προσέχω

Matthew 6:1 Προσέχετε do beware

“Be careful not to perform your righteous acts before men to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

Here: A present-tense command meaning 'keep your mind on this, keep watching'. Matthew uses the same verb for watching out for false prophets (7:15) and the leaven of the Pharisees (16:6). Here the danger is inside the disciple's own religious practice.

Matthew 7:15 Προσέχετε do beware

Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

Here: A present-tense command to the whole group: keep watching, stay on alert, as an ongoing habit rather than a single act. With the following ἀπό it means 'guard yourselves against'.

Matthew 10:17 Προσέχετε do beware

But beware of men, for they will hand you over to their councils and flog you in their synagogues.

Here: A present imperative, so it means 'keep on watching', a constant alertness and not a single warning. Followed by 'from' (apo), it means 'guard yourselves against'.

Matthew 16:6 προσέχετε do beware

“Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

Here: Another ongoing command. With 'from' (apo) after it, it means 'guard yourselves against', keeping steady watch so that something does not get to you.

Matthew 16:11 προσέχετε do beware

How do you not understand that I was not telling you about bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

Matthew 16:12 προσέχειν to beware

Then they understood that He was not telling them to beware of the leaven used in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Here: 'To keep on guard'. The present-tense infinitive describes ongoing watchfulness, not a single act of caution. Paired with 'from' (apo), it means to hold yourself back from something that could get into you.

Luke 12:1 προσέχετε do take heed

In the meantime, a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling one another. Jesus began to speak first to His disciples: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

Here: A present-tense command: 'keep on guarding'. Literally 'hold [the mind] toward'. With 'from' it means stay alert and keep clear of something.

Luke 17:3 προσέχετε do take heed

Watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.

Here: Literally "hold [your mind] toward". A present-tense command in the plural, so it means "all of you, keep watching". It is a standing alertness, not a single glance.

Luke 20:46 προσέχετε do beware

“Beware of the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, and they love the greetings in the marketplaces, the chief seats in the synagogues, and the places of honor at banquets.

Here: A present-tense command: 'keep on guarding yourselves.' Used with apo ('from'), it means watch out for a danger that could rub off on you, as in Luke 12:1, 'guard yourselves from the leaven of the Pharisees.'

Luke 21:34 Προσέχετε do take heed

But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare.

Here: A present imperative, so it means 'keep paying attention' as an ongoing habit, not a single act. Luke uses this verb several times as a warning to watch out (12:1; 17:3; Acts 20:28).

Acts 5:35 προσέχετε do take heed

“Men of Israel,” he said, “consider carefully what you are about to do to these men.

Acts 8:6 προσεῖχον Were giving heed

The crowds all paid close attention to Philip’s message and to the signs they saw him perform.

Acts 8:10 προσεῖχον were giving heed

and all the people, from the least to the greatest, heeded his words and said, “This man is the divine power called the Great Power.”

Acts 8:11 προσεῖχον They were giving heed

They paid close attention to him because he had astounded them for a long time with his sorcery.

Acts 16:14 προσέχειν to attend

Among those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.

Here: "To give heed": the result of the opening. The word means more than hearing. It is attention that turns into acceptance, as when the Samaritans "gave heed" to Philip (Acts 8:6).

Acts 20:28 προσέχετε do take heed

Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.

Here: A present-tense command: keep your mind turned toward this, keep watching. Luke uses this exact form for warnings about danger (Luke 12:1; 17:3; 21:34), so it carries the sense of alertness as well as care.

1 Timothy 1:4 προσέχειν to give heed

or devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculation rather than the stewardship of God’s work, which is by faith.

Here: Literally "to hold [the mind] toward." It means more than glancing at something. It is giving yourself over to it and becoming attached to it. The same verb is used of deacons who are not to be "given to" much wine (3:8) and of people who "devote themselves to" deceiving spirits (4:1). The present tense points to an ongoing preoccupation.

1 Timothy 3:8 προσέχοντας, being given,

Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued or given to much wine or greedy for money.

Here: A present participle meaning 'habitually turning one's mind to'. It describes a settled pattern of being taken up with drink, not a single lapse. The supplied gloss 'to watch out' is another sense of this verb, which doesn't fit here.

1 Timothy 4:1 προσέχοντες giving heed

Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,

Here: "Turning their minds toward, attaching themselves to." This is ongoing devotion: the same verb describes devotion to myths in 1:4 and being given to wine in 3:8. It explains how the departure happens.

1 Timothy 4:13 πρόσεχε do give heed

Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, and to teaching.

Here: A present command: 'keep giving yourself to,' an ongoing habit, not a one-time act. In this letter the same verb describes what the false teachers devote themselves to (myths, 1:4; deceiving spirits, 4:1). Timothy is to give his attention to something else.

Titus 1:14 προσέχοντες giving heed

and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of men who have rejected the truth.

Here: Present participle: an ongoing habit of keeping one's mind on something and following it. The same verb is used of being 'given to much wine' (1 Tim 3:8), so it can mean devotion or even dependence, not just a passing look.

Hebrews 2:1 προσέχειν to give heed

We must pay closer attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.

Here: To turn your mind toward something and keep it there, heeding and holding to it. A present infinitive, so it describes ongoing, sustained attention, not one moment of focus. In Greek seafaring the same verb was also used for bringing a ship in to land.

Hebrews 7:13 προσέσχηκεν has served

He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar.

2 Peter 1:19 προσέχοντες taking heed

We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

Here: Literally 'holding [the mind] toward'. The ongoing participle means steady attention: keeping your eyes on the lamp, not glancing at it once.