Greek word · G5398

φοβερός

phoberos

fearful

Causing fear: terrifying, dreadful, awe-inspiring.

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated October 23, 2026

What it means

φοβερός, -ά, -όν

(φοβέω), [in LXX chiefly for יָרֵא, also for דְּחַל, אָיֹם ;]

fearful, whether act, or pass.;

1. act., = δεινός, causing fear, terrible (LXX): Hebrews 10:27, 31 12:21

2. Pass., = δειλός, feeling fear, timid (cl. in both senses).†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

Range of meaning: Causing fear: terrifying, dreadful, awe-inspiring.
Against the English: KJV "fearful" once meant "causing fear". Today it more often means "afraid". NASB's "terrifying" makes clear that the expectation is frightening, not that the person is merely nervous.
How it drifted: In older English "fearful" commonly meant "dreadful, causing fear". In modern use it usually describes the frightened person ("a fearful child").
Used elsewhere in the period: Hebrews 10:31 ("a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God"). Hebrews 12:21 ("so terrifying was the sight" at Sinai).

Range of meaning: Something that causes fear. Depending on context it ranges from "awe-inspiring" or "formidable" to "terrifying" or "dreadful". It always describes the object that produces the fear, never the person who feels it.
Against the English: KJV, BSB, WEB and ESV have "fearful thing". NIV has "dreadful", NASB "terrifying", and NLT "terrible". The last three make clearer that the thing itself causes fear.
How it drifted: In modern English "fearful" mostly describes a timid or anxious person ("a fearful child"). The older sense, "causing fear", survives only in a few set phrases like this one.
Used elsewhere in the period: The Septuagint (LXX, the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament used by Hebrews) often uses phoberos for Hebrew nora', describing God as "great, mighty and awesome" (Deut 10:17) and the "great and terrible wilderness" (Deut 1:19). Within Hebrews, the word appears only three times: here, in 10:27 ("a fearful expectation of judgment and a fury of fire"), and in 12:21, where the sight at Sinai was "so terrifying" that Moses said "I tremble with fear."

Range of meaning: Causing fear: terrifying, dreadful, awe-inspiring. In Greek it describes things that rightly frighten, such as an army, a wild beast, or a god's presence. In the Greek Old Testament it often describes God and his deeds as 'fearsome' (for example Deut 10:17, 'the great, mighty and fearsome God')
Against the English: KJV and NASB have 'terrible', ESV and NIV 'terrifying', WEB 'fearful'. 'Terrifying' is the clearest for modern readers. 'Fearful' now usually means 'afraid' (fear felt by someone) rather than 'causing fear', so it can mislead a little.
How it drifted: Over time 'fearful' moved from mainly 'causing fear' to mainly 'feeling fear', and 'terrible' moved from 'causing terror' to 'very bad'. Both changes blur the sense in older translations.
Used elsewhere in the period: In the Greek Old Testament it is used for God as 'great and fearsome' (Deut 7:21; 10:17) and for the 'great and fearsome wilderness' (Deut 1:19). In the New Testament it appears only in Hebrews: 10:27 ('a fearful expectation of judgment'), 10:31 ('a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God'), and here.

Hebrews · 3

Hebrews 10:27 φοβερὰ terrifying

but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume all adversaries.

Here: Placed first for emphasis: what is left is *terrifying*. The same word comes back in 10:31 ("a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God") and frames this whole warning.
Hebrews 10:31 φοβερὸν [It is] a fearful thing

It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Here: This word comes first in the Greek for emphasis: "Terrifying is..." It describes something that causes fear, not a person who feels afraid. It picks up the "fearful expectation of judgment" of 10:27.
Hebrews 12:21 φοβερὸν fearful

The sight was so terrifying that even Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”

Here: Something that causes fear, here the overwhelming dread of being near God's holy presence. It comes first in its clause for emphasis. Hebrews uses the same word in 10:27 and 10:31 about facing God's judgment under the new covenant.

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