zōē · life

What it means

zōē (ζωή) is a Greek word of the Bible that means “life”.

The true life that God gives.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. Everyday life in this world.
2. What God gives to live with him without end.

From Abbott-Smith (1922) · Thayer (1889)

Word study

Life; in the New Testament, above all the life that God gives, “eternal life”. It is the noun of the verb ζάω, “to live” (G2198).

• “In him was life” John 1:4
• “Eternal life” John 3:16Romans 6:23
• “I am the resurrection and the life” John 11:25John 14:6
• “The tree of life” Revelation 22:2
• “The life was revealed” 1 John 1:2

How we translate it

“Life” 134 times, “living” 1 (“every living thing”, Revelation 16:3). This edition's glossary sets “life” for ζωή; “eternal life” translates ζωὴ αἰώνιος.

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• life ×134
• living ×1

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Matthew×7
• Mark×4
• Luke×5
• John×36
• Acts×8
• Romans×14
• 1 Corinthians×2
• 2 Corinthians×6
• Galatians×1
• Ephesians×1
• Philippians×3
• Colossians×2
• 1 Timothy×4
• 2 Timothy×2
• Titus×2
• Hebrews×2
• James×2
• 1 Peter×2
• 2 Peter×1
• 1 John×13
• Jude×1
• Revelation×17

• Matthew 7:14

  for narrow is the gate and constricted the way that leads to life, and few are those who find it.

• Matthew 18:8

  And if your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter into life maimed or lame than having two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.

• Matthew 18:9

  And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter into life with one eye than having two eyes to be thrown into fiery Gehenna.

• Matthew 19:16

  And look, one man came to him and said, “Teacher, what good thing must I do so that I may have eternal life?”

• Matthew 19:17

  And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is one who is good. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

• Matthew 19:29

  And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.

• Matthew 25:46

  And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

• Mark 9:43

  And if your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter into life maimed than having the two hands to go away into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire.

• Mark 9:45

  And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter into life lame than having the two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.

• Mark 10:17

  And as he was going out on the way, a man ran up and knelt before him and was asking him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

• Mark 10:30

  who will not receive a hundred times as much now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and fields, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.

• Luke 10:25

  And look, a certain expert in the law stood up to test him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

• Luke 12:15

  And he said to them, “Watch out and guard yourselves from all greed, because even when someone has abundance, his life is not from his possessions.”

• Luke 16:25

  But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you received your good things in your life, and Lazarus likewise bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony.

• Luke 18:18

  And a certain ruler asked him, saying, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

• Luke 18:30

  who will not receive back many times as much in this time, and in the age to come, eternal life.”

• John 1:4

  in him was life, and the life was the light of mankind.

• John 3:15

  so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

• John 3:16

  For God loved the world in this way: that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.

• John 3:36

  Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

• John 4:14

  but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty, ever; but the water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

• John 4:36

  the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that the one who sows and the one who reaps may rejoice together.

• John 5:24

  Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes the one who sent me has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

• John 5:26

  For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has also given the Son to have life in himself.

• John 5:29

  and come out, those who have done good to a resurrection of life, and those who have practiced evil to a resurrection of judgment.

• John 5:39

  You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify about me;

• John 5:40

  and you are not willing to come to me so that you may have life.

• John 6:27

  Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that remains to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you; for on him the Father, God, has set his seal.”

• John 6:33

  For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

• John 6:35

  Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty again.

• John 6:40

  For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks at the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

• John 6:47

  Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life.

• John 6:48

  I am the bread of life.

• John 6:51

  I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh, for the life of the world.”

• John 6:53

  So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in yourselves.

• John 6:54

  Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.

• John 6:63

  It is the Spirit that gives life; the flesh is of no use. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

• John 6:68

  Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life,

• John 8:12

  So Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”

• John 10:10

  The thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy. I came so that they may have life and have it in abundance.

And 95 more times.