Greek word · G2578

κάμπτω

kamptō

to bend/bow

"To bend the knee". It means to kneel in homage, submission or worship. It can mean prayer (Ephesians 3:14), allegiance to a god (Romans 11:4 / 1 Kings 19:18, "knees that have not bowed to Baal"), or a subject's homage to a ruler.

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

What it means

κάμπτω

[in LXX chiefly for כָּרַע, 4Ki.1:13, 2 Chronicles 29:29, Isaiah 45:24 (23), al. ;]

to bend, bow: with accusative of thing(s), γόνυ, τὰ γ.; with dative of person(s), τῇ Βάαλ, Romans 11:4 (LXX); πρὸς τ. πατέρα, Ephesians 3:14; by meton., πᾶν γόνυ for πᾶς, Romans 14:11 (LXX) Philippians 2:10 (cf. ἀνα-, συν-κάμπτω).†

(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 Philippians 2:10

Range of meaning

"To bend the knee". It means to kneel in homage, submission or worship. It can mean prayer (Ephesians 3:14), allegiance to a god (Romans 11:4 / 1 Kings 19:18, "knees that have not bowed to Baal"), or a subject's homage to a ruler.

Against the English

"Bow" in modern English can suggest a polite nod or a stage bow. The Greek describes kneeling: dropping to the ground before a superior.

How it drifted

In modern Western culture, kneeling to rulers has disappeared. "Bow" has become a mild gesture of courtesy.

Used elsewhere in the period

Greek Isaiah 45:23: ὅτι ἐμοὶ κάμψει πᾶν γόνυ ("for to me every knee shall bend"). Paul quotes the same line of God speaking in Romans 14:11. Greek writers often regarded kneeling before human beings as fit only for gods (Herodotus 7.136 on Persian prostration).

From the study of Ephesians 3:14

Range of meaning

Literally "bend the knees": to kneel. In biblical Greek it has two closely related uses: (1) kneeling in prayer, and (2) kneeling in homage to a ruler or deity, as an act of submission and allegiance.

Against the English

"Bow my knees" (KJV, BSB, ESV, NASB) keeps the original image. "Kneel" (NIV) is accurate and plainer. "Fall to my knees and pray" (NLT) adds a dramatic "fall" that is not in the Greek, though it does catch the intensity.

How it drifted

Kneeling has become a common Christian prayer posture, so readers may take this as ordinary. In Paul's Jewish world the usual posture for prayer was standing (1 Samuel 1:26; Mark 11:25; Luke 18:11, 13). Kneeling was marked: it signalled special earnestness, humility or crisis.

Used elsewhere in the period

Septuagint: Solomon kneels at the temple dedication (1 Kings 8:54); Elijah's 7,000 "have not bent the knee to Baal" (1 Kings 19:18, quoted in Romans 11:4); "to me every knee shall bend" (Isaiah 45:23, used in Romans 14:11 and Philippians 2:10). New Testament prayer while kneeling: Jesus in Gethsemane (Luke 22:41), Stephen (Acts 7:60), Paul with the Ephesian elders (Acts 20:36). Greek writers sometimes treated kneeling before gods as un-Greek or excessive, since it looked like what Persian subjects did before their king.

From the study of Romans 14:11

Range of meaning

'To bend, to bow.' With 'knee' it means to kneel. It was used of kneeling in prayer, kneeling in homage before a king, and kneeling as a sign of defeat and surrender.

Against the English

'Bow' is accurate. Modern readers, though, tend to picture a polite bow from the waist. The image is kneeling, or bending the knee to the ground before a sovereign.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX 1 Kgs 19:18 (the 7,000 who did not bow the knee to Baal, cited by Paul in Rom 11:4) and Isa 45:23. Eph 3:14: 'I bow my knees to the Father.' Kneeling before kings is shown in Assyrian and Persian royal reliefs, where conquered rulers kneel before the throne.

Where it appears

Romans · 2

  1. Romans 11:4 ἔκαμψαν bowed

    And what was the divine reply to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”

    Here: Past tense: "they did not bend". Bending the knee was the body's way of worshipping or swearing loyalty to a god or king.

  2. Romans 14:11 κάμψει will bow

    It is written: “As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before Me; every tongue will confess to God.”

    Here: 'Will bend.' Future tense: the bowing is something still to come. Bending the knee was the bodily act of submission and homage to a sovereign.

Ephesians · 1

  1. Ephesians 3:14 κάμπτω I bow

    ... for this reason I bow my knees before the Father,

    Here: "I bend." The present tense presents the action as happening now, as Paul writes. It brings the reader into the moment of prayer.

Philippians · 1

  1. Philippians 2:10 κάμψῃ may bow

    that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

    Here: "Should bend". The verb describes the whole act of kneeling, viewed as one event. It is in the mood Greek uses after "so that": it states God's intended result. It does not say how or when that happens, or whether people kneel willingly. This is the same verb as Greek Isaiah 45:23 ("to me every knee shall bend").

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