Kingdom
Vine's Expository Dictionary of OT Words [1]
Malkûth ( מַלְכֻוָּה , Strong'S #4438), “kingdom; reign; rule.” The word malkûth occurs 91 times in the Hebrew Old Testament and apparently belongs to late biblical Hebrew. The first occurrence is in Num. 24:7: “He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted.”
The word malkûth denotes: (1) the territory of the kingdom: “When he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honor of his excellent majesty many days, even a hundred and fourscore days” (Esth. 1:4); (2) the accession to the throne: “For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esth. 4:14); (3) the year of rule: “So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign” (Esth. 2:16); and (4) anything “royal” or “kingly”: throne (Esth. 1:2), wine (Esth. 1:7), crown (Esth. 1:11), word (Esth. 1:19), garment (Esth. 6:8), palace (Esth. 1:9), scepter (Ps. 45:6), and glory(Ps. 145:11-12).
The Septuagint translations of malkûth are: basileia —(“kingship; kingdom; royal power”) and basileus —(“king”).
Mamlâkâh ( מַמְלָכָה , Strong'S #4467), “kingdom; sovereignty; dominion; reign.” The word appears about 115 times throughout the Old Testament. Mamlâkâh occurs first in Gen. 10:10: “And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar” in the sense of the “realm” of the kingdom.
The basic meaning of mamlâkâh is the area and people that constitute a “kingdom.” The word refers to non-lsraelite nations who are ruled by a melek , “king”: “And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the Lord will visit Tyre, and she shall turn to her hire, and shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth” (Isa. 23:17). Mamlâkâh is a synonym for ’am , “people,” and goy , “nation”: “… they went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people” (Ps. 105:13). Mamlâkâh also denotes Israel as God’s “kingdom”: “And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation” (Exod. 19:6). The Davidic king was the theocratic agent by whom God ruled over and blessed His people: “And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever” (2 Sam. 7:16). Nevertheless, the one mamlâkâh after Solomon was divided into two kingdoms which Ezekiel predicted would be reunited: " And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms …” (Ezek. 37:22).
Close to the basic meaning is the usage of mamlâkâh to denote “king,” as the king was considered to be the embodiment of the “kingdom.” He was viewed as a symbol of the kingdom proper: “Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you” (1 Sam. 10:18; in Hebrew the noun “kingdoms” is feminine and the verb “oppress” has a masculine form, signifying that we must understand “kingdoms” as “kings”).
The function and place of the king is important in the development of the concept “kingdom.” “Kingdom” may signify the head of the kingdom. The word further has the meaning of the royal “rule,” the royal “sovereignty,” and the “dominion.” The royal “sovereignty” was taken from Saul because of his disobedience (1 Sam. 28:17). “Royal sovereignty” is also the sense in Jer. 27:1: “In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim.…” The Old Testament further defines as expressions of the royal “rule” all things associated with the king: (1) the throne: “And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites” (Deut. 17:18); (2) the pagan sanctuary supported by the throne: “But prophesy not again any more at Beth-el: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court” (Amos 7:13); and (3) a royal city: “And David said unto Achish, If I have now found grace in thine eyes, let them give me a place in some town in the country, that I may dwell there: for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee?” (1 Sam. 27:5).
All human rule is under God’s control. Consequently the Old Testament fully recognizes the kingship of God. The Lord ruled as king over His people Israel (1 Chron. 29:11). He graciously ruled over His people through David and his followers until the Exile (2 Chron. 13:5). In the New Testament usage all the above meanings are to be associated with the Greek word basileia (“kingdom”). This is the major translation of mamlâkâh in the Septuagint, and as such it is small wonder that the New Testament authors used this word to refer to God’s “kingdom”: the realm, the king, the sovereignty, and the relationship to God Himself melek ( מֶלֶךְ , Strong'S #4428), “king.” This word occurs about 2,513 times in the Old Testament. It is found several times in Gen. 14:1: “And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations.”
Vine's Expository Dictionary of NT Words [2]
is primarily an abstract noun, denoting "sovereignty, royal power, dominion," e.g., Revelation 17:18 , translated "(which) reigneth," lit., "hath a kingdom" (RV marg.); then, by metonymy, a concrete noun, denoting the territory or people over whom a king rules, e.g., Matthew 4:8; Mark 3:24 . It is used especially of the "kingdom" of God and of Christ.
Psalm 22:28 145:13 Daniel 4:25 Luke 1:52 Romans 13:1,2 Luke 4:5,6 1—John 5:19 Revelation 11:15-18 Daniel 2:44 7:14 1—Corinthians 15:24,25 1—Chronicles 28:5 Isaiah 1:2-4 John 1:11 Matthew 21:33-43 Romans 11:15,20,25 Mark 4:11 Luke 17:20 John 3:3 1—Corinthians 2:14 Matthew 25:31-34 Philippians 2:9-11 2—Timothy 4:1,18 2—Thessalonians 1:5 Matthew 25:34 Matthew 13:43 Acts 14:22 Luke 17:21 Acts 4:19 Ephesians 3:17 1—Peter 3:15 1—Corinthians 12:3,5,11 14:37 Colossians 1:27 Matthew 6:33 Hebrews 13:5 Matthew 18:3 John 3:5 Matthew 7:21 2—Peter 1:10,11 1—Corinthians 6:9,10 Galatians 5:21 Ephesians 5:5 Daniel 4:26 2—Timothy 4:18 Matthew 26:29 Mark 14:25 Luke 22:30 Matthew 13:41 Revelation 1:9 2—Timothy 4:1 Ephesians 5:5 Revelation 11:15 Revelation 11:15 Colossians 1:13 Matthew 6:10 2—Thessalonians 2:8 Romans 14:17 Romans 14:17 1—Corinthians 4:20 Revelation 11:15 Revelation 11:15 John 3:5 Revelation 12:10
Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary [3]
in Scripture, is a term of frequent occurrence, and variously applied. Thus we read of the kingdom of God, Psalms 103:19; Daniel 4:3; or his universal empire and dominion over all creatures; in reference to which it is said, "Jehovah is a great God, and a great King above all gods," Psalms 95:3 . "His throne is established in the heavens, and his kingdom ruleth over all." Again: we frequently read in the evangelists of the kingdom of heaven; a phrase, says Dr. Campbell, in which there is a manifest allusion to the predictions in which the dispensation of the Messiah was revealed by the prophets in the Old Testament, particularly by Daniel, who mentions it as "a kingdom which the God of heaven would set up, and which should never be destroyed,"
Daniel 2:44 . The same prophet also speaks of it as a kingdom to be given, with glory and dominion over all people, nations, and languages, to one like unto the Son of man, Daniel 7:13-14 . And the Prophet Micah, speaking of the same era, represents it as a time when Jehovah, having removed all the afflictions of his people, would reign over them in Mount Zion thenceforth even forever, Micah 4:6-7 . According to the prophecy of Daniel, this kingdom was to take place during the existence of the Roman empire, the last of the four great monarchies that had succeeded each other, Daniel 2:44 . And as it was set up by the God of heaven, it is, in the New Testament, termed "the kingdom of God," or "the kingdom of heaven." It was typified by the Jewish theocracy, and declared to be at hand by John the Baptist, and by Christ and his Apostles also in the days of his flesh; but it did not come with power till Jesus rose from the dead and sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, Acts 2:32-37 : Then was he most solemnly inaugurated, and proclaimed King of the New Testament church, amidst adoring myriads of attendant angels, and "the spirits of just men made perfect." Then were fulfilled the words of Jehovah by the Psalmist David, "I have set my King upon my holy hill of Zion," Psalms 2:6 . This is that spiritual empire to which he himself referred when interrogated before Pontius Pilate, and in reference to which he said, "My kingdom is not of this world," John 18:36-37 . His empire, indeed, extends to every creature; for "all authority is committed into his hands, both in heaven and on earth," and he is "head over all things to the church;" but his kingdom primarily imports the Gospel church, which is the subject of his laws, the seat of his government, and the object of his care; and, being surrounded with powerful opposers, he is represented as ruling, in the midst of his enemies. This kingdom is not of a worldly origin, or nature, nor has it this world for its end or object. It can neither be promoted nor defended by worldly power, influence, or carnal weapons, but by bearing witness unto the truth, or by the preaching of the Gospel with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven. Its real subjects are only those who are of the truth, and hear Christ's voice; for none can enter it but such as are born from above, John 3:3-5; nor can any be visible subjects of it, but such as appear to be regenerated, by a credible profession of faith and obedience. Its privileges and immunities are not of this world, but such as are spiritual and heavenly; they are all spiritual blessings in heavenly things in Christ Jesus, Ephesians 1:3 .
King James Dictionary [4]
KING'DOM, n. king and dom, jurisdiction.
1. The territory or country subject to a king an undivided territory under the dominion of a king or monarch. The foreign possessions of a king are not usually included in the term kingdom. Thus we speak of the kingdom of England, of France or of Spain, without including the East or West Indies. 2. The inhabitants or population subject to a king. The whole kingdom was alarmed. 3. In natural history, a division as the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms. 4. A region a tract the place where any thing prevails and holds sway as the watery kingdom. 5. In Scripture, the government or universal dominion of God. 1 Chronicles 29; Psalms 145 6. The power of supreme administration. 1 Samuel 18 7. A princely nation or state.
Ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests. Exodus 19
8. Heaven. Matthew 26 9. State of glory in heaven. Matthew 5 10. The reign of the Messiah. Matthew 3 11. Government rule supreme administration.
Webster's Dictionary [5]
(1): ( n.) The rank, quality, state, or attributes of a king; royal authority; sovereign power; rule; dominion; monarchy.
(2): ( n.) An extensive scientific division distinguished by leading or ruling characteristics; a principal division; a department; as, the mineral kingdom.
(3): ( n.) The territory or country subject to a king or queen; the dominion of a monarch; the sphere in which one is king or has control.
