Word Nerd 16
eikōn
The Word
Greek: εἰκών
Greek (transliterated): eikōn
English: image, likeness, representation
The Greek word eikōn (pronounced “eye-con”) is where we get our English word “icon.” It’s one of those words that looks simple until you realize it carries the weight of entire worldviews. In Scripture, eikōn can mean a physical image, a reflection, or a representation of something greater.
In everyday Greek, an eikōn was any likeness. This includes things like a portrait, a statue, or even the face on a coin. But in the biblical world, that definition was radicalized. To bear an eikōn wasn’t just to look like something, it was to represent it.
The History
In the ancient world, kings placed images of themselves in distant cities to mark their rule. Those eikones weren’t just art, they were authority. They told everyone who owned the land. So when Genesis 1:27 says, “God created man in his own image,” it’s using that same concept. Humanity was meant to be God’s representative presence on earth. In other words, living icons.
By the time of the New Testament, eikōn took on even deeper meaning. Paul called Jesus “the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15, ESV). He wasn’t saying Jesus merely resembles God. He was saying that he embodies him. Christ is what God looks like when he shows up in human form.
The Implications
If Jesus is the true eikōn, then every other image falls short. That’s the heart of Paul’s theology. Humanity was made in God’s image, but that image was fractured by sin. In Christ, the image is restored.
That means discipleship isn’t about behavior modification… It’s about image restoration. The Spirit’s work in us is re-forming what was deformed. When Paul says we’re being “conformed to the image (eikōn) of His Son” (Romans 8:29, ESV), that’s what he means. Every act of grace, mercy, and obedience is part of God chiseling his likeness back into us.
The Fun Facts
The word eikōn shows up about 23 times in the New Testament.
In the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament), it’s used to translate the Hebrew tselem. This is the same word from Genesis 1 for “image.”
In the ancient world, the word wasn’t inherently spiritual. It just meant “representation.” The Bible gave it new theological power.
Our English “icon” eventually came to mean religious art, especially in the Eastern church. But in Scripture, eikōnis is more dynamic. It’s about presence, not portraiture.
The Uses
Genesis 1:27 (LXX): “So God created man in His own image.”
Matthew 22:20–21 (ESV): “‘Whose image and inscription is this?’ They said, ‘Caesar’s.’ Then He said, ‘Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’”
Romans 8:29 (ESV): “To be conformed to the image of His Son.”
1 Corinthians 15:49 (ESV): “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.”
2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV): “We all… are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.”
Colossians 1:15 (ESV): “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”