Greek word · G4616

σινδών

sindōn

linen

Fine linen cloth, and things made from it: a sheet, a wrap or light garment, or a burial shroud. The word stresses the material (good linen) more than the shape of the cloth.

Appears 6 times in 5 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

σινδών, -όνος, ἡ

[in LXX: Judges 14:12-13 A, Proverbs 31:24 (סָדִין), 1Ma.10:64 A * ;]

fine linen cloth;

(a) as used for swathing dead bodies (cf. Hdt., ii, 86): Matthew 27:59, Mark 15:46, Luke 23:53;

(b) a garment or wrap of this material (cf. ICC, Jg, l.with): Mark 14:51-52.†

(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 27:59

Range of meaning

Fine linen cloth, and things made from it: a sheet, a wrap or light garment, or a burial shroud. The word stresses the material (good linen) more than the shape of the cloth.

Against the English

'Linen cloth' (KJV, BSB, WEB, NIV, NASB) is accurate and neutral. ESV's 'shroud' names what the cloth was used for. YLT's 'clean linen' keeps the focus on the material. None of these is wrong. 'Shroud' brings to mind a single large sheet, which is the most natural reading but goes slightly beyond what the word says.

Used elsewhere in the period

Herodotus (Histories 2.86) uses σινδών for the fine linen used to wrap Egyptian mummies. In the Greek Old Testament (the Septuagint) it is the linen garments of Judges 14:12–13 and the linen the capable wife makes and sells in Proverbs 31:24. In Mark 14:51–52 it is the linen cloth the young man was wearing when he ran away naked. All the Synoptic burial accounts use it: Mark 15:46, where Joseph buys a sindōn; Luke 23:53; and here.

Where it appears

Matthew · 1

  1. Matthew 27:59 σινδόνι a linen cloth

    So Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,

    Here: A piece of fine linen fabric, big enough to wrap a whole body in: a sheet or shroud. Linen was expensive compared with wool or coarse cloth, so this fits Joseph's wealth.

Mark · 4

  1. Mark 14:51 σινδόνα a linen cloth

    One young man who had been following Jesus was wearing a linen cloth around his body. They caught hold of him,

  2. Mark 14:52 σινδόνα linen cloth

    but he pulled free of the linen cloth and ran away naked.

  3. Mark 15:46 σινδόνα, σινδόνι a linen cloth,, linen cloth

    So Joseph bought a linen cloth, took down the body of Jesus, wrapped it in the cloth, and placed it in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb.

Luke · 1

  1. Luke 23:53 σινδόνι in a linen cloth

    Then he took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth, and placed it in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had yet been laid.

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