Greek word · G3036

λιθοβολέω

lithoboleō

to stone

'To throw stones at, to stone,' either as a formal execution or as mob violence. The word does not tell you which.

Appears 7 times in 7 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated November 01, 2026

What it means

λιθο-βολέω, -ῶ

(λίθος, βάλλω), [in LXX for סָקַל, רָגַם, Exodus 19:13, Leviticus 20:2, al. ;]

to pelt with stones, to kill by stoning, to stone (cf. λιθάζω): with accusative of person(s), Matthew 21:35 23:37, Luke 13:34 Acts 7:58-59 14:5; pass., Hebrews 12:20 (LXX).†

(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 throw stones at, to stone,' either as a formal execution or as mob violence. The word does not tell you which.
Against the English: KJV and ESV have 'stoned him', which sounds like one completed event. The Greek imperfect (a tense for ongoing or beginning action) is better caught by BSB, NIV and NASB ('began to stone') or YLT ('were stoning').
Used elsewhere in the period: Stoning is the Torah penalty for blasphemy (Lev 24:16), idolatry (Deut 17:2–7), Sabbath-breaking (Num 15:35) and other offences. Deut 17:7 says: 'The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people.' Mishnah Sanhedrin 6:3–4 later describes the condemned being pushed from a height by one witness, a stone dropped by the second witness, and then stones from all Israel if needed. That account is from about 200 CE and may be idealized. Josephus (Antiquities 20.200) reports that James, the brother of Jesus, was stoned in 62 CE on the authority of the high priest Ananus while there was no Roman governor in office, and that Ananus was removed from office for it.

Range of meaning: To throw stones at; to put to death by stoning.
Against the English: KJV's 'they stoned' sounds like one completed act. The Greek imperfect is ongoing: 'they were stoning, they kept on stoning.'
Used elsewhere in the period: Septuagint uses it for the legal penalty for blasphemy and idolatry (Lev 24:14–16; Deut 17:2–7). Mishnah Sanhedrin 6:1–4, written down around 200 AD, describes a formal procedure outside the city in which the witnesses act first. Josephus (Antiquities 20.200) reports the stoning of James the brother of Jesus in AD 62, arranged by the high priest while there was no Roman governor in office.

Range of meaning: To throw stones at; to stone, usually with intent to kill. It could be a formal execution or a lynching by a crowd.
Against the English: English 'stone' is accurate. Readers often assume stoning was purely a Jewish legal punishment, but here Gentiles take part and no court is mentioned.
Used elsewhere in the period: In the LXX it is the legal method of execution under the Torah, e.g. for blasphemy and idolatry (Leviticus 20:2; 24:16; Deuteronomy 13:10; 21:21). Greek sources also record crowds stoning people they considered traitors or offenders (e.g. Herodotus 9.5). In the NT: Stephen (Acts 7:58-59), the threat at Iconium (here), the actual stoning at Lystra (14:19), Paul's 'once I was stoned' (2 Corinthians 11:25), and the prophets stoned (Matthew 23:37; Hebrews 11:37).

Matthew · 2

Matthew 21:35 ἐλιθοβόλησαν. they stoned.

But the tenants seized his servants. They beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.

Here: 'They stoned', literally 'threw stones at'. To Jewish hearers this was the Torah's form of execution, and it was linked with the fate of prophets (cf. Matt 23:37). The Greek does not say whether this servant died.
Matthew 23:37 λιθοβολοῦσα stoning

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

Here: Stoning was the Law's penalty for false prophets and those who led people astray (Deuteronomy 13:10). Using it on God's true messengers turns the Law upside down. The word recalls Zechariah son of Jehoiada, stoned in the temple court (2 Chronicles 24:21; mentioned in v. 35).

Luke · 1

Luke 13:34 λιθοβολοῦσα stoning

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

Here: Again present tense, so habitual: 'stoning'. Stoning was the Torah's legal execution for false prophets and blasphemers, so the charge is that Jerusalem treated God's true messengers as criminals.

Acts · 3

Acts 7:58 ἐλιθοβόλουν. they were stoning [him].

They dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.

Here: 'They were stoning [him].' The tense pictures the stoning as going on, or as beginning, not as one finished act. Luke repeats the same form in v. 59 so that Stephen's prayers happen while the stones are still falling.
Acts 7:59 ἐλιθοβόλουν they were stoning

While they were stoning him, Stephen appealed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

Here: The imperfect tense pictures the action as ongoing: 'they kept on stoning.' Stephen's prayer is spoken while the stones are still falling, not after they stop. The verb repeats the word from v. 58, so the stoning frames the whole moment.
Acts 14:5 λιθοβολῆσαι to stone

But when the Gentiles and Jews, together with their rulers, set out to mistreat and stone them,

Here: To pelt them with stones, which could easily kill. The aim was lethal. As the Lystra scene shows (14:19), a mob stoning was meant to kill.

Hebrews · 1

Hebrews 12:20 λιθοβοληθήσεται it will be stoned

For they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.”

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