ἀστεῖος G0791
beautiful, fair, elegant, pleasing to look at
An adjective meaning beautiful, elegant, or pleasing in appearance. Stephen is described as 'beautiful to God' as an infant (Acts 7:20). Moses' parents saw he was 'a beautiful child' and hid him from Pharaoh (Hebrews 11:23). Classical usage ranged from 'of the town/urbane' to 'refined/witty' to general praise for beauty. The New Testament uses it exclusively for physical attractiveness, specifically of infants whose appearance moved their parents to protective action.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Both occurrences describe Moses as an exceptionally beautiful baby (Acts 7:20; Heb 11:23). Acts uses the striking phrase 'beautiful to God' (ἀστεῖος τῷ θεῷ), suggesting divine approval beyond mere physical appearance. This beauty motivated his parents to extraordinary measures of protection. The multilingual witnesses uniformly translate with beauty terminology, though this Greek word could also mean 'urbane' or 'witty' in classical contexts - senses not evidenced in the New Testament. 2×
AR["جَمِيلًا"]·ben["সুন্দর"]·DE["schoen", "ἀστεῖος"]·EN["beautiful"]·FR["beau"]·heb["יָפֶה"]·HI["सुन्दर"]·ID["elok", "indah"]·IT["asteion", "bello"]·jav["éndah"]·KO["아름다운-것을", "아름다웠다"]·PT["formoso"]·RU["красив", "красивым"]·ES["hermoso"]·SW["mzuri"]·TR["güzel"]·urd["خوبصورت"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ἀστεῖος, α, ον, also ος, ον Refs 4th c.BC+: (ἄστυ):— of the town (but in the literal sense ἀστικός is used). __II town-bred, polite, Refs 5th c.BC+; opposed to ἄγροικος, Refs 7th c.BC+; charming, Refs 5th c.BC+ __II.2 of thoughts and words, refined, elegant, witty, διάλεκτον ἀστείαν ὑποθηλυτέραν, opposed to ἀνελεύθερον ὑπαγροικοτέραν, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἀστεῖον λέγεις (where there is a play on the…