G2818 — κληρονόμος (klēronomos)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2818
Original: κληρονόμος
Transliteration: klēronomos
Pronunciation: klay-ron-om'-os
Part of Speech: Masculine noun
Root: From κλῆρος (kleros, G2819 — lot, portion) + the base of νέμω (nemo — to distribute)
Occurrences: 15 tokens in 14 unique verses across 8 books
First Occurrence: Mat 21:38 — "This is the heir; come, let us kill him"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From G2819 (kleros) and the base of G3551 (nomos, in its original sense of partitioning). An heir — one who receives a lot or portion, i.e. one who inherits by allotment.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 57 — Possess, Transfer, Exchange
Subdomain: 57.009 — Receive
Other words in subdomain: ἀπέχω (G568), δέχομαι (G1209), κληρονομέω (G2816), κληρονομία (G2817), κατακληρονομέω (G2624), κομίζω (G2865), λαμβάνω (G2983), λαγχάνω (G2975)

Domain Neighbors (57.009 — Receive)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV Translation
G2816	κληρονομέω	17	inherit, shall inherit
G2817	κληρονομία	14	inheritance
G1209	δέχομαι	26	receive
G2983	λαμβάνω	57	took, receive
G2624	κατακληρονομέω	2	divided by lot
G2865	κομίζω	3	receive
G2975	λαγχάνω	3	cast lots, obtained

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
heir	7	50.0%
heirs	6	42.9%
an heir	1	7.1%

Note: Uniformly translated "heir/heirs" throughout the KJV — no semantic ambiguity in translation.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Titus	1	2.2
Galatians	3	2.0
Hebrews	3	1.0
James	1	0.9
Romans	3	0.7
Matthew	1	0.1
Mark	1	0.1
Luke	1	0.1

Pauline epistles dominate (Romans + Galatians = 6 of 15 tokens, 43%). The Synoptic uses (3 tokens) all come from the single Parable of the Wicked Tenants, reported across all three Synoptics. Hebrews adds 3 uses. Absent from John, Acts, the prison epistles, Thessalonians, the Pastorals (except Titus), Peter, and Revelation.

Morphological Distribution¶

Form	Case/Number	Count	Typical Context
κληρονόμος	Nom Sg	6	predicate: "this is the heir," "the heir... differeth nothing"
κληρονόμοι	Nom Pl	4	predicate: "then heirs," "heirs of God," "heirs according to..."
κληρονόμον	Acc Sg	2	object: "appointed heir," "heir of the world"
κληρονόμοις	Dat Pl	1	indirect object: "shew unto the heirs of promise"
κληρονόμους	Acc Pl	1	object: "heirs of the kingdom"

Nominative (predicate position) accounts for 10 of 15 tokens — the word is overwhelmingly used declaratively ("you are heirs") rather than as an acted-upon object.

Semantic Categories¶

1. The Rightful Son Rejected (Synoptic Parable)¶

Mat 21:38 — "This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance."
Mar 12:7 — "This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours."
Luk 20:14 — "This is the heir: come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours."

All three Synoptics apply "heir" to the son in the vineyard parable — a Christological title identifying Jesus as the legitimate heir whom the tenants (Israel's leaders) reject.

2. Abrahamic Promise — Heir by Faith, Not Law¶

Rom 4:13 — "For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, [was] not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith."
Rom 4:14 — "For if they which are of the law [be] heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect."
Gal 3:29 — "And if ye [be] Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."
Gal 4:7 — "Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ."

Paul's central argument: heirship comes through faith-union with Christ, not through Torah observance. The heir receives what was promised to Abraham.

3. Believers as God's Heirs¶

Rom 8:17 — "And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with [him], that we may be also glorified together."
Tit 3:7 — "That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."
Jam 2:5 — "Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?"

Believers are described as heirs of God, of the kingdom, and of eternal life. Rom 8:17 uniquely links heirship with suffering — co-heirs share both glory and affliction.

4. Christ as Appointed Heir¶

Heb 1:2 — "His Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds."

The Son's heirship is cosmic in scope ("all things") and grounded in his role as creator-agent. This is the fullest christological use.

5. Heir by Faith (OT Examples)¶

Heb 6:17 — "God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed [it] by an oath."
Heb 11:7 — "By faith Noah... became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."

Hebrews applies "heir" retroactively to OT figures, demonstrating that faith-based heirship predates the Mosaic covenant.

6. Heir vs. Servant — Legal Status Contrast¶

Gal 4:1 — "The heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all."
Gal 4:7 — "Thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir."

Paul draws on Greco-Roman inheritance law: the minor heir has no practical advantage over a slave until the father's appointed time.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἐπαγγελία (epangelia)	G1860	4x (29%)	"heir(s) of/according to the promise"
θεός (theos)	G2316	4x (29%)	"heir of God," "God... appointed heir"
πίστις (pistis)	G4102	4x (29%)	Heirship grounded in faith, not law
κληρονομία (kleronomia)	G2817	3x (21%)	Parable: "heir" + "inheritance" in same verse
υἱός (huios)	G5207	3x (21%)	"Son... heir," sonship → heirship logic
Χριστός (Christos)	G5547	3x (21%)	"heirs... with Christ," "through Christ"
κόσμος (kosmos)	G2889	3x (21%)	"heir of the world," "condemned the world"
δοῦλος (doulos)	G1401	2x (14%)	Heir-vs-servant contrast (Gal 4:1, 7)
νόμος (nomos)	G3551	2x (14%)	Law-vs-promise opposition
σπέρμα (sperma)	G4690	2x (14%)	"Abraham's seed, and heirs"
δικαιοσύνη (dikaiosyne)	G1343	2x (14%)	"heir of righteousness," "righteousness of faith"

Word Family / Cognates¶

G2819 κλῆρος (kleros) — lot, portion, inheritance (root noun)
G2816 κληρονομέω (kleronomeo) — to inherit (verb)
G2817 κληρονομία (kleronomia) — inheritance, heirship (noun)
G2820 κληρόω (kleroo) — to allot, assign (verb; Eph 1:11 only)
G4789 συγκληρονόμος (synkleronomos) — co-heir, joint-heir (compound; 4 uses)

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
יָרַשׁ (yarash)	H3423	"heir" (KJV)	OT verb "to possess/dispossess" — active taking vs. kleronomos's passive receiving by right

Hebrew Source¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrence	PMI Score
יָרַשׁ (yarash)	H3423	3	9.43

The LXX bridge runs primarily through H3423 yarash → G2816 kleronomeo (verb), with the noun kleronomos being a NT development of the inheritance concept. The Hebrew field distinguishes between nachal/nachalah (receive allotted portion) and yarash (possess by right/dispossess), whereas Greek consolidates both under the kleros word family.