Greek word · G944

βάτραχος

batrachos

frog

Frog.

Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

βάτραχος, -ου, ὁ,

[in LXX: Ex 8, Psa.77 (78):45 104 (105):30 (צְכַרִדֵּעַ), Wisdom of Solomon 19:10 * ;]

a frog: Revelation 16:13.†

(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 Revelation 16:13

Range of meaning

Frog.

Against the English

The English is accurate. What modern readers miss is the set of associations frogs carried for an ancient reader.

Used elsewhere in the period

Greek Exodus 8:2–15 uses batrachoi for the second plague on Egypt, which Pharaoh's magicians copied 'by their secret arts' (8:7). Psalm 78:45 and 105:30 (Greek 77:45; 104:30) and Wisdom of Solomon 19:10 recall the same plague. Commentators (e.g. Aune) also point to two other texts. Artemidorus's dream manual (2nd century AD, 2.15) treats frogs as signs of charlatans and impostors. The Zoroastrian Vendidad (14.5) counts frogs among the creatures of the evil spirit, which is suggestive given the Euphrates and the 'kings from the east', but it is less certain that John meant this.

Where it appears

Revelation · 1

  1. Revelation 16:13 βάτραχοι. frogs.

    And I saw three unclean spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet.

    Here: This is the only use in the New Testament. It recalls the frog plague on Pharaoh's Egypt (Exodus 8), the same word the Greek Old Testament uses there. It also carries the ideas of uncleanness, swarming, and noisy, empty croaking.

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