a. to go up, move to a higher place, ascend: a tree (ἐπί), Luke 19:4; upon the roof of a house (ἐπί), Luke 5:19; into a ship (εἰς), Mark 6:51; (Matthew 15:39 G Tr text; Acts 21:6 Tdf.); εἰς τό ὄρος, Matthew 5:1; Luke 9:28; Mark 3:13; εἰς τό ὑπερῷον, Acts 1:13; εἰς τόν οὐρανόν, Romans 10:6; Revelation 11:12 εἰς τόν οὐρανόν is omitted, but to be supplied, in John 1:51 (); , and in the phrase, ἀναβέβηκα πρός τόν πατέρα, John 20:17. (It is commonly maintained that those persons are figuratively said ἀναβεβηκέναι εἰς τόν οὐρανόν, who have penetrated the heavenly mysteries: John 3:13, cf. Deuteronomy 30:12; Proverbs 24:27 (); Baruch 3:29. But in these latter passages also the expression is to be understood literally. And as respects John 3:13, it must be remembered that Christ brought his knowledge of the divine counsels with him from heaven, inasmuch as he had dwelt there prior to his incarnation. Now the natural language was οὐδείς ἦν ἐν οὐρανῷ; but the expression ἀναβέβηκεν is used because none but Christ could get there except by ascending. Accordingly εἰ μή refers merely to the idea, involved in ἀναβέβηκεν of a past residence in heaven. Cf. Meyer (or Westcott) at the passage) Used of travelling to a higher place: εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα, Matthew 20:17; Mark 10:32f, etc.; εἰς τό ἱερόν, John 7:14; Luke 18:10. Often the place to or into which the ascent is made is not mentioned, but is easily understood from the context: Acts 8:31 (into the chariot); Mark 15:8 (to the palace of the governor, according to the reading ἀναβάς restored by L T Tr text WH for R G ἀναβοήσας), etc.; or the place alone is mentioned from which (ἀπό, ἐκ) the ascent is made: Matthew 3:16; Acts 8:39; Revelation 11:7.

b. in a wider sense of things rising up, to rise, mount, be borne up, spring up: of a fish swimming up, Matthew 17:27; of smoke rising up, Revelation 8:4; Revelation 9:2; of plants springing up from the ground, Matthew 13:7; Mark 4:7, 32 (as in Greek writings; Theophrastus, hist. plant. 8, 3, and Hebrew עָלָה); of things which come up in one's mind (Latinsuboriri): ἀναβαίνειν ... ἐπί τήν καρδίαν or ἐν τῇ καρδία, Luke 24:38; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Acts 7:23 (ἀνέβη ἐπί τήν καρδίαν it came into his mind i. e. he resolved, followed by an infinitive), after the Hebrew אֶל־לֵב עָלָה, Jeremiah 3:16, etc. (Buttmann, 135 (118)). Of messages, prayers, deeds, brought up or reported to one in a higher place: Acts 10:4; Acts 21:31 (tidings came up to the tribune of the cohort, who dwelt in the tower Antonia). (Compare: προσαναβαίνω, συναναβαίνω).