4729. stenochóreó

Lexical Summary

stenochóreó: To be distressed, to be in difficulty, to be in a narrow place

Original Word: στενοχωρέω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: stenochóreó
Pronunciation: sten-okh-o-reh'-o
Phonetic Spelling: (sten-okh-o-reh'-o)
KJV: distress, straiten
NASB: restrained, crushed
Word Origin: [from a compound of G4728 (στενός - narrow) and G5561 (χώρα - country)]

1. to hem in closely
2. (figuratively) cramp

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

cramp, confine

From the same as stenochoria; to hem in closely, i.e. (figuratively) cramp -- distress, straiten.

see GREEK stenochoria

HELPS Word-studies

Cognate: 4729 stenoxōréō (from 4728 /stenós, "narrow" and 5566/xōros, "an area, space") – properly, to restrict, keep in a closed space; hem in, severely cramp; (figuratively) holding back affection for someone, like when refusing to respond positively because of a closed heart (cf. L & N, 1, 25.54). In 2 Cor 4:8, Paul states God's grace kept him in difficult circumstances from feeling such. See 4730 (stenoxōria).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from stenos and chóreó
Definition
to be made narrow, to compress
NASB Translation
crushed (1), restrained (2).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 4729: στενοχωρέω

στενοχωρέω, στενοχώρω: (στενόχωρος; and this from στενός, and χῶρος a space);

1. intransitive, to be in a strait place (Machon in Athen. 13, p. 582 b.); to be narrow (Isaiah 49:19).

2. transitive, to straiten, compress, cramp, reduce to straits (Vulg.angustio) (Diodorus, Lucian, Herodian, others; (the Sept. Joshua 17:15; Judges 16:16; Isaiah 28:20; 4 Macc. 11:11)): passive tropically, of one sorely 'straitened' in spirit, 2 Corinthians 4:8; οὐ στενοχωρεῖσθε ἐν ἡμῖν, ye are not straitened in us, ample space is granted you in our souls, i. e. we enfold you with large affection, 2 Corinthians 6:12; στενοχωρεῖσθε ἐν τοῖς σπλάγχνοις ὑμῶν, ye are straitened your own affections, so that there is no room there for us, i. e. you do not grant a place in your heart for love toward me, ibid.

Topical Lexicon

Root Concept and Semantic Field

The verb conveys the picture of being hemmed in, cramped for space, or narrowed so that normal movement is hindered. The imagery moves from the literal—pathways too tight for passage—to the figurative experience of emotional, relational, or spiritual confinement. In Scripture it is used solely by the Apostle Paul, who draws on that vivid sense of compression to describe both external pressures and internal limitations of the heart.

Occurrences in Scripture

1. 2 Corinthians 4:8 – “We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair.”
2. 2 Corinthians 6:12 – “It is not our affection, but yours, that is restrained.” (First use in the verse, contrasting Paul’s open heart with their perceived restriction).
3. 2 Corinthians 6:12 – (Second use in the same verse, highlighting that the Corinthians are themselves ‘restricted in their affections’).

Contextual Insight

• In 2 Corinthians 4:8 Paul catalogs the relentless trials of apostolic ministry. “Hard pressed” captures the suffocating external forces that threaten to stamp out the gospel witness—yet the following clause, “but not crushed,” underscores divine preservation.
• In 2 Corinthians 6:11-13 the imagery shifts from persecution to relationship. Paul’s team has spoken “freely” and opened their hearts wide. Any relational narrowing is located in the Corinthians, not in the apostles. The repeated verb forms a rhetorical hinge: one denial (“you are not restricted in us”) and one assertion (“you are restricted in your own affections”), laying gentle but firm pastoral pressure on the church to reciprocate open-hearted fellowship.

Theological Themes

Pressures without, constriction within — the verb gathers both under a single canopy.
• Perseverance under trial: Paul’s testimony in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 communicates that divine power ensures no trial can finally strangle the believer’s hope.
• Affectional expansiveness: In 2 Corinthians 6:12 the gospel calls believers to enlarge their hearts. Spiritual narrowness is not an unavoidable fate but a relational choice that can be repented of by yielding to the Spirit’s love (compare Romans 5:5).
• Apostolic authenticity: The contrast between Paul’s un-restricted heart and the Corinthians’ restricted hearts validates his ministry motive as self-giving rather than self-serving (2 Corinthians 6:3-10).

Historical and Cultural Background

Greco-Roman rhetoric often employed spatial metaphors for emotional states: a generous man possessed a “wide soul,” while the miserly were “narrow-souled.” Paul leverages that common imagery but roots it in covenant love, not civic virtue. His usage bridges Hellenistic idiom and Old Testament covenantal language about the heart, demonstrating early Christian adaptability without surrendering theological distinctives.

Practical and Pastoral Applications

1. Handling external pressure: Modern servants of Christ who feel boxed in by cultural hostility, institutional limitation, or personal suffering can take courage that “hard pressed” does not equal “crushed.” The same preserving grace active for Paul remains operative.
2. Cultivating open hearts: Congregations may drift into guardedness, factionalism, or emotional stinginess. Paul’s appeal counsels intentional widening—practices of confession, hospitality, and intercessory prayer that enlarge affections toward God’s people.
3. Diagnostic tool for ministry health: Where relational constriction surfaces, leaders are prompted to examine whether the blockage lies in their own hearts or in the flock, and to address it with transparent communication and sacrificial love.

Intertextual Echoes

• Psalm 18:19 portrays God bringing the psalmist “into a spacious place,” the opposite of being hemmed in, foreshadowing the deliverance Paul experiences.
• Isaiah 60:5 speaks of hearts “swelling with joy” when salvation dawns, paralleling Paul’s summons for the Corinthians to open wide.
• Jesus uses a spatial metaphor in Matthew 7:13-14 (narrow gate/broad road), reminding that narrowness can be either faithful discipline or sinful constriction; Paul distinguishes the two by context.

Ministry Significance through Church History

Early Christian martyrs read 2 Corinthians 4:8 as a badge of honor, citing it in trial transcripts. Reformers highlighted 2 Corinthians 6:12 when exhorting mutual love within emerging Protestant communities. In modern missions literature, the term frequently surfaces in testimonies of cramped circumstances—prison cells, closed countries—where the gospel still advances.

Summary Insight

Strong’s Greek 4729 accents a tension at the heart of Christian experience: believers may be squeezed by external adversity or by self-imposed emotional limits, yet the gospel offers spaciousness in Christ. The Spirit who kept Paul from being crushed and who called the Corinthians to open-hearted fellowship continues to liberate believers from every narrowing force, enlarging them for resilient witness and affectionate unity.

Forms and Transliterations

στενοχωρεισθε στενοχωρείσθε στενοχωρεῖσθε στενοχωρήση στενοχωρίσαι στενοχωρουμενοι στενοχωρούμενοι stenochoreisthe stenochoreîsthe stenochōreisthe stenochōreîsthe stenochoroumenoi stenochoroúmenoi stenochōroumenoi stenochōroúmenoi

Englishman's Concordance

2 Corinthians 4:8 V-PPM/P-NMP
GRK: ἀλλ' οὐ στενοχωρούμενοι ἀπορούμενοι ἀλλ'
NAS: in every way, but not crushed; perplexed,
KJV: not distressed; [we are] perplexed,
INT: but not crushed perplexed but

2 Corinthians 6:12 V-PIM/P-2P
GRK: οὐ στενοχωρεῖσθε ἐν ἡμῖν
NAS: You are not restrained by us, but you are restrained
KJV: Ye are not straitened in us,
INT: not You are restrained by us

2 Corinthians 6:12 V-PIM/P-2P
GRK: ἐν ἡμῖν στενοχωρεῖσθε δὲ ἐν
NAS: You are not restrained by us, but you are restrained in your own affections.
KJV: us, but ye are straitened in your own
INT: by us You are restrained moreover in

Strong's Greek 4729
3 Occurrences

στενοχωρεῖσθε — 2 Occ.
στενοχωρούμενοι — 1 Occ.