30. aggeion
Lexical Summary
aggeion: Vessel, container, jar

Original Word: ἀγγεῖον
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Transliteration: aggeion
Pronunciation: ang-GAY-on
Phonetic Spelling: (ang-eye'-on)
KJV: vessel
NASB: flasks
Word Origin: [from aggos "a pail" (perhaps as bent)]

1. a receptacle

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
vessel, container.

From aggos (a pail, perhaps as bent; compare the base of agkale); a receptacle -- vessel.

see GREEK agkale

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from aggos
Definition
a vessel
NASB Translation
flasks (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 30: ἀγγεῖον

ἀγγεῖον, , τό (equivalent to τό ἄγγος), a vessel, receptacle: Matthew 13:48 (R G L); . (From Herodotus down.)

Topical Lexicon
Word Overview and Occurrences

Strong’s Greek 30 (ἀγγεῖον, aggeion) denotes a movable receptacle—anything from a clay jar or flask to a woven basket. It appears only twice in the Greek New Testament, both times on the lips of Jesus within parabolic teaching (Matthew 13:48; Matthew 25:4). In each setting the physical vessel becomes a vehicle for spiritual truth.

Historical Background of Vessels in First-Century Judea

Every home in first-century Palestine relied on a wide assortment of aggeia. Potters fired clay jars in village kilns; fishermen carried wicker baskets or leather buckets; travelers kept small alabaster flasks for oil or wine. These containers preserved food, safeguarded valuables, and enabled daily commerce. Their ubiquity made them ideal illustrations for teachers, allowing listeners to grasp unseen realities through familiar household items.

Theological Themes Illustrated by aggeion in the Parables

• Separation and discernment (Matthew 13:48)

“When it was full, the men pulled it ashore. Then they sat down and sorted the good fish into containers, but threw the bad away.”

Fishermen placed edible fish into aggeia, while the worthless were discarded. Jesus applies the scene to the final judgment (Matthew 13:49–50): just as fish are divided, so angels will separate “the wicked from the righteous.” The vessel thus represents safe keeping for the redeemed. The image underscores divine discernment—God knows those who are His—and anticipates the secure destiny of believers gathered into His kingdom.

• Readiness and provision (Matthew 25:4)

“But the wise ones took oil in jars along with their lamps.”

In the parable of the ten virgins, aggeia carry an essential reserve of oil. The wise prepare; the foolish presume. When the bridegroom delays, only those with filled vessels enter the wedding feast (Matthew 25:10). Here the container highlights personal responsibility to be spiritually stocked—faith expressed through persevering obedience, not mere profession. The vessel’s adequacy or emptiness becomes the dividing line between acceptance and exclusion.

Related Biblical Imagery of Vessels

Although differing Greek words are used, Scripture frequently employs the broader motif of a “vessel” to portray humanity in God’s hands:

• “We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)
• “In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver but also of wood and clay… If anyone cleanses himself from these, he will be a vessel for honor.” (2 Timothy 2:20-21)
• “Does not the potter have the right to make from the same lump of clay one vessel for special use and another for common use?” (Romans 9:21)

Each passage reinforces truths implicit in the two aggeion texts: God chooses, prepares, and fills people for His purposes; moral purity and humble dependence determine whether a person becomes a vessel of honor or dishonor.

Eschatological Emphasis

Both canonical occurrences tie aggeion to end-time accountability. The dragnet scene culminates in “the end of the age” (Matthew 13:49). The wedding feast represents the consummation of the kingdom (Matthew 25:10-13). Thus, the ordinary jar acquires eschatological weight: what is inside the vessel today foretells eternal destiny tomorrow.

Practical Application for the Church Today

1. Self-examination: Believers are called to inspect the “container” of their lives. Is there living faith and the oil of the Spirit, or an outward form that hides emptiness?
2. Stewardship: Like fishermen sorting catch, churches must exercise loving discernment, preserving truth and confronting sin so that the body remains a clean vessel for God’s glory.
3. Hope: The aggeion filled with good fish prefigures the final gathering of the saints. Assurance rests not in personal merit but in the Lord who secures His own.
4. Mission: Empty jars invite filling. Proclamation of the Gospel offers humanity the only resource—Christ Himself—that can prepare them for the coming kingdom.

The humble aggeion, though mentioned only twice, reminds every generation that what God seeks is a prepared, purified, and Spirit-filled vessel through which He may pour His light to the world and into eternity.

Forms and Transliterations
αγγεία αγγειοις αγγείοις ἀγγείοις αγγείον αγγείου αγγείω αγγείων αγγη ἄγγη ange angē ánge ángē angeiois angeíois
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Matthew 13:48 N-ANP
GRK: καλὰ εἰς ἄγγη τὰ δὲ
KJV: the good into vessels, but cast
INT: good into vessels and

Matthew 25:4 N-DNP
GRK: ἐν τοῖς ἀγγείοις μετὰ τῶν
NAS: oil in flasks along with their lamps.
KJV: in their vessels with their
INT: in the vessels with the

Strong's Greek 30
2 Occurrences


ἄγγη — 1 Occ.
ἀγγείοις — 1 Occ.

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