Greek word · G2748
κέδρος
kedros
Kidron
The Greek spelling of Hebrew Qidron, probably from the root q-d-r, 'to be dark, murky, in mourning'. It names the valley along the east side of Jerusalem, between the City of David and Temple Mount on one side and the Mount of Olives on the other.
Appears once in the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
κέδρος, -ου, ἡ
[in LXX chiefly for אֶרֶז, Numbers 24:6, al.; χειμάρρους τῶν Κέδρων, 2 Kings 15:23, 1 Kings 15:13 (קִדְרוֹן) ;]
a cedar: χείμαρρος τῶν Κ. (as in 2Sam, 1Ki, ll. with), John 18:1 (Rec. Tr., WH, R, mg.; τοῦ Κέδρου, T, WH, mg., see: Κεδρών, and cf. Westc., in l; WH, App., 89 f.; Abbott, JG, 513 ff).†
Κεδρών
(see: κέδρος), ὁ,
indecl.
(in FlJ, genitive -ῶνος; Heb. קִדְרוֹן), [in LXX: 2 Kings 15:23, 2 Kings 23:6, al. ;]
Cedron (OT, Kidron): χείμαρρος τοῦ Κ., John 18:1 (L, Tr., mg., R, txt.; cf. Bl., 10, 5; Lft., Essays, 172 ff).†
(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
The Greek spelling of Hebrew Qidron, probably from the root q-d-r, 'to be dark, murky, in mourning'. It names the valley along the east side of Jerusalem, between the City of David and Temple Mount on one side and the Mount of Olives on the other.
- Against the English
KJV's 'Cedron' follows the Latin spelling. Modern versions use 'Kidron', the Hebrew form. None of them suggests 'cedars', though that is how most medieval Greek manuscripts read the name.
- Used elsewhere in the period
In the Hebrew Bible the Kidron is where David crossed as he fled Jerusalem during Absalom's revolt, weeping, after being betrayed by his trusted adviser Ahithophel (2 Sam 15:23, 30–31). It is the line Shimei was forbidden to cross on pain of death (1 Kgs 2:37). Reforming kings burned idols and dumped unclean objects from the temple there (1 Kgs 15:13; 2 Kgs 23:4, 6, 12; 2 Chr 29:16; 30:14). Later Jewish sources say the blood from temple sacrifices drained into the Kidron and was sold to gardeners as fertilizer (Mishnah Yoma 5:6; Middot 3:2).
Where it appears
John · 1
-
John 18:1 Κεδρὼν of Kidron
After Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples across the Kidron Valley, where they entered a garden.
Here: The ravine between the Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives. The name comes from Hebrew and probably means 'dark' or 'murky'. It is a borrowed name and does not change its ending, which is why some scribes mistook it for the Greek word 'cedars'.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.