Original Word: ἱκετηρία
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: hiketéria
Pronunciation: hee-keh-tee-REE-ah
Phonetic Spelling: (hik-et-ay-ree'-ah)
KJV: supplication
NASB: supplications
Word Origin: [from a derivative of the base of G2425 (ἱκανός - many) (through the idea of approaching for a favor)]

1. intreaty

supplication.

From a derivative of the base of hikanos (through the idea of approaching for a favor); intreaty -- supplication.

see GREEK hikanos

2428 hiketēría – properly, an olive branch; (figuratively) earnest supplication for peace (relief, reconciliation), used only in Heb 5:7.

[This is also the regular meaning of this term in secular antiquity, BAGD.]

Heb 5:7: "In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications (2428 /hiketēría) with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety" (NASU).

Jesus' supplications underline His unfathomable humility in identifying with our great need!

[An olive branch, held in the hand of a suppliant, showed heartfelt "supplication, entreaty" (Souter). 2428 (hiketēría) in ancient times was frequently used of a suppliant carrying an olive branch as a token for "seeking peace."]

Word Origin
from hiketérios; from adjective hiketés (a suppliant)
Definition
supplication
NASB Translation
supplications (1).

STRONGS NT 2428: ἱκετήριος

ἱκετήριος, ἱκετηρία, ἱκετηριον (ἱκέτης a suppliant), pertaining to a suppliant, fit for a suppliant; ἡ ἱκετηρία, as a substantive, namely, ἐλαία or ῤάβδος;

1. an olive-branch; for suppliants approached the one whose aid they would implore holding an olive-branch entwined with white wool and fillets, to signify that they came as suppliants (cf. Trench, § 51, under the end): λαμβάνειν ἱκετηριαν, Herodotus 5, 51; ἱκετηριαν τιθέναι or προβάλλεσθαι παρά τίνι, etc.

2. equivalent to ἱκεσία, supplication (Isocrates, p. 186 d. vat.; Polybius; 2 Macc. 9:18): plural joined with δεήσεις (Polybius 3, 112, 8; singular Job 40:22, the Sept.), Hebrews 5:7.

Biblical usage

Strong’s Greek 2428 appears once in the New Testament, in Hebrews 5:7, where the writer recalls Jesus Christ “offering up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save Him from death” (Hebrews 5:7). In that single, Spirit-chosen occurrence the word underscores the intensity, humility, and urgency of the Son’s intercession.

Cultural and literary background

Ancient Mediterranean custom pictured a suppliant holding an olive branch wound with wool as a visible plea for mercy. The inspired author of Hebrews borrows that cultural image, yet fills it with redemptive content: the rightful King approaches His Father not with a mere symbol but with self-offering, crying aloud and shedding literal blood-tinged sweat (Luke 22:44). The external emblem of pagan supplication becomes, in Christ, the internal reality of holy dependence.

Christological significance

1. Perfect identification with humanity: The phrase “during the days of His flesh” accents the incarnate reality of Jesus’ trials. He prays as one of us (Philippians 2:7).
2. Model of obedient suffering: Though able to command angels, Jesus chooses petition, teaching that submission precedes exaltation (Hebrews 5:8-9).
3. Efficacy of reverent prayer: “He was heard because of His reverent submission.” The Father’s answer came, not by preventing the cross, but by raising the Son from the dead (Acts 2:24). Thus the passage affirms both the certainty of divine hearing and the mystery of sovereign timing.

Old Testament echoes

The scene recalls Davidic laments: “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” (Psalm 22:1) and “In my distress I called upon the LORD” (Psalm 18:6). Hebrews presents Jesus as the definitive righteous sufferer whose petitions surpass those of all previous saints and fulfill the pattern of the Psalms.

Related New Testament themes

• Fervent intercession (Luke 22:41-44)
• “Supplications, prayers, intercessions” for all people (1 Timothy 2:1)
• The Spirit aiding believers “with groans too deep for words” (Romans 8:26)
• The throne of grace inviting “boldness” (Hebrews 4:16), connecting the reader’s prayers to Christ’s own.

Ministerial application

1. Encourage earnest, vocal, emotionally honest prayer, confident the Father welcomes such petitions.
2. Teach that answered prayer can include strength to endure rather than escape suffering.
3. Remind intercessors that Christ, having mastered the school of supplication, now “always lives to intercede” (Hebrews 7:25), guaranteeing the church’s petitions reach the throne.

Historical and liturgical insights

Early Christian writers cited Hebrews 5:7 when exhorting believers to pray during persecution, linking their cries to Christ’s Gethsemane. Some liturgies include the verse on Maundy Thursday, inviting worshipers to join the Savior in watchful prayer.

Associated doctrines

• The impeccability of Christ: His petitions flowed from sinless yet truly human weakness.
• The priesthood of Christ: Hebrews presents His petitions as priestly offerings, prefiguring the once-for-all sacrifice of Hebrews 9:14.
• Perseverance of the saints: The successful hearing of the Son’s petitions assures believers that their salvation is secure (John 11:42; Romans 8:34).

Reflective summary

The solitary occurrence of Strong’s 2428 gathers centuries of lament, symbolism, and hope into one resounding moment in the life of Jesus Christ. By portraying the Son’s desperate, obedient petition, Scripture both reveals the depth of His identification with humanity and charts the path for every believer: approach the Father with humble urgency, confident that petitions offered through the obedient Son will be heard and answered in perfect wisdom.

ικέται ικετηριας ικετηρίας ἱκετηρίας hiketerias hiketerías hiketērias hiketērías iketerias iketēriasInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts