How many times does the word bishop appear in the Bible?

Answer 1

Actually, no English word "Bishop" technically appears in the Bible, as The Bible is written in Greek. However, the word Episkopos appears several times. The word has been translated into several different English meanings, such as "overseer" or "elder".

However, to say that episkopos is not best translated as Bishop is wrong. By the end of the 1st century the position of episkopos is already well documented by writings from the Apostolic Fathers, the leaders of the Church who learned from the Apostles themselves. The Apostles appointed men to carry on the Great Commission (just as the remaining eleven Apostles replaced Judas with Matthias by casting lots in Acts 1: 23-36). The position left to major overseers was apparently Episkopos:

"In the works of the Apostolic Fathers, and Ignatius of Antioch in particular, the role of the episkopos, or bishop, became more important or, rather, already was very important and being clearly defined."

Pretty much exactly the same meaning as Bishop today. It is no coincidence that the "episcopate" is the term used to define the collective of all the bishops in a Church, or the individual 'episcopate' of a Bishop (which is their office).