v. Assembly, Church, Meeting
Lev 4:13 if all the c of Israel had erred
Lev 8:3 assemble all the c the door of the tabernacle
Num 14:5 Moses and .. prostrated themselves before the c
Num 16:3 all the c, they are all holy, and in
Psa 7:7 will c surround you with peoples, and over it
Psa 22:22 I will announce .. in the middle of the c I will praise you
Psa 26:12 in righteousness; in the c I will bless the Lord
Psa 89:7 Fearsome God in the great c of the saints
Psa 107:32 exalt him in the c of the people, and in the
Act 7:38 that Moses who was in the c in the
Act 13:43 farewell c, many of the Jews
1Co 14:34 keep your wives silent in the c
1Co 14:35 unseemly for a woman to speak in the c
Heb 2:12 your name, in the middle of the c I will praise you
Heb 12:23 to the c of the firstborn who are
Jam 2:2 in your c enters a man with a ring
(Heb., †™edhah and qahal, Gr., ekklesia and synagoge). The Hebrew people, considered in their collective capacity as the people of God or as an assembly of people gathered for a definite purpose (1Ki 8:65), or gathered for a festive occasion (Deu 23:1).
Sometimes it refers to an assembly of the whole people and sometimes to a part (Exo 12:6, Exo 12:47; Exo 19:7-8; Lev 4:13; Lev 8:4; Num 16:3; Num 25:6; Joe 2:15).
Source: Hispanic World Bible Dictionary
A term used to translate various Hebrew words to mean “gathering”, or “assembly”, or “concurrence”. It is frequently used in the form of †œc. of Israel†, to refer to the people, which is sometimes referred to simply as “the c.† (Exo 12:3; Exo 16:1; Exo 35:4; Lev 4:13; Num 1:2, etc.). †œEnter c. of Jehovah† meant being able to participate with full rights in the privileges and benefits of the people of Israel, especially regarding the worship of God in the †¢tabernacle or the †temple (Deu 23:1-8).
The word ekklësia (church), so used in the NT, was introduced by the Septuagint translators, who put it in place of the Hebrew word cajal (congregation). Therefore, when the Lord Jesus used the term ekklêsia (Mat 16:18; Mat 18:17) it was not unknown to His hearers.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
(See CONVOCATION, SYNAGOGUE, CHURCH)
Source: New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
Association of people who establish common bonds. in religious and ecclesial language it refers to the association that has religious objectives.
Some “congregations” are of a pious nature and the term has been used frequently since the end of the 19th century to refer to the Marian, Eucharistic, and apostolic groups that arose in parishes and educational centers.
In a special way, the denomination was applied to “Religious Institutes” with a legal character, whether they were clerical or lay, of “law” or diocesan or pontifical authorization, male or female. There were several thousand teaching Congregations that emerged, especially in the 19th and 20th centuries, to render a magnificent service to society and the Church when the States had not yet realized their duty to instruct citizens.
They provided this invaluable duty of human solidarity and education in the key to evangelical values. The same thing happened with other fields: that of assistance, that of health, that of the missions.
The term “congregation” was applied to these groups as early as 1610, when Federico Borromeo, successor of S. Carlos Borromeo in the animation of the Company of Christian Doctrine established in Milan, drafted new statutes for the almost 750 “confraternities or companies of Christian doctrine.” In those statutes he called the various school and parish groups “congregation of Christian Doctrine”. The name subsequently spread widely.
It was also called “congregation” already in the 20th century, to certain groups of diocesan ecclesial government and above all Roman and pontifical, composed of a diversity of members between permanent or temporary, directors or simply consultants.
Pedro Chico González, Dictionary of Catechesis and Religious Pedagogy, Editorial Bruño, Lima, Peru 2006
Source: Dictionary of Catechesis and Religious Pedagogy
A group of people gathered for a particular purpose or activity. The Hebrew word that is usually translated “congregation” in the New World Translation is qa·hal, which comes from a root meaning “to convene; congregate† . (Nu 20:8; De 4:10) It is frequently used of an organized body, and is found in the expressions “assembly of Israel” (Le 16:17; Jos 8:35; 1Ki 8:14), “congregation of the true God” (Ne 13:1) and “congregation of Jehovah”. (De 23:2, 3; Mic 2:5) Qa·hál designates different types of human gatherings: for religious purposes (De 9:10; 18:16; 1Ki 8:65; Ps 22:25; 107:32 ), to deal with civil affairs (1Ki 12:3) and for war (1Sa 17:47; Eze 16:40). Solomon is identified in the book of Ecclesiastes as “the congregator” (Heb. qo·he·leth). (Ec 1: 1, 12) As his king, he assembled or assembled the people for the worship of Jehovah. One notable occasion was when he assembled his subjects for the inauguration of the temple in Jerusalem. (1Ki 8:1-5; 2Ch 5:2-6)
The word translated “congregation” in the Christian Greek Scriptures is ek·kle·siʹa, from which the word “church” is derived. Ek·kle·si·a comes from two Greek roots: ek, meaning “out,” and ka·le·o, meaning “to call.” Therefore, it designates a group of people who have been †˜called out†™ or have been summoned, either officially or unofficially. It is the word used with reference to the congregation of Israel in Acts 7:38 and also to refer to the “assembly” that the silversmith Demetrius raised against Paul and his companions in Ephesus. (Ac 19:23, 24, 29, 32, 41) However, its most frequent use is in relation to the Christian congregation. It applies to the Christian congregation in general (1Co 12:28); to a congregation in a particular city, such as Jerusalem (Acts 8:1), Antioch (Acts 13:1), or Corinth (2Co 1:1), and to a specific group that meets in someone’s home. (Ro 16:5; Phm 2) Individual Christian congregations or “congregations of God” are also mentioned. (Ac 15:41; 1Co 11:16) Most English versions use the word “iglesia” in texts that speak of the Christian congregation, as at 1 Corinthians 16:19, but since many people associate the term church with a building for religious services rather than a congregation gathered for worship, that translation can be misleading.
The Greek word ek·kle·si·a is sometimes used in the Septuagint to translate the Hebrew qa·hal, as in Psalm 22:22 (21:23, LXX). (Compare NM, note.)
The congregation of Israel. From the time of Moses onward, the Scriptures called the nation of Israel a congregation. Jehovah arranged that the government of the congregation would be, not democratic, of the people, but theocratic, that is, of Himself. The nation was brought into the Law covenant for precisely that purpose. (Ex 19:3-9; 24:6-8) Since Moses was the mediator of that covenant, the Israelites could say: “Moses imposed upon us as mandated a law, a possession of the congregation of Jacob† (Deut. 33:4), though Jehovah was their Judge, Statute-giver, and King. (Isa 33:22) Thus, the nation was a congregation of God and could be called “Jehovah’s congregation.” (Nu 16:3; 1Ch 28:8.)
Sometimes qa·hál (congregation) is used in conjunction with another Hebrew word, `e·dháh (assembly). (Le 4:13; Nu 20:8, 10) `E·dháh comes from a root meaning “appoint,” thus meaning a group assembled by appointment, and is often applied to the community of Israel, as in the expression †œassembly of Israel† . (Ex 12:3) Those who constituted the Hebrew population of the nation of Israel comprised the congregation (qa·hál; Nu 15:15), while the assembly (`e·dháh) seems to have included both the Israelites and the foreign residents who lived with them. (Ex 12:19) Circumcised alien residents appear to have been counted as part of the congregation of Israel, in a general and extended application of this term. (Nu 15:14-16.)
However, there were exceptions as to who could be part of “Jehovah’s congregation.” No castrated man or man who “had his male member cut off” was allowed to enter the congregation, nor were illegitimate children, Ammonite or Moabite males, “up to the tenth generation.” However, the sons of the Edomites and of the Egyptians of “the third generation” could “enter of themselves into the congregation of Jehovah.” (De 23:1-8) The fact that the children of someone who was an illegitimate child were excluded “until the tenth generation” promoted respect for Jehovah’s law against adultery. (Ex 20:14) And although the sexually mutilated could not be integrated into the “congregation of Jehovah,” they were comforted by the words recorded at Isaiah 56:1-7. In any case, those excluded from “Jehovah’s congregation” in ancient Israel had the possibility of coming to receive the provisions and blessings that Jehovah bestowed on people in other nations. (Ge 22:15-18)
Those who were part of the congregation of Israel were shown mercy if they sinned by mistake, but were executed if they deliberately did something wrong. (Nu 15:27-31) For example, anyone who refused to purify himself when ceremonially “unclean,” ate the meat of the communion sacrifice while unclean, partaken of the fat of offerings or of the blood or ate holy things while unclean. (Nu 19:20; Le 7:21-27; 17:10, 14; 22:3) One who worked on the Sabbath (Ex 31:14), gave his offspring to Molek, turned to spiritual mediums and professional forecasters of events, would indulge in certain kinds of sexual immorality and whoever did not “grieve” on the annual Day of Atonement. (Le 20:1-6, 17, 18; 23:27-30; see also Ex 30:31-33; Le 17:3, 4, 8, 9; 18:29; 19:5-8.)
The inhabitants of Israel were organized into tribes, families, and houses. The incident involving Achan shows this organization of the people, for on that occasion Israel presented itself first tribe by tribe, then family by family, later house by house, and finally able-bodied man by able-bodied man, until isolated Achan as the wrongdoer. (Jos 7:10-19.)
In Israel, “princes” used to act on behalf of the entire people. (Ezra 10:14) Thus the “chieftains of the tribes” made their introductions when the tabernacle was erected. (Nu 7:1-11) The…