Strong's Lexicon
speira: Cohort, band, company
Original Word:σπεῖρα
Part of Speech:Noun, Feminine
Transliteration:speira
Pronunciation:SPI-rah
Phonetic Spelling:(spi'-rah)
Definition:Cohort, band, company
Meaning:a cohort, the tenth part of a legion; a military guard.
Word Origin:Derived from the Greek verb σπείρω (speirō), meaning "to sow" or "to scatter."
Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries:While there is no direct Hebrew equivalent for "speira," the concept of a military unit or group can be related to terms like חַיִל (chayil), meaning "army" or "force."
Usage:In the New Testament, "speira" refers to a Roman military unit known as a cohort. A cohort was a subdivision of a Roman legion and typically consisted of about 600 soldiers, though the number could vary. The term is used to describe a group of soldiers or a band of men, often in the context of those who were involved in significant events, such as the arrest of Jesus.
Cultural and Historical Background:In the Roman military system, a legion was composed of several cohorts. Each cohort was further divided into centuries, led by a centurion. The presence of a "speira" in the New Testament reflects the Roman occupation of Judea during the time of Jesus. Roman soldiers were a common sight and played a crucial role in maintaining order and enforcing Roman law.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originof Latin origin
Definitionanything wound up or coiled, by ext. a body (of soldiers), i.e. a cohort
NASB Translationcohort (7).
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 4686: σπεῖρασπεῖρα (on the accent cf.
Buttmann, 11;
Chandler § 161;
Tdf. Proleg., p. 102),
ἡ, genitive
σπείρης (
Acts 10:1;
Acts 21:31;
Acts 27:1; see (
Tdf. Proleg., p. 117;
WH's Appendix, p. 156; and)
μάχαιρα, at the beginning) (cognate with
σπυρίς (which see));
a. Latinspira; anything rolled into a circle or ball, anything wound, rolled up, folded together.
b.a military cohort (Polybius 11, 23, 1τρεῖςσπείρας.τοῦτοδέκαλεῖταιτόσύνταγματῶνπεζῶνπαράῬωμαίοιςκωρτις), i. e. the tenth part of a legion (i. e. about 600 men (i. e. legionaries), or if auxilialies either 500 or 1,000; cf. Marquardt, Römisch. Alterth. III. ii., p. 371. But surelyτοῦτοτόσύνταγμα in the quotation comprehends theτρεῖςσπεῖρα; hence,Polybius here makes aσπεῖρα equal to a maniple, cf. 2, 3, 2; 6, 24, 5; cf.Zonaras, Lex., p. 1664,σπεῖρασύνταγμαδιακοσίωνἀνδρῶν. On the other hand, "the later Greek writings almost uniformly employσπεῖρα as the representative of cohors" (Smith,Dict. of Antiq., edition 2, under the word exercitus, p. 500); and the rise ofχιλίαρχος (which was the equivalent of tribunus, the commander of a cohort) in connection with it (John 18:12;Acts 21:31), together with the uniform rendering of the word by cohors in the Latin versions, warrants the margincohort uniformly added inR. V. to the rendering band):Matthew 27:27;Mark 15:16;Acts 10:1;Acts 21:31;Acts 27:1, and often inJosephus; a maniple, or the thirtieth part of a legion, often so inPolybius ((see above));any band, company, or detachment, of soldiers (2 Macc. 8:23; Judith 14:11):John 18:3, 12.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
cohortOf immediate Latin origin, but ultimately a derivative ofhaireomai in the sense of its cognateheilisso; a coil (spira, "spire"), i.e. (figuratively) a mass of men (a Roman military cohort; also (by analogy) a squad of Levitical janitors) -- band.
see GREEKheilisso
see GREEKhaireomai
Forms and Transliterations
σπειρα σπείρα σπεῖρα σπειραν σπείραν σπεῖραν σπειρης σπείρης speira speîra speiran speîran speires speirēs speíres speírēsLinks
Interlinear Greek •Interlinear Hebrew •Strong's Numbers •Englishman's Greek Concordance •Englishman's Hebrew Concordance •Parallel Texts
