Kingdom
OT & NTVine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words
Definition
"kingdom; reign; rule." The word malkût occurs 91 times in the Hebrew Old Testament and apparently belongs to late biblical Hebrew. The first occurrence is in Num 24:7: "He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted."
The word malkût denotes: (1) the territory of the kingdom: "When he showed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honor of his excellent majesty many days, even a hundred and fourscore days" (Esth 1:4); (2) the accession to the throne: "For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this" (Esth 4:14); (3) the year of rule: "So Esther was taken unto king Ahasuerus into his house royal in the tenth month, which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign" (Esth 2:16); and (4) anything "royal" or "kingly": throne (Esth 1:2), wine (Esth 1:7), crown (Esth 1:11), word (Esth 1:19), garment (Esth 6:8), palace (Esth 1:9), scepter (Psa 45:6), and glory (Psa 145:11-12).
The Septuagint translations of malkût are: basileia ("kingship; kingdom; royal power") and basileus ("king").
Close to the basic meaning is the usage of mamlakâ to denote "king," as the king was considered to be the embodiment of the "kingdom." He was viewed as a symbol of the kingdom proper: "Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you" (1Sam 10:18; in Hebrew the noun "kingdoms" is feminine and the verb "oppress" has a masculine form, signifying that we must understand "kingdoms" as "kings").
The function and place of the king is important in the development of the concept "kingdom." "Kingdom" may signify the head of the kingdom. The word further has the meaning of the royal "rule," the royal "sovereignty," and the "dominion." The royal "sovereignty" was taken from Saul because of his disobedience (1Sam 28:17). "Royal sovereignty" is also the sense in Jer 27:1: "In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim…." The Old Testament further defines as expressions of the royal "rule" all things associated with the king: (1) the throne: "And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites" (Deut 17:18); (2) the pagan sanctuary supported by the throne: "But prophesy not again any more at Beth-el: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court" (Amos 7:13); and (3) a royal city: "And David said unto Achish, If I have now found grace in thine eyes, let them give me a place in some town in the country, that I may dwell there: for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee" (1Sam 27:5).
All human rule is under God's control. Consequently the Old Testament fully recognizes the kingship of God. The Lord ruled as king over His people Israel (1Chron 29:11). He graciously ruled over His people through David and his followers until the Exile (2Chron 13:5).
In the New Testament usage all the above meanings are to be associated with the Greek word basileia ("kingdom"). This is the major translation of mamlakâ in the Septuagint, and as such it is small wonder that the New Testament authors used this word to refer to God's "kingdom": the realm, the king, the sovereignty, and the relationship to God Himself.
is primarily an abstract noun, denoting "sovereignty, royal power, dominion," e.g., Rev 17:18, translated "(which) reigneth," lit., "hath a kingdom" (RV marg.); then, by metonymy, a concrete noun, denoting the territory or people over whom a king rules, e.g., Mat 4:8, Mar 3:24. It is used especially of the "kingdom" of God and of Christ.
"The Kingdom of God is (a) the sphere of God's rule, Psa 22:28, Psa 145:13, Dan 4:25, Luk 1:52, Rom 1:13-2. Since, however, this earth is the scene of universal rebellion against God, e.g., Luk 1:4-6, 1Jo 5:19, Rev 1:11-18, the "kingdom" of God is (b) the sphere in which, at any given time, His rule is acknowledged. God has not relinquished His sovereignty in the face of rebellion, demoniac and human, but has declared His purpose to establish it, Dan 2:44, Dan 7:14, 1Co 1:15-25. Meantime, seeking willing obedience, He gave His law to a nation and appointed kings to administer His "kingdom" over it, 1Ch 28:5. Israel, however, though declaring still a nominal allegiance shared in the common rebellion, Isa 1:1-4, and, after they had rejected the Son of God, Joh 1:11 (cp. Mat 1:21-43), were "cast away," Rom 11:15, Rom 11:20, Rom 11:25. Henceforth God calls upon men everywhere, without distinction of race or nationality, to submit voluntarily to His rule. Thus the "kingdom" is said to be "in mystery" now, Mar 4:11, that is, it does not come within the range of the natural powers of observation, Luk 17:20, but is spiritually discerned, Joh 3:3 (cp. 1Co 2:14). When, hereafter, God asserts His rule universally, then the "kingdom" will be in glory, that is, it will be manifest to all; cp. Mat 1:25-34, Phi 1:2-11, 2Ti 4:1, 2Ti 4:18.
"Thus, speaking generally, references to the Kingdom fall into two classes, the first, in which it is viewed as present and involving suffering for those who enter it, 2Th 1:5; the second, in which it is viewed as future and is associated with reward, Mat 25:34, and glory, Mat 13:43. See also Act 14:22.
"The fundamental principle of the Kingdom is declared in the words of the Lord spoken in the midst of a company of Pharisees, "the Kingdom of God is in the midst of you," Luk 17:21, marg., that is, where the King is, there is the Kingdom. Thus at the present time and so far as this earth is concerned, where the King is and where His rule is acknowledged, is, first, in the heart of the individual believer, Act 4:19, Eph 3:17, 1Pe 3:15; and then in the churches of God, 1Co 12:3, 1Co 12:5, 1Co 12:11, 1Co 14:37; cp. Col 1:27, where for "in" read "among."
"Now, the King and His rule being refused, those who enter the Kingdom of God are brought into conflict with all who disown its allegiance, as well as with the desire for ease, and the dislike of suffering and unpopularity, natural to all. On the other hand, subjects of the Kingdom are the objects of the care of God, Mat 6:33, and of the rejected King, Heb 13:5.
"Entrance into the Kingdom of God is by the new birth, Mat 18:3, Joh 3:5, for nothing that a man may be by nature, or can attain to by any form of self-culture, avails in the spiritual realm. And as the new nature, received in the new birth, is made evident by obedience, it is further said that only such as do the will of God shall enter into His Kingdom, Mat 7:21, where, however, the context shows that the reference is to the future, as in 2Pe 1:1-11. Cp. also 1Co 1:6-10, Gal 5:21, Eph 5:5.
"The expression 'Kingdom of God' occurs four times in Matthew, 'Kingdom of the Heavens' usually taking its place. The latter (cp. Dan 4:26) does not occur elsewhere in NT, but see 2Ti 4:18, "His heavenly Kingdom." ... This Kingdom is identical with the Kingdom of the Father (cp. Mat 26:29 with Mar 14:25), and with the Kingdom of the Son (cp. Luk 22:30). Thus there is but one Kingdom, variously described: of the Son of Man, Mat 13:41; of Jesus, Rev 1:9; of Christ Jesus, 2Ti 4:1; "of Christ and God," Eph 5:5; "of our Lord, and of His Christ," Rev 11:15; "of our Lord, and of His Christ," Rev 11:15; "of our God, and the authority of His Christ," Rev 12:10; "of the Son of His love," Col 1:13.
"Concerning the future, the Lord taught His disciples to pray, "Thy Kingdom come," Mat 6:10, where the verb is in the point tense, precluding the notion of gradual progress and development, and implying a sudden catastrophe as declared in 2Th 2:8.
"Concerning the present, that a man is of the Kingdom of God is not shown in the punctilious observance of ordinances, which are external and material, but in the deeper matters of the heart, which are spiritual and essential, viz., 'righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit,' Rom 14:17." * [* From Notes on Thessalonians by Hogg and Vine, pp. 68-70.]
"With regard to the expressions "the Kingdom of God" and the "Kingdom of the Heavens," while they are often used interchangeably, it does not follow that in every case they mean exactly the same and are quite identical.
"The Apostle Paul often speaks of the Kingdom of God, not dispensationally but morally, e.g., in Rom 14:17, 1Co 4:20, but never so of the Kingdom of Heaven. 'God' is not the equivalent of 'the heavens.' He is everywhere and above all dispensations, whereas 'the heavens' are distinguished from the earth, until the Kingdom comes in judgment and power and glory (Rev 11:15, RV) when rule in heaven and on earth will be one.
"While, then, the sphere of the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven are at times identical, yet the one term cannot be used indiscriminately for the other. In the 'Kingdom of Heaven' (32 times in Matt.), heaven is in antithesis to earth, and the phrase is limited to the Kingdom in its earthly aspect for the time being, and is used only dispensationally and in connection with Israel. In the 'Kingdom of God', in its broader aspect, God is in antithesis to 'man' or 'the world,' and the term signifies the entire sphere of God's rule and action in relation to the world. It has a moral and spiritual force and is a general term for the Kingdom at any time. The Kingdom of Heaven is always the Kingdom of God, but the Kingdom of God is not limited to the Kingdom of Heaven, until in their final form, they become identical; e.g., Rev 11:15, RV; Joh 3:5, Rev 12:10." (An Extract).