Firstborn
πρωτότοκοςStrong’s G4416prōtotokos
Appears in 9 verses of the New Testament
In short
Prōtotokos is the Greek word usually translated “firstborn”. It appears in 9 verses of the New Testament.
“And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.”
Meaning
Usually translated “firstborn”. Open the dictionary entry below for the full range of meaning, with the verses it cites.
How it's translated
- firstborn 8
- of firstborn 1
Word-by-word English from the STEPBible tagged text.
Where it's used most
- Hebrews 3
- Colossians 2
- Matthew 1
- Luke 1
- Romans 1
- Revelation 1
6 books in all.
Explore in Scripture
- Luke 2:7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
- Romans 8:29For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
- Colossians 1:15Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
- Colossians 1:18And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
- Hebrews 1:6And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.
- Hebrews 11:28Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.
Greek dictionary
πρωτότοκος prōtotokos · firstborn
πρωτότοκος, -ον (πρῶτος, τίκτω) [in LXX chiefly for בְּכוֹר ;] first-born: Luk.2:7; pl., Heb.11:28. Metaphorical, of the priority of Christ (originally perh. a Messianic title, cf. Psa.89:28, Heb.1:6; see ICC on Col.1:15): Heb.1:6; π. πάσης κτίσεως, Col.1:15; ἐν πολλοῖς ἀδελφοῖς, Rom.8:29; π. (ἐκ) τ. νεκρῶν, Col.1:18, Rev.1:5; pl., of the elect, ἐκκλησία πρωτοτόκων, Heb.12:23.† (AS)
From STEPBible’s Greek lexicon (based on Abbott-Smith).
Webster's 1828 Dictionary
How the English word “firstborn” was understood when the King James Version was still the common Bible of English readers.
FIRST'-BORN, adjective
- First brought forth; first in the order of nativity; eldest; as the first-born son.
- Most excellent; most distinguished or exalted.
All definitions and other forms of “firstborn”
FIRST'-BORN, noun
The eldest child; the first in the order of birth.
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.