κύμινον (kuminon)
kuminon
cumin
Quick Reference
- Language
- Koine Greek
- Testament
- New Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
Word Overview
The noun kuminon refers to cumin, a small plant cultivated in Palestine whose seeds provide a bitter, warm, and aromatic flavor. In the New Testament, it appears only once, specifically in Matthew 23:23, where Jesus critiques the scribes and Pharisees for their religious priorities.
This single usage highlights a sharp contrast between meticulous attention to minor ritual details and the neglect of weightier matters like justice, mercy, and faith. By mentioning tithing cumin—a common household spice—Jesus illustrates how legalism can become absurd when it focuses on the trivial while ignoring the substantial demands of God’s law.
The word itself is of foreign origin, reflecting the trade and agricultural practices of the region during the first century. Its inclusion in Scripture serves as a vivid reminder that spiritual integrity requires balancing careful observance with genuine compassion, rather than substituting one for the other.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word kuminon refers to cumin, a common spice in first-century Palestine. Jesus mentions it in Matthew 23:23 when correcting religious leaders who focused on tiny details while ignoring justice and mercy. This reminds us that faith is not about checking small boxes but about loving God and others deeply.
It is easy to get caught up in minor rules or habits that seem important at the time. Yet true spiritual health comes from prioritizing what truly matters: kindness, fairness, and trust in God. When we lose sight of these core values, even good practices can become empty rituals.
This passage invites us to examine our own lives. Are we giving attention to the weightier matters? Let this word encourage you to focus less on perfectionism and more on genuine compassion in your daily walk with Christ.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- cumin1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- κύμινον1×
Key Verses
-
Matthew 23:23
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith. But you ought to have done these, and not to have left the other undone.
This is the only New Testament occurrence, where Jesus uses cumin to highlight how focusing on minor ritual details can distract from justice, mercy, and faith.