What does ὑποστέλλω (hypostéllō) mean in the Bible?
ὑποστέλλω (hypostéllō): To shrink back or withdraw oneself, especially from duty or truth through fear or shame.
Greek · G5288
ὑποστέλλω
To withdraw
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ὑποστέλλωG5288
Pronunciationhypostéllō
What does ὑποστέλλω (hypostéllō) mean in the Bible?
ὑποστέλλω (hypostéllō): To shrink back or withdraw oneself, especially from duty or truth through fear or shame.
Full entry for ὑποστέλλω (G5288) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render G5288?
The BSB source-word alignment has 4 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include I did not shrink back (2), he began to draw back (1), he shrinks back (1).
Where does ὑποστέλλω (hypostéllō) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Acts 20:20. Its strongest book concentrations include Acts (2), Galatians (1), Hebrews (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItI did not shrink back2×Acts 20:20, Acts 20:27
he began to draw back1×Galatians 2:12
he shrinks back1×Hebrews 10:38
Show sample aligned rows
Acts 20:20ὑπεστειλάμηνtoI did not shrink backVerb - Aorist Indicative Middle - 1st Person SingularActs 20:27ὑπεστειλάμηνtoI did not shrink backVerb - Aorist Indicative Middle - 1st Person SingularGalatians 2:12ὑπέστελλενtohe began to draw backVerb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person SingularHebrews 10:38ὑποστείληταιtohe shrinks backVerb - Aorist Subjunctive Middle - 3rd Person Singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowActs 20:20
Aligned rows4
Books represented3
Acts2Galatians1Hebrews1
Source forms
ὑπεστειλάμην2xhypesteilamēnActs 20:20, Acts 20:27
ὑπέστελλεν1xhypestellenGalatians 2:12
ὑποστείληται1xhyposteilētaiHebrews 10:38
Parsing patterns
Verb - Aorist Indicative Middle - 1st Person Singular2xActs 20:20, Acts 20:27
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Middle - 3rd Person Singular1xHebrews 10:38
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular1xGalatians 2:12
Evidence Summary
Greek word. To shrink back or withdraw oneself, especially from duty or truth through fear or shame.
Strong'sG5288
Lexical occurrences4 versesGreek text appearances4 timesWord forms2 forms4 referencesVerse guides0 guides
Study linkGalatians 2:12Source Gloss
to withdraw
Extended definitionSource: STEPBible TBESG + Abbott-Smith
To shrink back or withdraw oneself, especially from duty or truth through fear or shame.
1to draw in, let down (ἱστίον, οὐράν, etc.).
Greek Text Appearances
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
4 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
Acts 20:20Verb First Person Singular Aorist Middle Indicative
ὑπεστειλάμηνupesteilamhn
I draw back, conceal
Read verseActs 20:27Verb First Person Singular Aorist Middle Indicative
ὑπεστειλάμηνupesteilamhn
I draw back, conceal
Read verseGalatians 2:12Verb Third Person Singular Imperfect Active Indicative
ὑπέστελλεupestellen
I draw back, conceal
Read verseHebrews 10:38Verb Third Person Singular Aorist Middle Subjunctive
ὑποστείληται,uposteilhtai
I draw back, conceal
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 mood, tense, and voice shift the force of this verb in context.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups2Aligned forms4TensesAorist, ImperfectVoicesMiddle, Active
Verse guides are not available for this word yet, so verse references remain plain evidence markers.
Tenses
Voices
Indicativestates a fact or reality3×
Aorist MiddleActs 20:20 · Acts 20:272×
Imperfect ActiveGal 2:121×
Subjunctivepossibility, probability, or purpose1×
Aorist MiddleHeb 10:381×
Discourse Aspect
How this verb appears across 3 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect
Tense
aorist3
Voice
middle3
Mood
indicative2subjunctive1
NT Occurrences
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
Where It Appears in Scripture
Where this word appears in Scripture: passage, original form, and sense in context.
Biblical Witnesses
Peter physically separated himself from gentile believers out of fear
Paul denies withdrawing from declaring the full counsel of God
Paul affirms he did not withhold any beneficial teaching from believers
Drawing back in faith results in divine displeasure, contrasted with faith