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G2396 · Greek · New Testament
ἴδε
Ide
Interjection
See! / Look! / Behold! (Singular Imperative)

Definition

The Greek interjection ide (ἴδε) is the singular aorist active imperative of horao (to see), functioning as an exclamation meaning 'See!', 'Look!', or 'Behold!' It draws urgent attention to something important. It appears 29 times in the New Testament, often introducing a dramatic or theologically significant revelation.

Usage & Theological Significance

Ide serves as a rhetorical spotlight in the New Testament — the author points at something and demands that the reader/hearer fix their gaze there. Most powerfully, Pilate uses it in John 19:5: 'Ide ho anthropos' — 'Behold the man!' — when presenting the beaten and crowned Jesus to the crowd. This becomes an ironic proclamation of the truth: in this suffering figure is the representative man, the new Adam, the Son of God. Similarly, John the Baptist's 'Ide ho amnos tou theou' (John 1:29 — though using a different form) points to Jesus as the Lamb of God. The word invites a response: to see is to be accountable to what is seen.

Key Bible Verses

John 19:5 Pilate said to them, Here is the man!
John 1:47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.
John 3:26 They came to John and said to him, Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan — the one you testified about — look, he is baptizing.
Mark 2:24 The Pharisees said to him, Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?
John 16:29 Then Jesus' disciples said, Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech.

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External Resources

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