ἥλιος
hēlios
sun
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Greek word ἥλιος (hēlios), Strong's number G2246, primarily refers to the sun. Its definition is straightforward, indicating a clear understanding of this natural element in the biblical context. The word's semantic domain of Light & Darkness suggests that the sun is associated with a fundamental aspect of human experience, emphasizing its role in illuminating and regulating the world. The word ἥλιος is used 32 times throughout the Bible, appearing in various contexts, such as describing natural phenomena, symbolizing divine power or presence, and referencing human activities like worship or travel. This frequency and versatility highlight the significance of the sun in the biblical worldview, underscoring its importance in understanding the daily rhythms and experiences of the ancient world. Through its consistent use and broad range of applications, the word ἥλιος communicates a deep connection between the sun, human life, and the divine. This relationship is likely rooted in the sun's life-giving and illuminating properties, which were likely seen as manifestations of divine power and wisdom in the ancient biblical context.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
32 total occurrences across the text
that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.
Matthew 13:6When the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away.
Matthew 13:43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
Matthew 17:2He was changed before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light.
Matthew 24:29But immediately after the suffering of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken;
Mark 1:32At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to him all who were sick, and those who were possessed by demons.
Mark 4:6When the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
Mark 13:24But in those days, after that oppression, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light,
Mark 16:2Very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.
Luke 4:40When the sun was setting, all those who had any sick with various diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.
Luke 21:25There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars; and on the earth anxiety of nations, in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the waves;
Luke 23:45The sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two.
Acts 2:20The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
Acts 13:11Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is on you, and you will be blind, not seeing the sun for a season!” Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him. He went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
Acts 26:13at noon, O king, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me.
Acts 27:20When neither sun nor stars shone on us for many days, and no small storm pressed on us, all hope that we would be saved was now taken away.
1 Corinthians 15:41There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory.
Ephesians 4:26“Be angry, and don’t sin.” Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath,
James 1:11For the sun arises with the scorching wind and withers the grass, and the flower in it falls, and the beauty of its appearance perishes. So the rich man will also fade away in his pursuits.
Revelation 1:16He had seven stars in his right hand. Out of his mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining at its brightest.
Revelation 6:12I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake. The sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became as blood.
Revelation 7:2I saw another angel ascend from the sunrise, having the seal of the living God. He cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was given to harm the earth and the sea,
Revelation 7:16They will never be hungry or thirsty any more. The sun won’t beat on them, nor any heat;
Revelation 8:12The fourth angel sounded, and one third of the sun was struck, and one third of the moon, and one third of the stars; so that one third of them would be darkened, and the day wouldn’t shine for one third of it, and the night in the same way.
Revelation 9:2He opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke from a burning furnace. The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the pit.
Revelation 10:1I saw a mighty angel coming down out of the sky, clothed with a cloud. A rainbow was on his head. His face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire.
Revelation 12:1A great sign was seen in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
Revelation 16:8The fourth poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given to him to scorch men with fire.
Revelation 16:12The sixth poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates. Its water was dried up, that the way might be prepared for the kings that come from the sunrise.
Revelation 19:17I saw an angel standing in the sun. He cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the sky, “Come! Be gathered together to the great supper of God,
Revelation 21:23The city has no need for the sun or moon to shine, for the very glory of God illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb.
Revelation 22:5There will be no night, and they need no lamp light or sun light; for the Lord God will illuminate them. They will reign forever and ever.