kleio is used for closing doors and enclosed places, restricting heaven’s rain, or blocking access and compassion.

The attested uses chiefly describe closing doors, gates, and other enclosed spaces; they also extend to heaven being closed against rain and to actions that block entry or withhold compassion. In Revelation 3:7 and Revelation 3:8, the term occurs in statements about shutting or being unable to shut an opened door.

1. Closing an entrance or enclosure · dominant

   The term marks the closing of concrete barriers and spaces: in Acts 21:30 the APB renders the doors as “shut,” while Acts 5:23 describes the prison as shut and secured. John 20:19 and John 20:26 place the disciples behind shut doors, and Revelation 20:3 describes the abyss being shut and sealed.

   Acts 21:30Acts 5:23John 20:19John 20:26Matthew 6:6Revelation 20:3
2. Closing heaven against rain · occasional

   In Luke 4:25, the heaven is described as shut during a period of famine. Revelation 11:6 likewise places the infinitive in the clause about authority to shut heaven so that rain does not fall.

   Luke 4:25Revelation 11:6
3. Blocking entry or withholding what is due · common

   In Matthew 23:13, the present active form occurs in the accusation that people are shut out from entering the kingdom of the heavens. In 1 John 3:17, the aorist active subjunctive is used of shutting affection away from a needy brother; Revelation 3:7 and Revelation 3:8 frame shutting in relation to an opened door that no one can shut.

   Matthew 23:131 John 3:17Revelation 3:7Revelation 3:8

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB commonly uses “shut” or “closed” for doors, a prison, heaven, and the abyss, while 1 John 3:17 reads “shuts his affection away.” These renderings confirm the clauses’ overall presentation rather than assigning a fixed English equivalent to every form.