How many times is servant mentioned in the Bible?
The word servant appears 489 times in the King James Version, in 450 verses. Counting every form (servant, servants, servant's), it appears 978 times in 885 verses across 54 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses servant 599 times (1,134 with every form).
Servant in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of servant counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| servant | 489 | 599 |
| servants | 480 | 522 |
| servant's | 9 | 13 |
| Total | 978 | 1,134 |
Which books mention servant most
Servant appears in 54 books of the 66 in the King James Version. 2 Samuel has the most (113), then Genesis (83) and 1 Samuel (77).
Also in: John (15), Job (14), Numbers (13), Deuteronomy (12), Daniel (12), Judges (11), Proverbs (11), Romans (11), Revelation (11), Leviticus (9), Esther (9), Mark (9), Ezekiel (8), Ezra (6), Ecclesiastes (5), Acts (5), 1 Corinthians (5), Zechariah (3), Galatians (3), Colossians (3), Ruth (2), Malachi (2), Ephesians (2), Philippians (2), Titus (2), Philemon (2), 1 Peter (2), 2 Peter (2), Lamentations (1), Joel (1), Amos (1), Micah (1), Haggai (1), 2 Corinthians (1), 1 Timothy (1), 2 Timothy (1), Hebrews (1), James (1), Jude (1).
First and last mention of servant
And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.
The verse that uses it most is 2 Samuel 11:24, 3 times (tied with 2 Samuel 13:24, 2 Samuel 15:34, 2 Samuel 19:26, 1 Kings 5:6, 2 Chronicles 2:8 and 4 more):
And the shooters shot from off the wall upon thy servants; and some of the king’s servants be dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.
Where the two translations differ
43 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 151 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Genesis 14:14: counted in the KJV only
And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.
When Abram heard that his relative was taken captive, he led out his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued as far as Dan.
Genesis 26:14: counted in the KJV only
For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him.
He had possessions of flocks, possessions of herds, and a great household. The Philistines envied him.
Genesis 12:16: counted in the World English Bible only
And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.
He dealt well with Abram for her sake. He had sheep, cattle, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.
Genesis 16:1: counted in the World English Bible only
Now Sarai Abram’s wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had a servant, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
Verses with servant on our topic pages
55 verses that use servant in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
This is the Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things which must happen soon, which he sent and made known by his angel to his servant, John,
It shall not be so among you, but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.
On: Humility, Leadership, Serving Others, What Does the Bible Say About Slavery? 26 Verses
For you, brothers, were called for freedom. Only don’t use your freedom for gain to the flesh, but through love be servants to one another.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
On: Jealousy, Lust, What Does the Bible Say About Gambling? 25 Verses
No weapon that is formed against you will prevail; and you will condemn every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of Yahweh’s servants, and their righteousness is of me,” says Yahweh.
No longer do I call you servants, for the servant doesn’t know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you.
“Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant, and the alien may be refreshed.
Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek for me a woman who has a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and inquire of her.” His servants said to him, “Behold, there is a woman who has a familiar spirit at Endor.”
On: What Does the Bible Say About Ghosts? 25 Verses, Psychics
And also on the servants and on the handmaids in those days, I will pour out my Spirit.
On: End Times, What Does the Bible Say About Speaking in Tongues? 22 Verses
Following Paul and us, she cried out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us a way of salvation!”
On: What Does the Bible Say About Witchcraft? 25 Verses, Psychics
for he is a servant of God to you for good. But if you do that which is evil, be afraid, for he doesn’t bear the sword in vain; for he is a servant of God, an avenger for wrath to him who does evil.
Common questions
How many times is servant in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 826 of the 978 uses are in the Old Testament and 152 in the New Testament. Servant appears in 54 books of the 66 in the King James Version. 2 Samuel has the most (113), then Genesis (83) and 1 Samuel (77).
Where is servant first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 9:25: "And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren." The last is Revelation 22:6.
More word counts: ox, hair, Hamath, Asahel, Amram, Nahash, power, wedding, or all 635 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-24.