Bible Dictionary
Hostage
A hostage was a person delivered into another’s custody as security for a promise, payment, or political obligation.
Definition
A hostage is a person delivered into another’s custody as security for the performance of a promise, payment, or other obligation.
Biblical Usage
The term appears in accounts where persons were taken or delivered as security in connection with military and political circumstances.
Scripture References
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
A person delivered into the hands of another as a security for the performance of some promise, etc. (2 Kings 14:14; 2 Chr. 25:24).
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>hos'-taj.</p><p>See WAR.</p>