To repent
μετανοέωStrong’s G3340metanoeō
Appears in 32 verses of the New Testament
In short
A change of mind that turns a life around. John the Baptist and Jesus both opened their preaching with it: "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2, 4:17).
“From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Meaning
Usually translated “do repent”, “repented” and “shall repent”. Open the dictionary entry below for the full range of meaning, with the verses it cites.
How it's translated
- do repent 10
- they repented 4
- you shall repent 3
- to repent 3
- repenting 2
- they have repented 1
- they may repent 1
- they would have repented 1
Word-by-word English from the STEPBible tagged text.
Where it's used most
- Revelation 10
- Luke 9
- Matthew 5
- Acts 5
- Mark 2
- 2 Corinthians 1
6 books in all.
Explore in Scripture
- Matthew 3:2And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
- Matthew 11:20Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not:
- Matthew 11:21Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
- Matthew 12:41The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
- Mark 1:15And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
- Mark 6:12And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
Greek dictionary
μετανοέω metanoeō · to repent
μετα-νοέω, -ῶ [in LXX for נָחַם ni., 1Ki.15:29, Jer.4:28, al. ;] to change one's mind or purpose, hence, to repent; in NT (exc. Luk.17:3-4), of repentance from sin, involving amendment: before ἀπό, Act.8:22; ἔκ, Rev.2:21-22 9:20-21 16:11 (מִן שׁוּב); ἐπί, 2Co.12:21; absol., Mat.3:2 4:17 11:20 12:41, Mrk.1:15 6:12, Luk.11:32 13:3, 5 15:7, 10 16:30 17:3-4, Act.2:38 3:19 17:30 26:20 2:5, 16 2:21 3:3, 19; with inf., Rev.16:9; ἐν σάκκῳ κ. σποδῷ, Mat.11:21, Luk.10:13.† SYN.: μεταμέλομαι, q.v (AS)
From STEPBible’s Greek lexicon (based on Abbott-Smith).
Webster's 1828 Dictionary
How the English word “repent” was understood when the King James Version was still the common Bible of English readers.
RE'PENT, adjective
[Latin repo, to creep.]
Creeping; as a repent root.
All definitions and other forms of “repent”
REPENT', verb intransitive
[Latin re and paeniteo, from paena, pain. Gr. See Pain.]
- To feel pain, sorrow or regret for something done or spoken; as, to repent that we have lost much time in idleness or sensual pleasure; to repent that we have injured or wounded the feelings of a friend.
- To express sorrow for something past.
- To change the mind in consequence of the inconvenience or injury done by past conduct.“Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return” Exodus 13:17
- Applied to the Supreme Being, to change the course of providential dealings. Genesis 6:7Psalms 106:45
- In theology, to sorrow or be pained for sin, as a violation of God's holy law, a dishonor to his character and government, and the foulest ingratitude to a Being of infinite benevolence.“Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish” Luke 13:3
REPENT', verb intransitive
- To remember with sorrow; as, to repent rash words; to repent an injury done to a neighbor; to repent follies and vices. [See Repentance.]
- With the reciprocal pronoun.“No man repented him of his wickedness” Jeremiah 8:6
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.