Protos

What does "Key" mean in the Bible?

Key, an instrument, of wood or metal, for closing or opening a lock. Key appears in 6 verses across 4 books of the Bible.

Roman era key
Roman era key · © Hermann Junghans, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What does the Bible say about Key?

KEY (Heb. the opener, Gr. the closer), an instrument, of wood or metal, for closing or opening a lock. Jud 3:25. They were sometimes so large as to be carried on the shoulder. Isa 22:22. When so borne a key proclaimed the bearer's importance and declared him to be an officer. Egyptian lion Key. (From Wilkinson.) The key is an emblem of office, as of a treasurer, Isa 22:22; of authority in the Church of Christ, Matt 16:19; an emblem of the means of gaining knowledge of divine truth, Luke 11:52; of Christ's authority over hell and death, Rev 1:18; Hos 9:1; Eze 20:1; and of kingship. Rev 3:7. Assyrian monuments show strong gates fastened by bars, and by locks opened by huge keys like those of modern Cairo. In ancient as in modern times the transfer of government was made by giving and taking a key. The rabbins represent God as holding the keys of various operations of nature.

Definition text: Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible · 1898. Public domain.

Compiled by Protos: the verse list on this page. Where one name belongs to more than one person or place, each of them gets a separate entry.

What is the Greek word for Key?

Greek · G2807

κλείς

kleis

key

TBESG, from Abbott-Smith (1922). Public domain.

Where does Key appear in the Bible?

Key is referenced in 6 verses across 4 books. Every passage below is about this one, not just every verse the word turns up in.

Revelation 3Isaiah 1Judges 1Luke 1

What else appears in these passages?

These turn up in the same passages as Key.

DavidAngelDoorsWoeStarChain

Common questions

How many times does the Bible mention Key?

Key appears in 6 verses across 4 books, most often in Revelation, which accounts for 3 of them.

Which books of the Bible mention Key?

Revelation, Isaiah, Judges, Luke.

Where can I read every verse about Key?

This page lists 6 of them. Protos carries all 6, and opens this entry on the verse you are reading rather than in a separate tab.

Read it in context

Read Revelation with "Key" explained on the verse.

Tap any name, place, or word you do not recognize and the background opens on the verse you are reading. No second tab, no search, no losing your place.

The Protos reader open on Genesis 1 with the How to Read Genesis background sheet raised over it
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