Strong's Lexicon
phulaké: Guard, watch, prison, custody
Original Word:φυλακή
Part of Speech:Noun, Feminine
Transliteration:phulaké
Pronunciation:foo-lak-ay'
Phonetic Spelling:(foo-lak-ay')
Definition:Guard, watch, prison, custody
Meaning:a watching, keeping guard; a guard, prison; imprisonment.
Word Origin:Derived from the Greek verb φυλάσσω (phulassō), meaning "to guard" or "to watch."
Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries: -H4929 מִשְׁמָר (mishmar): Guard, watch, prison
-H6485 פָּקַד (paqad): To attend to, muster, number, reckon, visit, punish, appoint
Usage:The Greek word "phulaké" primarily refers to a place of guarding or confinement, such as a prison or a watch post. It can also denote the act of keeping watch or being on guard. In the New Testament, it is used both literally, to describe physical imprisonment or custody, and metaphorically, to describe spiritual vigilance or the act of keeping watch.
Cultural and Historical Background:In the ancient Greco-Roman world, prisons were not typically used for long-term punishment but rather for holding individuals awaiting trial or execution. Guards were stationed to ensure the security of prisoners. The concept of watchfulness was also significant in Jewish and early Christian thought, emphasizing spiritual alertness and readiness for the coming of the Lord.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
phulassóDefinitiona guarding, guard, watch
NASB Translationguard (1), imprisonment (1), imprisonments (2), prison (34), prisons (3), time of the night (1), watch (4).
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 5438: φυλακήφυλακή,
φυλακῆς,
ἡ (
φυλάσσω), from
Homer down, the
Sept. for
מִשְׁמֶרֶת,
מִשְׁמָר,
מַטָּרָה (a prison),
כֶּלֶא (enclosure, confinement),
guard, watch, i. e.
a. in an active sense,a watching, keeping watch:φυλάσσεινφυλακάς,to keep watch,Luke 2:8 (often in the Greek writings fromXenophon, an. 2, 6, 10, etc.;Plato legg. 6, p. 758 d. down; (cf.φυλακάςἔχειν, etc. fromHomer (Iliad 9, 1 etc.) on); often also in theSept. forמִשְׁמָרותשָׁמַר).
b. like the Latincustodia and more frequently the pluralcustodiae (see Klotz, Hdwrbch. (or Harpers' Latin Dict.) under the word), equivalent topersons keeping watch, a guard, sentinels:Acts 12:10 (hereA. V.ward) (and very often in secular authors fromHomer down).
c. of the place where captives are kept,a prison:Matthew 14:10;Matthew 25:36,(39),43f;Mark 6:17, 27(28);Luke 3:20;Luke 21:12;Luke 22:33;Acts 5:19, 22;Acts 8:3;Acts 12:5f, 17;Acts 16:27, 40;Acts 22:4;Acts 26:10;2 Corinthians 6:5 (here, as inHebrews 11:36,A. V.imprisonment);2 Corinthians 11:23;1 Peter 3:19;Revelation 18:2 (twice; rendered inA. V.hold andcage (R. V.hold)); (Herodotus 3, 152;Thucydides 3, 34;Plutarch, others; theSept. forמַטָּרָה,כֶּלֶאבֵּית, andהַכֶּלֶאבֵּית,מִשְׁמָר);βάλλειν orτιθέναιτιναεἰς (τήν)φυλακήν orἐν (τῇ)φυλακή:Matthew 5:25;Matthew 14:3 (RG, others,ἀπέθετο);;Luke 12:58;Luke 23:19, 25;John 3:24;Acts 5:25;Acts 8:3 (hereπαραδιδόναιεἰςφυλακήν);;Revelation 2:10.d. of the time (of night) during which guard was kept,a watch i. e. the period of time during which a part of the guard were on duty, and at the end of which others relieved them. As the earlier Greeks divided the night commonly into three parts (see Liddell and Scott, under the word I. 4), so, previously to the exile, the Israelites also had three watches in a night; subsequently, however, after they became subject to Rome, they adopted the Roman custom of dividing the night into four watches:Matthew 24:43;ἐντῇδευτέρᾳ,τρίτῃ,Luke 12:38;τετάρτῃ,Matthew 14:25;Mark 6:48. Cf.Winer's RWB under the word Nachtwache; (McClintock and Strong's Cyclopaedia, under the word;B. D. under the phrase,).
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
cage, hold, imprisonment, wardFromphulasso; a guarding or (concretely, guard), the act, the person; figuratively, the place, the condition, or (specially), the time (as a division of day or night), literally or figuratively -- cage, hold, (im-)prison(-ment), ward, watch.
see GREEKphulasso
Forms and Transliterations
φυλακαις φυλακαίς φυλακαῖς φυλακας φυλακάς φυλακὰς φυλακη φυλακή φυλακὴ φυλακῇ φυλακην φυλακήν φυλακὴν φυλακης φυλακής φυλακῆς phulakais phulakas phulake phulakē phulaken phulakēn phulakes phulakēs phylakais phylakaîs phylakas phylakás phylakàs phylake phylakē phylakḕ phylakêi phylakē̂i phylaken phylakēn phylakḗn phylakḕn phylakes phylakês phylakēs phylakē̂sLinks
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