σταφυλή (staphulē)
staphulē
grapes
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 3 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun staphulē refers to a bunch or cluster of grapes. In the New Testament, it appears in just three verses: Matthew 7:16, Luke 6:44, and Revelation 14:18. In the Gospels, Jesus uses the image to illustrate how good trees produce good fruit and bad trees produce bad fruit (Matthew 7:16; Luke 6:44). This simple agricultural metaphor helps listeners understand that inner character naturally shows itself in outward actions.
In Revelation 14:18, the word takes on a darker tone. An angel commands another to swing his sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, which are then thrown into God’s great winepress. Here, the ripe grape cluster symbolizes judgment rather than blessing. The contrast between the peaceful orchard scenes in Matthew and Luke and this apocalyptic harvest highlights how the same natural image can carry very different theological weights depending on its context.
Lexical sources note that staphulē specifically denotes the ripe cluster itself, distinguishing it from the unripe fruit or just the vine. This precision matters because ripeness implies readiness for harvest. Whether used to teach about moral integrity or to depict divine judgment, the image relies on the familiar reality of grape harvesting in first-century Palestine. The word grounds abstract spiritual truths in tangible, everyday experience.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word staphulē simply means a cluster of grapes, yet it carries a quiet weight in Scripture. In Matthew and Luke, Jesus uses this everyday image to show that our inner life shapes our outer actions. Just as a healthy vine naturally produces ripe fruit, a heart aligned with God yields kindness, truth, and peace. This is not about forcing good behavior but allowing your true character to grow visible over time.
Revelation 14:18 shifts this image toward judgment, showing that ripeness also signals readiness for harvest. For believers, this serves as a gentle reminder to nurture spiritual growth now. We are invited to live in a way that reflects God’s goodness, trusting that our lives will bear fruit that honors Him.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 3 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- grapes2×
- grapes,1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- σταφυλὴν1×
- σταφυλάς,1×
- σταφυλαὶ1×
Key Verses
-
Matthew 7:16
By their fruits you will know them. Do you gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles?
Jesus uses the impossibility of gathering grapes from thorns to illustrate that genuine faith produces consistent good character.
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Luke 6:44
For each tree is known by its own fruit. For people don’t gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.
This verse reinforces that a person’s nature is revealed by their actions, just as a tree’s species determines its fruit.
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Revelation of John 14:18
Another angel came out from the altar, he who has power over fire, and he called with a great voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Send your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for the earth’s grapes are fully ripe!”
The ripe clusters here symbolize the culmination of history and the reality of divine judgment on evil.