BIBLE GREEK WORD STUDY
Hekastos (ἕκαστος) — Meaning & Usage in the Bible
Hekastos (ἕκαστος, G1538) is a Greek adjective meaning 'each' or 'every,' used in the New Testament to highlight individuals within a group rather than the group as a whole.
Meaning of the word
ἕκαστος (Hekastos, G1538) is a distributive adjective that singles out members of a group one by one. The lexicon defines it simply as 'each or every,' and the gloss here remains limited to that core sense without added speculation about etymology or cognates.
Where most generic adjectives for 'all' (ἅπας, πᾶς) treat a group as a single unit, hekastos draws a line through the group and points to each member individually. The example verses show it modifying singular persons ('each one of them' in Acts 2:3) and collective settings ('every man heard them' in Acts 2:6), which is exactly how a distributive is expected to behave in Greek.
Usage in Scripture
Acts 2 uses hekastos repeatedly as the Spirit comes upon individuals and as the multilingual crowd hears the gospel: 'it sat upon each one of them' (Acts 2:3), 'every man heard them speaking in his own language' (Acts 2:6), 'how hear we, every man in our own language wherein we were born?' (Acts 2:8), and Peter's call, 'be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ' (Acts 2:38). The repeated word makes clear that no one is absorbed into the crowd; each listener is personally responsible for what he hears and is personally addressed in baptism.
In John 16:32 Jesus warns that the disciples 'shall be scattered, every man to his own,' again treating each disciple as a discrete person rather than a faceless group. Romans 12:3 urges believers 'not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think,' with God having 'dealt to each man a measure of faith,' and 1 Corinthians 15:38 affirms that God 'to each seed a body of its own' has given. Across these passages the word anchors a theology of individual responsibility before God.
The word in detail
- G1538 Defined as 'each or every.' In the passages supplied, ἕκαστος appears as nominative singular (ἕκαστος), accusative singular (ἕκαστον), dative singular (ἑκάστῳ), and nominative plural (ἕκαστοι). Always treat it as a distributive: the focus is individual members within a group, not the group summed up.
Example verses
- Acts 2:38 Peter addresses the crowd with 'be baptized every one of you' (ἕκαστος), turning a collective call to repentance into an individual summons.
- Romans 12:3 God has 'dealt to each man' (ἑκάστῳ) a measure of faith, making sober self-assessment a per-person duty rather than a general attitude.
- 1 Corinthians 15:38 God gives 'to each seed a body of its own' (ἑκάστῳ), using hekastos to ground the resurrection argument in individual, tailor-made creation.
- John 16:32 Jesus predicts the disciples will be scattered 'every man to his own' (ἕκαστος), highlighting each disciple as a separate moral agent in the moment of trial.
Common questions
Does hekastos mean 'every' or 'each'?
The lexicon gives both senses. In practice it is a distributive, so even sentences that translate as 'every man' (Acts 2:6) really mean 'each man within the group,' taken one by one.
Is hekastos the same as pas or hapax?
No. Pas and hapax present the group as a whole ('all'); hekastos walks through the group member by member ('each, every one'). The example verses show hekastos doing this distributive work, for example 'each one of them' in Acts 2:3 and 'each in his own order' in 1 Corinthians 15:23.
What does hekastos add to a passage theologically?
It signals personal responsibility. In Acts 2:38 each hearer is personally addressed to be baptized, and in Romans 12:3 each believer is personally accountable to think soberly according to the faith God has given him.