κλέπτης
kleptēs
thief
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Greek word κλέπτης (kleptēs) is defined as a "thief." This term is used 16 times in the Bible, indicating its significance in the text. As a noun, κλέπτης refers to a person who steals or takes something that doesn't belong to them. The range of usage for κλέπτης is primarily in the context of crime and punishment. It is often used in conjunction with other words like κλοπή (klopē), meaning "theft," to describe the act of stealing. In some cases, κλέπτης is used metaphorically to describe someone who "steals" or takes something in a more abstract sense, such as a person's heart or their faith. The significance of κλέπτης lies in its association with the concept of sin and moral accountability. In the biblical context, thieves are often seen as individuals who have broken the law and are subject to punishment. The use of κλέπτης in the Bible highlights the importance of honesty, integrity, and respect for others' property.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
16 total occurrences across the text
“Don’t lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal;
Matthew 6:20but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves don’t break through and steal;
Matthew 24:43But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
Luke 12:33Sell that which you have, and give gifts to the needy. Make for yourselves purses which don’t grow old, a treasure in the heavens that doesn’t fail, where no thief approaches, neither moth destroys.
Luke 12:39But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what hour the thief was coming, he would have watched, and not allowed his house to be broken into.
John 10:1“Most certainly, I tell you, one who doesn’t enter by the door into the sheep fold, but climbs up some other way, is a thief and a robber.
John 10:8All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them.
John 10:10The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.
John 12:6Now he said this, not because he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and having the money box, used to steal what was put into it.
1 Corinthians 6:10nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor extortionists, will inherit God’s Kingdom.
1 Thessalonians 5:2For you yourselves know well that the day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night.
1 Thessalonians 5:4But you, brothers, aren’t in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief.
1 Peter 4:15For let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or an evil doer, or a meddler in other men’s matters.
2 Peter 3:10But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
Revelation 3:3Remember therefore how you have received and heard. Keep it and repent. If therefore you won’t watch, I will come as a thief, and you won’t know what hour I will come upon you.
Revelation 16:15“Behold, I come like a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his clothes, so that he doesn’t walk naked, and they see his shame.”