Greek word · G1881

ἐπανίστημι

epanistēmi

to rebel against

To rise up against someone: to rebel or revolt against authority, or to attack. It is a word for hostile uprisings, like subjects against rulers or enemies against a city.

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

What it means

ἐπ-αν-ίστημι

[in LXX chiefly for קוּם ;]

to raise up against; mid., to rise up against: before ἐπί, with accusative of person(s), Matthew 10:21, Mark 13:12.†

(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 10:21

Range of meaning

To rise up against someone: to rebel or revolt against authority, or to attack. It is a word for hostile uprisings, like subjects against rulers or enemies against a city.

Against the English

'Rise (up) against' (KJV, ESV, BSB, WEB, NASB) keeps the picture. NIV and NLT say 'rebel against,' which today can sound like ordinary teenage defiance, much weaker than the Greek.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the New Testament it appears only here and in Mark 13:12. The Septuagint uses it for armed or political uprisings. Most important, LXX Micah 7:6 says 'a daughter will rise up against (epanastēsetai epi) her mother.' Jesus quotes that verse openly a few lines later (Matthew 10:35–36). The Mishnah (Sotah 9:15) uses Micah 7:6 to describe the turmoil in 'the footsteps of the Messiah.'

From the study of Mark 13:12

Range of meaning

To stand up against, rise in revolt, attack. In wider Greek it is used of rebellions against rulers and of attackers rising against a victim. In the New Testament it occurs only here and in the parallel at Matthew 10:21.

Against the English

"Rise up against" (KJV, WEB, YLT, BSB) is accurate. NLT's "rebel against" brings out the sense of revolt, but it can sound like ordinary teenage defiance, which is much weaker than the Greek.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX Micah 7:6: "a daughter will rise up (epanastēsetai) against her mother." Deuteronomy 19:11 in the LXX uses it of a man who lies in wait and rises against his neighbour to kill him.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 10:21 ἐπαναστήσονται will rise up

    Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rise against their parents and have them put to death.

    Here: 'Will rise up against.' The word is used for uprisings and hostile attacks. It is the same verb the Greek version of Micah 7:6 uses for a daughter rising against her mother. So it is more than disobedience: it is open hostility against the people children were bound to honour.

Mark · 1

  1. Mark 13:12 ἐπαναστήσονται will rise up

    Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against their parents and have them put to death.

    Here: "Will rise up against": the language of revolt and hostile attack. It echoes Micah 7:6 in the Greek Old Testament, where a daughter "rises up against" her mother.

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