Sitting

In biblical culture the posture of sitting carried specific social and symbolic meaning distinct from modern usage. Sitting was the posture of judges, kings, and teachers exercising authority: you shall sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28); Jesus sat down to teach in the synagogue (Luke 4:20) and on the mountain (Matthew 5:1). The sitting of God or of Christ at the right hand is the supreme image of royal authority: The LORD says to my Lord: Sit at my right hand (Psalm 110:1), quoted more often in the New Testament than any other Old Testament passage.

Sitting in sackcloth and ashes was a posture of mourning (Jonah 3:6). Eating at table involved reclining rather than sitting upright on chairs. The ISBE article on sitting notes the range of cross-legged, kneeling, and reclining postures encompassed by biblical sitting vocabulary, and the social significance of where one sat — proximity to the host indicated honor (Luke 14:7–11).