Council

• The great council of the Sanhedrin, which sat at Jerusalem. [Sanhedrin]
• The lesser courts, (Matthew 10:17; Mark 13:9) of which there were two at Jerusalem and one in each town of Palestine. The constitution of these courts is a doubtful point. The existence of local courts, however constituted, is clearly implied in the passages quoted from the New Testament; and perhaps the “judgment,” (Matthew 5:21) applies to them.
• A kind of jury or privy council, (Acts 25:12) consisting of a certain number of assessors, who assisted Roman governors in the administration of justice and in other public matters.