Bible Dictionary: Patriarch

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Smith's Bible Dictionary

Patriarch

(father of a tribe), the name given to the head of a family or tribe in Old Testament times. In common usage the title of patriarch is assigned especially to those whose lives are recorded in Scripture previous to the time of Moses, as Adam, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. ("In the early history of the Hebrews we find the ancestor or father of a family retaining authority over his children and his children's children so long as he lived, whatever new connections they might form when the father died the branch families did not break off and form new communities, but usually united under another common head. The eldest son was generally invested with this dignity. His authority was paternal. He was honored as central point of connection and as the representative of the whole kindred. Thus each great family had its patriarch or head, and each tribe its prince, selected from the several heads of the families which it embraced." --McClintock and Strong.) ("After the destruction of Jerusalem, patriarch was the title of the chief religious rulers of the Jews in Asia and in early Christian times it became the designation of the bishops of Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem." --American Cyclopedia .)

Easton's Bible Dictionary

A name employed in the New Testament with reference to Abraham (Hebrews 7:4), the sons of Jacob (Acts 7:8, 9), and to David (2:29). This name is generally applied to the progenitors of families or "heads of the fathers" (Joshua 14:1) mentioned in Scripture, and they are spoken of as antediluvian (from Adam to Noah) and post-diluvian (from Noah to Jacob) patriachs. But the expression "the patriarch," by way of eminence, is applied to the twelve sons of Jacob, or to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

"Patriachal longevity presents itself as one of the most striking of the facts concerning mankind which the early history of the Book of Genesis places before us...There is a large amount of consentient tradition to the effect that the life of man was originally far more prolonged than it is at present, extending to at least several hundred years. The Babylonians, Egyptians, and Chinese exaggerated these hundreds into thousands. The Greeks and Romans, with more moderation, limited human life within a thousand or eight hundred years. The Hindus still farther shortened the term. Their books taught that in the first age of the world man was free from diseases, and lived ordinarily four hundred years; in the second age the term of life was reduced from four hundred to three hundred; in the third it became two hundred; in the fourth and last it was brought down to one hundred" (Rawlinson's Historical Illustrations).

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) The father and ruler of a family; one who governs his family or descendants by paternal right; -- usually applied to heads of families in ancient history, especially in Biblical and Jewish history to those who lived before the time of Moses.

2. (n.) A dignitary superior to the order of archbishops; as, the patriarch of Constantinople, of Alexandria, or of Antioch.

3. (n.) A venerable old man; an elder. Also used figuratively.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

PATRIARCH; PATRIACHS

pa'-tri-ark, patriarches). The word occurs in the New Testament in application to Abraham (Hebrews 7:4), to the sons of Jacob (Acts 7:8, 9), and to David (Acts 2:29). In Septuagint it is used as the equivalent of the head of the fathers' house, or of a tribe (1 Chronicles 24:31; 1 Chronicles 27:32 2 Chronicles 26:12). Commonly now the term is used of the persons whose names appear in the genealogies and covenant-histories in the periods preceding Moses (Genesis 5; Genesis 11, histories of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, etc.; compare "patriarchal dispensation"). The problems connected with the longevity ascribed to the patriarchs in the genealogies and narratives in Genesis are dealt with in special articles.

See ANTEDILUVIAN PATRIARCHS; ANTEDILUVIANS (GENEALOGY).

James Orr

Greek

3966. patriarches -- a patriarch
... a patriarch. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: patriarches Phonetic
Spelling: (pat-ree-arkh'-ace) Short Definition: a patriarch Definition: a ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3966.htm - 6k

11. Abraam -- Abraham, the Heb. patriarch
... patriarch. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Abraam Phonetic
Spelling: (ab-rah-am') Short Definition: Abraham Definition: Abraham ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/11.htm - 6k

5317. Phalek -- Peleg, a patriarch
... Peleg, a patriarch. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Phalek
Phonetic Spelling: (fal'-ek) Short Definition: Peleg Definition: Peleg ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5317.htm - 6k

2984. Lamech -- Lamech, a patriarch and an ancestor of Christ
... Lamech, a patriarch and an ancestor of Christ. Part of Speech: Proper Noun,
Indeclinable Transliteration: Lamech Phonetic Spelling: (lam'-ekh) Short Definition ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2984.htm - 6k

3091. Lot -- Lot, a patriarch
... Lot, a patriarch. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Lot
Phonetic Spelling: (lote) Short Definition: Lot Definition: (Hebrew), Lot ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3091.htm - 6k

3575. Noe -- Noah, a patriarch
... Noah, a patriarch. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Noe
Phonetic Spelling: (no'-eh) Short Definition: Noah Definition: (Hebrew) Noah. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3575.htm - 6k

1802. Enoch -- Enoch, a patriarch
... Enoch, a patriarch. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Enoch
Phonetic Spelling: (en-oke') Short Definition: Enoch Definition: Enoch, son ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1802.htm - 6k

2492a. Iob -- Job, a patriarch
... Job, a patriarch. Transliteration: Iob Short Definition: Job. Word Origin of Hebrew
origin Iyyob Definition Job, a patriarch NASB Word Usage Job (1). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2492a.htm - 5k

3103c. Mathousala -- Methuselah, a patriarch
... 3103b, 3103c. Mathousala. 3104 . Methuselah, a patriarch. Transliteration:
Mathousala Short Definition: Methuselah. Word Origin ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3103c.htm - 5k

2492. Iob -- Job, a patriarch
... Job, a patriarch. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration: Iob
Phonetic Spelling: (ee-obe') Short Definition: Job Definition: (Hebrew), Job ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2492.htm - 5k

Strong's Hebrew

5146. Noach -- "rest," patriarch who survived the flood
... 5145, 5146. Noach. 5147 . "rest," patriarch who survived the flood.
Transliteration: Noach Phonetic Spelling: (no'-akh) Short Definition: Noah. ...
/hebrew/5146.htm - 6k

347. Iyyob -- a patriarch
... 346, 347. Iyyob. 348 . a patriarch. Transliteration: Iyyob Phonetic Spelling:
(ee-yobe') Short Definition: Job. Word Origin of uncertain ...
/hebrew/347.htm - 6k

4232. Mechuyael -- "smitten of God," great-grandson of Cain
... Mehujael. Or Mchiyyauel {mekh-ee-yaw-ale'}; from machah and 'el; smitten of God;
Mechujael or Mechijael, an anxediluvian patriarch -- Mehujael. ...
/hebrew/4232.htm - 6k

8422. Tubal -- a son of Japheth, also his desc. and their land
... answer, restore, return an answer. Or Tubal {too-bal'}; probably of foreign derivation;
Tubal, a postdiluvian patriarch and his posterity -- Tubal. ...
/hebrew/8422.htm - 6k

4967. Methushael -- "man of God," a descendant of Cain
... Methusael. From math and 'el, with the relative interposed; man who (is) of God;
Methusael, an antediluvian patriarch -- Methusael. see HEBREW math. ...
/hebrew/4967.htm - 6k

3392. Yerach -- a son of Joktan, also his desc.
... NASB Word Usage Jerah (2). Jerah. The same as yerach; Jerach, an Arabian patriarch --
Jerah. see HEBREW yerach. 3391, 3392. Yerach. 3393 . Strong's Numbers
/hebrew/3392.htm - 6k

7956. Shelah -- a son of Judah
... Shelah. The same as sh'elah (shortened); request; Shelah, the name of a postdiluvian
patriarch and of an Israelite -- Shelah. see HEBREW sh'elah. 7955, 7956. ...
/hebrew/7956.htm - 6k

3290. Yaaqob -- a son of Isaac, also his desc.
... NASB Word Usage Jacob (331), Jacob's (18). Jacob. From aqab; heel-catcher (ie
Supplanter); Jaakob, the Israelitish patriarch -- Jacob. see HEBREW aqab. ...
/hebrew/3290.htm - 6k

8423. Tubal Qayin -- a son of Lamech
... Tubal. Apparently from yabal (compare ybuwl) and Qayin; offspring of Cain;
Tubal-Kajin, an antidiluvian patriarch -- Tubal-cain. see HEBREW yabal. ...
/hebrew/8423.htm - 6k

8286. Serug -- a descendant of Peleg
... of Peleg NASB Word Usage Serug (5). Serug. From sarag; tendril; Serug, a postdiluvian
patriarch -- Serug. see HEBREW sarag. 8285, 8286. Serug. 8287 . ...
/hebrew/8286.htm - 6k

Library

The Answers of Patriarch Jeremiah to the Lutherans, AD 1576.
... A HISTORY OF THE CREEDS OF CHRISTENDOM 13. The Answers of Patriarch Jeremiah
to the Lutherans, AD 1576. Acta et Scripta theolog. Würtemberg. ...
/.../creeds of christendom with a history and critical notes/ 13 the answers of.htm

Fragment x. Of the Patriarch Jacob. ...
... III."The Extant Fragments of the Five Books of the Chronography of Julius Africanus.
Fragment X. Of the Patriarch Jacob.� Of the Patriarch Jacob. ...
/.../africanus/the writings of julius africanus/fragment x of the patriarch.htm

Gregory the Patriarch and the Society at Kunwald, 1457-1473.
... BOOK ONE. The Bohemian Brethren. CHAPTER V. GREGORY THE PATRIARCH AND THE SOCIETY
AT KUNWALD, 1457-1473. A brilliant idea is an excellent thing. ...
/.../hutton/history of the moravian church/chapter v gregory the patriarch.htm

Letter Lxvi (AD 1135) to the Patriarch of Jerusalem.
... LETTER LXVI (AD 1135) To the Patriarch of Jerusalem. To the Patriarch of
Jerusalem. Having received many letters from him, Bernard ...
/.../some letters of saint bernard abbot of clairvaux/letter lxvi a d 1135 to.htm

Epistle vii. To Anastasius, Patriarch of Antioch .
... Great. Epistle VII. To Anastasius, Patriarch of Antioch . To Anastasius,
Patriarch of Antioch [1310] . Gregory to Anastasius, &c. ...
/.../the epistles of saint gregory the great/epistle vii to anastasius patriarch.htm

Epistle xxxv. To Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria.
... To Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria. To Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria. ... Sophronius,
patriarch of Jerusalem, pronounced the anathema against Themistius. ...
/.../the epistles of saint gregory the great/epistle xxxv to eulogius patriarch.htm

Chrysostom as Patriarch of Constantinople. AD 398-404.
... Chapter VII."Chrysostom as Patriarch of Constantinople. ad 398-404. After
the death of Nectarius (successor to Gregory Nazianzen ...
/.../chrysostom/on the priesthood/chapter vii chrysostom as patriarch of.htm

Epistle L. To Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria.
... Epistle L. To Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria. To Eulogius, Patriarch of
Alexandria. Gregory to Eulogius, &c. The bearers of these ...
/.../the epistles of saint gregory the great/epistle l to eulogius patriarch.htm

Epistle vi. To Amos, Patriarch of Jerusalem.
... Great. Epistle VI. To Amos, Patriarch of Jerusalem. To Amos, Patriarch
of Jerusalem. Gregory to Amos, Bishop of Jerusalem. Being ...
/.../the epistles of saint gregory the great/epistle vi to amos patriarch.htm

Epistle Xl. To Cyriacus, Patriarch of Constantinople.
... Epistle XL. To Cyriacus, Patriarch of Constantinople. To Cyriacus, Patriarch
of Constantinople. Gregory to Cyriacus, &c. Observing ...
/.../the epistles of saint gregory the great/epistle xl to cyriacus patriarch.htm

Thesaurus

Patriarch (2 Occurrences)
... But the expression "the patriarch," by way of eminence, is applied to the twelve
sons of Jacob, or to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ...PATRIARCH; PATRIACHS. ...
/p/patriarch.htm - 10k

Naphtali (51 Occurrences)
... NAPHTALI. naf'-ta-li (naphtali; Nephthaleim): I. THE PATRIARCH 1. Name 2.
Circumstances of His Birth 3. Historical and Traditional Details II. ...
/n/naphtali.htm - 35k

Job (60 Occurrences)
... theology of the book of Job c. Persecuted, an Arabian patriarch who resided
in the land of Uz (qv). While living in the midst of ...
/j/job.htm - 62k

Judah (802 Occurrences)
... (see ONAN; TAMAR.) After the death of his wife Shuah, he returned to his father's
house, and there exercised much influence over the patriarch, taking a ...
/j/judah.htm - 101k

Antediluvian
... The customary excess of 100 years in the Septuagint over the other texts for the
age of the patriarch at the birth of the son, and the variously divergent data ...
/a/antediluvian.htm - 35k

Jacob's (34 Occurrences)
... herdsmen. The patriarch, therefore, may have dug the well in the interests
of peace, and also to preserve his own independence. ...
/j/jacob's.htm - 23k

Patriachs
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia PATRIARCH; PATRIACHS. pa'-tri-ark, patriarches).
The word occurs in the New Testament in application ...
/p/patriachs.htm - 7k

Chaldees (13 Occurrences)
... It should be stated that there are scholars who hold, with the Septuagint, that
Ur means, not a city, but perhaps a land in which the patriarch pastured his ...
/c/chaldees.htm - 15k

Ephraim (168 Occurrences)
... 27:1). The intention of Joseph was that the right hand of the aged patriarch should
be placed on the head of the elder of the two; but Jacob set Ephraim the ...
/e/ephraim.htm - 56k

Ur (5 Occurrences)
... It should be stated that there are scholars who hold, with the Septuagint, that
Ur means, not a city, but perhaps a land in which the patriarch pastured his ...
/u/ur.htm - 15k

Bible Concordance

Patriarch (2 Occurrences)

Acts 2:29 "Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Hebrews 7:4 Now consider how great this man was, to whom even Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth out of the best spoils.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Subtopics

Patriarch

Patriarch: Head of a Family

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Acting As Judges

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Acting As Priests

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Arbitrarily Disinheriting and Putting Away Servants

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Blessing and Cursing Their Children

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Forming Treaties and Alliances

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in The Authority of Heads of Families For, Acknowledged

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Training Their Servants for War

Patriarchal Government: Exercised in Vindicating Their Wrongs

Patriarchal Government: Vested in the Heads of Families