Luke 19:6

The verb ὑποδέχομαι, while classically denoting receiving or welcoming (especially guests or persons), also acquires the extended sense of undertaking responsibility or accepting a charge, particularly in legal, political, or administrative contexts.

In Thucydides (1.25; 1.71), ὑπεδέξαντο is used for assuming a punitive cause on behalf of another—“undertook vengeance”, or “promised aid”. This sense persists and formalizes in documentary Greek, where the term is used for accepting legal or financial obligations, e.g., the reception of dowries (Cod. Just. 5.17.12), tax grain (Sammelb. 5273.4), or administrative duties (Wilcken Chr. 469.5).

The verb is frequently followed by a future infinitive, marking an intentional act to be fulfilled (e.g., ὑπεδέξατο δώσειν, Od. 2.387), or appears in contexts where one pledges performance or assumes care (e.g., h. Cer. 226; IG 42(1).121.46). Thus, ὑποδέχομαι often bears the force not merely of passive reception but of active assumption of duty or contractual responsibility.