(Heb. shebet = Gr. skeptron), properly a staff or rod. As a symbol of authority, the use of the sceptre originated in the idea that the ruler was as a shepherd of his people ( Genesis 49:10 ; Numbers 24:17 ; Psalms 45:6 ; Isaiah 14:5 ). There is no example on record of a sceptre having ever been actually handled by a Jewish king.

These dictionary topics are from
M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition,
published by Thomas Nelson, 1897. Public Domain, copy freely.