ἐξέστησαν

exestesan

they were astonished

from ἐκ and ἵστημι; to put (stand) out of wits, i.e. astound, or (reflexively) become astounded, insane:--amaze, be (make) astonished, be beside self (selves), bewitch, wonder.

G1839

Mark 5:42 · Word #13

Lexicon G1839

Lemmaἐξίστημι
Transliterationexístēmi
Strong'sG1839
In-contextthey were astonished
Literalthey-were-astounded

Morphology V AOR ACT IND 3P PL All morphology codes

Part of Speech V — Verb — An action or state of being
Tense AOR — Aorist — Simple occurrence, often past
Voice ACT — Active — The subject performs the action
Mood IND — Indicative — States a fact or reality
Person 3P — 3rd person — The one spoken about ("he/she/it/they")
Number PL — Plural — More than one

Lexical Info

Lemmaἐξίστημι
Strong'sG1839

SIBI-P1 G1839-04

they were standing-out (of themselves)

Rootἐξίστημι (existēmi)
Core Meaningsto stand out, to displace, to remove from position, to astonish, to be beside oneself
Semantic Rangeto amaze, to astound, to drive out of one’s senses, to be beside oneself, to be overwhelmed with wonder or shock
Conceptual SignificanceIn biblical narrative, this term often describes a profound reaction to divine power or revelation—people are so overwhelmed that they are figuratively "moved out of their standing." It conveys not mild surprise but a destabilizing encounter with God’s works, underscoring the transformative impact of divine action.
Morphological NotesVerb; imperfect tense, active voice, indicative mood, third person plural (Gr,V,IAA3,,P,). The imperfect denotes continuous or repeated action in past time.
Rendering RationaleThe verb ἐξίστημι combines ἐκ (out of) and ἵστημι (to stand), literally meaning "to stand out" or "to displace." In the imperfect active indicative, third person plural, it describes an ongoing past action performed by the subject: "they were standing-out." The parenthetical "(of themselves)" reflects the idiomatic sense of being beside oneself while preserving the active voice and imperfect aspect.

AI-generated (openai/gpt-5.2-chat-latest)

Word Usage (17 occurrences of G1839)

Location Form Transliteration Meaning
Matthew 12:23 ἐξίσταντο existanto
Mark 2:12 ἐξίστασθαι existasthai they were amazed
Mark 3:21 ἐξέστη exeste he is beside himself