Original Word: γέμω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: gemó
Pronunciation: gheh'-mo
Phonetic Spelling: (ghem'-o)
KJV: be full
NASB: full
Word Origin: [a primary verb]

1. to swell out, i.e. be full

be full.

A primary verb; to swell out, i.e. Be full -- be full.

1073 gémō – full, especially with the sense "fully occupied with (by)," i.e. filled ("loaded") to capacity; laden (freighted) with; "totally characterized by" (in every sense).

4137 /plēróō) ("to fill, fulfill") indicates "accomplished" by a "dynamic motion moving towards" to reach the desired end (destination).

[5056 (télos) can imply full (fulfilled), but this focuses on the consummating, end-purpose. Here the verbal idea is more "at rest."]

Word Origin
a prim. word
Definition
to be full
NASB Translation
full (11).

STRONGS NT 1073: γέμω

γέμω, defect. verb, used only in present and imperfect (in N. T. only in present indicative and participle); to be full, filled full;

a. τίνος (as generally in Greek writings): Matthew 23:25 Lachmann, 27; Luke 11:39; Romans 3:14 (from Psalm 9:28 ()); Revelation 4:6, 8; Revelation 5:8; Revelation 15:7; Revelation 17:3 R G (see below), ; .

b. ἐκ τίνος: Matthew 23:25 (γέμουσιν ἐξ ἁρπαγῆς (L omits; Tr brackets ἐξ) their contents are derived from plunder; see γεμίζω, b. (and references there)).

c. Hebraistically (see πληρόω, 1 (cf. Buttmann, 164 (143); Winer's Grammar, § 30, 8 b.)), with accusative of the material. γέμοντα (Treg. γέμον τά) ὀνόματα βλασφημίας, Revelation 17:3 (L T Tr WH (see above and cf. Buttmann, 80 (70))).

Overview of New Testament Usage

Strong’s Greek 1073 appears eleven times, always describing a state of being completely filled, saturated, or permeated. The contexts range from moral corruption (Luke 11:39) to overflowing glory (Revelation 4:6–8), from the fulness of human depravity (Romans 3:14) to the fulness of divine wrath or intercessory incense (Revelation 5:8; 15:7). The verb consistently highlights an internal condition that invariably manifests outwardly.

Moral and Spiritual Fullness in Jesus’ Woes

Luke 11:39 and Matthew 23:25, 27 use the term in Christ’s stern denunciations of the Pharisees. They meticulously polish the exterior while being “full of greed and wickedness” (Luke 11:39) and “full of dead men’s bones and every kind of impurity” (Matthew 23:27). The imagery exposes hypocrisy: external religiosity cannot mask an interior saturated with sin. Discipleship therefore requires inner transformation rather than cosmetic piety.

Human Depravity in Apostolic Diagnosis

Paul cites Scripture to prove universal sin: “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness” (Romans 3:14). Here γέμω underscores how depravity reaches capacity; speech overflows with what fills the heart. The verse functions within Paul’s larger argument that the entire world stands guilty and in need of the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel.

Heavenly Fullness of Vision and Praise

In Revelation 4:6–8 the term describes the four living creatures “covered with eyes in front and behind” and “covered with eyes all around and within”. The perfect vision of these celestial beings symbolizes unceasing awareness of God’s glory, fueling their perpetual doxology, “Holy, Holy, Holy…” Their fulness contrasts starkly with human blindness apart from grace.

Bowls Full of Intercession

Revelation 5:8 pictures “golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints”. The church’s petitions completely fill the heavenly vessels, testifying that no prayer is lost. This scene encourages persevering prayer, confident that God retains every request until the moment of His perfect response.

Bowls Full of Wrath

Conversely, Revelation 15:7 and 21:9 depict “seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God.” Divine patience has a terminus; accumulated judgment will one day overflow onto an unrepentant world. The same fulness that once held prayers now holds retributive justice, assuring believers that evil will not remain unaddressed.

Fullness of Abominations

Revelation 17:3–4 portrays the harlot and her beast “covered with blasphemous names” and holding a cup “full of abominations.” Sin reaches a climax before final judgment. The imagery draws on Old Testament “cup” motifs (e.g., Psalm 75:8; Jeremiah 25:15), emphasizing that when iniquity is full, God’s wrath is poured out.

Theological Reflections

1. Interior Reality Governs Exterior Expression

Fulness in Scripture is never neutral; what resides within inevitably spills out—greed or grace, curses or prayers.

2. Culmination and Completion

Whether the completion of sin’s measure or of God’s salvific plan, γέμω marks decisive moments when a threshold is reached and divine action follows.

3. Assurance for Believers

Bowls full of incense guarantee that God’s throne room is saturated with the saints’ intercession, just as the living creatures’ eyes assure that nothing escapes His notice.

4. Warning to the Hypocrite

The Pharisaic woes teach that spiritual façades cannot contain inner corruption indefinitely; eventually, the overflow will be exposed and judged.

Ministry Implications

• Preaching: Expose both personal and societal sins that seek to “fill the cup,” urging repentance before divine wrath is full.
• Pastoral Care: Encourage saints that their prayers contribute to heavenly fulness and will result in God’s timely intervention.
• Worship: Emulate the living creatures’ all-absorbing vision of God; services should be “full” of Christ-centered adoration rather than human performance.
• Discipleship: Aim for heart transformation so that lives become vessels “full of goodness, filled with all knowledge” (Romans 15:14), standing in contrast to the world’s fulness of corruption.

From Emptiness to Fulness in Christ

Apart from Christ, humanity is filled with sin; in Christ, believers are promised to “be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). The scattered uses of Strong’s 1073 ultimately point to this redemptive reversal—God replaces the old, polluted fulness with His own, overflowing life.

γεμει γέμει γεμον γέμον γεμοντα γέμοντα γεμοντων γεμόντων γέμουσα γεμουσας γεμούσας γεμουσιν γέμουσιν έγεμον gemei gémei gemon gémon gemonta gémonta gemonton gemontōn gemónton gemóntōn gemousas gemoúsas gemousin gémousinInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts