Quick Definition
συνέδριον, ου, τό n.n. a council, the Sanhedrin
Strong's Definition
neuter of a presumed derivative of a compound of 4862 and the base of 1476; a joint session, i.e. (specially), the Jewish Sanhedrin; by analogy, a subordinate tribunal
KJV Usage: council
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament
noun, n. | -ου | ἑδραῖος
11.79 · Groups and Classes of Persons and Members of Such Groups and Classes · Socio-Political
city council, council of judges a socio-political group acting as a judicial council There are certain problems involved in the rendering of συνέδριον[a] as ‘city council,’ since in so many parts of the world a group which would be designated as a ‘city council’ would be primarily legislative rather than judicial in function. It is for that reason that συνέδριον[a] may be better translated in a number of instances as ‘the council which will judge you‘ or ‘before a group of men who will decide whether you have done right or wrong.’
11.80 · Groups and Classes of Persons and Members of Such Groups and Classes · Socio-Political
Sanhedrin, the council of the Jews the highest Jewish council, exercising jurisdiction in civil and religious matters, but having no power over life and death or over military actions or taxation In a number of languages συνέδριον[b] can be rendered by a descriptive phrase, for example, ‘the most important council of the Jews’ or ‘the council that made decisions for the Jewish people.’
MAT 5:22 · MAT 26:59 · MRK 14:55 · MRK 15:1 · LUK 22:66 · JHN 11:47 · ACT 4:15 · ACT 5:21 · ACT 5:27 · ACT 5:34 · ACT 5:41 · ACT 6:12 · ACT 6:15 · ACT 22:30 · ACT 23:1 · ACT 23:6 · ACT 23:15 · ACT 23:20 · ACT 23:28 · ACT 24:20
1 Though γερουσία and πρεσβυτέριον[a] refer to the same council of the Jews as the term συνέδριον[b] (11.80), this does not mean that the three terms are completely identical in meaning. The focus upon maturity of age and judgment as well as presumed social standing are more significant factors in γερουσία and πρεσβυτέριον[a] than in συνέδριον[b].
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament © United Bible Societies, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
συνέδριον, -ov, τό, (σύν and ἔδρα ; hence prop. ‘a sitting together’), in Grk. auth. fr. Hdt. down, any assembly (esp. of magistrates, judges, ambassadors), whether convened to deliberate or to pass judgment; Vulg. concilium ; in the Scriptures 1. any session or assembly of persons deliberating or adjudicating (Prov. xxii. 10; Ps. xxv. (xxvi.) 4; Jer. xv. 17; 2 Mace. xiv. 5; 4 Mace. xvii. 17): συνήγαγον συνέδριον, [A. V. gathered a council], Jn. xi. 47. 2. spec. a. the Sanhedrin, the great council at Jerusalem (Talm. }°17793D), consisting of seventy-one members, viz. scribes (see γραμματεύς, 2), elders, prominent members of the high-priestly families (hence called ἀρχιερεῖς ; See ἀρχιερεύς, 2), and the high-priest, the president of the body. The fullest periphrasis for Sanhedrin is found in Mt. xxvi. 3 RG; Mk. xiv. 43, 53, (viz. οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ of γραμματεῖς καὶ of πρεσβύτεροι). The more important causes were brought before this tribunal, inasmuch as the Roman rulers of Judza had left to it the power of trying such cases, and also of pronouncing sentence of death, with the limitation that a capital sentence pronounced by the Sanhedrin was not valid unless it were confirmed by the Roman procurator (cf. Jn. xviii. 31; Joseph. antt. 20, 9,1). The Jews trace the origin of the Sanhedrin to Num. xi. 16 sq. The 2 συνείδησις Sanhedrin [A.V. council] is mentioned in Mt. v. 22; xxvi. 59; Mk. xiv.55; xv.1; Lk. xxii.66; Acts iv. 15; v. 21, 27, 34,41; vi. 12, 15; xxii. 30; xxiii. 1, 6,15, 20, 28; xxiv. 20; used [(as in class. Grk.)] of the place of meeting in Acts iv. 15. b. the smaller tribunal or council (so A. V.) which every Jewish town had for the decision of the less important cases (see κρίσις, 4) : Mt. x. 17; Mk. xiii. 9. Cf. Win. RWB. s. v. Synedrium; Leyrer in Herzog ed.1s. v. Synedrium [Strack in ed. 2]; Schiirer, Neutest. Zeitgesch. 2te Aufl. § 23, II., III. [and in Riehm p. 1595 sqq.]; Holtzmann in Schenkel ν. p. 446sqq.; [BB. DD.s. v. Sanhedrim (esp. Ginsburg in Alex.’s Kitto) ; Hamburger, Real-Encycl. ii. pp. 1147 -1155; Edersheim, Jesus the Messiah, ii. 553 sqq.; Farrar, Life of Christ, Excurs. xiii. ].
Mounce Concise Greek Dictionary
συνέδριον synedrion 22x
pr. a sitting together, assembly, etc., in NT the Sanhedrin, the supreme council of the Jewish nation, Mt. 5:22; 26:59; meton. the Sanhedrin, as including the members and place of meeting, Lk. 22:66; Acts 4:15; genr. a judicial council, tribunal, Mt. 10:17; Mk. 13:9
Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon
συνέδριον, -ου, τό
(< σύν + ἕδρα, a seat) [in LXX: Pr 11:13 15:22, Je 15:17 (סוֹד), Ps 25 (26):4 (מַת), Pr 22:10 (דִּין) 26:26 (קָהָל); Pr 24:7 27:22 31:23, II Mac 14:5, IV Mac 17:17 * ;]
a council (Plat., Xen., al.; LXX; in π., σ. τ. πρεσβυτέρων, Deiss., BS, 156): of a local Jewish tribunal, Mt 10:17, Mk 13:9.
The supreme ecclesiastical court of the Jews, the Sanhedrin (i.e. Talmudic סַנְהֵדְרִין = συνέδριον): Mt 5:22 26:59, Mk 14:55 15:1, Lk 22:66, Ac 5:21, 27, 34, 41 6:12, 15 22:30 23:1, 6, 15, 20, 28 (WH, R, mg., om.) 24:20 of a meeting of the Sanhedrin, Jo 11:47; of the place of meeting, Ac 4:15.†
Moulton & Milligan — Vocabulary of the Greek NT
συνέδριον is used in late Greek to denote ἃ ‘‘ council ’’ or ‘‘assembly ’’ of any kind, though generally of a representative character. In the papyri the occurrences of the word are comparatively
Liddell-Scott-Jones — Greek-English Lexicon
συνέδριον (sunedrion) — council. συνέδρ-ιον, τό, council, σ. κατασκευάζειν, συνάγειν, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; meeting, μεταπεμφθέντων εἰς κοινὸν σ. τῶν.. δεκανῶν [Refs 2nd c.BC+]; of a council of war, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; of the Areopagus, [Refs 4th c.BC+] together with the Areopagus, [Refs]; of a board of trade, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; of the Roman [Refs 2nd c.BC+]; the Jewish Sanhedrin, [NT+4th c.AD+]; τὸ σεμνότατον σ. τῆς γερουσίας, at Thasos, [Refs]; τὸ χωρίον ἐν ᾧ σ. ἦν αὐτῷ τῶν πολιτῶν [Refs 2nd c.AD+]; frequently of a congress of Allies or Confederates, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἁμῶν (i.e. τῶν Ἀμφικτιόνων) [Refs 3rd c.BC+]; τὸ Ἑλληνικὸν σ. [Refs 1st c.AD+]
2. place of meeting, council-chamber, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἐν σ. in court, [Refs 5th c.BC+]