Bible Dictionary · T
Tribe
A collection of families descending from one ancestor. The “twelve tribes” of the Hebrews were the twelve collections of families which sprang from the sons of Jacob. In Matt 24:30 the word has a wider significance. The tribes of Israel are referred to as types of the spiritual family of God (Rev 7:1–17). (See Israel, Kingdom of; Judah, Kingdom of.)
From Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897), by Matthew George Easton.
