4215. potamos

Lexicon

potamos: River

Original Word: ποταμός
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: potamos
Pronunciation: po-tä-mos'
Phonetic Spelling: (pot-am-os')
Definition: River
Meaning: a river, torrent, stream.

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

flood, river, stream, water.

Probably from a derivative of the alternate of pino (compare potos); a current, brook or freshet (as drinkable), i.e. Running water -- flood, river, stream, water.

see GREEK pino

see GREEK potos

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from pinó
Definition
a river
NASB Translation
floods (2), River (2), river (6), rivers (4), riverside* (1), torrent (2).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 4215: ποταμός

ποταμός, ποταμοῦ, ὁ, from Homer down, the Sept. for נָהָר and יְאֹר, a stream, a river: Matthew 3:6 L T Tr WH; Mark 1:5; Acts 16:13; 2 Corinthians 11:26 (Winer's Grammar, § 30, 2 a.); Revelation 8:10; Revelation 9:14; Revelation 12:15; Revelation 16:4, 12; Revelation 22:1f; equivalent to a torrent, Matthew 7:25, 27; Luke 6:48; Revelation 12:15f; plural figuratively equivalent to the greatest abundance (cf. colloquial English streams, floods), John 7:38.

Topical Lexicon

Word Origin: Derived from the base of the Greek verb πίπτω (piptō), meaning "to fall," which is related to the idea of water flowing or falling.

Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries: • H5104 נָהָר (nahar): This Hebrew term is often translated as "river" and is used in similar contexts in the Old Testament, such as the Euphrates River in Genesis 2:14.
• H5158 נַחַל (nachal): Another Hebrew word for a stream or brook, used in passages like Psalm 23:2, "He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters."

The term ποταμός, therefore, carries rich connotations in biblical literature, encompassing both the physical reality of rivers and their symbolic meanings in spiritual and eschatological contexts.

Usage: The term ποταμός is used in the New Testament to refer to literal rivers or streams. It is often employed in both a physical and metaphorical sense, symbolizing abundance, life, or judgment.

Context: • Literal Usage: In the New Testament, ποταμός is used to describe actual rivers. For example, in Matthew 3:6, it refers to the Jordan River where John the Baptist baptized people: "Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River."
• Metaphorical Usage: The term is also used metaphorically to describe spiritual realities. In John 7:38, Jesus speaks of the Holy Spirit as "rivers of living water": "Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: 'Streams of living water will flow from within him.'"
• Symbolic Usage: In Revelation, ποταμός is used symbolically to depict divine provision and eschatological hope. Revelation 22:1 describes the river of the water of life: "Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb."
• Judgment and Deliverance: In some contexts, ποταμός can symbolize judgment or deliverance. For instance, in Revelation 12:15-16, the dragon spews water like a river to overtake the woman, but the earth helps her by swallowing the river.

Forms and Transliterations

ποταμοι ποταμοί ποταμοὶ ποταμοίς ποταμον ποταμόν ποταμὸν ποταμος ποταμός ποταμὸς ποταμου ποταμού ποταμοῦ ποταμους ποταμούς ποταμοὺς ποταμω ποταμώ ποταμῷ ποταμων ποταμών ποταμῶν potamo potamō potamoi potamoì potamôi potamō̂i potamon potamón potamòn potamôn potamōn potamō̂n potamos potamós potamòs potamou potamoû potamous potamoùs

Englishman's Concordance

Matthew 3:6 N-DMS
GRK: τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ
NAS: by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed
INT: the Jordan River by him

Matthew 7:25 N-NMP
GRK: ἦλθον οἱ ποταμοὶ καὶ ἔπνευσαν
NAS: fell, and the floods came,
KJV: descended, and the floods came, and
INT: came the streams and blew

Matthew 7:27 N-NMP
GRK: ἦλθον οἱ ποταμοὶ καὶ ἔπνευσαν
NAS: fell, and the floods came,
KJV: descended, and the floods came, and
INT: came the streams and blew

Mark 1:5 N-DMS
GRK: τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ ἐξομολογούμενοι τὰς
NAS: by him in the Jordan River, confessing
KJV: him in the river of Jordan, confessing
INT: the Jordan river confessing the

Luke 6:48 N-NMS
GRK: προσέρηξεν ὁ ποταμὸς τῇ οἰκίᾳ
NAS: occurred, the torrent burst against
KJV: arose, the stream beat vehemently
INT: burst upon the stream the house

Luke 6:49 N-NMS
GRK: προσέρηξεν ὁ ποταμός καὶ εὐθὺς
NAS: any foundation; and the torrent burst against
KJV: which the stream did beat vehemently,
INT: burst the stream and immediately

John 7:38 N-NMP
GRK: ἡ γραφή ποταμοὶ ἐκ τῆς
NAS: will flow rivers of living
KJV: shall flow rivers of living
INT: the Scripture rivers out of the

Acts 16:13 N-AMS
GRK: πύλης παρὰ ποταμὸν οὗ ἐνομίζομεν
KJV: the city by a river side, where prayer
INT: city gate by a river where was customary

2 Corinthians 11:26 N-GMP
GRK: πολλάκις κινδύνοις ποταμῶν κινδύνοις λῃστῶν
NAS: in dangers from rivers, dangers
KJV: [in] perils of waters, [in] perils
INT: often in perils of rivers in perils of robbers

Revelation 8:10 N-GMP
GRK: τρίτον τῶν ποταμῶν καὶ ἐπὶ
NAS: on a third of the rivers and on the springs
KJV: the third part of the rivers, and
INT: third of the rivers and upon

Revelation 9:14 N-DMS
GRK: ἐπὶ τῷ ποταμῷ τῷ μεγάλῳ
NAS: at the great river Euphrates.
KJV: in the great river Euphrates.
INT: at the river great

Revelation 12:15 N-AMS
GRK: ὕδωρ ὡς ποταμόν ἵνα αὐτὴν
NAS: like a river out of his mouth
KJV: water as a flood after the woman,
INT: water as a river that her [as one]

Revelation 12:16 N-AMS
GRK: κατέπιεν τὸν ποταμὸν ὃν ἔβαλεν
NAS: and drank up the river which
KJV: swallowed up the flood which
INT: swallowed up the river which cast

Revelation 16:4 N-AMP
GRK: εἰς τοὺς ποταμοὺς καὶ τὰς
NAS: out his bowl into the rivers and the springs
KJV: vial upon the rivers and fountains
INT: into the rivers and the

Revelation 16:12 N-AMS
GRK: ἐπὶ τὸν ποταμὸν τὸν μέγαν
NAS: on the great river, the Euphrates;
KJV: upon the great river Euphrates; and
INT: upon the river great

Revelation 22:1 N-AMS
GRK: ἔδειξέν μοι ποταμὸν ὕδατος ζωῆς
NAS: he showed me a river of the water
KJV: me a pure river of water of life,
INT: he showed me a river of water of life

Revelation 22:2 N-GMS
GRK: καὶ τοῦ ποταμοῦ ἐντεῦθεν καὶ
NAS: On either side of the river was the tree
KJV: side of the river, [was there] the tree
INT: and of the river on this side and

Strong's Greek 4215
17 Occurrences

ποταμῷ — 3 Occ.
ποταμῶν — 2 Occ.
ποταμοὶ — 3 Occ.
ποταμὸν — 5 Occ.
ποταμὸς — 2 Occ.
ποταμοῦ — 1 Occ.
ποταμοὺς — 1 Occ.