Greek word · G30

ἀγγεῖον

angeion

jar

Originally a diminutive (a 'little' form) of angos, 'vessel'. It means any container: jar, pot, flask, bucket. Greek papyri use it for everyday containers.

Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἀγγεῖον, -ου, τό

(ἄγγος), [in LXX chiefly for כְּלִי ;]

a vessel (see MM, VGT, see word): Matthew 25:4.†

(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 Matthew 25:4

Range of meaning

Originally a diminutive (a 'little' form) of angos, 'vessel'. It means any container: jar, pot, flask, bucket. Greek papyri use it for everyday containers.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and YLT say 'vessels', a neutral word. BSB says 'flasks', which pictures a small portable container and fits a night procession.

Used elsewhere in the period

It appears only here in the New Testament, but it is common in Greek generally. A related form, angos, shows up in some manuscripts of Matt 13:48 for the fishermen's containers.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 25:4 ἀγγείοις vessels

    But the wise ones took oil in flasks along with their lamps.

    Here: A general word for a container. Here it means a small flask or jar for carrying oil. This is its only appearance in the New Testament.

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