G2983 — λαμβάνω (lambano)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2983
Original: λαμβάνω
Transliteration: lambano
Pronunciation: lam-ban'-o
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: Prolonged form of a primary verb (used only as alternate in certain tenses)
Occurrences: 247 unique verses (271 tokens) across 21 NT books
First Occurrence: Mat 5:40 — "And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also."
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A prolonged form of a primary verb, which is used only as an alternate in certain tenses; to take (in very many applications, literally and figuratively).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domains¶

Domain 57.009: Receive — with ἀπέχω, δέχομαι, κληρονομέω, κομίζω, etc.
Domain 57.007: Take, Obtain, Gain, Lose — with ἀπόλλυμι, καταλαμβάνω, ζητέω, etc.
Domain 18.001: Grasp, Hold — with ἁρπάζω, κρατέω, ἐπιλαμβάνομαι, etc.
Domain 31.007: Accept As True — with ἀκούω, δέχομαι, παραδέχομαι, etc.
Domain 30.006: To Choose, To Select, To Prefer — with αἱρέω, ἐκλέγω, δοκιμάζω, etc.
Domain 37.004: Rule, Govern — with βασιλεύω, ἄρχω, etc.

Primary domain: 57.009 — Receive.

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[018] Attachment — grasping or taking hold. Other words: ἄγρα (G61), ἀνίημι (G447), ἅπτω (G680), ἁρπάζω (G726), ἀσφαλίζω (G805), δεσμεύω (G1195)
[057] Possess, Transfer, Exchange — receiving, acquiring, or taking possession. Other words: ἀβαρής (G4), ἀγαθός (G18), ἀγαθωσύνη (G19), ἀγορά (G58), ἀγοράζω (G59), ἀδάπανος (G77)
[030] Think — cognitive reception or taking something to mind. Other words: ἀγνοέω (G50), ἀδήλως (G84), αἱρετίζω (G140), αἱρέω (G138), αἴρω (G142), ἄλογος (G249)
[031] Hold a View, Believe, Trust — receiving testimony or accepting something as true. Other words: ἀθετέω (G114), ἄκακος (G172), ἀκλινής (G186), ἀκοή (G189), ἀκούω (G191), ἀμετακίνητος (G277)
[088] Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior — reception framed in ethical response. Other words: ἀγαθοεργέω (G14), ἀγαθοποιέω (G15), ἀγαθοποιΐα (G16), ἀγαθοποιός (G17), ἀγαθός (G18), ἀγαθωσύνη (G19)
[090] Case — receiving or taking in legal/judicial settings. Other words: αἴρω (G142), ἀναδέχομαι (G324), ἀντί (G473), ἀπέναντι (G561), ἀπέχω (G568), ἀπό (G575)
[049] Activities Involving Clothing and Adorning — taking garments or clothing items. Other words: ἀμφιέζω (G294), ἀμφιέννυμι (G294), ἀπεκδύομαι (G554), ἀπέκδυσις (G555), ἀποβάλλω (G577), γυμνιτεύω (G1130)
[037] Control, Rule — taking or receiving authority. Other words: ἀγγαρεύω (G29), ἀγοράζω (G59), αἰχμαλωτίζω (G163), ἀκατάστατος (G182), ἅλυσις (G254), ἀναγκάζω (G315)
[025] Attitudes and Emotions — receiving or taking in affective contexts. Other words: ἀγαλλίασις (G20), ἀγαλλιάω (G21), ἀγαπάω (G25), ἀγάπη (G26), ἀγαπητός (G27), ἀγωνία (G74)
[024] Sensory Events and States — taking in sensory data. Other words: ἄδηλος (G82), αἴνιγμα (G135), αἴρω (G142), ἀκοή (G189), ἀκούω (G191), ἀκροατής (G202)
[068] Aspect — receiving framed by duration or aspect. Other words: ἀγωνίζομαι (G75), ἀδιάλειπτος (G88), ἀδιαλείπτως (G89), ἀκατάπαυστος (G180), ἀναζωπυρέω (G329), ἀνάπαυσις (G372)

Tense/Voice/Mood Distribution (258 parsed forms)¶

Category	Count	%	Notes
Aorist Active	188	73%	Dominant tense; narrative actions of taking/receiving
Present Active	52	20%	Gnomic statements, ongoing reception
Future Middle (Deponent)	18	7%	λήμψεται/λήμψεσθε forms; promises of future reception
Perfect Active	7	3%	εἴληφα/εἴληφας/εἴληφεν — completed-state taking (see below)
Imperfect Active	1	<1%	Acts 8:17 ἐλάμβανον
Present Passive	2	<1%	1Tim 4:4, Heb 5:1 — "being received/taken"

Perfect Tense Forms (εἴληφ- stem)¶

The perfect is rare and always significant. Seven occurrences, all in the latter NT books:

Reference	Form	Parsing	Context
Mat 25:24	εἰληφὼς	Perf Act Ptcp	servant who had received one talent
1Cor 10:13	εἴληφεν	Perf Act Ind 3S	"no temptation has taken you" — completed state
Rev 2:28	εἴληφα	Perf Act Ind 1S	"as I received from my Father" — Christ's settled authority
Rev 3:3	εἴληφας	Perf Act Ind 2S	"remember how you have received and heard"
Rev 5:7	εἴληφεν	Perf Act Ind 3S	Lamb "has taken" the scroll — decisive, permanent act
Rev 8:5	εἴληφεν	Perf Act Ind 3S	angel "has taken" the censer
Rev 11:17	εἴληφας	Perf Act Ind 2S	"thou hast taken to thee thy great power"

Five of seven perfects occur in Revelation, where they emphasize the permanence and completeness of divine actions — particularly in doxological contexts (Rev 5:7, 11:17).

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
took / he took / they took / and took	51	21%
receive / received / receiveth	37	15%
had received	8	3%
Take (imperative)	8	3%
to take / to receive	13	5%
having received	7	3%
shall receive / shall take	11	4%
have received / have taken	8	3%
ye receive / ye shall receive	10	4%
taking	4	2%
caught / held	3	1%
Other (obtain, began, came, attained, etc.)	87	35%

Core semantic range: "take" (~55%) and "receive" (~40%), with scattered idiomatic uses (~5%).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 John	2	15.4
3 John	1	7.1
Hebrews	17	5.6
James	6	5.6
Revelation	22	5.4
Matthew	53	4.9
John	40	4.6
2 Peter	2	3.3
Acts	29	2.9
1 John	3	2.9
Mark	19	2.8
1 Corinthians	10	2.3
Galatians	3	2.0
2 Corinthians	5	1.9
Luke	21	1.8
Romans	8	1.8
2 Timothy	1	1.2
Colossians	1	1.1
1 Peter	1	1.0
1 Timothy	1	0.9
Philippians	2	—

Heaviest concentration in the Gospels (133 of 247 verses = 54%). Matthew alone accounts for 53 verses. High density in the Catholic epistles (2 John, James, Hebrews). Notably present throughout Revelation (22 occurrences) with a distinctive preference for the perfect tense there.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Physical Taking / Grasping¶

Concrete, physical act of picking up or seizing an object. - Mat 26:26 — "Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it" - Mat 27:30 — "they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head" - Rev 10:10 — "I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up" - Jhn 13:4 — "He riseth from supper... and took a towel, and girded himself"

2. Receiving from Another¶

Accepting what is given, granted, or transmitted — the passive counterpart of "give" (didomi). - Jhn 1:12 — "as many as received him, to them gave he power" - Acts 2:33 — "having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost" - 1Cor 11:23 — "I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you" - Rom 1:5 — "by whom we have received grace and apostleship"

3. Receiving the Holy Spirit¶

A specialized use for the reception of the Spirit — a significant theological collocation. - Jhn 7:39 — "the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive" - Jhn 20:22 — "Receive ye the Holy Ghost" - Acts 8:17 — "they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost" - Acts 19:2 — "Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?"

4. Taking / Assuming Power or Authority¶

Used for the assumption of royal power, office, or dominion — often in Revelation. - Rev 4:11 — "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power" - Rev 5:12 — "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom" - Rev 11:17 — "thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned" (perfect: εἴληφας) - Luk 19:12 — "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom"

5. Obtaining Reward or Punishment¶

Receiving consequences — wages, reward, judgment, or damnation. - Mat 20:9 — "they received every man a penny" - 1Cor 3:14 — "he shall receive a reward" - Mar 12:40 — "these shall receive greater damnation" - Heb 2:2 — "every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward"

6. Taking Counsel / Taking Occasion¶

Idiomatic uses where lambano combines with a noun to form a verbal phrase. - Mat 12:14 — "the Pharisees... held [took] a council against him" - Rom 7:8 — "sin, taking occasion by the commandment" - Mat 22:15 — "the Pharisees... took counsel how they might entangle him" - Jas 5:10 — "Take, my brethren, the prophets... for an example"

7. Accepting or Refusing Teaching/Testimony¶

Mental reception — accepting or refusing truth claims. - Jhn 3:11 — "we speak that we do know... and ye receive not our testimony" - Jhn 3:32-33 — "no man receiveth his testimony... He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true" - Jhn 12:48 — "He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words" - 2Jo 1:10 — "If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
λέγω (lego)	G3004	33x	Narrative frame: "took... and said"
πᾶς (pas)	G3956	31x	Universalizing: "every one that receiveth"
θεός (theos)	G2316	28x	Receiving from God / things of God
ἔπω (epo)	G2036	27x	Speech frame: "said... and took"
δίδωμι (didomi)	G1325	26x	Give/receive pair: "gave... received"
Ἰησοῦς (Iesous)	G2424	25x	Jesus as subject or source of giving
ἄρτος (artos)	G740	23x	"took bread" — eucharistic/feeding narratives
πνεῦμα (pneuma)	G4151	20x	"receive the Spirit" — pneumatological usage
ἔρχομαι (erchomai)	G2064	18x	Arrival + reception narrative pattern
κύριος (kyrios)	G2962	16x	"received from/of the Lord"
ὄνομα (onoma)	G3686	14x	"in my name... receive"
ἅγιος (hagios)	G40	12x	"receive the Holy Ghost" collocation

The didomi + lambano pair (26x) is the most theologically significant collocation, establishing the give/receive dynamic central to grace, Spirit-reception, and eucharistic theology. The artos collocation (23x) concentrates in the feeding narratives and Last Supper accounts.

Word Family / Cognates (lambano compounds)¶

G353 ἀναλαμβάνω (analambano) — take up (13x)
G618 ἀπολαμβάνω (apolambano) — receive back, receive in full (10x)
G1949 ἐπιλαμβάνομαι (epilambanomai) — take hold of, seize (19x)
G2638 καταλαμβάνω (katalambano) — seize, overtake, comprehend (15x)
G3335 μεταλαμβάνω (metalambano) — partake, have a share (7x)
G3880 παραλαμβάνω (paralambano) — receive alongside, take along (49x)
G4301 προλαμβάνω (prolambano) — take beforehand, anticipate (3x)
G4355 προσλαμβάνω (proslambano) — take to oneself, welcome (12x)
G4815 συλλαμβάνω (syllambano) — seize together, conceive (16x)

Synonyms¶

No direct synonym entries were returned by search_relationships.py for G2983.

Antonyms¶

αἰτεῖν — to ask or request rather than to take or receive directly

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
δέχομαι (dechomai)	G1209	"receive/received"	dechomai emphasizes willingness and welcome; lambano is broader, covering both active taking and passive receiving
αἴρω (airo)	G142	"take/took"	airo = lift up, carry away, remove; lambano = take into one's possession
κρατέω (krateo)	G2902	"took/take"	krateo = seize with strength, hold firmly; lambano = general taking without force emphasis
παραλαμβάνω (paralambano)	G3880	"took/received"	paralambano = take alongside, receive by transmission (tradition); lambano = more general
ἁρπάζω (harpazo)	G726	—	harpazo = snatch violently, rapture; lambano = neutral taking

Domain Neighbors (57.009 — Receive)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV	Key Difference
G1209	δέχομαι	26	receive	Emphasizes favorable reception, welcome
G618	ἀπολαμβάνω	5	receive	Receive in full, receive back what is due
G2816	κληρονομέω	12	inherit	Receive by inheritance or legal right
G2817	κληρονομία	14	inheritance	The thing inherited
G2818	κληρονόμος	14	heir	The person who inherits
G2865	κομίζω	3	receive	Receive as recompense, carry off
G568	ἀπέχω	6	have	Have received in full (receipt)
G2975	λαγχάνω	3	cast lots, obtained	Receive by lot or divine allotment

lambano is the broadest member of this domain — it covers the full range from active taking to passive receiving, while the neighbors each specify a narrower mode of reception.

Hebrew Source (via LXX)¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
לָקַח (laqach)	H3947	755	28.37	Primary equivalent: "take" in widest variety
נָשָׂא (nasa)	H5375	153	12.83	"lift up, carry, bear" — secondary mapping
אִשָּׁה (ishshah)	H802	126	10.18	"took a wife" idiom
מַחְתָּה (machtah)	H4289	11	9.26	"firepan/censer" — ritual taking
שַׁחַד (shachad)	H7810	10	8.26	"bribe" — taking bribes
אֵזוֹב (ezob)	H231	7	8.32	"hyssop" — ritual taking context

H3947 laqach is the overwhelming primary equivalent. The LXX translators used lambano as the default rendering for the Hebrew "take" verb across nearly all contexts.