Greek word · G4732

στερεόω

stereoō

to strengthen

From στερεός, 'solid, firm, hard' (used of rock, a foundation, solid food). The verb means to make firm or solid, to strengthen so that something holds and bears weight. Figuratively it means to make steadfast or settled.

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

What it means

στερεόω, -ῶ

(στερεός), [in LXX: Isaiah 42:5 (רָקַע), Jeremiah 5:3 (חָזַק pi.), etc. ;]

(a) to make firm or solid;

(b) to strengthen, make strong; with accusative of person(s), Acts 3:16; τ. βάσεις, pass., Acts 3:7. Metaphorical (cf. Je, l.with): τ. πίστει, pass., Acts 16:5.†

(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 Acts 16:5

Range of meaning

From στερεός, 'solid, firm, hard' (used of rock, a foundation, solid food). The verb means to make firm or solid, to strengthen so that something holds and bears weight. Figuratively it means to make steadfast or settled.

Against the English

BSB, WEB, NIV, ESV and NASB say 'strengthened'. KJV and YLT say 'established', which keeps the sense of becoming settled and fixed. 'Strengthened' can sound like an emotional boost. The Greek picture is structural: something becoming solid enough to stand.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the NT it occurs only in Acts (3:7, 16; 16:5). In 3:7 the lame man's 'feet and ankles were made firm (ἐστερεώθησαν)', and in 3:16 Jesus' name 'made this man strong'. The LXX uses it of God 'making firm' the heavens or the earth (e.g. Ps 33[32]:6; 93[92]:1 in some witnesses; 1 Sam 2:1, 'my heart is made firm in the Lord'). Classical and Hellenistic writers use it for making things solid or compact.

From the study of Acts 3:16

Range of meaning

To make firm, solid or strong; to make something hard or stable. Used of physical things and, figuratively, of strengthening communities.

Against the English

'Made strong' (KJV, BSB, WEB) is accurate. The more specific picture is firmness: limbs that could bear weight.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the NT it appears only in Acts: 3:7 ('his feet and ankles were made firm'), 3:16, and 16:5 ('the churches were strengthened in the faith'). In the Septuagint it is used of God making the heavens firm (e.g. Ps 33:6 LXX [32:6]) and of making something steadfast. An older theory (Hobart, 1882) took such words as evidence of Luke's medical vocabulary. Cadbury showed these words were common among educated non-medical writers too, so they are not proof of a doctor's hand.

From the study of Sirach 26:10

Range of meaning

στερεόω: make firm, solid, strong (Acts 3:7 of ankles made strong). φυλακή: the act of guarding, a watch or garrison, custody, a prison. Together they mean 'reinforce the watch, keep the guard tight'.

Against the English

'Keep strict watch' (WEB, NRSV) is accurate. KJV/Brenton's 'keep her in straitly' ('strait' meaning narrow or tight) correctly adds the idea of confining her inside, which fits the culture, though it is slightly more explicit than the Greek.

Used elsewhere in the period

Sirach 42:11 repeats the phrase, and its Hebrew is 'make strong a watch' (ḥazzēq mišmār). 2 Maccabees 3:19 describes Jerusalem's 'virgins who were kept shut in' (κατάκλειστοι) around 175 BC. Philo (Special Laws 3.169) idealises unmarried girls staying in the inner rooms of the house.

Similar words

Where it appears

Acts · 3

  1. Acts 3:7 ἐστερεώθησαν were strengthened

    Taking him by the right hand, Peter helped him up, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong.

  2. Acts 3:16 ἐστερέωσεν has strengthened

    By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know has been made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through Him that has given him this complete healing in your presence.

    Here: 'Made firm.' It echoes v. 7, where his feet and ankles 'were made firm' (same verb). The point is that limbs which could not bear weight were made solid.

  3. Acts 16:5 ἐστερεοῦντο were strengthened

    So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.

    Here: The imperfect passive describes an ongoing process: they 'were being made firm'. The picture is of something solid that can bear weight. Luke uses the same verb for the lame man's feet and ankles in Acts 3:7, 16.

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