"to limit or mark out beforehand; to design definitely beforehand, ordain beforehand, predestine, Acts 4:28; Rom. 8:29, 30"
Definition and meaning
to limit or mark out beforehand; to design definitely beforehand, ordain beforehand, predestine, Acts 4:28; Rom. 8:29, 30
In the original Greek the word is written: προορίζω
Historical context
The Roman Empire provided infrastructure no previous civilization had built — roads, sea routes, a common language in Greek, and relative peace across the Mediterranean. Jewish synagogues existed in every major city, giving Paul a starting point everywhere he traveled. The early church had no buildings, no political power, no social standing — and spread faster than any movement in ancient history.
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 proorizo (G4309) across the King James Bible.
For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
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Common questions
Strong's G4309 (proorizo) is a Greek word that means: to limit or mark out beforehand; to design definitely beforehand, ordain beforehand, predestine, Acts 4:28; Rom. 8:29, 30 It appears 6 times in the King James Bible.
The word proorizo (G4309) appears 6 times in the original Greek text.
Strong's G4309 is proorizo, a Greek word defined as: to limit or mark out beforehand; to design definitely beforehand, ordain beforehand, predestine, Acts 4:28; Rom. 8:29, 30. James Strong catalogued this in his 1890 concordance to help English readers study the original languages of the Bible.
proorizo is a Greek word found in the New Testament.