4790. sugkoinóneó

Lexical Summary

sugkoinóneó: To share in, to participate with, to have fellowship with.

Original Word: συγκοινωνέω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: sugkoinóneó
Pronunciation: soong-koy-no-NEH-oh
Phonetic Spelling: (soong-koy-no-neh'-o)
KJV: communicate (have fellowship) with, be partaker of
NASB: participate, share
Word Origin: [from G4862 (σύν - along) and G2841 (κοινωνέω - share)]

1. to share in company with, i.e. co-participate in

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

fellowship, communicate with, be partaker of.

From sun and koinoneo; to share in company with, i.e. Co-participate in -- communicate (have fellowship) with, be partaker of.

see GREEK sun

see GREEK koinoneo

HELPS Word-studies

4790 sygkoinōnéō (from 4862 /sýn, "identified with" and 2841 /koinōnéō, "share in") – properly, share with by jointly partaking; to participate with because closely identified with someone (i.e. "deeply sharing with," note the syn).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from sun and koinóneó
Definition
to have fellowship with
NASB Translation
participate (2), share (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 4790: συγκοινωνέω

συγκοινωνέω (T WH συνκοινωνέω (cf. σύν, II. at the end)), συγκοινώνω; 1 aorist subjunctive 2 person plural συγκοινωνήσητε, participle nominative plural masculine συγκοινωνήσαντές; to become a partaker together with others, or to have fellowship with a thing: with a dative of the thing, Ephesians 5:11; Philippians 4:14; Revelation 18:4. (with a genitive of the thing, Demosthenes, p. 1299, 20; τίνι τίνος, Dio Cassius, 37,41; 77, 16.)

Topical Lexicon

Summary Of Meaning

Strong’s Greek 4790 (sunkoinoneó) denotes an active, intentional sharing in the experience, condition, or consequences of another. The term goes beyond casual association to describe full partnership—whether with the sufferings of a servant of Christ (Philippians 4:14), the sins of a corrupt culture (Revelation 18:4), or the unfruitful works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11).

Biblical Occurrences

1. Philippians 4:14—Paul commends the Philippian church: “Yet it was good of you to share in my affliction.” Their participation illustrated tangible gospel partnership.
2. Ephesians 5:11—Believers are commanded: “Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” The imperative makes separation from sin an active duty.
3. Revelation 18:4—A heavenly voice warns: “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins or contract any of her plagues.” The call stresses covenant loyalty that refuses complicity with Babylon’s rebellion.

Theological Significance

• Fellowship As Covenant Solidarity: Sunkoinoneó portrays the covenant principle that believers either unite with Christ and His people or with the world and its judgments (2 Corinthians 6:14–18).
• Partnership In Suffering And Mission: In Philippians the word frames financial support for gospel mission as koinonia; generosity is sacramental participation in Christ’s work (Philippians 1:5; 4:15–17).
• Separation Unto Holiness: Ephesians and Revelation show the flip side—true fellowship with God demands refusal to participate in sin. Holiness is communal as well as personal (Hebrews 12:14).
• Eschatological Warning And Promise: Revelation 18:4 ties fellowship to final destiny. To share in Babylon’s sins is to share in her plagues; to withdraw is to inherit the saints’ reward (Revelation 18:20; 19:1–8).

Pastoral And Ministry Implications

• Financial Partnership: Congregations imitate the Philippians when they materially support missionaries, pastors, and suffering brethren, thereby becoming co-workers in the harvest (Philippians 4:19).
• Church Discipline: Refusal to “have fellowship” with deeds of darkness legitimizes loving correction, accountability, and, when necessary, separation to preserve the witness of the body (1 Corinthians 5:11–13).
• Cultural Discernment: Revelation 18:4 calls believers to evaluate societal systems—economics, entertainment, politics—and withdraw from patterns that defy God, while engaging redemptively where possible.
• Suffering Solidarity: Pastors encourage congregations to enter the hardships of persecuted believers worldwide through prayer, advocacy, and aid (Hebrews 13:3), fulfilling the ethos of sunkoinoneó.

Historical Perspectives

Early Church: The Didache urged believers to support itinerant teachers, echoing Philippians 4:14. Patristic writers such as Tertullian cited Ephesians 5:11 to defend moral separation from pagan festivals.

Reformation Era: Reformers applied Revelation 18 to the call to leave corrupt ecclesiastical structures, emphasizing purity of worship.

Modern Missions: The concept undergirds faith-mission principles—local churches “share” by giving and going, making every member a participant in the Great Commission.

Contemporary Application

• Digital Fellowship: Online platforms extend the reach of sunkoinoneó; believers must steward this share-ability, promoting truth while avoiding complicity in digital darkness.
• Ethical Consumption: Revelation 18’s economic overtones invite examination of supply chains and investments so that Christians do not “share in her sins.”
• Crisis Response: When disasters strike, swift, sacrificial aid embodies Philippians 4:14, testifying to the gospel through practical love.

Related Terms And Concepts

koinonia (2842): general fellowship or communion.

metecho (3348): partake, share, often neutrally.

sugkoinonos (4791): fellow-partaker, partner.

The interplay of these terms reveals a New Testament ethic that balances joyful partnership in righteousness with vigilant separation from evil, both rooted in union with Christ.

Forms and Transliterations

συγκοινωνείτε συγκοινωνεῖτε συγκοινωνήσαντές συγκοινωνησητε συγκοινωνήσητε συνκοινωνειτε συνκοινωνεῖτε συνκοινωνησαντες συνκοινωνήσαντές συνκοινωνησητε συνκοινωνήσητε sunkoinoneite sunkoinōneite sunkoinonesantes sunkoinōnēsantes sunkoinonesete sunkoinōnēsēte synkoinoneite syn'koinoneîte synkoinōneite syn'koinōneîte synkoinonesantes syn'koinonḗsantés synkoinōnēsantes syn'koinōnḗsantés synkoinonesete syn'koinonḗsete synkoinōnēsēte syn'koinōnḗsēte

Englishman's Concordance

Ephesians 5:11 V-PMA-2P
GRK: καὶ μὴ συνκοινωνεῖτε τοῖς ἔργοις
NAS: Do not participate in the unfruitful
KJV: no fellowship with the unfruitful
INT: and not have fellowship with the works

Philippians 4:14 V-APA-NMP
GRK: καλῶς ἐποιήσατε συνκοινωνήσαντές μου τῇ
NAS: well to share [with me] in my affliction.
KJV: done, that ye did communicate with my
INT: well you did having fellowship in my

Revelation 18:4 V-ASA-2P
GRK: ἵνα μὴ συνκοινωνήσητε ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις
NAS: so that you will not participate in her sins
KJV: ye be not partakers of her sins,
INT: that not you might have fellowship in the sins

Strong's Greek 4790
3 Occurrences

συνκοινωνήσαντές — 1 Occ.
συνκοινωνήσητε — 1 Occ.
συνκοινωνεῖτε — 1 Occ.