"of great price, costly, precious, Mt. 13:46; Jn. 12:3; 1 Pet. 1:7*"
Definition and meaning
of great price, costly, precious, Mt. 13:46; Jn. 12:3; 1 Pet. 1:7*
In the original Greek the word is written: πολύτιμος
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 polytimos (G4186) across the King James Bible.
Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.
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Common questions
Strong's G4186 (polytimos) is a Greek word that means: of great price, costly, precious, Mt. 13:46; Jn. 12:3; 1 Pet. 1:7* It appears 2 times in the King James Bible.
The word polytimos (G4186) appears 2 times in the original Greek text.
Strong's G4186 is polytimos, a Greek word defined as: of great price, costly, precious, Mt. 13:46; Jn. 12:3; 1 Pet. 1:7*. James Strong catalogued this in his 1890 concordance to help English readers study the original languages of the Bible.
polytimos is a Greek word found in the New Testament.