G2523 — καθίζω (kathízō)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2523
Original: καθίζω
Transliteration: kathízō
Pronunciation: kath-id'-zo
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: causative/transitive form related to κάθημαι (G2521, "to sit") and καθέζομαι (G2516); shares the prefix κατά + base ἵζω ("to seat, settle")
Occurrences: 46 unique verses (50 tokens) across 10 NT books
First Occurrence: Mat 5:1 — "he went up into a mountain: and when he was set (kathisas), his disciples came unto him"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From Strong's: "another (active) form for καθέζομαι; to seat down, i.e. set (figuratively, appoint); intransitively, to sit (down); by implication, to dwell, to pass time; specially, to take up a formal position (as judge or teacher), to settle down firmly or permanently." Functions both transitively ("cause to sit, seat, enthrone") and intransitively ("sit down, take one's seat").

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

καθίζω is classified under multiple domains, reflecting its semantic range from literal posture to social/judicial status:

17.12 — Stances and Events Related to Stances: Sit (physical posture)
37 — Control, Rule (seating as exercise of authority)
37.96 — Assign to a Role or Function (causative "appoint / install")
85 — Existence in Space: Remain, Stay (durative "settle, dwell, continue")
87 — Status: High Status or Rank (enthronement imagery)

Domain 17.12 neighbors (Sit):

Strong's	Lemma	Verses	Primary KJV
G339	ἀνακαθίζω	2	sat up
G1940	ἐπικαθίζω	1	they set
G2516	καθέζομαι	6	sat, sitting
G2521	κάθημαι	51	sat, sitting
G4775	συγκάθημαι	2	sat with
G4776	συγκαθίζω	2	sit together, set down together

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[017] Stances and Events Related to Stances
[085] Existence in Space
[037] Control, Rule
[087] Status

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
sat	6	13.0%
sat down	5	10.9%
to sit	4	8.7%
he sat down	3	6.5%
sitteth	3	6.5%
Sit ye	2	4.3%
and sat down	2	4.3%
down	2	4.3%
set	2	4.3%
sit	2	4.3%
Other singletons (sit down / is set down / shall sit / tarry / he continued / we sat down / etc.)	15	32.6%

The translations cluster tightly around "sit / sat / sit down / set" — English renderings shift between active-intransitive ("sat") and causative-transitive ("set him"). "Tarry" (Luk 24:49) and "he continued" (Act 18:11) capture the durative/"settle" sense.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
2 Thessalonians	1	2.1
Hebrews	4	1.3
Mark	8	1.2
Acts	9	0.9
Matthew	8	0.7
Luke	8	0.7
Ephesians	1	0.6
1 Corinthians	2	0.5
Revelation	2	0.5
John	3	0.3

Patterns: Concentrated in narrative Gospels + Acts (33 of 46 = ~72%), where the verb typically records physical action (Jesus sitting down to teach, mounting the colt, etc.). Hebrews is the densest epistolary witness, and every Hebrews occurrence describes the enthroned exalted Christ. The single densest book is 2 Thessalonians (2:4) — an outlier driven by a lone high-profile use describing an antagonist seating himself "in the temple of God." Absent from the Johannine Epistles, Pastorals, Catholic Epistles, and most of Paul's major letters.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Enthronement of Christ at God's Right Hand¶

A specialized post-resurrection usage locating the exalted Christ at the Father's right hand, typically drawing on Ps 110:1. - Mar 16:19 — "he was received up into heaven, and sat (ekathisen) on the right hand of God" - Eph 1:20 — "raised him from the dead, and set him (kathisas) at his own right hand in the heavenly places" (transitive — God seats Christ) - Heb 1:3 — "sat down (ekathisen) on the right hand of the Majesty on high" - Heb 8:1 — "an high priest, who is set (ekathisen) on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty" - Heb 10:12 — "sat down (ekathisen) on the right hand of God" - Heb 12:2 — "is set down (kekathiken) at the right hand of the throne of God"

2. Thrones Promised to the Faithful / Saints¶

Christ extends the enthronement motif to his followers, who are promised seated authority. - Mat 19:28 — "ye also shall sit (kathisesthe) upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel" - Luk 22:30 — "sit (kathesthe) on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel" - Rev 3:21 — "will I grant to sit (kathisai) with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down (ekathisa) with my Father in his throne" - Rev 20:4 — "I saw thrones, and they sat upon them (ekathisan), and judgment was given unto them"

3. Usurped / Contested Enthronement¶

Negative instances of seating oneself to claim authority. - 2Th 2:4 — "so that he as God sitteth (kathisai, aor. inf.) in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God" - Act 12:21 — "Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat (kathisas) upon his throne, and made an oration" - Mat 20:21, 23 / Mar 10:37, 40 — James and John request to "sit" (kathisōsin / kathisai) at Christ's right and left in his kingdom

4. Judicial Seating (Moses' Seat / Bēma)¶

The verb registers formal judicial authority, often paired with βῆμα ("judgment seat") or "seat of Moses." - Mat 23:2 — "The scribes and the Pharisees sit (ekathisan) in Moses' seat" - Jhn 19:13 — "[Pilate] sat down (ekathisen) in the judgment seat (bēma) in a place called the Pavement" - Act 25:6 — "sitting (kathisas) on the judgment seat (bēma) commanded Paul to be brought" - Act 25:17 — "I sat (kathisas) on the judgment seat, and commanded the man to be brought forth" - 1Co 6:4 — "set (kathizete) them to judge who are least esteemed in the church" (causative — "appoint as judges")

5. Seating to Teach (Rabbinic Posture)¶

A teacher sat to deliver authoritative instruction; katheizō carries this formal register. - Mat 5:1 — "he went up into a mountain: and when he was set (kathisantos), his disciples came" - Luk 4:20 — "he closed the book… and sat down (ekathisen). And the eyes of all them… were fastened on him" - Luk 5:3 — "he sat down (kathisas), and taught the people out of the ship" - Jhn 8:2 — "he sat down (kathisas), and taught them" (temple) - Mar 9:35 — "he sat down (kathisas), and called the twelve, and saith unto them…"

6. General Physical Sitting / Taking a Seat¶

Ordinary narrative usage with no special authority coloring. - Mat 13:48 — "drew to shore, and sat down (kathisantes), and gathered the good into vessels" - Mat 26:36 / Mar 14:32 — "Sit ye (kathisate) here, while I go and pray" - Mar 11:7 / Jhn 12:14 — Jesus "sat upon" (ekathisen) the colt at the Triumphal Entry - Mar 12:41 — "Jesus sat (kathisas) over against the treasury" - Act 2:3 — "cloven tongues like as of fire… it sat (ekathisen) upon each of them" - Act 8:31 — "come up and sit (kathisai) with him" - Act 13:14 — "went into the synagogue… and sat down (ekathisan)" - 1Co 10:7 — "The people sat down (ekathisen) to eat and drink, and rose up to play"

7. Settling / Dwelling / Continuing (Durative)¶

The "settle down, remain" sense — time spent in a place. - Luk 24:49 — "tarry ye (kathisate) in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power" - Act 18:11 — "he continued (ekathisen) there a year and six months, teaching the word of God"

8. Prudential Sitting to Calculate¶

Lukan parabolic usage — sitting as deliberation before undertaking a project. - Luk 14:28 — "intending to build a tower, sitteth not down (kathisas) first, and counteth the cost" - Luk 14:31 — "king, going to make war… sitteth not down (kathisas) first, and consulteth" - Luk 16:6 — "Take thy bill, and sit down (kathisas) quickly, and write fifty"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
λέγω (legō)	G3004	11x (24%)	"he sat down… and said / saith" — seated teaching or pronouncement
δεξιός (dexios)	G1188	10x (22%)	"sat on the right hand" — enthronement formula (Heb, Eph, Mar)
θρόνος (thronos)	G2362	8x (17%)	"sit upon the throne / sit on thrones" — royal/judicial seating
Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous)	G2424	8x (17%)	Jesus as subject or object of the seating
θεός (theos)	G2316	7x (15%)	paired with "right hand of God" or "temple of God"
βῆμα (bēma)	G968	4x (9%)	"sat on the judgment seat" — forensic/judicial
δόξα (doxa)	G1391	4x (9%)	"glory" paired with enthronement contexts
εὐώνυμος (euōnymos)	G2176	4x (9%)	"left hand" — always paired with δεξιός in seating-at-right/left requests
δώδεκα (dōdeka)	G1427	3x (7%)	"twelve thrones / the twelve" — apostolic enthronement
διδάσκω (didaskō)	G1321	3x (7%)	"sat down and taught" — rabbinic teaching posture

Word Family / Cognates¶

κάθημαι (G2521) — the stative/perfective counterpart: "be seated, be sitting" (51 vv). Often describes continuing posture rather than the act of sitting down.
καθέζομαι (G2516) — middle/deponent "sit down, be seated" (6 vv). Semantic overlap with kathízō intransitive.
συγκαθίζω (G4776) — "seat together, sit down with" (2 vv; Luk 22:55; Eph 2:6 — believers "made to sit together" with Christ). Direct compound used in the co-enthronement theology of Ephesians.
ἀνακαθίζω (G339) — "sit up (from lying down)" (2 vv, resurrection-miracle contexts).
ἐπικαθίζω (G1940) — "seat upon" (Mat 21:7, the colts at Triumphal Entry).
παρακαθίζω (G3869) — "sit down beside" (Luk 10:39).
καθίστημι (G2525) — "appoint, set in charge" (Domain 37.96 neighbor; functional synonym for causative "install in office").

Synonyms¶

No direct synonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G2523.

Antonyms¶

No direct antonyms were identified by search_relationships.py for G2523.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
κάθημαι	G2521	"sat / sitting / sitteth" (shared in 24+ verses)	Stative — describes the state of being seated; G2523 is ingressive/causative — describes taking a seat or causing to be seated
καθέζομαι	G2516	"sat, sitting" (3v overlap)	Middle/deponent near-synonym; slightly more reflexive "seat oneself"
ἀνακεῖμαι	G345	"sat down / he sat down"	"Recline at table" — specifically for dining posture
ἀναπίπτω	G377	"sat down"	"Fall back, recline" — again dining/reclining posture
κατάκειμαι	G2621	"sat down" (1v)	"Lie down" — for the sick or at banquet
κατακλίνω	G2625	"sit" (1v)	"Make to recline" — causative for table seating
παρακαθίζω	G3869	"sat" (1v)	Compound "sit beside"
συνανάκειμαι	G4873	"sat / sat down at meat"	"Recline together at table" — dining companion

Key distinction: kathízō denotes upright seated posture on a chair, throne, or bench, suited to teaching, judging, and ruling imagery, whereas ἀνακεῖμαι / ἀναπίπτω / κατάκειμαι / κατακλίνω describe the reclining dining posture of the Greco-Roman banquet.

Hebrew Source¶

Septuagint reverse-mapping (PMI-ranked Hebrew words frequently rendered by kathízō):

Hebrew	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Notes
יָשַׁב (yāšab)	H3427	160	4.43	The dominant equivalent — "sit, dwell, remain"
כִּסֵּא (kissēʼ)	H3678	25	4.75	"throne" — co-occurs with kathízō in enthronement contexts
מַטָּרָא (maṭṭārāʼ)	H4307	4	5.11	"guard-house" — rare "settle / detain" sense
נׇכְרִי (nokrî)	H5237	6	4.18	Secondary pairing via "sojourn / settle" texts
דָּוִד (Dāwid)	H1732	30	2.17	Collocational, not lexical — Davidic throne contexts
מְצָד (mᵉtsad)	H4679	3	5.28	"stronghold" — habitation sense
דִּין (dîn)	H1779	3	4.52	"judgment" — forensic seating contexts

The primary bridge is H3427 יָשַׁב → G2523 καθίζω (alongside G2521 κάθημαι), sharing the full semantic span: sit, enthrone, dwell, settle. The secondary lexical partner H3678 כִּסֵּא ("throne") ↔ G2362 θρόνος supplies the enthronement furniture that kathízō typically operates upon.