Greek word · G5118

τοσοῦτος

tosoutos

so great

So great, so large, so much; in the plural, so many. It covers both size and number.

Appears 20 times in 18 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

τοσοῦτος, -αύτη, -οῦτο

(Hebrews 7:22) and (elsewhere, as usually in Attic) -οῦτον, correlat. of ὅσος, of quantity, size, number, so great, so much, pl., so many: Matthew 8:10 Luke 7:9, Hebrews 12:1, Revelation 18:7, 16; of time, so long, χρόνος, John 14:9, Hebrews 4:7; pl., Luke 15:29 (ἔτη), John 12:37 21:11, 1 Corinthians 14:10; before ὥστε, Matthew 15:33; absol.: pl., John 6:9, Galatians 3:4; of price, τοσούτου, Acts 5:8; dative, τοσούτῳ κρείττων, Hebrews 1:4; τ. μᾶλλον ὅσῳ, Hebrews 10:25; καθ᾽ ὅσον . . . κατὰ τ., Hebrews 7:22.†

(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 John 12:37

Range of meaning

So great, so large, so much; in the plural, so many. It covers both size and number.

Against the English

English versions all say 'so many', which is the natural plural sense. The Latin Vulgate's tanta signa ('such great signs') keeps the sense of magnitude as well.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in Koine Greek. In John 14:9 it is used of time ('so long a time I have been with you'). The New Testament uses it for amounts and degrees (Matt 8:10, 'such great faith').

From the study of John 6:9

Range of meaning

"So great, so much"; in the plural, "so many."

Against the English

"So many" (KJV, WEB, ESV) keeps it simple. NLT's "this huge crowd" spells out the meaning.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in Koine Greek. Compare Moses' complaint in Num 11:13, 21–22, "where am I to get meat for all these people... would all the fish of the sea be enough?"

Where it appears

Matthew · 3
  1. Matthew 8:10 τοσαύτην so great

    When Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those following Him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.

    Here: “So great”, a word of degree. It is not cut off from what came before: it points back to the specific trust the centurion has just shown, that a word from Jesus is enough even at a distance.

  2. Matthew 15:33 τοσοῦτοι τοσοῦτον;¶ so many, so great?

    The disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could we find enough bread to feed such a large crowd?”

Luke · 2
  1. Luke 7:9 τοσαύτην such great

    When Jesus heard this, He marveled at the centurion. Turning to the crowd following Him, He said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.”

  2. Luke 15:29 τοσαῦτα so many

    But he answered his father, ‘Look, all these years I have served you and never disobeyed a commandment of yours. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.

    Here: Stresses how long it has gone on: 'so many years', as if he has been keeping count.

John · 4
  1. John 6:9 τοσούτους; so many?

    “Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish. But what difference will these make among so many?”

    Here: Masculine plural, meaning "so many people." It looks ahead to v. 10, where about five thousand men sit down.

  2. John 12:37 Τοσαῦτα So many

    Although Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still did not believe in Him.

    Here: Placed first for emphasis. It can mean 'so many' (number) or 'such great' (size), and here it carries both: many signs, and large ones. The whole sentence turns on the weight of this word.

  3. John 14:9 τοσούτῳ So long

    Jesus replied, “Philip, I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

    Here: It is placed first for emphasis: 'All this time!' The length of time spent together is what makes Philip's request so surprising.

  4. John 21:11 τοσούτων so many

    So Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many, the net was not torn.

    Here: 'So many', referring back to the 153 large fish and stressing the strain on the net.

Acts · 2
  1. Acts 5:8 τοσούτου τοσούτου. for so much, for so much.

    “Tell me,” said Peter, “is this the price you and your husband got for the land?” “Yes,” she answered, “that is the price.”

1 Corinthians · 1
  1. 1 Corinthians 14:10 τοσαῦτα, So many

    Assuredly, there are many different languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning.

    Here: 'So many.' It describes a huge but uncounted number. Paired with εἰ τύχοι it means roughly 'ever so many' or 'who knows how many.'

Galatians · 1
  1. Galatians 3:4 τοσαῦτα So many things

    Have you suffered so much for nothing, if it really was for nothing?

Hebrews · 5
  1. Hebrews 1:4 τοσούτῳ By so much

    So He became as far superior to the angels as the name He has inherited is excellent beyond theirs.

    Here: 'By so much', the first half of a matched pair with hosō ('by as much as'). It measures the size of the gap: the Son's rank above the angels is exactly as large as the gap between their name and his.

  2. Hebrews 4:7 τοσοῦτον so long

    God again designated a certain day as “Today,” when a long time later He spoke through David as was just stated: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”

    Here: 'So long a time.' It stresses how big the gap is between the wilderness and Joshua on one side and David on the other.

  3. Hebrews 7:22 τοσοῦτο so much

    Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.

    Here: This answers καθ᾽ ὅσον ('inasmuch as') in 7:20. Because Jesus' priesthood was set up with God's oath and the Levitical one was not, the covenant he guarantees is better by the same margin. BSB's 'Because of this oath' spells out what 'so much' points back to.

  4. Hebrews 10:25 τοσούτῳ so much

    Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have made a habit, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

    Here: First half of a 'by so much… by as much as' pair: the urgency grows in proportion to the nearness of the Day.

  5. Hebrews 12:1 τοσοῦτον such a great

    Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off every encumbrance and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with endurance the race set out for us.

    Here: 'Such a great', 'so vast'. It describes the cloud, pointing to how many witnesses chapter 11 has just listed and implied (11:32: 'time would fail me to tell...').

Revelation · 2
  1. Revelation 18:7 τοσοῦτον so much

    As much as she has glorified herself and lived in luxury, give her the same measure of torment and grief. In her heart she says, ‘I sit as queen; I am not a widow and will never see grief.’

    Here: The matching half of the measure: exactly that much. The punishment is sized to the offence.

  2. Revelation 18:17 τοσοῦτος so great

    For in a single hour such fabulous wealth has been destroyed!” Every shipmaster, passenger, and sailor, and all who make their living from the sea, will stand at a distance

    Here: "So vast," an amazed exclamation. The mourners can hardly believe that wealth on such a scale could vanish so fast.

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