Greek word · G2415
Ἱεροσολυμίτης
hierosolymitēs
of Jerusalem
A resident or citizen of Jerusalem. It names where someone lives, not their religion or their party.
Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
Ἱεροσολυμεῖτης (WH, Ἰερ-; Rec. -μίτης), -ου, ὁ,
[in LXX: Sirach 50:27 (28) 2Ma.4:22 2Mac 4:39 (V* -μήτης) 2Ma 18:5* ;]
an inhabitant of Jerusalem: Mark 1:5, John 7:25.†
(AS)
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
A resident or citizen of Jerusalem. It names where someone lives, not their religion or their party.
- Against the English
KJV/WEB "them of Jerusalem" and YLT "the Jerusalemites" keep it as a group label. BSB, ESV, NIV and NASB say "the people of Jerusalem." NLT spells out "who lived in Jerusalem," which makes the contrast with pilgrims explicit. All are accurate. The danger is only that readers merge this group with "the crowd" of verse 20.
- Used elsewhere in the period
In the New Testament it appears only here and in Mark 1:5 ("all the Jerusalemites" going out to John the Baptist). Josephus uses Ἱεροσολυμῖται often for the city's population, as distinct from Judeans of the countryside and from festival pilgrims (e.g. throughout Jewish War).
Similar words
Where it appears
Mark · 1
-
Mark 1:5 Ἱεροσολυμῖται of Jerusalem
People went out to him from all of Jerusalem and the countryside of Judea. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
John · 1
-
John 7:25 Ἱεροσολυμιτῶν· of Jerusalem;
Then some of the people of Jerusalem began to say, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill?
Here: People who actually live in the city, as opposed to the pilgrims who had come for the feast. Being locals, they are close to the city's rumour mill and know what the authorities intend.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.