πληθύνω
plēthunō
to multiply
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredPleasingly, the Greek word πληθύνω (plēthunō) implies a fundamental aspect of growth and expansion. At its core, plēthunō signifies multiplication, which encompasses various forms of increase: numerical growth, flourishing, and proliferation. This multiplicative process is explicitly tied to the realm of Creation & Nature, suggesting its connection to the natural world and the ways in which living things expand and thrive. In the context of its twelve occurrences within the Bible, plēthunō is utilized to convey a sense of abundance and multiplication in various contexts. It could refer to physical growth, such as the multiplication of grain or livestock (e.g., Numbers 14:41, 1 Kings 4:20), as well as metaphorical growth, such as the spread of knowledge (e.g., Psalms 90:10) or the increase of God's people (e.g., Exodus 1:7). This range of usage indicates that plēthunō encompasses a broader spectrum of growth and increase that extends beyond mere numerical multiplication.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
12 total occurrences across the text
Because iniquity will be multiplied, the love of many will grow cold.
Acts 6:7The word of God increased and the number of the disciples greatly multiplied in Jerusalem. A great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Acts 7:17“But as the time of the promise came close which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,
Acts 9:31So the assemblies throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace, and were built up. They were multiplied, walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 12:24But the word of God grew and multiplied.
2 Corinthians 9:10Now may he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness,
Hebrews 6:14saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.”
Hebrews 6:14saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.”
Acts 6:1Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, a complaint arose from the Hellenists against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily service.
1 Peter 1:2according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with his blood: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
2 Peter 1:2Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
Jude 1:2Mercy to you and peace and love be multiplied.