WG: Kingdom / Reign / Dominion
Overview
The "kingdom" concept in Hebrew and Aramaic Scripture involves five core words spanning king, royal reign, and territorial dominion — unified in Greek through βασιλεύς and βασιλεία.
Word Group Members
| Strong's |
Word |
Transliteration |
POS |
Occurrences |
Role in Concept |
Library Entry |
| H4428 |
מֶלֶךְ |
melek |
masculine noun |
1919 |
The king — the person who reigns |
H4428-melek.md |
| H4427 |
מָלַךְ |
malak |
verb |
— |
The act — to reign, to be king |
TODO(need H4427 study) |
| H4437 |
מַלְכוּ |
malkûw |
feminine noun (Aram.) |
43 |
Aramaic dominion — kingdom/realm (Daniel, Ezra) |
A4437-malkuw.md |
| H4438 |
מַלְכוּת |
malkûwth |
feminine noun |
82 |
The domain — kingdom, royal rule |
H4438-malkuwth.md |
| H4467 |
מַמְלָכָה |
mamlâkâh |
feminine noun |
113 |
The realm — territorial kingdom, dominion |
TODO(need H4467 study) |
| H4430 |
מֶלֶךְ |
melek |
masculine noun (Aram.) |
131 |
Aramaic king — the royal person (Daniel) |
TODO(need H4430 study) |
| G932 |
βασιλεία |
basileía |
feminine noun |
154 |
NT/LXX: kingdom, royal rule, reign |
TODO(need G932 study) |
| G935 |
βασιλεύς |
basileús |
masculine noun |
— |
NT/LXX: king |
TODO(need G935 study) |
Relationships
Shared Roots
- H4427 (malak) → H4428 (melek) + H4438 (malkûwth) + H4437 (malkûw, Aramaic) — all from root מָלַךְ (to reign)
- H4467 (mamlâkâh) — from H4427 via intensive formation (mamlaká = domain of rule)
- H4430 (melek Aramaic) + H4437 (malkûw Aramaic) — Aramaic cognates of H4428 and H4438/4427
Co-occurrence (appear in same verses)
| Word A |
Word B |
Shared Verses |
Typical Context |
| H4438 malkûwth |
H4428 melek |
38 |
"the king's kingdom" or "of the king's reign" |
| H4467 mamlâkâh |
H4428 melek |
22 |
"the kingdom of Israel/Babylon" as territorial entity |
| H4430 melek (Aram.) |
H4428 melek (Heb.) |
1 |
Bilingual usage at Aramaic transition (Dan 2:4) |
Greek Bridges (LXX/NT)
| Hebrew Words |
Shared Greek |
Notes |
| H4467 mamlâkâh + H4438 malkûwth |
G932 βασιλεία |
LXX renders both as βασιλεία — kingdom as abstraction or territory |
| H4428 melek + H4430 melek (Aram.) |
G935 βασιλεύς |
The king-person in both testaments |
| H4437 malkûw (Aram.) |
G932 βασιλεία |
41 co-occurrences — Daniel's Aramaic kingdom passages underlie NT kingdom-of-God usage |
Roles in the Concept
- The person: melek H4428 / H4430 — the king who holds the kingdom
- The act: malak H4427 — the verbal act of reigning
- The abstract dominion: malkûw H4437 / malkûwth H4438 — the reign/rule in the abstract; what is given, taken, established, or eternal
- The territorial realm: mamlâkâh H4467 — the political-geographic kingdom; what is divided or conquered
- Greek counterpart: basileía G932 — bridges all senses in LXX and NT
Key Passages Where Multiple Group Words Appear Together
- Dan 2:37 — "God hath given thee a kingdom (malkûw H4437), power, and strength, and glory" — malkûw given to melek (H4430)
- Dan 4:31 — "the kingdom (malkûw) is departed from thee" — malkûw removed from melek
- Dan 7:18 — "the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom (malkûw)" — eschatological transfer
- Dan 7:27 — "the kingdom (malkûw) and dominion...shall be given to the people of the saints" — malkûw + H7990 shallîyṭ
- 1 Chr 29:30 — "all his reign (malkûwth H4438) and his might" — Hebrew malkûwth in historical narrative
Generated from: gather_word_group_data.py, gather_word_data.py
Last updated: 2026-04-01