# G4637 - skenoo **Strong's:** [G4637](https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g4637/) · BLB lookup **Pronunciation:** skay-no'-o **Part of speech:** verb **Root:** from σκῆνος / σκηνή (*skēnos / skēnē*, "tent / tabernacle / booth") **NT occurrences:** 5 (one in John, four in Revelation) ## Semantic range (Thayer / BDAG) 1. **To fix one's tent, to encamp, to pitch a tent**, the literal sense; nomadic dwelling. 2. **To dwell, to reside**, by extension; to occupy as a dwelling place. 3. **(Theologically) to tabernacle, to dwell among / over**, God's covenant presence, paralleling the OT *Shekinah* glory in the tabernacle and temple. ## Theological force The verb evokes the **OT tabernacle** (Hebrew אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, *ohel mo'ed*, "tent of meeting"; Hebrew מִשְׁכָּן, *mishkan*, "dwelling place", note the Hebrew root *š-k-n* parallels the Greek *sk-n* phonetically and may be more than coincidence in John's choice of word). When [John 1.14](/codex/john-1-14/) says *ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν*, "the Word became flesh and *tabernacled* among us", the entire OT theology of God's covenant presence is being invoked: - The tabernacle of [Exodus 25](/codex/exodus-25/)-40, where YHWH's *kavod* (glory) descended in cloud ([Exodus 40:34-38](/codex/exodus-40-34-38/)). - The Solomonic temple, where the same glory filled the holy place ([1 Kings 8:10-11](/codex/1-kings-8-10-11/)). - The Ezekiel vision of the glory departing the temple ([Ezekiel 10](/codex/ezekiel-10/)-11) and returning in the eschatological temple ([Ezekiel 43:1-5](/codex/ezekiel-43-1-5/)). In the incarnation, that glory takes on a body. *Eskēnōsen en hēmin*, "He pitched His tent among us." John's prologue continues: "we beheld His glory" (*tēn doxan autou*), the *Shekinah* now visible in the person of Christ. The verbal echo is deliberate: Hebrew *shakan* ("to dwell," from which *shekinah* derives) and Greek *skēnoō* share the consonants *š-k-n*. Whether John intended a bilingual pun or relied on Septuagintal usage, the theological identification stands. In Revelation, *skēnoō* clusters around the eschatological consummation: God will dwell with His people ([Revelation 7:15](/codex/revelation-7-15/), [21](/codex/revelation-7-21/):3), the tabernacle motif comes to its terminus when "the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell (*skēnōsei*) among them." ## Notable verses - **[John 1.14](/codex/john-1-14/)**, *ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν*, "He tabernacled among us" (the incarnation as Shekinah) - **[Revelation 7:15](/codex/revelation-7-15/)**, "He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle (*skēnōsei*) over them" - **[Revelation 12:12](/codex/revelation-12-12/)**, "Rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell (*skēnountes*) in them" - **[Revelation 13:6](/codex/revelation-13-6/)**, "to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who tabernacle (*skēnountas*) in heaven" - **[Revelation 21:3](/codex/revelation-21-3/)**, "the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell (*skēnōsei*) among them" ## OT background, the Shekinah While the Hebrew noun *Shekinah* is post-biblical (rabbinic / Targumic), the verbal root *šākhan* (H7931, "to dwell") and the related noun *mishkan* (H4908, "tabernacle / dwelling place") are pervasive in the Pentateuch: - **[Exodus 25:8](/codex/exodus-25-8/)**, "let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell (*shakhanti*) among them" - **[Exodus 29:45](/codex/exodus-29-45/)**, "I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God" - **[Exodus 40:34-38](/codex/exodus-40-34-38/)**, the cloud and glory filling the tabernacle - **[Numbers 35:34](/codex/numbers-35-34/)**, "I, the LORD, am dwelling among the sons of Israel" - **[1 Kings 8:10-13](/codex/1-kings-8-10-13/)**, the glory filling Solomon's temple at dedication - **[Ezekiel 43:7](/codex/ezekiel-43-7/)**, eschatological promise: "I will dwell among the sons of Israel forever" ## Patristic / scholarly note [Justin Martyr](/codex/justin-martyr/) (*Dialogue with Trypho* 50-63, c. AD 160) develops the connection between the OT theophanies / *kavod*-cloud and the incarnate Christ. [Cyril of Alexandria](/codex/cyril-of-alexandria/) (*Commentary on John*, c. AD 425) takes *eskēnōsen* as the lexical bridge between OT temple-presence and the incarnation. Modern scholarship (Andreas Köstenberger, *John* in the BECNT series; D. A. Carson, *The Gospel According to John*) confirms the *Shekinah* reading: the verb is too unusual and the immediate context "we beheld His glory" too freighted to be coincidental. The temporal coloring of the verb, *eskēnōsed* in the aorist, captures the historic-particular fact: the Word pitched His tent at a definite point in history, in a specific place (Bethlehem, Galilee, Jerusalem). The incarnation is not an abstract truth but a datable event. ## Verses in this codex _See Obsidian's backlinks pane for every verse page linking here._ ## See also - [G3056 - logos](/codex/g3056-logos/), *logos sarx egeneto kai eskēnōsen* - [G4561 - sarx](/codex/g4561-sarx/), "flesh," the manner of dwelling - [G1391 - doxa](/codex/g1391-doxa/), "glory," what was beheld in the tabernacled Word - H7931 - shakan, Hebrew root, "to dwell" - H4908 - mishkan, Hebrew "tabernacle" - [John 1.14](/codex/john-1-14/), the locus classicus