Greek word · G994

βοάω

boaō

to cry out

To shout, cry aloud, call out with a raised voice. It can be a cry for help, a shout of proclamation, or a public appeal. It is about volume and publicity, not tears.

Appears 12 times in 12 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

βοάω, -ῶ

(βοή), [in LXX chiefly for זעק, צעק, קרא ;]

1. absol., to cry, call out: Matthew 3:3, 27:46, Mark 1:3 15:34, Luke 3:4 9:38 18:38, John 1:23, Acts 8:7 17:6 25:24, Galatians 4:27.

2. C. dative, to call on for help (Heb. זעק על, Hosea 7:14, al.), Luke 18:7.†

SYN.: καλέω, to call, invite, summon; κράζω, to cry, harshly or inarticulately, as animals; κραυγάζω, intensive of κράζω. βοάω expresses emotion, whether joy, fear, etc. (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 1:23

Range of meaning

To shout, cry aloud, call out with a raised voice. It can be a cry for help, a shout of proclamation, or a public appeal. It is about volume and publicity, not tears.

Against the English

KJV and WEB "crying" meant shouting in 1611, but today most readers hear weeping. ESV "crying out" and NIV/BSB "calling" are clearer. NLT "shouting" is closest.

How it drifted

In older English "cry" commonly meant "call out loudly" (as in "town crier"). The sense "shed tears" has since become the main one.

Used elsewhere in the period

Greek Isaiah 40:3 uses boaō, translating Hebrew qara' ("to call, proclaim"). The same Greek verb is used in Isaiah's Greek elsewhere for public proclamation, and in the Gospels for shouting crowds and cries to Jesus (e.g. Mark 15:34).

From the study of Luke 3:4

Range of meaning

To raise the voice loudly: to shout, call out, proclaim aloud. Depending on context it can be a cry for help (Luke 18:7, 38), a cry of pain or joy, or a public proclamation. The stress is on loudness and urgency, not on tears.

Against the English

KJV "crying" was accurate in 1611, when "cry" mainly meant to call out loud (as in a town crier). Today "crying" first means weeping. BSB "calling", NLT "shouting" and similar renderings get the volume back.

How it drifted

In English, "cry" gradually narrowed from "shout" to "weep". The famous KJV phrase has also become an idiom for a lonely, unheeded protest.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Greek Isaiah (LXX) βοάω translates Hebrew qara' ("call, proclaim") in 40:3 and 40:6 ("A voice says, Shout! … What shall I shout?"). In Greek generally it is used for heralds, battle cries and crowds.

From the study of Mark 1:3

Range of meaning

To raise the voice loudly: to shout, call out, cry for help, proclaim. It can be used of people crying to God in distress, but the core idea is volume and urgency, not tears.

Against the English

The KJV's "crying" meant "shouting" in 1611 (compare "town crier"). Today most readers hear "weeping". The BSB and YLT's "calling" and the NLT's "shouting" avoid that.

How it drifted

In English, "cry" has moved toward meaning "weep". Separately, the whole phrase "a voice crying in the wilderness" became an idiom for a lone, ignored warning.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Greek Isaiah 40:3 uses it for the Hebrew qore' ("one calling out"). Elsewhere in the Greek Old Testament it is used for loud cries to God (e.g. Exod 8:12 of Moses, Judg 10:10). In the New Testament it is used of loud public shouting (Acts 17:6; 25:24).

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 3:3 βοῶντος of one crying

    This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’”

    Here: “Of one shouting.” This is loud public calling, like a herald or town crier. It does not mean weeping. The present tense pictures the shouting as ongoing.

Mark · 2

  1. Mark 1:3 βοῶντος of one crying

    “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’”

    Here: "Of one shouting": a present participle for someone calling out at full volume, as a herald or crier does. It means a loud public call, not weeping.

  2. Mark 15:34 ἐβόησεν cried out

    At the ninth hour, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

    Here: A loud, forceful shout, often a cry for help. It is told as one single outburst. The only other place Mark uses this verb is 1:3, 'a voice of one crying out in the wilderness'.

Luke · 4

  1. Luke 3:4 βοῶντος of one crying

    as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.

    Here: "Of one shouting": a loud public call like a herald's, not weeping. The present participle pictures the shout still going on.

  2. Luke 9:38 ἐβόησεν cried

    Suddenly a man in the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my only child.

  3. Luke 18:7 βοώντων crying out

    Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He delay in helping them?

    Here: A present participle, so the crying goes on. This is a loud appeal for help, the cry of the oppressed that God hears in Exodus (2:23; 22:23). It is not quiet devotional prayer.

  4. Luke 18:38 ἐβόησεν he called out

    So he called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

John · 1

  1. John 1:23 βοῶντος crying

    John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet: “I am a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”

    Here: A present participle, "of one who is shouting." It is the loud cry of a herald or someone calling out in public, not weeping. The present tense pictures the shouting as going on now.

Acts · 3

  1. Acts 8:7 βοῶντα crying

    With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed.

    Here: A present participle in the neuter form, so it goes with "spirits": the spirits shout as they leave. βοάω means a loud cry or outcry, the kind of shout that carries.

  2. Acts 17:6 βοῶντες crying out

    But when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have now come here,

    Here: Loud shouting, the noise of a mob pressing an accusation. The ongoing tense suggests continuous yelling, not a calm statement to the court.

  3. Acts 25:24 βοῶντες crying [that]

    Then Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are present with us, you see this man. The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him, both here and in Jerusalem, crying out that he ought not to live any longer.

Galatians · 1

  1. Galatians 4:27 βόησον do call aloud

    For it is written: “Rejoice, O barren woman, who bears no children; break forth and cry aloud, you who have never travailed; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband.”

    Here: Shout at full voice. Together with the previous verb it pictures uncontainable jubilation that everyone can hear.

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