"a handkerchief, napkin, etc., Lk. 19:20; Jn. 11:44; 20:7; Acts 19:12*"
Definition and meaning
a handkerchief, napkin, etc., Lk. 19:20; Jn. 11:44; 20:7; Acts 19:12*
In the original Greek the word is written: σουδάριον
Historical context
Luke wrote as a historian addressing a Greek audience. He carefully interviewed eyewitnesses and arranged events in order. The social and economic realities he describes — Roman taxation, Jewish religious hierarchy, the marginalization of women and the poor — are consistent with first-century Judea under Roman administration.
The people who first heard this word were not reading a book — they were living through empires, oppression, exile, and covenant. Every word carried the weight of that reality. Understanding it changes how you read Scripture.
Scripture references
These are the most notable occurrences of soudarion (G4676) across the King James Bible.
And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin:
And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.
And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.
So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.
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Common questions
Strong's G4676 (soudarion) is a Greek word that means: a handkerchief, napkin, etc., Lk. 19:20; Jn. 11:44; 20:7; Acts 19:12* It appears 4 times in the King James Bible.
The word soudarion (G4676) appears 4 times in the original Greek text.
Strong's G4676 is soudarion, a Greek word defined as: a handkerchief, napkin, etc., Lk. 19:20; Jn. 11:44; 20:7; Acts 19:12*. James Strong catalogued this in his 1890 concordance to help English readers study the original languages of the Bible.
soudarion is a Greek word found in the New Testament.