Strong’s G1654 · Greek

ἐλεημοσύνη
eleēmosýnē

Definition

compassionateness, i.e. (as exercised towards the poor) beneficence, or (concretely) a benefaction

Etymology

from G1656 (ἔλεος);

Where the KJV renders it

  • alms(-deeds)

Every distinct English word the King James Version uses to translate this Greek term. The variety shows what readers in English receive across many different surface words — the same underlying word, scattered across the English Bible under different names.

What the first audience heard

A deep-dive treatment of this word is in the works. The featured chapter above carries the long form of what this word meant to its first audience.