Kathaireo (καθαιρέω) means to take down, demolish, or destroy — physically pulling something down or politically casting someone from power. It appears about 9 times in the New Testament. It is used of taking Jesus' body down from the cross (Mark 15:36; Luke 23:53), of demolishing strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:4–5), and of God bringing down the powerful from their thrones (Luke 1:52).
The Magnificat uses kathaireo powerfully: 'He has brought down rulers [kathaireo] from their thrones but has lifted up the humble' (Luke 1:52). This is the reversal principle at the heart of the kingdom — the same God who takes down crosses from their positions of death takes down thrones from their positions of power. Paul uses the concept in 2 Corinthians 10:5: 'We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God.' The Christian life involves the tearing down of false structures — idols, proud thoughts, worldly power arrangements — in preparation for the kingdom that cannot be shaken.