Antioquia

Greek word · Strong G5055

What does Tetelestai mean?

Tetelestai is the word Jesus spoke on the cross, translated “It is finished” (John 19:30). It is a form of the Greek verb teleo (G5055), “to end, complete, accomplish” — and also “to pay” a tax or a debt. It declares that the work was complete.

τελέω

teléō · transliteration

In Strong’s lexicon
to end, i.e. complete, execute, conclude, discharge (a debt)
In the King James
  • finished8
  • accomplished4
  • fulfilled4
  • fulfil3
Appears in
26 verses

See the full G5055 entry →

The meaning of Tetelestai in the Bible

The tense is the perfect: something completed in the past whose effect goes on. Jesus does not say “it is over” as one who gives up, but “it is complete” as one who hands over a finished work. Just before, John uses the same word: “Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished” (John 19:28).

Strong's lexicon lists “discharge (a debt)” among the senses of teleo, and the New Testament itself uses the verb for paying taxes (Matthew 17:24; Romans 13:6). That is why many preachers read tetelestai as “paid in full”: at the cross the debt of sin was settled. The verb allows that reading, but its central sense in John's Gospel is fulfillment — everything the Father gave Jesus to do was done.

Where Tetelestai appears

John 19:30

When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
Read the chapter →

John 19:28

After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.
Read the chapter →

Matthew 17:24

And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? tribute: called in the original, didrachma, being in value fifteen pence sterling; about thirty seven cents
Read the chapter →

Frequently asked questions

What did Jesus mean by “It is finished”?
That the work the Father had given him was complete: his life, his suffering and his death on behalf of his people. It is not a cry of defeat, but the declaration of a mission accomplished.
Does tetelestai mean “paid in full”?
The verb teleo can mean to pay — the New Testament uses it for taxes (Matthew 17:24; Romans 13:6) — which is why many read tetelestai as “debt paid”. The main sense in John 19:30 is “it is complete”; the idea of payment is an application the verb allows.

More Bible words

The whole Bible with Strong's, offline and ad-free

Get the app