Greek word · G4721

στέγη

stegē

roof

Roof, covering. By extension, house or shelter.

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

στέγη, -ης, ἡ

(στέγω) [in LXX: Genesis 8:13 (מְכַסֶּה), etc. ;]

a roof: Mark 2:4; of entering a house, εἰσέρχεσθαι ὑπὸ τὴν σ., Matthew 8:8, Luke 7:6 (cf. MM, xxiii).†

(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 Luke 7:6

Range of meaning

Roof, covering. By extension, house or shelter.

Against the English

'Under my roof' carries over well, since English has the same idiom for hospitality.

Used elsewhere in the period

Mark 2:4 (the roof opened to lower the paralysed man). Matt 8:8 has the same phrase. In Gen 19:8 LXX Lot protects his guests because they came 'under the shelter (skepēn) of my roof (dokōn)'.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 8:8 στέγην roof

    The centurion answered, “Lord, I am not worthy to have You come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.

    Here: 'Roof.' The part stands for the whole: my house, my household space.

Mark · 1

  1. Mark 2:4 στέγην roof

    Since they were unable to get to Jesus through the crowd, they uncovered the roof above Him, made an opening, and lowered the paralytic on his mat.

Luke · 1

  1. Luke 7:6 στέγην roof

    So Jesus went with them. But when He was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends with the message: “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy to have You come under my roof.

    Here: The roof stands for the whole house, as in English 'under my roof'. To come under someone's roof meant becoming their guest.

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