Epikeimai combines epi (upon) + keimai (to lie, be placed). It means to lie upon, rest upon, or press upon — carrying the sense of something weighing down or being imposed. It appears 7 times in the NT, in varied contexts: crowds pressing in on Jesus, stones laid on tombs, and the compelling necessity of preaching.
Paul's use of epikeimai in 1 Corinthians 9:16 is one of the most striking in the NT: "Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! For a compulsion [anankē] is laid upon [epikeitai] me." The word captures the irresistible, unavoidable, almost physical weight of the divine call. Paul is not preaching because he enjoys it or earns from it — he preaches because something lies upon him that he cannot shake. This is the language of prophetic vocation: Jeremiah's "fire shut up in my bones" (Jeremiah 20:9). The gospel call is a weight, a burden — and the only relief is preaching.