πλήν

Matthew 11:22 πλὴν But

But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.

Here: A strong 'but' that breaks off and drives home the main point: 'Here is what matters.' After the 'if only' of verse 21, it turns from what Tyre and Sidon would have done to what will actually happen.

Matthew 11:24 πλὴν But

But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

Here: A strong 'but': it cuts across what came before. Whatever Capernaum imagines about itself (v. 23), here is the actual verdict.

Matthew 18:7 πλὴν but

Woe to the world for the causes of sin. These stumbling blocks must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!

Here: A sharp 'but all the same'. Saying the traps are inevitable does not excuse anyone, and this word turns the verse onto personal guilt.

Matthew 26:39 πλὴν Nevertheless

Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

Here: A strong "but" that puts a limit on what came before. It does not cancel the request; it places the request under something greater.

Matthew 26:64 πλὴν But

“You have said it yourself,” Jesus answered. “But I say to all of you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Here: Marks a turn: 'Yes, but here is what you must really hear.' It moves the conversation from the high priest's categories to Jesus' own.

Mark 12:32 πλὴν besides

“Right, Teacher,” the scribe replied. “You have stated correctly that God is One and there is no other but Him,

Here: Means 'except' or 'apart from'. It is the same word the Greek Old Testament uses in Deuteronomy 4:35 and 39: 'there is no other besides him'.

Luke 6:24 Πλὴν But

But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.

Here: A sharp 'but' that marks a turn. After four blessings (6:20–23), Jesus swings to the other side of the ledger. Luke likes this word for strong contrasts.

Luke 6:35 πλὴν But

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.

Here: A strong 'but rather' that turns away from the 'even sinners do that' examples of verses 32–34 and goes back to the command Jesus first gave in verse 27.

Luke 10:11 πλὴν yet

‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off as a testimony against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’

Here: A strong turn: "all the same," "but whatever you do." The refusal does not undo what follows.

Luke 10:14 πλὴν But

But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.

Luke 10:20 πλὴν Yet

Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Here: A strong word for turning a corner: "Even so…" or "Only…". It grants everything Jesus has just said in vv.18–19 about his followers' authority, then moves the weight somewhere else.

Luke 11:41 πλὴν But [of]

But give as alms the things that are within you, and behold, everything will be clean for you.

Here: A strong turn, one of Luke's favourite words: 'instead of all that washing, do this.' It sets the remedy against the problem in verses 39–40, where the outside of the cup is scrubbed while the inside is full of greed.

Luke 12:31 πλὴν But

But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added unto you.

Here: A strong word for contrast, one Luke uses often. It sets this command against v. 29 ("do not seek what you will eat and drink") and v. 30 ("the nations seek after these things"). The sense is "instead of that, do this".

Luke 13:33 πλὴν But

Nevertheless, I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day, for it is not admissible for a prophet to perish outside of Jerusalem.

Here: A strong 'but all the same', and one of Luke's favourite words. It turns from verse 32 (I will go on healing whatever Herod plans) to a second point: yes, I will leave, but not because Herod is driving me away.

Luke 17:1 πλὴν but

Jesus said to His disciples, “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks will come, but woe to the one through whom they come!

Here: A strong 'nevertheless', one of Luke's favourite words. Even though the snares are inevitable, that does not excuse the person who sets one.

Luke 18:8 πλὴν Nevertheless

I tell you, He will promptly carry out justice on their behalf. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?”

Here: A strong turn. God's faithfulness is not in doubt; the open question is on the human side.

Luke 19:27 Πλὴν Furthermore

And these enemies of mine who were unwilling for me to rule over them, bring them here and slay them in front of me.’”

Here: Breaks off from the scene with the servants and turns to the matter still left: 'But as for…'. It marks a sharp change of subject at the climax, not a mild 'furthermore'.

Luke 22:21 πλὴν But

Look! The hand of My betrayer is with Mine on the table.

Luke 22:22 πλὴν but

Indeed, the Son of Man will go as it has been determined, but woe to that man who betrays Him.”

Here: A strong 'nevertheless', a favourite word of Luke's. It stops God's plan from being used as an excuse: the plan stands, and the guilt stands too.

Luke 22:42 πλὴν Yet

“Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done.”

Here: A sharp turn, one of Luke's favourite words: 'Only this…' or 'But above all…'. It sets a limit on the request just made.

Luke 23:28 πλὴν but

But Jesus turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.

Here: A strong "but rather" that turns the attention around. Luke uses this word often, and it is a stronger contrast than an ordinary "but."

Acts 8:1 πλὴν except

And Saul was there, giving approval to Stephen’s death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.

Here: A sharp exception, which Luke holds back until the very end of the sentence.

Acts 15:28 πλὴν except

It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond these essential requirements:

Here: Used with the genitive as 'except'. It introduces the one exception to 'no further burden'.

Acts 20:23 πλὴν except

I only know that in town after town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions await me.

Here: Makes an exception to the previous verse. Paul has just said he does not know what will happen to him in Jerusalem, and "except" brings in the one thing he does know.

Acts 27:22 πλὴν only

But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because you will not experience any loss of life, but only of the ship.

Here: Here a preposition taking the genitive, meaning 'except.' It qualifies 'loss': the only loss will be the ship.

1 Corinthians 11:11 πλὴν However

In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.

Ephesians 5:33 πλὴν However

Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Here: Breaks off the lofty talk of the 'mystery' (v.32) and brings the reader back to the practical bottom line: 'Be that as it may' or 'In any case'. It marks what follows as the essential takeaway.

Philippians 1:18 πλὴν Only

What then is the issue? Just this: that in every way, whether by false motives or true, Christ is preached. And in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

Here: "Only this" or "except that". It narrows everything down to the one thing that counts and sets the rivals' motives aside.

Philippians 3:16 πλὴν Nevertheless

Nevertheless, we must live up to what we have already attained.

Here: Cuts off the discussion and turns to what matters most. Paul has just said that people who think differently will be shown by God (v.15). 'Only' means: whatever is still unsettled, this much is not.

Philippians 4:14 πλὴν But

Nevertheless, you have done well to share in my affliction.

Here: A word that corrects or limits what came just before. After the strong claims of 4:11–13 ("I have learned to be content… I can do all things"), Paul turns: "All the same…" He does not want his independence to sound like he didn't value their gift.

Revelation 2:25 πλὴν But

than to hold fast to what you have until I come.

Here: It points back to verse 24 ("I lay no other burden on you") and sets a limit: no other burden, only this one. It works as both "except" and "only, however."