Meaning of PATRIARCH

(from the Greek "homeland", "race", "country", and "archein", "commander").
Father and head of a family, of a clan.

The NT gives the name of patriarchs to the ancestors of the Hebrew people, of the Jewish race. This name is given:
to Abraham (Heb. 7:4),
to the twelve sons of Jacob (Acts 7:8, 9),
to King David (Acts 2:29).

In general, the title of patriarch is given to pious men and heads of families of whom the OT gives us a biographical account and who lived before Moses, e.g. e.g., to the antediluvian patriarchs mentioned in Gen. 5.

Under the patriarchal regime, the leadership of the clan belonged by right to its founder. The firstborn son, or firstborn descendant in the direct line, was the heir to this authority.

The head of each of the families that made up a tribe exercised similar authority within his family.

The patriarchal regime predated the establishment of the theocracy, which was promulgated on Mount Sinai; Under that regime, each head of the family performed the functions of priest and God revealed himself to him. See the names of the different patriarchs for individualized treatment.