In the history of Greek language, the verb θλίβω undergoes a semantic shift, i.e., from "to squeeze" to "to oppress". Obviously, such a semantic shift is evident from the papyri of the Hellenistic period, e.g. in the so-called enteuxeis from Ptolemaic Egypt. In the Septuagint, the terms θλίβω and θλῖψις occur often, but not exclusively in prayer language while they are rather rare in the works of Philo. In the New Testament, θλῖψις is used to summarize in one word the afflictions and the distress of the faithful. Using a few selected examples, this paper seeks to trace the lines of development in the use of the two terms. Nevertheless, attention will be paid also to those texts that continue to use the verb in the sense of "to squeeze".