Lexicon
βαστάζω
bastazō
G0941
G:V Greek

to carry

27
Occurrences
8
Books
Greek
Language

bastazo denotes carrying persons or things and bearing burdens, hardships, or responsibilities.

The attested use most often concerns physically carrying or conveying people and tangible things, including a cross, jars, a bier, and stones. It also describes bearing burdens, weakness, judgment, and matters that cannot presently be borne; in several clauses it extends to carrying a name or marks, or to a root carrying branches.

Senses in use

  1. Physically carrying or conveying · dominant

    Present participles describe people carrying a jar in Luke 22:10 and Mark 14:13, while Luke 7:14 has those carrying the bier stop. In John 19:17 the APB renders the clause "carrying the cross for himself," and Acts 3:2 describes a lame man who was "being carried."

  2. Bearing burdens, weakness, or hardship · common

    In Galatians 6:2 the present imperative calls for bearing "one another's burdens," while Galatians 6:5 states that each person will bear his own load. Acts 15:10 places a yoke on the disciples' necks that neither the fathers nor the speakers had been able to bear, and Romans 15:1 speaks of bearing the weaknesses of the weak.

  3. Carrying a name, marks, or supporting relation · occasional

    Acts 9:15 states that the chosen instrument is to carry the speaker's name before Gentiles, kings, and the sons of Israel. Galatians 6:17 says, "I carry the marks of Jesus in my body," while Romans 11:18 contrasts branches with the root that carries them.

  4. Taking someone away · rare

    In John 20:15, the aorist form occurs in the woman's supposition: "if you have carried him away, tell me where you have placed him." The clause concerns removal and subsequent placement rather than a description of someone being transported.

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB commonly uses "carry" for physical conveyance and "bear" for burdens, weakness, judgment, and what cannot be borne, as in Galatians 6:2 and John 16:12. These renderings present the clauses' overall sense rather than a fixed English equivalent in every verse.

Passages featuring this word

Across Scripture