλεῦσαι basileusai
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Romans 5:14 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐβασίλευσεν ebasileusen
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Romans 5:17 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐβασίλευσε ebasileusen
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Romans 5:17 Verb Third Person Plural Future Active Indicative
βασιλεύσουσι basileusousin
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Romans 5:21 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Indicative
ἐβασίλευσεν ebasileusen
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Romans 5:21 Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Active Subjunctive
βασιλεύσῃ basileush
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Romans 6:12 Verb Third Person Singular Present Active Imperative
βασιλευέτω basileuetw
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse 1 Corinthians 4:8 Verb Second Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἐβασιλεύσατε· ebasileusate
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse 1 Corinthians 4:8 Verb Second Person Plural Aorist Active Indicative
ἐβασιλεύσατε, ebasileusate
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse 1 Corinthians 15:25 Verb Present Active Infinitive
βασιλεύειν, basileuein
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse 1 Timothy 6:15 Verb Present Active Participle Genitive Plural Masculine
βασιλευόντων, basileuontwn
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Revelation 5:10 Verb First Person Plural Future Active Indicative
βασιλεύσομεν basileusomen
I rule, reign, reign over
Read verse Revelation 11:15 Verb Third Person Singular Future Active Indicative
βασιλεύσει basileusei
I rule, reign, reign over
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 Aorist, Future, Present Voices Active
Tenses
Voices
Indicative states a fact or reality 15×
Aorist Active Rom 5:14 · Rom 5:17 · Rom 5:21 · Rev 19:6 · 1 Cor 4:8 · Rev 11:17 · Rev 20:4 8×
Present Active Matt 2:22 1×
Infinitive verbal noun — the action in abstract 3×
Aorist Active Luke 19:14 · Luke 19:27 2×
Present Active 1 Cor 15:25 1×
Subjunctive possibility, probability, or purpose 1×
Aorist Active Rom 5:21 1×
Imperative command or strong request 1×
Present Active Rom 6:12 1×
Participle verbal adjective — the action as a modifying quality 1×
Present Active 1 Tim 6:15 1×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 21 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist 11 present 5 future 5
Voice
active 21
Mood
indicative 15 infinitive 3 participle 1 subjunctive 1 imperative 1
NT Occurrences
Matthew 2:22 βασιλεύει present active indicative ongoing Luke 1:33 βασιλεύσει future active indicative prospective Luke 19:14 βασιλεῦσαι aorist active infinitive infinitive Luke 19:27 βασιλεῦσαι aorist active infinitive infinitive Romans 5:14 ἐβασίλευσεν aorist active indicative completed Romans 5:17 ἐβασίλευσεν aorist active indicative completed Romans 5:17 βασιλεύσουσιν future active indicative prospective Romans 5:21 ἐβασίλευσεν aorist active indicative completed Romans 5:21 βασιλεύσῃ aorist active subjunctive subjunctive Romans 6:12 βασιλευέτω present active imperative imperative 1 Corinthians 4:8 ἐβασιλεύσατε aorist active indicative completed 1 Corinthians 4:8 ἐβασιλεύσατε aorist active indicative completed 1 Corinthians 15:25 βασιλεύειν present active infinitive infinitive 1 Timothy 6:15 βασιλευόντων present active participle participle Revelation 5:10 βασιλεύουσιν present active indicative ongoing Revelation 11:15 βασιλεύσει future active indicative prospective Revelation 11:17 ἐβασίλευσας aorist active indicative completed Revelation 19:6 ἐβασίλευσεν aorist active indicative completed Revelation 20:4 ἐβασίλευσαν aorist active indicative completed Revelation 20:6 βασιλεύσουσιν future active indicative prospective Revelation 22:5 βασιλεύσουσιν future active indicative prospective
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.
Biblical Witnesses
Christ's literal reign over all things until subjection of enemies
Metaphorical ingressive sense, Christians beginning to reign or act as kings
God's sovereign rule and dominion proclaimed over all the earth
Showing 3 selected witnesses from 21 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
βασιλεύω is built from this root:
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
Reign language gathers the Bible's conflict of kingdoms without making every ruler equivalent. Human kings exercise temporary authority and may threaten the vulnerable. Death reigns as an enemy power through Adam's trespass. Grace reigns differently, through righteousness and toward eternal life through Jesus Christ. Corinth's premature claim to reign shows how kingdom language can be co-opted for status and ease, while Paul's suffering exposes that distortion.
The angelic promise and apostolic doxology direct hope to Christ's everlasting dominion and God's unrivaled sovereignty. Teachers should therefore resist identifying any nation, leader, or ministry with Christ's kingdom in an absolute way. Believers live under Jesus' present rule, bear witness through cross-shaped faithfulness, and await the public completion of His reign when death is destroyed.
His kingship produces humility, endurance, justice, and worship rather than domination.
Anchor passage
Matt.2.22
Doctrinal connections
- 2 Samuel 7:8-16, the promised everlasting Davidic throne
- Luke 1:26-33, Jesus' unending reign
- Romans 5:12-21, death and grace as contrasting reigns
- 1 Corinthians 4:6-13, premature triumph and apostolic suffering
- 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, Christ reigning until death is destroyed
- Revelation 11:15-17, the kingdom becoming the Lord's and His Christ's
Βασιλεύω is the verb related to βασιλεύς, king, and βασιλεία, kingdom or reign. It can describe holding royal office or exercising dominion metaphorically. The subject and prepositional complements identify the ruler and realm.
From Old to New Testament
Israel's kings fail under covenant, while God promises David an enduring Son. The prophets announce God's coming reign. Jesus inherits that throne, defeats sin and death, and will hand the consummated kingdom to the Father after every enemy is subdued.
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