WG: Promise
Overview
The promise concept in the NT centers on God's self-committal declarations — particularly the Abrahamic covenant promises — and their reception through faith, fulfillment in Christ, and extension to heirs. Eight Greek words form this cluster, spanning the promise word family (G1860/1861/1862/4279), the receiving instrument (G4102 pistis), the covenant framework (G1242 diatheke), and the inheritance trajectory (G4690 sperma, G2818 kleronomos).
Word Group Members
| Strong's |
Word |
Transliteration |
POS |
Occurrences |
Role in Concept |
Library Entry |
| G1860 |
ἐπαγγελία |
epangelia |
f. noun |
51 |
The declaration — God's promise itself |
G1860 |
| G1861 |
ἐπαγγέλλομαι |
epangellomai |
verb |
15 |
The action — to promise |
TODO(need G1861 study) |
| G1862 |
ἐπάγγελμα |
epangelma |
n. noun |
2 |
The content — the thing promised |
TODO(need G1862 study) |
| G4279 |
προεπαγγέλλομαι |
proepangellomai |
verb |
1 |
The priority — to promise beforehand |
TODO(need G4279 study) |
| G4102 |
πίστις |
pistis |
f. noun |
228 |
The receiving instrument — faith |
G4102 |
| G1242 |
διαθήκη |
diatheke |
f. noun |
30 |
The framework — covenant |
G1242 |
| G4690 |
σπέρμα |
sperma |
n. noun |
41 |
The recipient line — seed/descendants |
G4690 |
| G2818 |
κληρονόμος |
kleronomos |
m. noun |
14 |
The beneficiary — heir |
G2818 |
Relationships
Word Family (ἐπ-αγγελ- root)
- G1860 ἐπαγγελία (noun: promise) — the declaration
- G1861 ἐπαγγέλλομαι (verb: to promise) — the act of promising
- G1862 ἐπάγγελμα (noun: promise/thing promised) — the concrete content
- G4279 προεπαγγέλλομαι (verb: to promise beforehand) — temporal priority
Co-occurrence (appear in same verses)
| Word A |
Word B |
Shared Verses |
Typical Context |
| epangelia (G1860) |
pistis (G4102) |
12 |
"through faith... the promise" — faith as means of receiving |
| epangelia (G1860) |
sperma (G4690) |
6 |
"to Abraham and his seed the promises" — seed inherits promise |
| epangelia (G1860) |
diatheke (G1242) |
5 |
"covenants of promise" — promise embedded in covenant |
| epangelia (G1860) |
kleronomos (G2818) |
4 |
"heirs according to/of the promise" |
| pistis (G4102) |
kleronomos (G2818) |
4 |
"rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom" |
| epangellomai (G1861) |
pistis (G4102) |
3 |
"faithful is he that promised" |
| epangellomai (G1861) |
sperma (G4690) |
3 |
"he promised he would give it... and to his seed" |
Shared Hebrew Source
| Hebrew Word |
Strong's |
Greek Members Mapped |
Notes |
| עוֹלָם (olam) |
H5769 |
diatheke (30x), sperma (20x) |
"Everlasting covenant," "seed forever" — the eternal horizon shared by covenant and seed |
Roles in the Concept
- Declaration: epangelia (G1860) — the divine promise itself
- Action: epangellomai (G1861) — the act of making the promise
- Content: epangelma (G1862) — the concrete thing promised
- Priority: proepangellomai (G4279) — the prior announcement of the promise
- Framework: diatheke (G1242) — the covenant structure within which promises are made
- Instrument: pistis (G4102) — the means by which the promise is received
- Recipient line: sperma (G4690) — the seed through whom the promise flows
- Beneficiary: kleronomos (G2818) — the heir who inherits the promise
Key Passages Where Multiple Group Words Appear Together
- Rom 4:13 — [epangelia + pistis + sperma + kleronomos] "For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith"
- Rom 4:14 — [epangelia + pistis + kleronomos] "For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect"
- Rom 4:16 — [epangelia + pistis + sperma] "Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed"
- Gal 3:29 — [epangelia + sperma + kleronomos] "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise"
- Heb 11:11 — [epangellomai + pistis + sperma] "Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed... because she judged him faithful who had promised"
Generated from: gather_word_group_data.py, search_strongs.py
Last updated: 2026-05-03