G3875 — παράκλητος (paraklētos)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G3875
Original: παράκλητος
Transliteration: paraklētos
Pronunciation: par-ak'-lay-tos
Part of Speech: Masculine noun (N-MSM)
Root: From G3870 παρακαλέω (parakaleō) — to call alongside, to summon, to invite, to exhort, to comfort
Occurrences: 5 in NT (5 unique verses, 2 books)
First Occurrence: John 14:16 — "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever"
Hapax Legomenon: No (5 occurrences, but exclusively Johannine)

Lexicon Definition¶

Verbal adjective from παρακαλέω (parakaleō, G3870); one called alongside to aid, an intercessor, advocate, helper, comforter. Used in classical Greek legal contexts for one who appears on another's behalf in court — a legal assistant or advocate. The KJV translates as "Comforter" (4x) and "advocate" (1x).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 35 — Help, Care For
Subdomain: 35.001 — Help
Glosses: Helper, Encourager, Mediator
Other words in subdomain: βοηθέω (boētheō, G997), βοηθός (boēthos, G998), συναντιλαμβάνομαι (synantilambanomai, G4878), ἀντιλαμβάνω (antilambano, G482), ἐπαρκέω (eparkeō, G1884)
Also in Domain: 12 — Supernatural Beings and Powers (subdomain 12.001 — Supernatural Beings)

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[012] Supernatural Beings and Powers
[035] Help, Care For

The UBS data preserves both sides of Johannine usage: παράκλητος is both supernatural-person language (the Spirit) and helper/advocate language.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
Comforter	4	80%
an advocate	1	20%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
John	4	0.46
1 John	1	0.95

Exclusively Johannine — the word appears only in the Gospel of John and the First Epistle of John, both attributed to the same author. All four Gospel occurrences cluster in the Farewell Discourse (John 14–16). Absent from the Synoptic Gospels, Acts, Paul, and all other NT writings.

Semantic Categories¶

1. The Spirit as Divine Helper (John 14–16)¶

John 14:16 — "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever"
John 14:26 — "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
John 15:26 — "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me"
John 16:7 — "Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you."

In these four uses, the paraklētos is identified as the Holy Spirit / Spirit of truth, sent by the Father and the Son, who teaches, reminds, testifies, and convicts.

2. Christ as Legal Advocate (1 John 2:1)¶

1 John 2:1 — "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous"

Here the paraklētos is Jesus Christ himself, functioning as an intercessor/advocate before the Father on behalf of sinners. The legal/forensic dimension of the word is prominent.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ὑμῖν (humin)	G5213	5x	"give you...the Comforter"; "send unto you"
ὁ (ho)	G3588	5x	articular: "the Comforter" (ὁ Παράκλητος)
πατήρ (patēr)	G3962	4x	"the Father will send"; "from the Father"; "with the Father"
πέμπω (pempō)	G3992	3x	"whom the Father will send"; "I will send"
ἀλήθεια (alētheia)	G225	2x	"the Spirit of truth" — identifies the paraklētos
πνεῦμα (pneuma)	G4151	2x	"the Holy Ghost/Spirit" — equated with the paraklētos
ἔρχομαι (erchomai)	G2064	2x	"when the Comforter is come"
ἐκεῖνος (ekeinos)	G1565	2x	"he shall teach you" — masculine demonstrative for the Spirit

The paraklētos is consistently described as being sent (by the Father or the Son), coming to the disciples, and acting from/with the Father.

Word Family / Cognates¶

G3870 παρακαλέω (parakaleō) — root verb: to call alongside, to beseech, to exhort, to comfort (113x in NT). Top translations: "beseech" (12x), "besought" (10x), "exhort" (8x)
G3874 παράκλησις (paraklēsis) — cognate noun: comfort, consolation, exhortation (29x in NT). Top translations: "consolation" (12x), "comfort" (5x), "exhortation" (5x)
G3931 παρηγορία (parēgoria) — comfort, consolation (1x — Col 4:11)

Synonyms¶

No direct synonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G3875.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G3875.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
נָחַם (nacham)	H5162	"comforter(s)" (8x in OT)	nacham = to sigh, breathe deeply; piel = to comfort by consoling in grief; passive = to repent. Paraklētos = one called alongside as helper/advocate — active role, not just sympathetic presence
μεσίτης (mesitēs)	G3316	Both function as intermediaries	mesitēs = mediator standing between two parties to reconcile them; paraklētos = advocate standing alongside one party to help/defend them

Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 35.001 — Help)¶

Word	Strong's	Total Verses	Primary Translation(s)	Key Difference
παρακαλέω (parakaleō)	G3870	113	beseech, exhort, comfort	Root verb — the action of calling alongside; paraklētos is the one who answers that call
παράκλησις (paraklēsis)	G3874	29	consolation, comfort, exhortation	Abstract noun — the act/result of helping; paraklētos = the person who helps
παρηγορία (parēgoria)	G3931	1	comfort	Comfort/consolation in general; paraklētos = a specific role/office
συναντιλαμβάνομαι (synantilambanomai)	G4878	2	help	To join in helping; broader term without the legal/advocacy connotation
ἐπαρκέω (eparkeō)	G1884	3	relieve, provide for	Material/practical help; paraklētos = personal representation and aid
ὠφελέω (ōpheleō)	G5623	19	profit, avail	To be of benefit; general helpfulness without the relational/legal nuance

Hebrew Source¶

No Hebrew source found via LXX mapping. παράκλητος does not appear in the LXX as a translation of any Hebrew word. It is a distinctly NT coinage in biblical usage, though the term existed in extrabiblical Greek (legal/rhetorical contexts).