Greek word · G1705

ἐμπίμπλημι

empimplēmi

to fill up

To fill something up; with food, to satisfy or feed until full. It can also mean having had your fill of something, including in a negative way: being glutted.

Appears 5 times in 5 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἐμ-πίπλημι

(on ἐμπίμπ-, see LS, see word, Bl., § 6, 8), and ἐμπιπλάω (Acts 14:17), [in LXX chiefly for מָלֵא, שָׂבַע ;]

to fill full, fill up, satisfy: with accusative of person(s) and genitive of thing(s), Luke 1:53, Acts 14:17; pass., Luke 6:25, John 6:12; metaphorically, with genitive of person(s), to take one's fill of: Romans 15:24 (cf. Dan LXX Su 32).†

(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 Luke 1:53

Range of meaning

To fill something up; with food, to satisfy or feed until full. It can also mean having had your fill of something, including in a negative way: being glutted.

Against the English

'Filled' is accurate. English loses Luke's deliberate echo, because the same verb comes back in reverse at 6:25.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX Ps 106:9 (above). Luke 6:25: 'Woe to you who are empeplēsmenoi (filled full) now, for you will hunger.' Acts 14:17: God 'filling your hearts with food and gladness'. John 6:12 uses it of the crowd fed with loaves.

From the study of John 6:12

Range of meaning

To fill up or fill completely. With food it means to eat one's fill or be satisfied. It can also be used for being filled with good things or with an emotion.

Against the English

"Were filled" (KJV, WEB, YLT) and "was full" (BSB) are both accurate. The word means complete satisfaction, not just enough to get by.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX Exod 16:8, 12: in the manna and quail story God promises "in the morning you will be filled with bread." Deut 8:10: "you will eat and be filled, and you will bless the LORD." That verse became the basis of the Jewish grace after meals. Ps 78(77):29; Ruth 2:14 ("she ate and was satisfied and had some left over"). John 6:26 picks the scene up again with a near-synonym (echortasthēte, "you were filled").

From the study of Luke 6:25

Range of meaning

To fill something up. For people, to be satisfied or sated with food. It can also mean having had one's fill, sometimes with a hint of excess. Here it is a perfect passive participle: "having been filled (and remaining full)".

Against the English

BSB, NIV and NASB have "well fed"; KJV, ESV and WEB have "full"; YLT has "have been filled". "Well fed" catches the economic sense, and YLT catches the settled state of the perfect tense. "Full" alone can sound like one satisfying meal.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Septuagint of Deuteronomy, being "filled" with food is the gift of the land (Deut 8:10, "you will eat and be filled, and bless the LORD"). It is also the danger: once filled, Israel forgets God (Deut 6:11–12; 8:12–14; 31:20). Psalm 107:9: he "fills the hungry soul with good things." Luke uses the same verb in Mary's song: "He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty" (Luke 1:53).

Where it appears

Luke · 2

  1. Luke 1:53 ἐνέπλησεν He has filled

    He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.

    Here: "He filled full": eating until you are satisfied. The aorist (a simple past tense) states it as something God has done. Luke uses the same verb in 6:25 for the 'full now' who will go hungry.

  2. Luke 6:25 ἐμπεπλησμένοι filled

    Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.

    Here: "Having been filled up and staying that way": stuffed, sated, with plenty to eat. The perfect tense describes a settled condition, not a single good meal. It is the same verb Mary uses in Luke 1:53: God "has filled the hungry with good things."

John · 1

  1. John 6:12 ἐνεπλήσθησαν they were filled

    And when everyone was full, He said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over, so that nothing will be wasted.”

    Here: "They were filled": they had eaten until they were full, not just taken a token share. The Greek Old Testament uses the same verb when God promises Israel in the wilderness that they "will be filled with bread" (Exod 16:12).

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 14:17 ἐμπιπλῶν filling

    Yet He has not left Himself without testimony to His goodness: He gives you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.”

    Here: 'Filling full' or 'satisfying', another ongoing present participle. The word suggests fullness to the point of being satisfied, not just enough to get by.

Romans · 1

  1. Romans 15:24 ἐμπλησθῶ.¶ I shall be filled.

    I hope to see you on my way to Spain. And after I have enjoyed your company for a while, you can equip me for my journey.

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