Greek word · G905

βαλλάντιον

ballantion

purse

A bag or pouch, especially one for money. The word covers a coin purse, a drawstring pouch, and in some texts a larger bag.

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated October 31, 2026

What it means

βαλλάντιον (Rec. βαλά-), -ου, ὁ,

[in LXX: Job 14:17 (צְרוֹר), Proverbs 1:14 (כִּיס), Tobit 1:14 8:2, Sirach 18:33 א 2 * ;]

a purse: Luke 10:4 12:33 22:35, 36.†

(AS)

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

Range of meaning: A bag or pouch, especially one for money. The word covers a coin purse, a drawstring pouch, and in some texts a larger bag.
Against the English: KJV/BSB/WEB 'purse' is accurate in older English. But a modern reader often pictures a handbag. ESV's 'moneybag' and NASB's 'money belt' make the money point clearer. 'Money belt' is really closer to the Hebrew/Aramaic pundah (a hollow belt for coins) than to a hanging pouch, but the function is the same.
How it drifted: 'Purse' has narrowed in modern (especially American) English to mean a woman's handbag. The money point gets blurred.
Used elsewhere in the period: LXX Proverbs 1:14 ('let us all have one purse', the robbers' shared money bag); Job 14:17 (LXX). In the New Testament only Luke uses it: 10:4; 12:33 ('make for yourselves purses that do not wear out'); 22:35–36. It is common in Greek writers for a money pouch.

Range of meaning: A money-bag or purse, a pouch for coins carried on the person or kept at home.
Against the English: 'Purses' (BSB, NIV, WEB), 'bags' (KJV, YLT), 'moneybags' (ESV), 'money belts' (NASB 1995). All fine. 'Moneybags' and 'money belts' keep the fact that it holds coins.
Used elsewhere in the period: Only in Luke in the New Testament: 10:4 (the seventy-two sent out with 'no moneybag'); 12:33; 22:35–36 ('when I sent you without moneybag…'; 'now let the one who has a moneybag take it'). Used in Greek literature and the Septuagint (Job 14:17 LXX, 'you sealed up my transgressions in a bag').

Range of meaning: A purse or pouch for money, usually a small bag tied at the neck and carried at the belt or under the clothing.
Against the English: English 'purse' now suggests a handbag. Here it is just a coin-pouch. ESV's 'moneybag' and NASB's 'money belt' make the money point plainer.
How it drifted: In British English 'purse' still means a small money pouch; in American English it has come to mean a handbag carrying many things.
Used elsewhere in the period: In the New Testament the word is found only in Luke (10:4; 12:33; 22:35, 36). It appears in the Septuagint (e.g. Job 14:17; Tobit 8:2 in some witnesses) and in ordinary Greek writing for a money pouch.

Luke · 4

Luke 10:4 βαλλάντιον purse

Carry no purse or bag or sandals. Do not greet anyone along the road.

Here: A small drawstring bag for coins. Not carrying it means no cash: the messengers can't buy food or lodging and must rely on whoever takes them in (v. 7).
Luke 12:33 βαλλάντια purses

Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves with purses that will not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.

Here: A leather or cloth pouch for coins, often worn at the belt. Such bags wore through and spilled their coins; these ones will not.
Luke 22:35 βαλλαντίου purse

Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you out without purse or bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.

Here: A small pouch for coins. Going without one meant carrying no cash to pay one's way.
Luke 22:36 βαλλάντιον a purse

“Now, however,” He told them, “the one with a purse should take it, and likewise a bag; and the one without a sword should sell his cloak and buy one.

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