939. basis
Lexical Summary
basis: Foot, base, foundation

Original Word: βάσις
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: basis
Pronunciation: BAH-sis
Phonetic Spelling: (bas'-ece)
KJV: foot
NASB: feet
Word Origin: [from baino "to walk"]

1. a pace ("base")
2. (by implication) the foot

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
foot.

From baino (to walk); a pace ("base"), i.e. (by implication) the foot -- foot.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from bainó (to walk, to go)
Definition
a foot
NASB Translation
feet (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 939: βάσις

βάσις, βάσεως, (ΒΑΩ, βαίνω);

1. a stepping, walking (Aeschylus, Sophocles, others).

2. that with which one steps, the foot: Acts 3:7 (Plato, Tim., p. 92{a}, et al.; Wis. 13:18).

Topical Lexicon
Term Overview

The Greek noun βάσις (basis), rendered “feet” in Acts 3:7, literally denotes the part of the body that stands or steps. In broader Greek usage it could describe a foundation, a pedestal, or the footing of a structure. The New Testament employs the word once, focusing attention on the physical extremities that enable standing, walking, and entering the presence of others.

Context in Acts 3:7

Luke records that Peter, meeting a man lame from birth at the Beautiful Gate, “took him by the right hand and helped him up, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong” (Acts 3:7). The sudden strengthening of the βάσεις highlights three themes:

1. Authentic apostolic authority confirmed by miracle (Acts 2:43; Hebrews 2:3-4).
2. A sign pointing to the risen Christ’s ongoing ministry (Acts 3:16).
3. The transition from exclusion to inclusion—the lame man, formerly stationary at the Temple entrance, now walks, leaps, and praises God inside the courts (Acts 3:8).

Symbolic and Theological Significance

Standing and walking are biblical metaphors for covenant faithfulness (Genesis 17:1; Micah 6:8; Galatians 5:25). By restoring the man’s βάσεις, God dramatically illustrates:
• Regeneration: the powerless receive new capability to respond to God (Romans 8:3-4).
• Access: strengthened feet allow entrance to worship, anticipating the eschatological promise that the redeemed will “stand before the throne” (Revelation 7:9).
• Mission: healed feet become “beautiful” in proclaiming the gospel (Isaiah 52:7; Romans 10:15).

Connection with Old Testament Imagery

Priests ministered barefoot on holy ground (Exodus 3:5; Joshua 5:15), emphasizing dependence on God’s provision. The lame man’s renewed footing echoes prophetic visions where the weak are strengthened (Isaiah 35:3-6) and the lame gather to Zion (Micah 4:6-7). Acts 3 portrays those prophecies breaking into history through the name of Jesus Messiah.

Historical and Cultural Background

First-century medicine offered no cure for congenital lameness. Begging at a Temple gate capitalized on worshipers’ almsgiving. Restoration of the βάσεις thus held social, economic, and religious implications: the man transitions from mendicant to participant, from dependent outsider to praising worshiper (Acts 3:9-10). For Luke’s audience, steeped in Greco-Roman ideals of bodily perfection, such a cure marked the gospel’s power to overturn cultural stigmas.

Ministry and Pastoral Application

1. Compassionate engagement: Peter’s touch and lift model hands-on care, not distant pity.
2. Christ-centered healing: attention is deflected from human agents to the risen Lord (Acts 3:12-16).
3. Whole-person restoration: the feet are strengthened, yet the narrative moves immediately to faith and repentance (Acts 3:19), showing that physical healing serves a larger redemptive call.
4. Inclusion of the marginalized: congregations should examine whether modern “gates” still keep wounded people at the periphery.

Systematic Theology Links

• Pneumatology: the Spirit’s power accompanies apostolic witness (Acts 1:8; 4:33).
• Ecclesiology: the healed man joins the worshiping community, illustrating that membership is grounded in grace, not pedigree or ability (1 Corinthians 12:22-26).
• Eschatology: temporary bodily restorations anticipate the resurrection when every believer will receive perfected, incorruptible bodies (Philippians 3:20-21).

Related New Testament Themes

• Strengthening the weak (Romans 14:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:14).
• Walking worthy of the calling (Ephesians 4:1; Colossians 1:10).
• Standing firm in grace (1 Peter 5:12).

Further Study Suggestions

Compare βάσις in Acts 3:7 with:
Isaiah 35:3-6 and Luke 7:22 for prophetic fulfillment motifs.
• The foot imagery in Psalm 40:2; Psalm 116:8-9 for deliverance and renewed worship.
Hebrews 12:12-13, where strengthening feeble knees and lame limbs encourages perseverance under discipline.

Forms and Transliterations
βασεις βάσεις βάσιν βάσις baseis báseis
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Acts 3:7 N-NFP
GRK: ἐστερεώθησαν αἱ βάσεις αὐτοῦ καὶ
NAS: him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles
KJV: immediately his feet and ankle bones
INT: were strengthened the feet him and

Strong's Greek 939
1 Occurrence


βάσεις — 1 Occ.

938
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