συγγένεια

kindred, family

Definition

The Greek word συγγένεια refers to a group of people connected by blood, lineage, or family ties, meaning 'kindred' or 'family'. In the New Testament, it consistently denotes a person's extended family or relatives. In Luke 1:61, it describes the relatives of Zechariah and Elizabeth who suggest a family name for John the Baptist. In Acts 7:3 and 7:14, Stephen uses it to refer to Abraham's extended family and the clan of Jacob that came to Egypt, emphasizing a broad kinship group.

Biblical Usage

This word is used three times in the New Testament, all in narrative contexts to identify a person's kinship network. It appears in Luke 1:61 within the birth narrative of John the Baptist and twice in Stephen's speech in Acts 7:3, 14, recounting patriarchal history. The usage pattern shows it describes familial relationships central to identity and God's covenantal promises, from the calling of Abraham to the formation of Israel in Egypt.

Etymology

Derived from the adjective συγγενής (syngenēs, G4773), meaning 'related by blood' or 'kin'. It is a compound of σύν (syn, 'with') and γένος (genos, 'family, race, kind'), literally meaning 'a being with the same family or origin'. The word emphasizes shared descent and biological connection.

Semantic Range

This word is theologically significant as it highlights the importance of family and lineage in God's redemptive plan. In Acts 7, it connects God's promise to Abraham's 'kindred' (Acts 7:3) with the fulfillment in Jacob's family entering Egypt (Acts 7:14), showing the continuity of the covenant people. Understanding this term enriches reading by underscoring how God works through specific family lines, culminating in the Messiah born into a human συγγένεια (Luke 1:61).

In the first-century Greco-Roman and Jewish world, one's συγγένεια (extended family or clan) was a primary source of identity, honor, and social obligation. This concept was broader than a modern nuclear family, encompassing a network of relatives who shared responsibility and heritage. Such kinship bonds were crucial for social stability and inheritance, a context that illuminates the weight of decisions like naming a child within the family (Luke 1:61).

γένος (genos, G1085) — a broader term for race, nation, or kind; οἰκία (oikia, G3614) — household, often including the physical house and immediate family; πατριά (patria, G3965) — lineage or family line, emphasizing descent from a father.

Word Details

Scripture References