Greek word · G3725

ὅριον

horion

region

Boundary or border. In the plural, the territory inside the boundaries: region, district, environs.

Appears 12 times in 11 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

ὅριον, -ου, τό

(ὅρος, a boundary), [in LXX chiefly for גְּבוּל ;]

a boundary, bound; chiefly in pl., and so always in NT: Matthew 2:16 4:13 8:34 15:22, 39 19:1, Mark 5:17 7:24, 31 10:1, Acts 13:50.†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Matthew 2:16

Range of meaning

Boundary or border. In the plural, the territory inside the boundaries: region, district, environs.

Against the English

KJV: 'coasts'; WEB: 'surrounding countryside'; BSB: 'vicinity'; YLT: 'borders'. Modern readers take the KJV's 'coasts' as seashore, but Bethlehem is in the inland hills of Judea.

How it drifted

In early modern English 'coast' (from Latin costa, 'rib, side') meant a border or region. The KJV regularly uses 'coasts' for horia (e.g. Matt 15:22; 19:1).

Used elsewhere in the period

Common in the Greek Old Testament for the borders or territory of tribes and towns.

From the study of Mark 7:24

Range of meaning

Singular: a boundary or limit. Plural: the land inside the boundaries, so a territory, district or region belonging to a place.

Against the English

KJV/WEB/YLT "borders" suggests a border line or frontier zone. BSB/ESV/NASB "region" and NIV "vicinity" capture the territorial sense.

How it drifted

Early modern English "borders" could mean territory ("within thy borders"), but today it means a line on a map or a frontier strip, which suggests Jesus stopped at the edge.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Septuagint it often translates Hebrew gevul (boundary, territory), e.g. locusts covering "all the borders of Egypt", meaning the whole land (Exod 10:14). In the New Testament: Matt 2:16 (Bethlehem "and all its region"), Mark 5:17 ("leave their region"), Mark 10:1 ("the region of Judea").

From the study of 1 Maccabees 7:24

Range of meaning

Singular: a boundary or border. Plural: the area inside the borders, so territory, districts or region. The LXX uses it for Hebrew gevul, which has the same double sense.

Against the English

KJV/Brenton: 'all the coasts of Judea'. WEB: 'all the borders of Judea'. RSV/NRSV: 'the surrounding parts of Judea'. 'Parts', 'districts' or 'territory' is the meaning; 'borders' and especially 'coasts' can mislead.

How it drifted

In 1611 'coast' (from Old French coste, 'side') could mean any border region or territory. Today it means only the seashore. Judea in 161 BC had no coastline to speak of.

Used elsewhere in the period

KJV regularly uses 'coasts' for gevul/horia in the Gospels, e.g. 'the coasts of Tyre and Sidon' (Matt 15:21). LXX: 'all the territory (horia) of Israel' (1 Sam 11:3, 7).

Where it appears

Matthew · 6

  1. Matthew 2:16 ὁρίοις vicinity

    When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was filled with rage. Sending orders, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, according to the time he had learned from the Magi.

    Here: In the plural, 'the area within its boundaries': the farms and hamlets around Bethlehem. It has nothing to do with a coast.

  2. Matthew 4:13 ὁρίοις [the] region

    Leaving Nazareth, He went and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,

    Here: In the plural the word means the land inside the boundaries, 'territory, district.' It does not mean the border line itself.

  3. Matthew 8:34 ὁρίων region

    Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged Him to leave their region.

    Here: Literally 'boundaries', used for the whole territory inside them: the town's lands and villages. They want him beyond their frontier.

  4. Matthew 15:22 ὁρίων region

    And a Canaanite woman from that region came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is miserably possessed by a demon.”

    Here: Literally "boundaries" (KJV "coasts", YLT "borders"). In the plural it usually means the territory inside the boundaries, here the land of Tyre and Sidon. The word quietly raises the theme of borders, ethnic as well as geographic, that runs through the scene.

  5. Matthew 15:39 ὅρια region

    After Jesus had dismissed the crowds, He got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.

    Here: Literally "the boundaries". In the plural it means the district or territory around a place, so "the region of Magadan". It has nothing to do with a seashore, despite the KJV's "coasts".

  6. Matthew 19:1 ὅρια region

    When Jesus had finished saying these things, He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.

    Here: Literally 'boundaries'. In the plural it means the territory inside those boundaries, a 'region' or 'district'. KJV's 'coasts' meant 'borders' in 1611, not seashore.

Mark · 5

  1. Mark 5:17 ὁρίων region

    And the people began to beg Jesus to leave their region.

  2. Mark 7:24 ὅρια region

    Jesus left that place and went to the region of Tyre. Not wanting anyone to know He was there, He entered a house, but was unable to escape their notice.

    Here: Plural of "boundary"; in the plural it regularly means the whole territory a city controlled, everything inside its boundaries. Tyre's countryside reached inland to the edge of upper Galilee, so this need not mean the city itself.

  3. Mark 7:31 ὁρίων ὁρίων region

    Then Jesus left the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.

  4. Mark 10:1 ὅρια region

    Then Jesus left that place and went into the region of Judea, beyond the Jordan. Again the crowds came to Him and He taught them, as was His custom.

Acts · 1

  1. Acts 13:50 ὁρίων district

    The Jews, however, incited the religious women of prominence and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their district.

    Here: "Boundaries," and by extension the territory inside them. A Roman colony controlled a defined area of land around the city, and Paul and Barnabas were pushed out of all of it, not just the town.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.