Greek word · G1195

δεσμεύω

desmeuō

to bind

To bind or tie up: bundling sheaves, tying a pack, binding a prisoner (Acts 22:4).

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated November 01, 2026

What it means

δεσμεύω

(δεσμός), [in LXX for אָסַר (Judges 16:11, al.), אָלַם pi. (Genesis 37:7, al.), etc. ;]

1. to put in chains: Luke 8:29, Acts 22:4.

2. to bind, tie together: φορτία, Matthew 23:4.†

(AS)

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

Range of meaning: To bind or tie up: bundling sheaves, tying a pack, binding a prisoner (Acts 22:4).
Against the English: "Tie up" (BSB, NIV, ESV) and "bind" (KJV, WEB) are both accurate. YLT's "bind together" catches the bundling idea.
Used elsewhere in the period: LXX Genesis 37:7, Joseph's dream: "we were binding (edesmeuomen) sheaves." Also used in Judges 16:11 for binding Samson. It is related to deō ("bind"), the verb in Matthew's "binding and loosing" sayings (16:19; 18:18). Those sayings reflect Jewish legal language for forbidding ("binding") and permitting ("loosing").

Range of meaning: To tie, bind, put in bonds. It is used for tying up objects as well as people.
Against the English: KJV, WEB, YLT and ESV have "binding", which keeps the picture. BSB "detaining" and NIV and NLT "arresting" give the legal outcome but drop the ropes and chains.
How it drifted: Modern policing words suggest a procedure. The Greek describes the physical act.
Used elsewhere in the period: Rare in the New Testament: Matthew 23:4 (tying up heavy loads), Luke 8:29 (the man bound with chains) and here. In the Septuagint it is used for binding sheaves (Genesis 37:7). Verse 5 uses the related verb deō for the prisoners brought back "bound".

Matthew · 1

Matthew 23:4 δεσμεύουσιν They tie up

They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.

Here: To tie things together into a bundle, the way sheaves or a porter's pack are tied before being carried. The present tense describes what they habitually do: tying up load after load.

Luke · 1

Luke 8:29 ἐδεσμεύετο he was shackled

For Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had seized him, and though he was bound with chains and shackles, he had broken the chains and been driven by the demon into solitary places.

Acts · 1

Acts 22:4 δεσμεύων binding

I persecuted this Way even to the death, detaining both men and women and throwing them into prison,

Here: To tie up with cords or chains, a physical act done to a body. The present participle pictures it happening again and again, one person after another.

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