Lexical Summary
phulaké: Guard, watch, prison, custody
Original Word: φυλακή
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: phulaké
Pronunciation: foo-lak-ay'
Phonetic Spelling: (foo-lak-ay')
KJV: cage, hold, (im-)prison(-ment), ward, watch
NASB: prison, watch, prisons, imprisonments, guard, imprisonment, time of the night
Word Origin: [from G5442 (φυλάσσω - guard)]
1. a guarding
2. (concretely) guard (the act, the person)
3. (figuratively) the place, the condition
4. (specially) the time (as a division of day or night)
{literally or figuratively}
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
cage, hold, imprisonment, ward
From phulasso; a guarding or (concretely, guard), the act, the person; figuratively, the place, the condition, or (specially), the time (as a division of day or night), literally or figuratively -- cage, hold, (im-)prison(-ment), ward, watch.
see GREEK phulasso
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
phulassóDefinitiona guarding, guard, watch
NASB Translationguard (1), imprisonment (1), imprisonments (2), prison (34), prisons (3), time of the night (1), watch (4).
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 5438: φυλακήφυλακή,
φυλακῆς,
ἡ (
φυλάσσω), from
Homer down, the
Sept. for
מִשְׁמֶרֶת,
מִשְׁמָר,
מַטָּרָה (a prison),
כֶּלֶא (enclosure, confinement),
guard, watch, i. e.
a. in an active sense, a watching, keeping watch: φυλάσσειν φυλακάς, to keep watch, Luke 2:8 (often in the Greek writings from Xenophon, an. 2, 6, 10, etc.; Plato legg. 6, p. 758 d. down; (cf. φυλακάς ἔχειν, etc. from Homer (Iliad 9, 1 etc.) on); often also in the Sept. for מִשְׁמָרות שָׁמַר).
b. like the Latincustodia and more frequently the pluralcustodiae (see Klotz, Hdwrbch. (or Harpers' Latin Dict.) under the word), equivalent to persons keeping watch, a guard, sentinels: Acts 12:10 (here A. V. ward) (and very often in secular authors from Homer down).
c. of the place where captives are kept, a prison: Matthew 14:10; Matthew 25:36,(39),43f; Mark 6:17, 27(28); Luke 3:20; Luke 21:12; Luke 22:33; Acts 5:19, 22; Acts 8:3; Acts 12:5f, 17; Acts 16:27, 40; Acts 22:4; Acts 26:10; 2 Corinthians 6:5 (here, as in Hebrews 11:36, A. V. imprisonment); 2 Corinthians 11:23; 1 Peter 3:19; Revelation 18:2 (twice; rendered in A. V. hold and cage (R. V. hold));
d. of the time (of night) during which guard was kept, a watch i. e. the period of time during which a part of the guard were on duty, and at the end of which others relieved them. As the earlier Greeks divided the night commonly into three parts (see Liddell and Scott, under the word I. 4), so, previously to the exile, the Israelites also had three watches in a night; subsequently, however, after they became subject to Rome, they adopted the Roman custom of dividing the night into four watches: Matthew 24:43; ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ, τρίτῃ, Luke 12:38; τετάρτῃ, Matthew 14:25; Mark 6:48. Cf. Winer's RWB under the word Nachtwache; (McClintock and Strong's Cyclopaedia, under the word
Topical Lexicon
Meaning and Scope Strong’s 5438 gathers the ideas of confinement, custody, vigilance, and time-keeping into one word. Whether denoting a literal jail, a cohort of guards, or a portion of the night, it always points to something (or Someone) actively restraining or watching for a purpose determined by God’s providence.
Old Testament Roots and Intertestamental Context
In the Septuagint φυλακή frequently translates Hebrew mishmar (“guard, prison, ward”) and mishmeret (“watch, charge”). Thus by the first century it already carried both the penal and the protective nuances. Second-Temple Judaism knew prisons more as holding cells than as places of long-term sentences; judgment was swift, and confinement was mainly to await trial, punishment, or execution (compare Jeremiah 37:15-16 LXX). That background informs New Testament scenes involving φυλακή.
Physical Imprisonment in the Gospels
1. John the Baptist – Herod shut him up “in prison” (Matthew 14:3; Mark 6:17; Luke 3:20). The savage beheading that followed (Matthew 14:10) reveals how φυλακή could be a prelude to death.
2. Jesus’ Teaching – Christ identifies Himself with the incarcerated: “I was in prison, and you came to Me” (Matthew 25:36). The sheep-and-goats judgment makes ministry to prisoners a benchmark of genuine faith.
3. Immediate Consequences of Discipleship – While warning of persecution Jesus tells the Twelve, “They will seize you and persecute you; they will deliver you to synagogues and prisons” (Luke 21:12), showing φυλακή as an expected cost of witness.
The “Watch” of the Night
A second stream of meaning concerns time. The night was divided into four φυλακαί.
• “During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the sea” (Matthew 14:25; Mark 6:48).
• In a parable Jesus commends servants “if he comes in the second or even the third watch and finds them alert” (Luke 12:38).
Because these watches occur when human strength wanes, the passages underscore the need for spiritual vigilance dependent on divine power.
Apostolic Arrests, Angelic Deliverances
Acts offers a theology of φυλακή that magnifies the sovereignty of God over earthly shackles.
• The apostles: “An angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison” (Acts 5:19-25).
• Peter: “Prayer for him was being made fervently… suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared” (Acts 12:5-10,17).
• Paul and Silas in Philippi: “The jailer… having received this order, put them into the inner cell… About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns” (Acts 16:23-27,37,40). Earthquakes, opened doors, conversions—all exhibit the gospel’s unstoppable advance.
Paul’s Perspective on Suffering Behind Bars
Paul twice links φυλακαί with exemplary endurance (2 Corinthians 6:5; 11:23). He presents imprisonment not as defeat but as a platform for authenticating the gospel before rulers (compare Acts 26:10; Philippians 1:13 where the noun is implied by context).
Spiritual Imprisonment and Cosmic Conflict
Not every φυλακή is made of iron.
• “He also went and preached to the spirits in prison” (1 Peter 3:19)—fallen spirits held for judgment, demonstrating Christ’s cosmic triumph.
• Revelation 18:2 pictures Babylon as “a haunt of demons and a cage [φυλακή] of every unclean spirit,” depicting end-time spiritual bondage.
• Satan himself is “released from his prison” after the millennium (Revelation 20:7), proving that every captor is ultimately captive to God.
Watchfulness in Eschatology
The homeowner who would have watched his house “if the master of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming” (Matthew 24:43) turns φυλακή into an exhortation: believers must keep constant guard over their own lives and doctrine as they await Christ’s return.
Ministry Implications for the Church
1. Compassion: Visiting prisoners (Matthew 25) embodies the mercy of the gospel.
2. Courage: Imprisonment is no barrier to effective witness; Scripture written from cells (Philippians, 2 Timothy, Revelation) proves that chains can spread the Word.
3. Vigilance: Every believer is on watch duty. Whether guarding doctrine (1 Timothy 6:20), the flock (Acts 20:28), or personal holiness (1 Peter 5:8), the call echoes the night watches.
Theological Synthesis
φυλακή reveals God’s mastery over time, circumstance, and authority. It calls His people to vigilant faithfulness, assures them that no prison can silence divine truth, and warns that ultimate bondage or freedom hinges on relationship to Christ. Thus the term spans the entire redemptive drama—from earthly jails to eschatological judgment—underscoring the unbreakable consistency of Scripture in proclaiming a sovereign, delivering God.
Forms and Transliterations
φυλακαις φυλακαίς φυλακαῖς φυλακας φυλακάς φυλακὰς φυλακη φυλακή φυλακὴ φυλακῇ φυλακην φυλακήν φυλακὴν φυλακης φυλακής φυλακῆς phulakais phulakas phulake phulakē phulaken phulakēn phulakes phulakēs phylakais phylakaîs phylakas phylakás phylakàs phylake phylakē phylakḕ phylakêi phylakē̂i phylaken phylakēn phylakḗn phylakḕn phylakes phylakês phylakēs phylakē̂s
Links
Interlinear Greek •
Interlinear Hebrew •
Strong's Numbers •
Englishman's Greek Concordance •
Englishman's Hebrew Concordance •
Parallel Texts
