Exploring the Meaning of Pascho in Greek

πάσχω expresses the experience of suffering, whether in bodily distress, social rejection, or inward anguish. In these passages it is used both for Jesus’ foretold passion and for other sufferers whose pain is described in concrete, situational detail.

Occurrences

“From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up.” (Matthew 16:21)

Here πάσχω is framed as a necessity (“he must”) within a sequence of events: a journey to Jerusalem, suffering “many things,” death, and resurrection. The suffering is not vague; it is portrayed as coming “from the elders, chief priests, and scribes,” tying the verb to concrete opposition by identifiable leaders and to the judicial-religious pressures that culminate in being killed.

“but I tell you that Elijah has come already, and they didn’t recognize him, but did to him whatever they wanted to. Even so the Son of Man will also suffer by them.” (Matthew 17:12)

πάσχω is set in a pattern of mistreatment: “they didn’t recognize him” and “did to him whatever they wanted to.” The verb then transfers that same kind of treatment to “the Son of Man,” emphasizing suffering as something inflicted by others (“by them”), rooted in rejection and abuse of power rather than mere misfortune.

““Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is epileptic, and suffers grievously; for he often falls into the fire, and often into the water.” (Matthew 17:15)

In this plea, πάσχω names the child’s ongoing misery. The scene supplies physical images—falling “into the fire” and “into the water”—so the suffering is experienced as repeated danger and harm, not a single moment. The father’s request for mercy places the verb in the register of compassion for acute affliction.

“While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of him.”” (Matthew 27:19)

πάσχω is used for distress “in a dream,” and the time marker “today” makes it immediate and pressing. Her suffering is linked causally—“because of him”—so the verb covers painful experience that is internal and psychological as well as external. Positioned beside the “judgment seat,” the word heightens the tension of the moment by introducing personal anguish into a public legal setting.

“and had suffered many things by many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better, but rather grew worse,” (Mark 5:26)

πάσχω describes prolonged, compounded suffering: “many things” from “many physicians.” The clause piles up consequences—financial ruin (“spent all that she had”) and deteriorating health (“grew worse”)—so the verb captures not only bodily pain but the cascading hardship of failed remedies and exploitation or disappointment over time.

“He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.” (Mark 8:31)

πάσχω appears in an explicit act of instruction: Jesus “began to teach” that suffering belongs to the Son of Man’s path. The suffering is closely coordinated with “be rejected” by named groups and with being killed, making it relational and institutional as well as physical. The future horizon (“after three days rise again”) places the suffering within a larger narrative arc without lessening its severity.

“He said to them, “Elijah indeed comes first, and restores all things. How is it written about the Son of Man, that he should suffer many things and be despised?” (Mark 9:12)

Here πάσχω is paired with being “despised,” presenting suffering as intertwined with contempt. The rhetorical question (“How is it written…?”) treats the suffering as something expected within the story being discussed, and “many things” again suggests a broad range of painful experiences rather than a single wound.

“saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up.”” (Luke 9:22)

πάσχω functions as part of a fixed chain: must suffer, be rejected, be killed, be raised. The repeated identification of opponents (“elders, chief priests, and scribes”) keeps the suffering anchored in human action and communal refusal. The verb’s force is sharpened by the necessity language and the proximity of death.

“Jesus answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered such things?” (Luke 13:2)

πάσχω appears in a moral question that separates suffering from simplistic judgments about guilt. The phrase “suffered such things” points to severe events known to the audience, and the verb is used to challenge the assumption that suffering automatically signals greater sin. In this setting, πάσχω helps articulate the reality of calamity while disputing an interpretive shortcut about its meaning.

“But first, he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” (Luke 17:25)

πάσχω is oriented by “first,” making suffering a necessary preliminary in sequence. The agent of rejection is broadened from leaders to “this generation,” extending the social scope of opposition. The verb thus carries the weight of a destined experience of harm and refusal that must occur before what follows.

“He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer,”” (Luke 22:15)

πάσχω is placed immediately ahead of a meal shared with close companions, and the emotional tone (“earnestly desired”) brings intimacy and foreknowledge into the foreground. The suffering is impending (“before I suffer”), and the verb’s presence makes the moment solemn: a chosen act of fellowship stands at the threshold of pain.

“Didn’t the Christ have to suffer these things and to enter into his glory?” (Luke 24:26)

πάσχω is linked with necessity (“have to”) and with a transition: suffering “these things” and then entering “into his glory.” The wording ties the suffering to specific events already in view (“these things”), presenting it as the passage through which the Christ moves toward a different state. The verb marks the costliness of that movement without specifying the mechanics, focusing on the experienced reality of suffering itself.

Sense and Usage

Across these passages, πάσχω consistently denotes suffering as an experienced burden, but the scenes show that the burden can take multiple forms. In the predictions about the Son of Man (Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22; Luke 17:25; Luke 24:26), suffering is repeatedly described as extensive (“many things”) and tied to rejection by particular people or groups: “the elders, chief priests, and scribes,” “this generation,” or simply “them.” This gives the verb a strong relational dimension: it is not only pain endured, but pain endured at the hands of others who reject, despise, and ultimately kill.

The same verb also applies to sufferers outside those passion predictions, and the contexts broaden the picture of what suffering can encompass. A boy “suffers grievously” in a pattern of repeated falls into fire and water (Matthew 17:15), which portrays suffering as ongoing physical peril. A woman “had suffered many things by many physicians” and ends depleted and worse (Mark 5:26), portraying suffering as prolonged, multiplied, and intertwined with failed attempts at relief and the loss of resources. In Matthew 27:19, suffering is located in a dream and described as happening “today,” showing that πάσχω can name inward distress that presses on decision-making in the present moment.

Luke 13:2 adds an interpretive angle: suffering becomes the subject of a question that rebukes easy moral accounting. By using πάσχω in that challenge (“because they suffered such things?”), the saying treats suffering as real and serious while refusing to let it function as proof of greater sinfulness. In these ways the verb covers a spectrum of human anguish—physical, social, psychological—without losing its central focus on the fact of suffering as something undergone.

Imagery

The imagery that gathers around πάσχω in these passages is often concrete: a child repeatedly falling into fire and water (Matthew 17:15), a patient drained of money and health after many treatments (Mark 5:26), and a judge’s household shaken by a troubling dream (Matthew 27:19). Alongside these, the passion predictions give the verb a public face: suffering is located in Jerusalem, inflicted by recognized authorities, expressed in rejection and contempt, and carried through to death and then beyond it. The repeated “must” and “first” language makes suffering feel like a road to be walked, and the scenes place listeners—disciples, petitioners, questioners—right beside that road as it approaches.

Sources: Lexical data from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance and the Translators Brief Lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (STEPBible, CC BY). Occurrence data from the Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament (STEPBible, CC BY). Scripture quotations from the World English Bible (public domain).