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G4683 · Greek · New Testament
σπαργανόω
sparganoo
Verb
to wrap in swaddling clothes/bands

Definition

Sparganoo (σπαργανόω) means to wrap tightly in swaddling bands — the strips of cloth wound around a newborn infant. It appears only twice in the New Testament, both in Luke 2: the angel announces the sign, and the shepherds find it confirmed. Swaddling clothes in the ancient world were the first act of welcoming care given to a newborn — a sign that the child had been received, claimed, and tended.

Usage & Theological Significance

Sparganoo is the sign given to the shepherds — not a palace, not a throne, but swaddling clothes and a manger. The eternal God wrapped in swaddling cloths is the supreme condescension of the incarnation. In Ezekiel 16:4, an abandoned infant is 'not swaddled at all' — the sparganoo-ed baby is the cared-for, received child. The Son of God is wrapped not in royal robes but in the bands of full humanity and complete identification with our helplessness.

Key Bible Verses

Luke 2:7 She wrapped him in cloths [sparganoo] and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
Luke 2:12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths [sparganoo] and lying in a manger.
Ezekiel 16:4 On the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to make you clean, nor were you rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths [sparganoo].
John 11:44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen.
Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.

Word Study

The swaddling clothes of Luke 2 connect to John 11's burial cloths (different word: keiria) and the linen cloths of the tomb (John 20). Jesus entered the world bound in birth-cloths and exited the tomb leaving those burial-cloths behind. Sparganoo marks the beginning of the incarnation; the folded grave clothes mark its triumph. He was bound in our humanity and freed by resurrection.

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External Resources

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