Lexical Summary anatolé: Rising, East, Dawn, Branch Original Word: ἀνατολή Strong's Exhaustive Concordance dayspring, east, dawn. From anatello; a rising of light, i.e. Dawn (figuratively); by implication, the east (also in plural) -- dayspring, east, rising. see GREEK anatello NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom anatelló Definition a rising NASB Translation east (7), east* (1), rising (1), Sunrise (1). Thayer's Greek Lexicon STRONGS NT 395: ἀνατολήἀνατολή, ἀνατολῆς, ἡ (from ἀνατέλλω, which see), as in Greek writings; 1. a rising (of the sun and stars); light rising ἐξ ὕψους, Luke 1:78. 2. the east (the quarter of the sun's rising): Matthew 2:2, 9; Revelation 21:13 (Griesbach ἀνατολῶν); Herodian, 2, 8, 18 (10); 3, 5, 1; Josephus, contra Apion 1, 14, 3 (6; 1, 26, 6; Mark 16 WH (rejected) 'Shorter Conclusion'); Clement of Rome, 1 Cor. 5, 6 [ET]; Ignatius ad Rom. 2, 2 [ET]; Melito quoted in Eusebius, h. e. 4, 26, 14; with ἡλίου added, Revelation 7:2 (R G T Tr WH text); plural, eastern regions, the east (Winer's Grammar, 176 (166)): Matthew 2:1; Matthew 8:11; Matthew 24:27; Luke 13:29 (the Sept., Herodotus, Plato, Polybius, Plutarch, others; Philo in Flacc. § 7); with the addition of ἡλίου, Revelation 16:12 (λης T Tr text WH text; Revelation 7:2 L WH marginal reading). ἀνατολή repeatedly draws the reader’s eye to the place where light first breaks. By using a single word that can refer both to “dawn” and to “the east,” Scripture unites the idea of new light with the geographical point from which that light arises. Each occurrence accents God’s initiative—He shines, He comes, He gathers, He judges—while humanity stands in need of that light. Birth of the King: Matthew 2 In Matthew 2:1–2, 9 the Magi testify, “We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him” (Matthew 2:2). The first New-Testament use of ἀνατολή sets the tone for Christ’s earthly life: His appearance is as certain and as public as sunrise itself. The “star in the east” also answers the prophecy of Numbers 24:17, where a “star” would rise out of Jacob. Thus, ἀνατολή links the Davidic Messiah to both cosmic witness and Old-Testament promise. The Dayspring: Luke 1:78 Zechariah blesses God that “the Dawn will visit us from on high” (Luke 1:78). Here ἀνατολή personifies the Messianic hope long embedded in the prophets—especially the “Branch” (Hebrew tsemach) in Isaiah and Zechariah, rendered ἀνατολή in the Septuagint. Luke therefore anchors the infancy narratives not merely in new events but in the unfolding stream of redemptive history. The Dayspring is not a generic sunrise but the covenant-keeping God manifest in flesh. Universal Invitation: Matthew 8:11; Luke 13:29 Jesus foresees Gentile inclusion: “Many will come from the east and the west and will share the banquet with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 8:11). Luke echoes, “People will come from east and west… and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:29). By pairing ἀνατολή with its opposite (“west”), the text underscores breadth: gospel grace reaches as far as dawn’s first glow and beyond the setting sun. The word thus becomes an emblem of global mission. Sign of the Parousia: Matthew 24:27 “For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matthew 24:27). The certainty and visibility that marked His birth will characterize His return; what begins in the east will sweep across the sky in unmistakable splendor. ἀνατολή here functions eschatologically, assuring believers that the Second Coming will not be hidden or localized. Witness at the Empty Tomb: Mark 16:2 (longer ending) Women reach the tomb “at sunrise,” a time-marker preserved in several manuscripts with ἀνατολή. The timing is theological: resurrection breaks like dawn, the first light of the new creation. While the participle from ἀνατέλλω appears in the earliest text, later witnesses employ the noun, showing the church’s instinct to link resurrection with sunrise imagery. Angelic Activity from the East: Revelation 7:2; 16:12 John sees “another angel ascending from the east, holding the seal of the living God” (Revelation 7:2). Later, the sixth bowl prepares “the way for the kings from the east” (Revelation 16:12). The same quarter of heaven that announced the Incarnation now issues commands for judgment and deliverance. God’s purposes move inexorably from dawn to consummation. Orientation of the New Jerusalem: Revelation 21:13 The holy city bears “three gates on the east” (Revelation 21:13), matching those on every side. The equal distribution confirms that salvation is not provincial; yet east retains honor as the first-named direction, recalling Eden’s entrance (Genesis 3:24) and the temple’s orientation (Ezekiel 43:1–4). Theological Motifs 1. Revelation: God shines before we seek. Ministry Implications • Proclamation should carry the note of dawn—hope for every people, regardless of background. Thus ἀνατολή, though a small word, spans the arc of Scripture—from promise to arrival, from mission to consummation—declaring that the God who causes the sun to rise is faithful to complete His redemptive work. Englishman's Concordance Matthew 2:1 N-GFPGRK: μάγοι ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν παρεγένοντο εἰς NAS: magi from the east arrived KJV: wise men from the east to Jerusalem, INT: magi from [the] east arrived at Matthew 2:2 N-DFS Matthew 2:9 N-DFS Matthew 8:11 N-GFP Matthew 24:27 N-GFP Mark 16:20 N-GFS Luke 1:78 N-NFS Luke 13:29 N-GFP Revelation 7:2 N-GFS Revelation 16:12 N-GFS Revelation 21:13 N-GFS Strong's Greek 395 |
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