καλέω
kaleō
to call: call
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Greek word καλέω (kaleō) is a verb that means "to call." It is used 140 times in the Bible, indicating its importance in the text. The primary meaning of καλέω is to summon or invite someone to come, often with a sense of authority or urgency. The range of usage for καλέω is broad, encompassing various contexts such as calling someone's name, summoning a person to a specific task or location, and even calling out to God in prayer. Its significance lies in its role as a means of communication, connection, and relationship-building. In many cases, καλέω is used to convey a sense of importance, urgency, or even divine invitation. The frequency and versatility of καλέω in the Bible suggest its importance in the narrative and theological themes. It is used in various contexts, from everyday interactions to spiritual and mystical experiences, highlighting its significance as a fundamental aspect of human communication and connection.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
140 total occurrences across the text — showing 50
She shall give birth to a son. You shall name him Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins.”
Matthew 1:23“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall give birth to a son. They shall call his name Immanuel;” which is, being interpreted, “God with us.”
Matthew 1:25and didn’t know her sexually until she had given birth to her firstborn son. He named him Jesus.
Matthew 2:7Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared.
Matthew 2:15and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Matthew 2:23and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets that he will be called a Nazarene.
Matthew 4:21Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them.
Matthew 5:9Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.
Matthew 5:19Whoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Matthew 5:19Whoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Matthew 9:13But you go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Matthew 20:8When evening had come, the lord of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.’
Matthew 21:13He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers!”
Matthew 22:3and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.
Matthew 22:3and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.
Matthew 22:4Again he sent out other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner. My cattle and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding feast!” ’
Matthew 22:8“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited weren’t worthy.
Matthew 22:9Go therefore to the intersections of the highways, and as many as you may find, invite to the wedding feast.’
Matthew 22:43He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call him Lord, saying,
Matthew 22:45“If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?”
Matthew 23:7the salutations in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi, Rabbi’ by men.
Matthew 23:8But don’t you be called ‘Rabbi,’ for one is your teacher, the Christ, and all of you are brothers.
Matthew 23:9Call no man on the earth your father, for one is your Father, he who is in heaven.
Matthew 23:10Neither be called masters, for one is your master, the Christ.
Matthew 25:14“For it is like a man, going into another country, who called his own servants, and entrusted his goods to them.
Matthew 27:8Therefore that field was called “The Field of Blood” to this day.
Mark 1:20Immediately he called them, and they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went after him.
Mark 2:17When Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Mark 3:31His mother and his brothers came, and standing outside, they sent to him, calling him.
Mark 11:17He taught, saying to them, “Isn’t it written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations?’ But you have made it a den of robbers!”
Luke 1:13But the angel said to him, “Don’t be afraid, Zacharias, because your request has been heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.
Luke 1:31Behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and shall name him ‘Jesus.’
Luke 1:32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,
Luke 1:35The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born from you will be called the Son of God.
Luke 1:36Behold, Elizabeth your relative also has conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.
Luke 1:59On the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
Luke 1:60His mother answered, “Not so; but he will be called John.”
Luke 1:61They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.”
Luke 1:62They made signs to his father, what he would have him called.
Luke 1:76And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways,
Luke 2:4Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to David’s city, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David;
Luke 2:23(as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”),
Luke 5:32I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Luke 6:15Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus; Simon, who was called the Zealot;
Luke 6:46“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do the things which I say?
Luke 7:11Soon afterwards, he went to a city called Nain. Many of his disciples, along with a great multitude, went with him.
Luke 19:29When he came near to Bethsphage and Bethany, at the mountain that is called Olivet, he sent two of his disciples,
Luke 7:39Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “This man, if he were a prophet, would have perceived who and what kind of woman this is who touches him, that she is a sinner.”
Luke 8:2and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary who was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out;
Luke 9:10The apostles, when they had returned, told him what things they had done. He took them and withdrew apart to a desert region of a city called Bethsaida.