📖 Biblical Definition
To follow, in the Gospels, is Christ’s defining call to discipleship. The Greek akoloutheō implies far more than going behind: it is sustained accompaniment, walking the master’s road, sharing his fate. Jesus calls fishermen, a tax collector, and a rich young ruler with the same two words: "Follow me" (Matthew 4:19; 9:9; 19:21). Some leave their nets; some go away grieved. Following is not admiration from a distance — it is forsaking, taking up the cross daily, and going where He goes (Luke 9:23). Every other identity (occupation, family, nation) is reordered under that call. A man who will not follow Christ has not yet met Him.
📜 KJV Continual Tense
In KJV: followeth — the disciple’s sustained walking-after.
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John 8:12: "he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." The continuous tense is essential — following is the disciple’s ongoing road, not a single decision.
Mark 8:34: "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." The taking-up is once; the following is continuous.
Revelation 14:4: "These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth." The eschatological saints are perpetual followers; the verb-aspect is forever.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
To go after, accompany, walk in the way of.
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To go after; to attend; to walk after as a disciple; in Scripture the dominant verb for discipleship — not merely going to where the master is but walking the master’s road in sustained company.
📖 Key Scripture
John 8:12 — "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."
Mark 8:34 — "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."
Revelation 14:4 — "These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Reduced to subscription ("I follow you on social media") rather than the costly walking-the-master’s-road of biblical discipleship.
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Social media flattened "follow" into one-click subscription. Biblical following demands the body, the calendar, the affections, the future. Christ’s "Follow me" was never an opt-in checkbox; it was an exit-everything-else summons.
Recover the cost: to follow is to walk the same road, in the same direction, at the master’s pace, toward the master’s destination.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Greek akoloutheō — to walk the same road.
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['Greek', 'G190', 'akoloutheō', 'to follow, accompany']
['Hebrew', 'H310', 'achar', 'after, behind, follow']
Usage
"Following is sustained, not subscriptional."
"The Lamb’s followers go whithersoever He goes."
"Discipleship is following + denial + cross."