Greek word · G1069

γείτων

geitōn

neighbour

A neighbour: someone living in the same street, quarter or village. In the New Testament it appears only in Luke's parables of the lost sheep and lost coin (Luke 14:12; 15:6, 9) and here.

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

γείτων, -ονος, ὁ, ἡ

(γῆ), [in LXX chiefly for שָׁכֵן ;]

a neighbour: Luke 14:12 15:6, 9 John 9:8.†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of John 9:8

Range of meaning

A neighbour: someone living in the same street, quarter or village. In the New Testament it appears only in Luke's parables of the lost sheep and lost coin (Luke 14:12; 15:6, 9) and here.

Against the English

"Neighbours" is accurate. In a crowded ancient city quarter, though, neighbours knew a great deal about each other's families and history, much more than many modern neighbours do.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in classical and Koine Greek. In Luke 15 the neighbours are the community called together to share joy, which shows how public neighbourhood life was.

Where it appears

Luke · 3

  1. Luke 14:12 γείτονας neighbours

    Then Jesus said to the man who had invited Him, “When you host a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or brothers or relatives or rich neighbors. Otherwise, they may invite you in return, and you will be repaid.

    Here: People who live nearby, literal neighbours. Unlike the other three groups it has no article and no 'your', and it is qualified by 'rich'.

  2. Luke 15:6 γείτονας neighbours

    comes home, and calls together his friends and neighbors to tell them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my lost sheep!’

    Here: The people living next to him. In a village these were the people who shared his work, his fortunes and his reputation. The same pair, neighbors with kin or friends, "rejoiced with" Elizabeth in Luke 1:58.

  3. Luke 15:9 γείτονας neighbours

    And when she finds it, she calls together her friends and neighbors to say, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my lost coin.’

    Here: 'Neighbours'. The noun has one form for men and women, but here the feminine article makes it the women next door, who shared walls, courtyards and daily work with her.

John · 1

  1. John 9:8 γείτονες neighbours

    At this, his neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging began to ask, “Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?”

    Here: The people who lived beside him and knew his family. They are the first to testify, and in a village or city quarter they are the ones who would know who he was.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.