Matthew 22:10

The verb ἀνάκειμαι (anakeimai) is formally the perfect middle-passive of ἀνατίθημι (“to set up,” “to dedicate,” “to lay upon”). In its earliest attestations—especially in Herodotus (1.14; 2.135)—it denotes an object set up or deposited as a votive offering within a sanctuary: “six golden mixing-bowls are laid up (ἀνακέαται) in the temple.” This use establishes the primary cultic nuance of the term, referring not to ordinary placement but to ritual dedication, implying transfer from common to sacred possession.

The semantic field extends into metaphorical uses, such as Pindar (Olymp. 10.8), where praise (αἶνος) is said to be “laid up” (ἄγκειται) for the Olympic victors, and Plato (Symp. 197e), where a discourse (λόγος) is “dedicated to the god.” Thus, the idea evolves from physical deposition in a shrine to figurative “consecration” or “reservation” in honor or memory.

Further, in Lysias (10.28) and Lycurgus (51), the verb is used of public statues “set up” (ἀνάκειται) as monuments—a civic analogue of temple dedication. Later authors like Josephus (AJ 17.6.5) employ it juridically or administratively: penalties “laid up” for offenders, famine “reserved” for shamelessness, etc., extending the semantic scope to “set apart,” “reserved,” or “appointed.”

Hence, ἀνάκειμαι carries the core notion of withdrawal from common use and permanent placement in a state of consecration or reservation. The meaning “to recline” (as at table, e.g., Matt 9:10) is secondary and metaphorically derived from the idea of “being laid out” or “set in place,” probably via Hellenistic resemanticization.

Translating ἀνάκειμαι as “to be dedicated,” “laid up,” or “reserved” thus reflects the original passive sense of ἀνατίθημι, rather than the later idiomatic sense of “to recline.” Context determines whether the reference is cultic, juridical, or social, but in all cases the underlying imagery is of something set apart and fixed in position, either literally or figuratively.

(cf. LSJ ἀνάκειμαι)