What does ἐπάνω (epánō) mean in the Bible?
Epanō means above, over, or upon. It can describe physical position, relative measure, or delegated authority over something.
Greek · G1883
ἐπάνω
Above
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ἐπάνω G1883
Pronunciation epánō
What does ἐπάνω (epánō) mean in the Bible?
Epanō means above, over, or upon. It can describe physical position, relative measure, or delegated authority over something.
Reader summary
Full entry for ἐπάνω (G1883) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G1883?
The BSB source-word alignment has 19 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include on (7), over (6), Above (3), . . . (1), for over (1).
Where does ἐπάνω (epánō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 2:9. Its strongest book concentrations include Matthew (8), Luke (5), John (2), Revelation (2).
What This Word Actually Means
Epanō means above, over, or upon. It can describe physical position, relative measure, or delegated authority over something. John 3:31 gives the word its strongest Christological use in this checkpoint: the One who comes from above is above all. The word itself is spatial and relational, but the sentence supplies the theological weight. The One from above is not merely higher in rank than earthly teachers; He belongs to heaven and speaks with heavenly authority.
Other passages keep the range ordinary: a city on a hill, the charge above Jesus' head, authority over cities, authority over the enemy's power, or authority over a fourth of the earth. Epanō helps teachers distinguish location, superiority, and authority without turning every above or over into the same doctrine.
How the Bible Uses It
Epanō can mark position above, placement over, or authority over. John 3:31 gives it Christological weight, while other passages use it for location, delegated rule, or measured extent.
- John.3.31
The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all.
The One from above is above all, so the word serves John's contrast between heavenly origin and earthly limitation.
- Luke.10.19
Behold, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will harm you.
Jesus gives authority over the power of the enemy, making epanō part of delegated protection in mission.
- Luke.19.17
His master replied, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very small matter, you shall have authority over ten cities.’
Authority over ten cities rewards faithful stewardship in the parable, so the word marks entrusted rule.
- Matt.5.14
You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
A city on a hill cannot be hidden, using the word for visible position rather than hierarchy.
- Matt.27.37
Above His head they posted the written charge against Him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
The charge above Jesus' head publicly identifies Him as King of the Jews in the crucifixion scene.
- Rev.6.8
Then I looked and saw a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed close behind. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword, by famine, by plague, and by the beasts of the earth.
Authority over a fourth of the earth belongs to the horseman vision, requiring apocalyptic caution and textual limits.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It on 7× Matthew 5:14, Matthew 21:7, Matthew 23:18, Matthew 23:20
over 6× Matthew 2:9, Luke 4:39, Luke 11:44, Luke 19:17
Above 3× Matthew 27:37, John 3:31
. . . 1× Revelation 6:8
for over 1× Mark 14:5
to more than 1× 1 Corinthians 15:6
Show sample aligned rows
Matthew 2:9 ἐπάνω to over Preposition Matthew 5:14 ἐπάνω to on Preposition Matthew 21:7 ἐπάνω to on Preposition Matthew 23:18 ἐπάνω to on Preposition Matthew 23:20 ἐπάνω to on Preposition Matthew 23:22 ἐπάνω to on Preposition Matthew 27:37 ἐπάνω to Above Preposition Matthew 28:2 ἐπάνω to on Preposition Mark 14:5 ἐπάνω to for over Preposition Luke 4:39 ἐπάνω to over Preposition
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Matthew 2:9
Aligned rows 19
Books represented 6
Matthew 8 Mark 1 Luke 5 John 2 1 Corinthians 1 Revelation 2
Source forms
ἐπάνω 19x epanō Matthew 2:9, Matthew 5:14, Matthew 21:7, Matthew 23:18
Parsing patterns
Preposition 17x Matthew 2:9, Matthew 5:14, Matthew 21:7, Matthew 23:18
Adverb 2x Luke 11:44, 1 Corinthians 15:6
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Ask whether the passage means physical position, public placement, superiority, or delegated authority.
- Let John 3:31 keep Christ's supremacy personal and textual: the One from above is above all.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not claim that epanō always means heavenly supremacy. Matthew 5:14 and Matthew 27:37 use it spatially.
- Do not claim that authority over something is independent power. Luke's over-language is delegated and bounded.
Evidence Summary
Greek word. above
Strong's G1883
Lexical occurrences 19 verses Greek text appearances 20 times 16 shown below Word forms 2 forms 19 references Verse guides 0 guides
Source Gloss
above
Extended definition Source: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
adv., [in LXX for מַעֲלָה, עַל, מֵעָל, etc. ;] above;
1adverbially;
aof place: Luk.11:44;
2As prep. C. genitive;
bof pre-eminence: Luk.19:17-19, Jhn.3:31.
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpus Greek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 20 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Matthew 2:9 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 5:14 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 21:7 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 21:7 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 23:18 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 23:20 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 23:22 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 27:37 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Matthew 28:2 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Mark 14:5 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Luke 4:39 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Luke 10:19 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Luke 11:44 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Luke 19:17 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse Luke 19:19 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verse John 3:31 Adverb
ἐπάνω epanw
on the top, above, superior to
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
This word appears as a noun across 2 case and number patterns. The form changes show how the word functions in a sentence; they do not change the basic lexical meaning by themselves.
Form patterns 2 Aligned forms 19
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Matt 2:9 · Matt 5:14 · Matt 21:7 · Matt 23:18 · Matt 23:20 · Matt 23:22 · Matt 27:37 · Matt 28:2 · Mark 14:5 · Luke 4:39 · Luke 10:19 · Luke 19:17 · Luke 19:19 · John 3:31 · Rev 6:8 · Rev 20:3 17×
Luke 11:44 · 1 Cor 15:6 2×
Word Origins
ἐπάνω is built from these roots:
For the Preacher and Teacher
The pastoral center of epanō is governed distinction. John 3:31 makes a great claim: the One who comes from above is above all. That statement is not a general encouragement to think higher thoughts. It is a Christological contrast between heavenly origin and earthly limitation. Yet the same word can describe a city on a hill, a written charge above Jesus' head, or authority over cities.
The word therefore trains readers to ask what kind of above or over the passage means. Sometimes it is visibility, sometimes placement, sometimes delegated rule, sometimes supremacy. In John 3, it magnifies the Son's heavenly authority. In other texts, it keeps authority and position tied to the immediate scene.
Anchor passage
John.3.31
Doctrinal connections
- G509 Ano - above-language in John must be read with heavenly origin and new-birth themes, not vague spirituality.
- G1849 Exousia - Luke 10:19 and Luke 19:17 use over language for delegated authority.
- G932 Basileia - authority over cities in Luke 19 belongs to kingdom stewardship and accountability.
- G3772 Ouranos - John 3:31 ties above to heaven, giving epanō its Christological force in that context.
- G5495 Cheir - Matthew 27:37 places the written charge above Jesus' head, showing public identification in the crucifixion scene.
- Revelation 6 - over-language in apocalyptic judgment scenes must be limited by vision context and not made into loose speculation.
Epanō combines epi with ano and functions as an adverb or preposition meaning above, upon, or over. Its object and context decide whether the force is spatial position, public placement, superiority, or authority.
From Old to New Testament
Scripture regularly distinguishes what is from above from what is merely earthly, but it also uses above and over in ordinary ways. John centers the highest claim on Christ, while Luke and Revelation show delegated authority that remains bounded by the giver and the scene.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain