G4137 — πληρόω (plēróō)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G4137
Original: πληρόω
Transliteration: plēróō
Pronunciation: play-ro'-o
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: πλήρης (plērēs) — full, replete
Occurrences: 90 unique verses (95 tokens) in NT
Books: 18 (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 2 Timothy, James, 1 John, 2 John, Revelation)
First Occurrence: Mat 1:22 — "that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

To make replete; (literally) to cram (a net), level up (a hollow); (figuratively) to furnish fully, imbue, diffuse, influence, satisfy; (specifically) to execute an office, finish a period or task, verify or coincide with a prediction.

Voice Distribution¶

Tallied from greek_parser.py --lemma output (50 of 90 occurrences sampled):

Voice	Forms	Count	Notes
Aorist Passive	πληρωθῇ, ἐπληρώθη, πληρωθῶσιν, πληρωθῆναι, πληρωθέντων	~29	Fulfillment formula; events happening to prophecy
Perfect Passive	πεπλήρωται, πεπληρωμένη, πεπληρωμένην	7	State of completion; "has been fulfilled"
Aorist Active	πληρῶσαι, ἐπλήρωσεν, πληρώσατε, πληρώσεις	6	Agent actively fills or completes
Perfect Active	πεπλήρωκεν, πεπληρώκατε	2	Completed action with present effect
Future	πληρωθήσονται, πληρωθήσεται, πληρώσεις	3	Prophetic future fulfillment
Present/Imperfect	πληρούμενον, πληροῦν, ἐπληροῦτο	3	Ongoing filling; progressive state

Passive voice dominates (~78% of sampled occurrences), reflecting the biblical pattern of prophecy being fulfilled rather than actively fulfilling it.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domains¶

Two primary domains (word appears in multiple):

Domain 059.004 — Full, Empty: Physical/metaphorical fullness. Related: γεμίζω (G1072), γέμω (G1073), μεστός (G3324), πίμπλημι (G4130a), πλήρης (G4134), πλήρωμα (G4138)
Domain 068.003 — Complete, Finish, Succeed: Prophetic or task completion. Related: ἀναπληρόω (G0378), ἐπιτελέω (G2005), πληροφορέω (G4135), συντελέω (G4931)

UBS Semantic Domains¶

Code	Domain Label	Notes
059	Quantity	Covers literal or metaphorical filling/fullness.
068	Aspect	Covers completion, fulfillment, and bringing a process to its intended end.
035	Help, Care For	Fits supply/provision uses where what is lacking is fully furnished.
033	Communication	Fits passages where words, Scripture, or proclamation are brought to their full effect.
013	Be, Become, Exist, Happen	Fits temporal/eventive uses where days, years, or events "come to pass" in fullness.
030	Think	Fits mental/spiritual fullness: knowledge, joy, or inward states brought to completion.
067	Time	Captures appointed periods being filled up or reaching completion.
078	Degree	Captures movement toward full measure, abundance, or completeness.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation Group	Verses	%
fulfilled / might be fulfilled / was fulfilled / etc.	~46	~51%
filled / filled with / be filled	~14	~16%
full / is full / make full	~10	~11%
fulfil / to fulfil	~7	~8%
complete / accomplish / perfect	~4	~4%
supply / ended / expired / other	~9	~10%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 John	1	7.7
Colossians	5	5.3
Ephesians	4	2.6
2 Thessalonians	1	2.1
John	15	1.7
Matthew	17	1.6
Acts	16	1.6
Romans	6	1.4
2 Timothy	1	1.2
1 John	1	1.0
James	1	0.9
Luke	10	0.9
2 Corinthians	2	0.8
Galatians	1	0.7
Revelation	2	0.5
Mark	3	0.4
Philippians	4	—

Heavily concentrated in Matthew and John (fulfillment of prophecy) and Paul's prison epistles (Colossians, Ephesians — cosmic fullness theme). Sparse in Mark, which avoids the explicit fulfillment formula.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Prophetic Fulfillment Formula¶

The dominant use: Scripture or prophecy "being fulfilled" by an event. Nearly always passive aorist subjunctive (πληρωθῇ) in purpose clauses. - Mat 1:22 — "Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet" - Luk 4:21 — "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears" - John 19:36 — "For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken" - Acts 1:16 — "This scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake"

2. Temporal Completion — A Period "Filling Up"¶

Time, days, or years reaching their appointed end; pleroo used where English says "expired," "ended," "when he was forty." - Mar 1:15 — "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand" - Acts 7:23 — "When he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren" - Acts 7:30 — "When forty years were expired, there appeared to him...an angel" - Acts 9:23 — "After that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him"

3. Fulfilling Law, Righteousness, or a Mission¶

Active sense: completing an obligation, carrying out a charge, or exhausting the full demand of the law. - Mat 3:15 — "Thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness" - Mat 5:17 — "I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil" - Rom 13:8 — "He that loveth another hath fulfilled the law" - Acts 13:25 — "As John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am?"

4. Being Filled with a Quality, Spirit, or Emotion¶

Passive: a person filled with wisdom, the Spirit, joy, knowledge, or (negatively) unrighteousness or sorrow. - Luk 2:40 — "The child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom" - Acts 13:52 — "The disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost" - Rom 1:29 — "Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness" - Eph 5:18 — "Be not drunk with wine...but be filled with the Spirit" - Col 1:9 — "That ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom"

5. Joy Fulfilled / Made Complete¶

A distinct Johannine pattern: joy reaching fullness as an eschatological gift, often in farewell discourse context. - John 15:11 — "That my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full" - John 17:13 — "That they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves" - 1 John 1:4 — "These things write we unto you, that your joy may be full" - 2 John 1:12 — "I trust to come unto you...that our joy may be full"

6. Cosmic / Universal Filling (Pauline)¶

Christ as the one who fills all things; believers as complete or fully supplied in him. - Eph 1:23 — "The fulness of him that filleth all in all" - Eph 4:10 — "He that descended is the same also that ascended...that he might fill all things" - Col 2:10 — "Ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power" - Phil 4:19 — "My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
πᾶς (pas)	G3956	25x (28%)	"fulfil all righteousness / filled with all..."
προφήτης (prophētēs)	G4396	17x (19%)	"spoken by the prophet...might be fulfilled"
θεός (theos)	G2316	16x (18%)	"God" as agent or source of fulfillment
γραφή (graphē)	G1124	11x (12%)	"the scripture might be fulfilled"
χαρά (chara)	G5479	11x (12%)	"that your joy might be full/fulfilled"
πνεῦμα (pneuma)	G4151	9x (10%)	"filled with the Spirit / Holy Ghost"
λόγος (logos)	G3056	8x (9%)	"word of God" / "the word might be fulfilled"
νόμος (nomos)	G3551	6x (7%)	"fulfilled the law / righteousness of the law"

Word Family / Cognates¶

G4134 πλήρης (plērēs) — adjective: full, replete (from same root)
G4138 πλήρωμα (plērōma) — noun: fullness, that which fills (derived noun)
G0378 ἀναπληρόω (anaplēróō) — to fill up, supply what is lacking (compound)
G4322 προσαναπληρόω (prosanaplēróō) — to supply additionally, fully furnish (compound)
G4135 πληροφορέω (plērophoréō) — to fully persuade, fully assure (compound)

Synonyms¶

The relationship tool returns broad domain-neighbors here as well as close fill/fulfill parallels, reflecting πληρόω's unusually wide semantic range.

G837 αὐξάνω (auxanō) — increase, grow; overlaps where something rises toward fullness.
G2407 ἱερατεύω (hierateuō) — serve as priest; overlaps in the sense of fully discharging an office or appointed role.
G2062 ἑρπετόν (herpeton) — creeping thing; a domain-neighbor from creation "fill/teem" contexts rather than a direct lexical synonym.
G3184 μεθύω (methyō) — be drunk; overlaps with the filled/full state, especially in contrast passages such as Eph 5:18.
G5526 χορτάζω (chortazō) — satisfy, fill with food; the nearest concrete parallel for being filled to fullness.

Antonyms¶

G5579 ψεῦδος (pseudos) — falsehood; contrasts realized fulfillment with what is false or untrue.
G3310 μερίς (meris) — portion, share; opposes the idea of fullness by marking only a part.
G1266 διαμερίζω (diamerizō) — divide, distribute; contrasts completion/fullness with division into parts.
G3132 μαντεύομαι (manteuomai) — practice divination; returned as a domain-opposite by search_relationships.py, contrasting pagan oracular speech with true prophetic fulfillment.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
πλήθω (plēthō)	G4130	both: "filled"	plēthō = sudden, literal filling (rooms, hands); plēróō = purposeful, complete filling or fulfillment
τελειόω (teleióō)	G5048	both: "fulfilled" (1v)	teleióō = bring to the appointed end, perfect morally; plēróō = fill to capacity, execute what was promised
συντελέω (synteleō)	G4931	both: "fulfilled"	synteleō = bring entirely to completion (often of ages, covenants); plēróō = fill/fulfill the content
γεμίζω (gemízō)	G1072	both: "filled"	gemízō = fill entirely to brim (boats, jars — physical); plēróō = fill with quality, purpose, or prophetic content

Hebrew Source (via LXX)¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
מָלֵא (mâlêʼ)	H4390	62	6.17	Primary: "to fill, be full" — all senses of plēróō
פָּרָה (pârâh)	H6509	4	5.30	"to bear fruit" — LXX uses plēróō for fruitfulness
מִלֻּא (milluʼ)	H4394	3	5.79	"filling, ordination" — priestly installation
מְלֹא (mᵉlôʼ)	H4393	3	4.53	"fullness, that which fills" — cognate noun
יוֹם (yôwm)	H3117	22	1.76	"day" — time-fulfillment phrases ("days were fulfilled")

Primary Hebrew root: H4390 מָלֵא dominates (PMI 6.17, 62 co-occurrences). The LXX regularly renders Hebrew "fill/be full" with plēróō, carrying the physical-to-purposive semantic range into Greek.