5414. phortos

Lexical Summary

phortos: Load, Burden

Original Word: φορτός
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: phortos
Pronunciation: for-TOS
Phonetic Spelling: (for'-tos)
KJV: lading
Word Origin: [from G5342 (φέρω - bring)]

1. something carried
2. (specially) the cargo of a ship

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

cargo

From phero; something carried, i.e. The cargo of a ship -- lading.

see GREEK phero

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
variant reading for phortion, q.v.

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 5414: φόρτος

φόρτος, φόρτου, ὁ (from φέρω), from Homer down, a load, burden: Acts 27:10 Rec. (of a ship's lading).

Topical Lexicon

Overview

φόρτος denotes a tangible or figurative load that must be carried. In the Greco-Roman world it commonly described freight on merchant ships, goods packed on animals, or any weight laid upon people. Scripture develops the image further, contrasting crushing human weights with the gracious lifting power of God.

Old Testament Background (Septuagint)

1. Daily toil: Exodus 23:5 pictures a donkey collapsed “under its load,” urging compassion even toward an enemy. φόρτος here represents the exhausting weight that creature and owner cannot manage alone.
2. Idolatry’s futility: Isaiah 46:1–2 depicts Bel and Nebo bowing as their idols become “loads on weary beasts” that can neither save nor move themselves, underscoring the burden-making nature of false gods.
3. National oppression: Nehemiah 4:10 laments that “the strength of the burden-bearers is failing, and there is much rubble,” linking external pressure with internal fatigue.
4. Divine intervention: Psalm 68:19 praises the LORD who “daily bears our burden,” anticipating the gospel’s promise of relief.

These occurrences establish φόρτος as a vivid emblem of what fallen humanity cannot carry without help.

Second Temple and Greco-Roman Usage

Outside the canon, Jewish writers employed φόρτος for the labor of temple construction or the weight of sin in penitential prayers. Contemporary papyri speak of grain, timber, and tax consignments as φόρτος, illustrating the everyday resonance of the word for believers who first heard the gospel preached in port cities.

Relationship to New Testament Vocabulary

Though φόρτος itself does not appear in the Greek New Testament, its cognates saturate the text:

• φορτίον, “burden,” Matthew 11:30; Galatians 6:5
• φορτίζω, “to load,” Luke 11:46

Together they continue the Septuagint trajectory—human religion heaps up burdens; Christ shoulders them.

Theology of Burdens

1. Human inability: Legalism, sin, and suffering are pictured as weights too heavy to bear (Psalm 38:4; Matthew 23:4).
2. Divine sufficiency: “Cast your burden on the LORD and He will sustain you” (Psalm 55:22).
3. Christ’s invitation: “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
4. Shared responsibility: “Bear one another’s burdens, and so you will fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2).
5. Eschatological hope: Revelation 21:4 foresees a creation where every weight is finally removed.

Historical Ministry Significance

• Maritime missions: Early Christian merchants and sailors who knew the term from ship manifests could readily grasp Paul’s call to jettison spiritual cargo and find freedom in the gospel (Acts 27 echoes).
• Diaconal care: The Church’s tradition of almsgiving and practical aid (Acts 6:1–6) flows from the conviction that community exists to lighten burdens.
• Reformation preaching: Expositors such as Martin Luther highlighted φόρτος-imagery to contrast gospel liberty with works-righteousness.

Practical Applications

1. Pastoral counseling: Diagnose hidden loads—guilt, resentment, legalism—and direct believers to Christ’s sufficiency.
2. Corporate worship: Include testimonies of burdens lifted, reinforcing communal empathy.
3. Social outreach: Address material loads (poverty, injustice) as part of gospel witness, reflecting Isaiah’s vision of burdens removed.
4. Self-examination: Ask, “What φόρτος am I placing on others?” echoing Jesus’ rebuke of the Pharisees.

Related Terms and Themes

φορτίον (individual load), βάρος (weight), γόμος (cargo), ζυγός (yoke). Together they weave a consistent biblical motif: the Lord alone can carry what crushes humanity, and He calls His people to share that liberating work.

Englishman's Concordance

φορεῖ — 1 Occ.
φορέσομεν — 1 Occ.
φορῶν — 1 Occ.
φοροῦντα — 1 Occ.
φοροῦντες — 1 Occ.
Φόρου — 1 Occ.
φόρον — 3 Occ.
φόρους — 2 Occ.
πεφορτισμένοι — 1 Occ.
φορτίζετε — 1 Occ.
φορτίοις — 1 Occ.
φορτίον — 2 Occ.
φορτίου — 1 Occ.
Φορτουνάτου — 1 Occ.
φραγέλλιον — 1 Occ.
φραγελλώσας — 2 Occ.
φραγμὸν — 2 Occ.
φραγμοῦ — 1 Occ.
φραγμοὺς — 1 Occ.
Φράσον — 1 Occ.