κλῆρος,
κλήρου,
ὁ, from
Homer down; the
Sept. mostly for
גּורָל and
נַחֲלָה;
a lot; i. e.:
1. an object used in casting or drawing lots, which was either a pebble, or a potsherd, or a bit of wood (hence,
κλῆρος is to be derived from
κλάω (cf. Ellicott on
Colossians 1:12)):
Acts 1:26 (see below);
βάλλοντες κλῆρον,
Matthew 27:35;
Mark 15:24;
Luke 23:34;
John 19:24 (Psalm 21:19 (
Ps. 22:19);
Jonah 1:7, etc.); the lots of the several persons concerned, inscribed with their names, were thrown together into a vase, which was then shaken, and he whose lot first fell out upon the ground was the one chosen (
Homer, Iliad 3, 316, 325; 7, 175, etc.;
Livy 23, 3 (but cf.
B. D. American edition, under the word
Lot)); hence,
ὁ κλῆρος πίπτει ἐπί τινα,
Acts 1:26 (
Ezekiel 24:6;
Jonah 1:7).
2. what is obtained by lot, allotted portion:
λαγχάνειν and
λαμβάνειν τόν κλῆρον τῆς διακονίας, a prrtion in the ministry common to the apostles,
Acts 1:17,
25 R G;
ἐστι μοι κλῆρος ἐν τίνι, dative of the thing,
Acts 8:21; like
κληρονομία (which see) it is used of the part which one will have in eternal salvation,
λαμβάνειν...
τόν κλῆρον ἐν τοῖς ἡγιασμένοις, among the sanctified,
Acts 26:18 (Wis. 5:5); of eternal salvation itself,
κλῆρος τῶν ἁγίων, i. e. the eternal salvation which God has assigned to the saints,
Colossians 1:12 (where cf.
Lightfoot). of persons,
οἱ κλῆροι, those whose care and oversight has been assigned to one (allotted charge), used of Christian churches, the administration of which falls to the lot of the presbyters:
1 Peter 5:3, cf.
Acts 17:4; (for patristic usage see
Sophocles Lexicon, under the word; cf.
Lightfoot on Philippians, p. 246f).
THAYER’S GREEK LEXICON, Electronic Database.
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BLB Scripture Index of Thayer's