Greek word · G5022
ταῦρος
tauros
bull
Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
Where it appears
Matthew · 1
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Matthew 22:4 ταῦροί oxen
Again, he sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’
Here: Full-grown bulls, the largest and costliest animals a household could slaughter. Killing several means a feast for a crowd.
Acts · 1
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Acts 14:13 ταύρους oxen
The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates, hoping to offer a sacrifice along with the crowds.
Hebrews · 2
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Hebrews 9:13 ταύρων of bulls
For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that their bodies are clean,
Here: Bulls. On the Day of Atonement a bull was the high priest's offering for himself and his household (Lev 16:11). The pairing "bulls and goats" was also a stock phrase for animal sacrifice as a whole (e.g. Isa 1:11; Ps 50:13 in the Greek).
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Hebrews 10:4 ταύρων of bulls
because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
Here: Bulls, the most costly sacrificial animals. With "goats" it stands for the whole animal-sacrifice system, and the Day of Atonement above all (compare 9:12–13).
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.