ELDER (Lirder), (Heb. 111,, zaw-kane% old).
(1) Since in ancient times older persons would naturally be selected to hold public offices, out of regard to their presumed superiority in knowledge and experience, the term came to be used as the designation for the office itself, borne by an in dividual, of whatever age. But the term 'elder' appears to be also expressive of respect and rever ence in general. The word occurs in this sense in Gen. 1:7, 'Joseph went up to bury his father, and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt'; Sept. presbuteroi, old men or elders.
(2) These elders of Egypt were, probably, the various state-officers. The elders of Israel, of whom such frequent mention is made, may have been, in early times, the lineal descendants of the patriarchs (Exod. xii :21). To the elders Moses was directed to open his commission (Exod. iii: t6) to the assembly of elders of the sons of Israel. They accompanied Moses in his first interview with Pharaoh as the representatives of the He brew nation (verse 18) ; through them Moses is sued his communications and commands to the whole people (Exod. xix :7; Deut. xxxi :9) ; they
were his immediate attendants in all the great transactions in the wilderness (Exod. xvii:5); seventy of their number were selected to attend Moses, Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, at the giving of the law (Exod. xxiv:1), on which occasion they are called the nobles of the children of Israel, who did eat and drink before God, in ratifi cation of the covenant, as representatives of the nation. In Num. xi :i6, 17, we meet with the ap pointment of seventy elders to bear the burden of the people along with Moses; these were selected by Moses out of the whole number of the elders, and are described as being, already, officers over the children of Israel. It is the opinion of Mich :elk, that this council, chosen to assist Moses, should not be confounded with the Sanhedrim, which, he thinks, was not instituted till after the return from the Babylonish captivity. (See