αὔριον (aurion)
aurion
tomorrow
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 14 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The adverb aurion simply means "tomorrow," marking the day following the present one. In the New Testament, it appears fourteen times, primarily within the Gospels and Acts, serving as a straightforward temporal marker for events scheduled to happen next. It grounds narrative in the immediate future, whether referring to a specific appointment or a general period of coming days.
Its etymology is distinctive, deriving from a root related to morning air or breeze, suggesting a connection to the dawn that begins each new day. This linguistic origin reinforces its function as a word pointing toward the start of a fresh cycle. Translators consistently render it as "tomorrow," capturing its precise and unambiguous nature in both literal and idiomatic contexts.
The word often highlights the urgency or uncertainty of human plans. In passages such as Matthew 6:34, Jesus uses it to contrast the fixed reality of tomorrow with the anxiety of today, urging focus on present needs rather than future worries. Similarly, in Acts 23:20, it marks a specific time for a plot to unfold, showing how this simple term can anchor significant narrative turning points in the daily flow of life.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word αὔριον (aurion) simply means tomorrow, marking the day following today. In the New Testament, it often highlights the uncertainty of human plans against the stability of God’s care. Jesus uses this term in Matthew 6:34 to remind us not to be anxious about what lies ahead, since each day has its own challenges. This gentle instruction invites us to trust that God provides for today without demanding we carry tomorrow’s burdens right now.
When James writes in 4:14 that we do not know what life will be like tomorrow, he is not trying to scare us but to ground our perspective in reality. Life is fleeting, like a vapor, yet God remains constant. By focusing on the present moment and relying on His grace, we can face the future with peace rather than fear, knowing that our lives are held securely in His hands.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 14 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- tomorrow9×
- next day2×
- tomorrow;1×
- next day;1×
- next day [is]1×
- Tomorrow1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- αὔριον12×
- αὔριον·2×
- αὔριόν1×
Key Verses
-
Matthew 6:34
Therefore don’t be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Each day’s own evil is sufficient.
Jesus uses this word to command against anxiety, emphasizing that each day has enough trouble of its own without borrowing worry from the future.
-
James 4:14
Yet you don’t know what your life will be like tomorrow. For what is your life? For you are a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.
This occurrence underscores the fragility of human life and the need for humility, as we cannot predict what tomorrow holds.
-
Luke 13:32
He said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I complete my mission.
Jesus refers to this term to define the timeline of His mission, showing a deliberate progression in His work despite opposition.