ἄρτος
artos
bread
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Greek word ἄρτος (artos) is a fundamental term in the biblical lexicon, appearing 99 times in the New Testament. Its short definition is "bread," indicating its primary meaning as a staple food item. As a semantic domain, it falls under "Food & Drink," suggesting its significance in everyday life. The frequency of its occurrence highlights the importance of bread in ancient Greek culture and the biblical narrative. Its range of usage extends from literal references to bread as a food source to figurative uses, such as in the phrase "bread of life" (John 6:35), where it symbolizes spiritual sustenance. This versatility underscores the multifaceted role of bread in the biblical world, encompassing both physical and metaphorical dimensions. The significance of ἄρτος lies in its ability to convey a sense of provision, nourishment, and community. In a culture where bread was a staple food, its presence or absence could symbolize abundance or scarcity, hospitality or rejection. As a biblical concept, it transcends its physical meaning to represent spiritual sustenance, unity, and the presence of God.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
99 total occurrences across the text — showing 50
The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
Matthew 4:4But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.’ ”
Matthew 6:11Give us today our daily bread.
Matthew 7:9Or who is there among you, who, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?
Matthew 12:4how he entered into God’s house, and ate the show bread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for those who were with him, but only for the priests?
Matthew 14:17They told him, “We only have here five loaves and two fish.”
Matthew 14:19He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass; and he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, broke and gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave to the multitudes.
Matthew 14:19He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass; and he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, broke and gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave to the multitudes.
Matthew 15:2“Why do your disciples disobey the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat bread.”
Matthew 15:26But he answered, “It is not appropriate to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
Matthew 15:33The disciples said to him, “Where should we get so many loaves in a deserted place as to satisfy so great a multitude?”
Matthew 15:34Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.”
Matthew 15:36and he took the seven loaves and the fish. He gave thanks and broke them, and gave to the disciples, and the disciples to the multitudes.
Matthew 16:5The disciples came to the other side and had forgotten to take bread.
Matthew 16:7They reasoned among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.”
Matthew 16:8Jesus, perceiving it, said, “Why do you reason among yourselves, you of little faith, ‘because you have brought no bread?’
Matthew 16:9Don’t you yet perceive, neither remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up?
Matthew 16:10Nor the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many baskets you took up?
Matthew 16:11How is it that you don’t perceive that I didn’t speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Matthew 16:12Then they understood that he didn’t tell them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Matthew 26:26As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
Mark 2:26How he entered into God’s house at the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the show bread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and gave also to those who were with him?”
Mark 3:20The multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.
Mark 6:8He commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a staff only: no bread, no wallet, no money in their purse,
Mark 6:36Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages, and buy themselves bread, for they have nothing to eat.”
Mark 6:37But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” They asked him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give them something to eat?”
Mark 6:38He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go see.” When they knew, they said, “Five, and two fish.”
Mark 6:41He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed and broke the loaves, and he gave to his disciples to set before them, and he divided the two fish among them all.
Mark 6:41He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he blessed and broke the loaves, and he gave to his disciples to set before them, and he divided the two fish among them all.
Mark 6:44Those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
Mark 6:52for they hadn’t understood about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
Mark 7:2Now when they saw some of his disciples eating bread with defiled, that is unwashed, hands, they found fault.
Mark 7:5The Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why don’t your disciples walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with unwashed hands?”
Mark 7:27But Jesus said to her, “Let the children be filled first, for it is not appropriate to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
Mark 8:4His disciples answered him, “From where could one satisfy these people with bread here in a deserted place?”
Mark 8:5He asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.”
Mark 8:6He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground, and he took the seven loaves. Having given thanks, he broke them, and gave them to his disciples to serve, and they served the multitude.
Mark 8:14They forgot to take bread; and they didn’t have more than one loaf in the boat with them.
Mark 8:14They forgot to take bread; and they didn’t have more than one loaf in the boat with them.
Mark 8:16They reasoned with one another, saying, “It’s because we have no bread.”
Mark 8:17Jesus, perceiving it, said to them, “Why do you reason that it’s because you have no bread? Don’t you perceive yet, neither understand? Is your heart still hardened?
Mark 8:19When I broke the five loaves among the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They told him, “Twelve.”
Mark 14:22As they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had blessed, he broke it, and gave to them, and said, “Take, eat. This is my body.”
Luke 4:3The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
Luke 4:4Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ”
Luke 6:4how he entered into God’s house, and took and ate the show bread, and gave also to those who were with him, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests alone?”
Luke 7:33For John the Baptizer came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’
Luke 9:3He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey—no staffs, nor wallet, nor bread, nor money. Don’t have two coats each.
Luke 9:13But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we should go and buy food for all these people.”
Luke 9:16He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to the sky, he blessed them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude.