Word Study for G4130 (πλήθω) | Strong's Concordance

plḗthō /pleh'-o/ Ask about this word

Meaninga prolonged form of a primary (which appears only as an alternate in certain tenses and in the reduplicated form pimplemi); to "fill" (literally or figuratively (imbue, influence, supply)); specially, to fulfil (time)

KJV usageaccomplish, full (…come), furnish.

Word Study

In depth

A plain-language study of plḗthō — the range of meaning it carries, how Scripture actually uses it, and where it points. Written for readers who don’t know the original language.

Core Meaning & Semantic Range

The Greek word plḗthō, represented by G4130, is a versatile term defined as to "fill" or to "fulfil (time)". It is a prolonged form of a primary verb and appears 27 times across 24 unique verses in the Bible. Its meaning extends from the literal act of filling a container to the figurative sense of being imbued with an emotion or a spiritual influence, and also to mark the completion of a period of time.

Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis

In the biblical narrative, G4130 is used in several key contexts. It most notably describes a divine empowerment, where individuals are filled with the Holy Ghost G4151 to equip them for a specific purpose, such as speaking in other tongues Acts 2:4 or speaking the word of God with boldness Acts 4:31. The word is also used to describe being overcome by intense emotions. These can be negative, such as when the high priest and Sadducees were filled with indignation G2205 Acts 5:17 or when the synagogue was filled with wrath G2372 Luke 4:28. In other instances, it describes being filled with wonder G2285 and amazement G1611 Acts 3:10. Finally, it signifies completion, as when the days were accomplished for Jesus's circumcision Luke 2:21 or for Mary to be delivered Luke 2:6.

Related Words & Concepts

Several related words highlight the context in which G4130 is used:

G4151 pneûma (spirit, Ghost): As the divine agent of filling, the Holy Ghost is central to the most significant uses of G4130. For example, the disciples were filled with the Holy Ghost G4151 and began to speak with other tongues Acts 2:4.
G2205 zēlos (indignation, envy): This term often describes the source of hostile emotion that fills individuals in opposition to God's work. The Jews were filled with envy G2205 and began contradicting and blaspheming what Paul said Acts 13:45.
G2372 thymós (wrath): This word denotes a passionate, intense anger. Those in the synagogue were filled with wrath G2372 after hearing Jesus's words Luke 4:28.
G5401 phóbos (fear): This term for fear or alarm is used to describe the awe-filled reaction to a miracle. After a great catch of fish, onlookers were filled with fear G5401 and glorified God Luke 5:26.

Theological Significance

The theological weight of G4130 is demonstrated in its various applications:

Divine Empowerment: Being filled with the Holy Ghost is consistently linked to supernatural equipping for ministry. This act empowers individuals for specific tasks such as prophesying Luke 1:67, speaking God's word with boldness G3954 Acts 4:31, and receiving divine insight Acts 13:9.
Human Reaction to the Divine: The term captures the powerful and often polarizing effect of divine truth. People are filled with either wonder G2285 and fear G5401 (Acts 3:10, Luke 5:26), or with negative reactions like wrath G2372, madness G454, and envy G2205 when confronted with the works and words of Jesus and his followers (Luke 4:28, Luke 6:11, Acts 13:45).
Fulfillment of God's Timeline: When used to mean accomplished, the word underscores the concept of divinely appointed timing. The births of both John the Baptist and Jesus occur after a period of time is fulfilled or accomplished, signifying that these critical salvation events happened according to God's predetermined plan (Luke 1:23, Luke 1:57, Luke 2:6).

Summary

In summary, G4130 moves beyond its simple literal meaning to convey profound spiritual realities. It illustrates a state of being completely pervaded by a force, whether it is the divine power of the Holy Spirit equipping believers for service, a visceral human emotion in response to God's work, or the completion of an appointed time in God's redemptive history. The word powerfully captures moments of divine intervention, human reaction, and chronological fulfillment.

How the KJV Renders It

Translation

Strong’s lists the renderings but not their weight. These are counted from the King James text of the tagged verses — the bar under each is how often the translators actually reached for it. Select one to filter the occurrences below.

Grammatical Forms

Morphology

In the Greek New Testament, this word appears as a verb and an adjective across 25 occurrences, inflected in 9 grammatical forms — each row is one form, and the bar is how often it is that form.

Aorist Passive Indicative 3rd Plural 12×
Aorist Passive Indicative 3rd Singular 5×
Aorist Passive Participle Nominative Singular Masculine 2×
Accusative Singular Masculine 1×
Aorist Active Indicative 3rd Plural 1×
Aorist Active Participle Nominative Singular Masculine 1×
Aorist Passive Infinitive 1×
Aorist Passive Subjunctive 2nd Singular 1×
Future Passive Indicative 3rd Singular 1×

Nominative: The subject of the verb.
Accusative: The direct object of the verb.
Singular: One.
Plural: More than one.
Masculine: Masculine grammatical gender.
2nd: Second person — the one addressed ("you").
3rd: Third person — the one spoken about ("he"/"they").
Future: Action yet to take place.
Aorist: Action viewed as a single whole — usually a simple past event.
Active: The subject performs the action.
Passive: The subject is acted upon.
Indicative: A plain statement of fact.
Subjunctive: Possibility or purpose — "might", "should".
Infinitive: The verb as a noun — "to do".
Participle: A verbal adjective — describes while carrying the verb's action.

Related Words

Other entries the study above points to — each one is drawn from a reference it makes. Follow the trail to see how the words connect.

Theographic Context

Context

The people, places, and span of history the verses containing this word touch on — drawn from the theographic tagging of Scripture. Select any name to isolate its verses in the occurrence list.

Biblical Distribution

Distribution

Appears in 24 verses across 4 of the 27 books. Most frequent in Luke (12 verses); never once in the other 23.

Matthew

Luke

John

Acts

Every Occurrence

Concordance

Every verse where the word is tagged in the King James text. Filter by book, by the English word the translators chose, or search within the verses.

Sources. Definition and numbering: James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890). Morphology: STEPBible / Tyndale House (CC BY). Verse tagging: the King James text keyed to Strong’s numbers. Every count on this page is computed from the tagged corpus, not estimated.