ESTUDIO DE LA PALABRA GRIEGA
Poiéō (ποιέω) — Meaning & Usage in the Bible
Poiéō (G4160) is a high-frequency Greek verb meaning 'to make, do, or carry out,' covering creation, action, and the keeping of commands across the New Testament.
Significado de la palabra
Poiéō is one of the most common verbs in the Greek New Testament, with a broad semantic range that the lexicon summarizes as 'to make or do' in a very wide application. It translates the Hebrew עשׂה (asah) in the Septuagint and inherits that same wide scope, covering manufacture, preparation, performance, and the doing of deeds.
With an accusative object, poiéō can mean 'to make, produce, or create' (e.g., Mat.17:4; Mrk.9:5; Jhn.9:11), and is used of God as Creator of persons and things (Mat.19:4; Mrk.10:6; Act.4:24; Heb.1:2). It can also mean 'to get ready, prepare,' as in making a dinner (Mrk.6:21), a feast (Luk.5:29), or a wedding (Mat.22:2).
In a second major sense, poiéō means 'to do, perform, carry out, execute.' It frequently takes a noun that names the action (e.g., νόμον 'the law,' Jhn.7:19; Gal.5:3; ἐντολάς 'commandments,' Mat.5:19; ἔργα 'works,' Jhn.5:36; ἀλήθειαν 'the truth,' Jhn.3:21), so that 'to do righteousness' (Mat.6:1) is a periphrasis for living righteously. It is distinguished from πράσσω by emphasizing the specific act rather than habitual practice.
Uso en las Escrituras
In the Gospels, poiéō covers a striking range: Joseph 'did as the angel of the Lord commanded him' (Mat.1:24), John the Baptist calls the people to 'make ready the way of the Lord, make his paths straight' (Mat.3:3), and Jesus will 'make you fishers of men' (Mat.4:19). The same verse in Mat.7:12 frames the Golden Rule around what men 'should do' to one another, presenting poiéō as the verb of moral action.
Sermon and teaching contexts especially load the verb with ethical weight: 'when thou doest alms' (Mat.6:2, 3), 'do not your righteousness before men' (Mat.6:1), and the warning that whoever marries a divorced woman 'maketh her an adulteress' (Mat.5:32). Readers should note that poiéō can therefore describe both faithful obedience and culpable deeds, depending on the object. The verb also pairs with nouns for time (spending an hour, a month, a year) and with rituals like keeping a feast (Act.18:21) or preparing the Passover (Mat.26:18).
La palabra en detalle
- G4160 Poiéō is a comprehensive verb of action whose sense is determined by its object: it can mean 'create' when the subject is God, 'prepare' when the object is a meal or event, and 'do, perform, keep' when the object is a law, commandment, or moral act. In ethical contexts it is the standard verb for obeying or disobeying, and it is distinguished from πράσσω by focusing on the concrete deed rather than habitual practice.
Versículos de ejemplo
- Matthew 1:24 Joseph 'did as the angel of the Lord commanded him,' illustrating poiéō as the verb of obedient action—doing exactly what was commanded in a single concrete act.
- Matthew 3:3 John's call to 'make ready the way of the Lord' uses poiéō for active preparation: the crowd is summoned to do something that shapes the environment for the Lord's coming.
- Matthew 5:32 Here poiéō forms a periphrasis with a noun of conduct: whoever divorces his wife 'maketh her an adulteress,' showing how the verb assigns moral responsibility for the act one performs.
- Matthew 7:12 The Golden Rule's 'whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you' sets poiéō as the baseline verb for all interpersonal moral action, summarizing 'the law and the prophets.'
Preguntas frecuentes
Is poiéō the same as πράσσω?
No. Both mean 'to do,' but the lexicon notes that poiéō emphasizes the particular action—what is done on a given occasion—while πράσσω highlights the habitual or ongoing practice of doing. So 'to do the truth' (Jhn.3:21) uses poiéō for the act, but πράσσω appears when the focus is on a settled pattern of behavior.
Does poiéō always mean 'to create'?
No. The creation sense appears when God is the subject (Mat.19:4; Heb.1:2), but more often poiéō means 'to do, perform, prepare, or keep.' Context and object determine the sense: 'make a dinner' (Mrk.6:21), 'do the law' (Jhn.7:19), and 'do alms' (Mat.6:2) are all distinct uses of the same verb.
How many times does poiéō appear in the New Testament?
According to the data, poiéō occurs 478 times across 436 distinct verses in the Greek New Testament, making it one of the most frequent verbs in the text.