To seek after
ἐπιζητέωStrong’s G1934epizēteō
Appears in 12 verses of the New Testament
In short
Epizēteō is the Greek word usually translated “seek after”, “seeks for” and “seeks”. It appears in 12 verses of the New Testament.
“(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.”
Meaning
Usually translated “seek after”, “seeks for” and “seeks”. Open the dictionary entry below for the full range of meaning, with the verses it cites.
How it's translated
- i seek after 2
- seek after 1
- seeks for 1
- seeks 1
- were sought after 1
- seek for 1
- having sought after 1
- desired 1
Word-by-word English from the STEPBible tagged text.
Where it's used most
- Matthew 3
- Acts 3
- Luke 2
- Hebrews 2
- Romans 1
- Philippians 1
6 books in all.
Explore in Scripture
- Matthew 12:39But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
- Matthew 16:4A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.
- Luke 4:42And when it was day, he departed and went into a desert place: and the people sought him, and came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them.
- Luke 12:30For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.
- Acts 12:19And when Herod had sought for him, and found him not, he examined the keepers, and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judaea to Caesarea, and there abode.
- Acts 13:7Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God.
Greek dictionary
ἐπιζητέω epizēteō · to seek after
ἐπι-ζητέω, -ῶ [in LXX chiefly for דָּרַשׁ, 4Ki.8:8, Isa.62:12, al.; also for בָּקַשׁ, 3Ki.20:1, Ecc.7:28), Hos.3:5; פָּקַד, 4Ki.3:8 ;] "directive" of ζητέω (MM, Exp., xiv), to inquire for, seek after, wish for: with accusative of thing(s), Mat.6:32 12:39 16:4, Luk.12:30, Act.19:39, Rom.11:7, Php.4:17, Heb.11:14 13:14; with accusative of person(s), Luk.4:42, Act.12:19; with inf., Act.13:7.† (AS)
From STEPBible’s Greek lexicon (based on Abbott-Smith).
Webster's 1828 Dictionary
How the English word “seek” was understood when the King James Version was still the common Bible of English readers.
SEEK, verb transitive
pret and participle passive sought, pronounced sawt. [L. sequor, to follow; for to seek is to go after, and the primary sense is to advance, to press, to drive forward, as in the L. peto.]
- To go in searh or quest of; to look for; to search for by going from place to place.
- To inquire for; to ask for; to solicit; to endeavor to find or gain by any means.“The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God” Psalms 104:21“He found no place for repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears” Hebrews 12:17“Others tempting him, sought of him a sign” Luke 11:16
- Seek is followed sometimes by out or after.
- To make search or inquiry; to endeavor to make discovery.“Seek ye out of the book of the Lord” Isaiah 34:16
All definitions
- To endeavor.
Noah Webster, An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828). Verse references are checked against the KJV. Read the full entry.
Verses are from the King James Version. Word meanings come from the original Greek, not from any one translation.