Staff

staf: Many Hebrew terms are represented by this word. The "staves" of the ark translate the word badh, literally, "a part," hence, branch, bar, etc. (Ex 25:13,14,15,27,28, etc.). Other words, as matteh, maqqel, shebhet, used of the staff in the hand, the shepherd's staff, figuratively, "staff of bread" (matteh, Eze 4:16; 5:16; 14:13), as indispensable for support of life, are dealt with under ROD (which see). The New Testament word is rhabdos (Mt 10:10 parallel Lu 9:3; Heb 11:21).

See also SCEPTRE.

Definition

A staff is a long wooden stick or rod, often used as a walking stick.

• When Jacob was old, he used a staff to help him walk.
• God turned Moses’ staff into a snake to show his power to Pharaoh.
• Shepherds also used a staff to help guide their sheep, or to rescue the sheep when they fell or wandered.
• The shepherd’s staff had a hook on the end, so it differed from the shepherd’s rod, which was straight and was used to kill wild animals that were trying to attack the sheep.

(See also: Pharaoh, power, sheep, shepherd)

Bible References

• Exodus 4:1-3
• Exodus 7:9
• Luke 9:3
• Mark 6:7-9
• Matthew 10:8-10
• Matthew 27:29

Word Data

• Strong’s: H4132, H4294, H4731, H4938, H6086, H6418, H7626, G25630, G35860, G44640