Bible Dictionary
Sceptre
A sceptre was a rod or staff used as a symbol of royal authority. In Scripture it represents a ruler’s power and, in prophecy, the enduring rule associated with Judah and the Messiah.
Definition
A sceptre is a rod or staff serving as an emblem of royal authority and supreme power. The image derives from the shepherd’s staff or crook and is used chiefly in a metaphorical sense in biblical references.
Biblical Usage
The sceptre represents ruling authority in references concerning Judah, kingship, and the ruler’s power. Biblical allusions do not provide evidence that a Jewish king actually held such an object.
Historical Background
The sceptre was probably made of wood in the ordinary form. The Persian monarch’s sceptre is described as golden.
Scripture References
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
(Heb. shebet = Gr. skeptron), properly a staff or rod. As a symbol of authority, the use of the sceptre originated in the idea that the ruler was as a shepherd of his people (Gen. 49:10; Num. 24:17; Ps. 45:6; Isa. 14:5). There is no example on record of a sceptre having ever been actually handled by a Jewish king.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
This word originally meant a rod or staff . It was thence specifically applied to the shepherd’s crook, (Leviticus 27:32; Micah 7:14) and to the wand or sceptre of a ruler. The allusions to it are all of a metaphorical character, and describe it simply as one of the insignia of supreme power. (Genesis 49:10) We are consequently unable to describe the article from any biblical notice we may infer that it was probably made of wood. The sceptre of the Persian monarch is described as “golden” i.e. probably of massive gold. (Esther 4:11)