"a sound, Mt. 24:31; Jn. 3:8; Rev. 4:5; 8:5; a cry, Mt. 2:18; an articulate sound, voice, Mt. 3:3, 17; 17:5; 27:46, 50; voice, speech, discourse, Jn. 10:16, 27; Acts 7:31; 12:22; 13:27; Heb. 3:7, 15; tone of address, Gal. 4:20; language, tongue, dialect, 1 Cor. 14:10"
Definition and meaning
a sound, Mt. 24:31; Jn. 3:8; Rev. 4:5; 8:5; a cry, Mt. 2:18; an articulate sound, voice, Mt. 3:3, 17; 17:5; 27:46, 50; voice, speech, discourse, Jn. 10:16, 27; Acts 7:31; 12:22; 13:27; Heb. 3:7, 15; tone of address, Gal. 4:20; language, tongue, dialect, 1 Cor. 14:10
In the original Greek the word is written: φωνή
Historical context
Rome had controlled Judea since 63 BC. Herod the Great rebuilt the Temple into one of the most magnificent structures in the ancient world — and simultaneously murdered members of his own family. The common people paid multiple layers of taxation and were politically powerless. Into that world a carpenter from Galilee began teaching that the kingdom of God had arrived.
The people who first heard this word were not reading a book — they were living through empires, oppression, exile, and covenant. Every word carried the weight of that reality. Understanding it changes how you read Scripture.
Scripture references
These are the most notable occurrences of phone (G5456) across the King James Bible.
In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.
The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
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Common questions
Strong's G5456 (phone) is a Greek word that means: a sound, Mt. 24:31; Jn. 3:8; Rev. 4:5; 8:5; a cry, Mt. 2:18; an articulate sound, voice, Mt. 3:3, 17; 17:5; 27:46, 50; voice, speech, discourse, Jn. 10:16, 27; Acts 7:31; 12:22; 13:27; Heb. 3:7, 15; t... It appears 129 times in the King James Bible.
The word phone (G5456) appears 129 times in the original Greek text.
Strong's G5456 is phone, a Greek word defined as: a sound, Mt. 24:31; Jn. 3:8; Rev. 4:5; 8:5; a cry, Mt. 2:18; an articulate sound, voice, Mt. 3:3, 17; 17:5; 27:46, 50; voice, speech, discourse, Jn. 1. James Strong catalogued this in his 1890 concordance to help English readers study the original languages of the Bible.
phone is a Greek word found in the New Testament.