πρωτο-καθεδρία G4410
The chief seat, the place of honor at a gathering; the most prestigious seat in a synagogue or banquet.
A compound of 'prōtos' (first) and 'kathedra' (seat, chair), this noun denotes the most honored seating position in public assemblies, particularly synagogues. Jesus repeatedly singles out the love of 'chief seats' as a telltale symptom of religious vanity among the scribes and Pharisees (Matt 23:6; Mark 12:39; Luke 11:43; 20:46). The multilingual glosses--Spanish 'primer asiento,' French 'première place,' English 'chief seats'--all capture the notion of rank expressed through physical seating, a practice deeply embedded in ancient Mediterranean honor culture.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The foremost or most prestigious seat in a synagogue or public assembly, reserved for persons of high religious or social standing. Archaeological evidence confirms that ancient synagogues had a stone bench (kathedra) facing the congregation, assigned to elders and distinguished teachers. Jesus criticizes the scribes and Pharisees for coveting these positions as status symbols (Matt 23:6; Luke 20:46). The term appears exclusively in Jesus' denunciations and always alongside 'prōtoklisia' (chief place at dinner), forming a pair that exposes the love of public honor. Spanish 'primer asiento' and French 'première place' faithfully render the ordinal-plus-seat compound. 4×
AR["الصُّدورَ-الأولى", "المَقاعِدَ-الأَمامِيَّةَ", "الْمَقاعِدَ-الأُولى", "صُدورَ-المَجالِسِ"]·ben["প্রথম-আসন", "প্রথম-স্থান", "প্রধান-আসন", "প্রধান-বসার-জায়গা"]·DE["erster-Sitz", "πρωτοκαθεδρίαν", "πρωτοκαθεδρίας"]·EN["best-seat", "chief-seats", "first-seats"]·FR["première-place"]·heb["כִּסְאוֹת-הָרִאשׁוֹנִים", "מוֹשָׁבִי-רֹאשׁ", "מוֹשָׁבוֹת רִאשׁוֹנִים", "מוֹשָׁבוֹת-רִאשׁוֹנִים"]·HI["प्रथम-आसन", "मुख्य-आसन"]·ID["kursi-kehormatan", "tempat-duduk-kehormatan", "tempat-duduk-terdepan"]·IT["protokathedrian", "protokathedrias"]·jav["kursi-ngarep", "palenggahan-ngajeng", "palenggahan-pangajeng"]·KO["높은-자리들-을", "높은-자리를"]·PT["primeiros-assentos"]·RU["первоседалищ", "первые-сидения", "первые-сиденья", "председательства"]·ES["primer-asiento", "primeros-asientos"]·SW["katika", "viti-vya-mbele"]·TR["baş-koltukları", "baş-koltuğu"]·urd["اول-درجے-کی-نشست", "اگلی-نشستیں", "صدر-نشستیں", "صدر-نشینیاں"]
Related Senses
H3605 1. all, every, whole (5352×)H0259 1. one (cardinal numeral) (940×)H8147 1. cardinal number two (666×)G3956 1. all (collective plural) (616×)H3967 1. cardinal numeral hundred (550×)H1419a 1. great, large (general quality) (486×)H7969 1. cardinal number three (431×)H0505 1. cardinal number thousand (427×)H7651 1. seven (cardinal number) (393×)G1520 1. cardinal number one (339×)H6240 1. ten (cardinal number) (334×)H6242 1. twenty (cardinal number) (315×)H2568 1. cardinal number five (309×)H0702 1. four (cardinal number) (277×)G3956 2. every, each (distributive) (227×)H8337 1. six (cardinal number) (215×)G3956 3. all things, everything (substantive) (211×)G3956 4. (187×)H6235 1. ten (177×)G3173 1. great in size or extent (176×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
πρωτο-καθεδρία, ἡ, the first seat in a public place, NT