Greek word · G402

ἀναχωρέω

anachōreō

to leave

To go back, withdraw, retire. Often it means withdrawing from danger or from people, sometimes taking refuge. In papyri (ancient everyday documents) it is used of people leaving their district to escape taxes or obligations.

Appears 14 times in 14 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ἀνα-χωρέω, -ῶ

[in LXX for בָּרַח, נוּם, etc. ;]

1. to go back.

2. to withdraw: Matthew 9:24; frequently in sense of avoiding danger (MM, VGT, see word), Matthew 2:12 (but see Thayer), Matthew 2:13-14, 22 4:12 12:15 14:13 15:21 27:5, Mark 3:7, John 6:15, Acts 23:19 26:31.†

(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 John 6:15

Range of meaning

To go back, withdraw, retire. Often it means withdrawing from danger or from people, sometimes taking refuge. In papyri (ancient everyday documents) it is used of people leaving their district to escape taxes or obligations.

Against the English

'Withdrew' (BSB, WEB, NIV) is accurate. KJV's 'departed' is milder. YLT's 'retired' is old-fashioned but close.

Used elsewhere in the period

Matthew uses it for withdrawals from threat: to Egypt from Herod (2:14), to Galilee away from Archelaus (2:22), away from the Pharisees' plotting (12:15), after John the Baptist's death (14:13). Later Christian Greek took the word for monks withdrawing into the desert, which gave English 'anchorite'. That later sense should not be read back into this verse.

From the study of Matthew 14:13

Range of meaning

To go back or away, to withdraw or retire. Often it means withdrawing out of reach of danger or pressure, taking refuge. It can also be neutral, 'go off, leave' (as in Matthew 9:24, 'go away').

Against the English

'Withdrew' (BSB, WEB, YLT) is accurate. KJV's 'departed' loses the sense of pulling back from something. Paraphrases that add a reason ('to be alone', 'to grieve') give a motive the Greek verb doesn't state.

How it drifted

Later Christian Greek built anachōrētēs, 'one who withdraws', from this verb. It is where English gets 'anchorite', the monastic hermit. That later meaning makes 'withdrawal' sound like spiritual retreat for contemplation. Matthew's usage is more down-to-earth: it is mostly about getting out of a dangerous ruler's reach.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the papyri of Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt, anachōrēsis is the technical term for villagers fleeing their homes to escape taxes and compulsory service (Moulton–Milligan). In the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament), Moses 'withdrew from the face of Pharaoh' (Exod 2:15). Matthew uses the verb about ten times, more than any other New Testament writer. The Magi withdraw from Herod (2:12), Joseph flees Herod with the child (2:13–14) and again avoids Archelaus (2:22). Jesus, 'having heard that John had been handed over, withdrew' to Galilee (4:12), withdraws when the Pharisees plot to destroy him (12:15), and withdraws to Tyre and Sidon (15:21).

From the study of Matthew 15:21

Range of meaning

To go back, retire, withdraw, or go away. It is often used for pulling out of a dangerous or awkward situation: retreating troops, someone escaping a threat, or someone going off to a quiet place. It can also simply mean to leave.

Against the English

"Withdrew" (BSB, WEB, YLT, and most modern versions) is accurate. The KJV's "departed" is correct but flatter. It loses the sense of pulling back from something.

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in classical and Koine Greek for retreating or retiring, and used in the papyri for people fleeing taxes or duties. Matthew uses it 10 times, more than any other New Testament writer: the magi avoid Herod (2:12–13), Joseph escapes to Egypt (2:14) and to Galilee (2:22), Jesus withdraws after John's arrest (4:12), when the Pharisees plot against him (12:14–15), and after John is executed (14:13). The verb later gave Christian Greek the word anachōrētēs, "anchorite" (a hermit). That use comes centuries later and has nothing to do with this verse.

Where it appears

Matthew · 10

  1. Matthew 2:12 ἀνεχώρησαν they withdrew

    And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they withdrew to their country by another route.

    Here: "They withdrew." More than 'went home.' Matthew uses this verb again and again for getting out of the reach of a hostile ruler. Joseph 'withdraws' to Egypt (2:14), and later to Galilee (2:22), and Jesus 'withdraws' after John's arrest (4:12).

  2. Matthew 2:13 Ἀναχωρησάντων When were withdrawing

    When the Magi had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”

    Here: “When they had withdrawn.” It picks up the very verb used of the Magi in v.12 and is about to be used of Joseph in v.14. In Matthew it is the word for pulling back out of a danger zone.

  3. Matthew 2:14 ἀνεχώρησεν withdrew

    So he got up, took the Child and His mother by night, and withdrew to Egypt,

    Here: 'Withdrew': moved away out of reach of a threat. The angel had said 'flee' (pheuge); Matthew narrates it with his favourite word for pulling back from danger, the same word the Greek Old Testament uses of Moses escaping Pharaoh (Exodus 2:15).

  4. Matthew 2:22 ἀνεχώρησεν he withdrew

    But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee,

    Here: "He withdrew": pulled back out of danger's reach. Matthew uses this verb again and again for retreat in the face of hostile power (2:12, 13, 14; 4:12; 12:15; 14:13).

  5. Matthew 4:12 ἀνεχώρησεν He withdrew

    When Jesus heard that John had been imprisoned, He withdrew to Galilee.

    Here: 'He withdrew': a pulling back in the face of a hostile power. This is one of Matthew's signature verbs, used for the holy family escaping Herod and for Jesus avoiding danger, and it is often followed by a fulfilled prophecy, as it is here in 4:14–16.

  6. Matthew 9:24 ἀναχωρεῖτε, do go away,

    “Go away,” He told them. “The girl is not dead, but asleep.” And they laughed at Him.

    Here: A plural command: "Clear out! Back off!" It is aimed at the whole crowd of mourners. The present-tense form gives a sense of "start moving away." Matthew normally uses this verb for Jesus himself withdrawing from danger. Here he is the one telling others to withdraw.

  7. Matthew 12:15 ἀνεχώρησεν He withdrew

    Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. Large crowds followed Him, and He healed them all,

    Here: "He withdrew." Matthew uses this word again and again for pulling back out of danger: the holy family escaping Herod, Jesus after John's arrest. Here it marks a deliberate move away from the people who want him dead. It is not a defeat, and it is not a sulk.

  8. Matthew 14:13 ἀνεχώρησεν withdrew

    When Jesus heard about John, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. But the crowds found out about it and followed Him on foot from the towns.

    Here: One of Matthew's signature verbs. It usually means pulling back out of reach of a threat, as when the holy family flees Herod (2:13–14) and when Jesus leaves after John's arrest (4:12). It is a decisive, one-time move away.

  9. Matthew 15:21 ἀνεχώρησεν withdrew

    Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.

    Here: "Withdrew." This is the main verb. Matthew uses it again and again when Jesus pulls back from danger or hostility (2:14, 2:22, 4:12, 12:15, 14:13). Here he pulls back after his clash with the Jerusalem authorities.

  10. Matthew 27:5 ἀνεχώρησεν, he withdrew,

    So Judas threw the silver into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

Mark · 1

  1. Mark 3:7 ἀνεχώρησεν withdrew

    So Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea, accompanied by a large crowd from Galilee, Judea,

    Here: To pull back or move away, often away from danger. Coming right after the plot to kill him (3:6), it reads as a deliberate move away from his enemies. This is the only time Mark uses the word.

John · 1

  1. John 6:15 ἀνεχώρησεν withdrew

    Then Jesus, realizing that they were about to come and make Him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by Himself.

    Here: 'He withdrew.' In the Gospels the word often means pulling back out of danger or away from a hostile situation (Matt 2:14, 22; 12:15; 14:13). Jesus deliberately pulls away from the crowd's plan.

Acts · 2

  1. Acts 23:19 ἀναχωρήσας having withdrawn

    The commander took the young man by the hand, drew him aside, and asked, “What do you need to tell me?”

  2. Acts 26:31 ἀναχωρήσαντες having withdrawn

    On their way out, they said to one another, “This man has done nothing worthy of death or imprisonment.”

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