Heads of Families
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
—the principal representatives of clans or ancestral houses (Ezra 1:5; 8:1). “Head” frequently symbolizes authority, preeminence, or responsibility: Damascus is called the head of Syria (Isa. 7:8); elders and honored persons are contrasted with false prophets as “head and tail” (Isa. 9:14-15); and Paul speaks of ordered relations under God and of Christ as head of the Church, his body (1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 1:22-23). Other biblical uses include lifting up the head for restoration, putting dust on the head in mourning, anointing the head in hospitality, and bringing another person’s blood upon one’s own head by accepting responsibility.