to pass through
dierchomai denotes moving through places or across an expanse, and in a few contexts reaching through a boundary or wider sphere.
The predominant use describes people traveling through named regions, cities, villages, or other places, often continuing onward to an arrival point. A smaller group applies the movement to crossing an expanse or boundary, while a few clauses portray a report or death as extending through a wider human sphere.
Senses in use
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Travel through regions, cities, and villages · dominant
The verb regularly marks movement through a place en route to somewhere else: in Acts 13:6 the APB renders the aorist participle with travel through the whole island as far as Paphos, and in Acts 14:24 it describes passage through Pisidia before arrival in Pamphylia. Present and imperfect forms likewise portray ongoing travel through areas in Acts 18:23 and Luke 19:1, while Acts 8:40 joins passing through cities with proclaiming the good news.
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Crossing an expanse or passing a boundary · occasional
Some clauses focus on movement across or through a bounded space rather than travel through a region. In 1 Corinthians 10:1 the APB renders the aorist indicative as the fathers passing through the sea; in Mark 10:25, the aorist infinitive concerns a camel passing through a needle's opening. Hebrews 4:14 uses a perfect active participle in the clause about a high priest having passed through the heavens, and Luke 2:35 presents a future form in the statement that a sword will pierce through the soul.
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Extending through a wider sphere · rare
In Luke 5:15, the imperfect form has the report about him as its clause subject, and the APB renders that report as spreading more and more. In Romans 5:12, the aorist form occurs in the statement that death passed through into all humans; the verse thus uses movement language for an effect reaching a broad human extent.
In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB commonly renders the travel clauses with “passed through,” as in Acts 13:6 and Luke 17:11, and sometimes uses “pass through” for intended movement, as in John 4:4. It also uses “pierce through” in Luke 2:35 and “spread” for the report in Luke 5:15; these are translation renderings rather than definitions.