Word studies · Greek · Strong's G932
βασιλεία · basileía · appears 164 times in the New Testament
In one line: God's active rule and reign, breaking into the world through Christ.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.
Matthew 6:33
Kingdom refers to a king's royal rule and reign — in the New Testament, especially God's reign breaking into the world through Christ.
Basileia is less about a territory with borders and more about the active rule and authority of a king. “The kingdom of God/heaven” describes God's sovereign reign, already present in Jesus' ministry and awaiting future, full consummation.
Basileia derives from basileus, “king,” and denotes the exercise of royal authority — the reign itself, not merely the realm over which a king rules. It's an abstract noun describing rule in action.
Because basileia emphasizes reign over territory, “kingdom of God” in the Gospels is better heard as “God's reign” — which is why Jesus can say the kingdom is “in your midst” even without pointing to any land or throne.
Basileia (G932) appears well over 160 times in the New Testament, and Matthew alone uses “kingdom of heaven” more than 30 times.
The kingdom of God is the central theme of Jesus' preaching — “the kingdom of God is at hand” — announcing that God's promised reign was breaking into history through His own person and work, with a future consummation still to come.
Living under God's kingdom means aligning your priorities with His rule rather than competing agendas — “seek first the kingdom of God.” Identify one decision this week where you can visibly put God's priorities ahead of your own.
properly, royalty, i.e. (abstractly) rule, or (concretely) a realm (literally or figuratively)
and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.
Matthew 3:2“The time is fulfilled, He said, “and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!
Mark 1:15and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end!
Luke 1:33Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.
John 3:3After His suffering, He presented Himself to them with many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a span of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.
Acts 1:3For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:17Press and hold kingdom in any chapter and this study opens on the verse you are reading, with the lexicons, every occurrence and the commentaries beside it. The Bible is free to read.
Scripture quoted from the Berean Standard Bible, public domain. Strong's definitions are public domain. Counts come from The Pillar's own tagged text.