Greek word · G1816

ἐξανατέλλω

exanatellō

to sprout up

"To spring up, sprout forth, cause to rise up". It intensifies anatellō, "to rise", which is used of the sun rising and of plants sprouting. (The related noun anatolē means both "sunrise / the east" and, in the Greek Old Testament, "shoot, branch".)

Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἐξ-ανα-τέλλω

[in LXX: Genesis 2:9, Psalms 104:14 Psalms 132:17 Psalms 147:8 (צָמַח hi.); Psalms 112:4 (זָרַח) * ;]

1. trans., to cause to spring up (LXX).

2. Intrans. (as ἀνατέλλω, Genesis 3:18), to spring up: Matthew 13:5, Mark 4:5.†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Matthew 13:5

Range of meaning

"To spring up, sprout forth, cause to rise up". It intensifies anatellō, "to rise", which is used of the sun rising and of plants sprouting. (The related noun anatolē means both "sunrise / the east" and, in the Greek Old Testament, "shoot, branch".)

Against the English

KJV/WEB "sprung/sprang up", YLT "sprang forth", BSB "sprang up". All are accurate. No English version can carry the echo with "the sun rose" in v. 6.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the NT only here and Mark 4:5. In the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) it is used in Genesis 2:9 of God making every tree spring up out of the ground, and in Psalm 132:17 (LXX 131:17) of making a horn "sprout" for David.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 13:5 ἐξανέτειλεν it sprang up

    Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow.

    Here: "It shot up out [of the ground]". This is a rare double-prefixed form of anatellō, the verb used for sunrise. In the very next verse the sun "rises" (anateilantos) and scorches what had "risen". The wordplay is audible in Greek.

Mark · 1

  1. Mark 4:5 ἐξανέτειλεν it sprang up

    Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.