Bible Thesaurus: Tower

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Thesaurus

Tower (74 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Tower of the furnaces. (Nehemiah 3:11; 12:38), a tower
at the north-western angle of the second wall of Jerusalem. ...
/t/tower.htm - 52k

Tower-house (6 Occurrences)
Tower-house. Towered, Tower-house. Towerin . Multi-Version
Concordance Tower-house (6 Occurrences). Genesis 39:20 And ...
/t/tower-house.htm - 8k

Watch-tower (6 Occurrences)
Watch-tower. Watchtower, Watch-tower. Watchtowers . Multi-Version
Concordance Watch-tower (6 Occurrences). 2 Chronicles ...
/w/watch-tower.htm - 8k

Hananel (4 Occurrences)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia HANANEL, THE TOWER OF. ban'-an-el
(chanan'el, "El (God) is gracious"; the King James Version Hananeel ...
/h/hananel.htm - 9k

Eder (6 Occurrences)
... far west. (2) Eder (the King James Version Edar) or better Migdal Eder, mighdal
`edher, "the tower of the flock"; Gader. After Rachel ...
/e/eder.htm - 10k

Watchtower (9 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (n.) A tower in which a sentinel is placed to watch for
enemies, the approach of danger, or the like. Multi-Version Concordance ...
/w/watchtower.htm - 9k

Ophel (6 Occurrences)
... It is 4 feet below the present surface. In 2 Kings 5:24 this word is translated
"tower" (RV, "hill"), denoting probably some eminence near Elisha's house. Int. ...
/o/ophel.htm - 14k

Ivory (13 Occurrences)
... IVORY, TOWER OF. (mighdal hashen): In Songs 7:4 the neck of the Shulammite is compared
in whiteness and stateliness to a (or the) tower of ivory. ...TOWER OF IVORY. ...
/i/ivory.htm - 17k

Threshing (57 Occurrences)
...TOWER OF PENUEL. See PENIEL. TOWER OF SILOAM. See SILOAM. TOWER OF SYENE.
si-e'-ne. See SEVENEH. TOWER OF THE FURNACES. See FURNACES, TOWER OF THE. ...
/t/threshing.htm - 28k

Edar (1 Occurrence)
...Tower of the flock, a tower between Bethlehem and Hebron, near which Jacob first
halted after leaving Bethlehem (Genesis 35:21). ...TOWER OF EDAR (THE FLOCK). ...
/e/edar.htm - 7k

Bible Concordance

Tower (74 Occurrences)

Matthew 21:33 "Hear another parable. There was a man who was a master of a household, who planted a vineyard, set a hedge about it, dug a winepress in it, built a tower, leased it out to farmers, and went into another country.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Mark 12:1 He began to speak to them in parables. "A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a pit for the winepress, built a tower, rented it out to a farmer, and went into another country.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Luke 13:4 Or those eighteen, on whom the tower in Siloam fell, and killed them; do you think that they were worse offenders than all the men who dwell in Jerusalem?
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Luke 14:28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doesn't first sit down and count the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it?
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Genesis 11:4 They said, "Come, let's build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the sky, and let's make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Genesis 11:5 Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men built.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Genesis 35:21 Israel traveled, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Eder.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE WBS YLT NAS RSV)

Judges 8:9 He spoke also to the men of Penuel, saying, "When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Judges 8:17 He broke down the tower of Penuel, and killed the men of the city.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Judges 9:46 When all the men of the tower of Shechem heard of it, they entered into the stronghold of the house of Elberith.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Judges 9:47 It was told Abimelech that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV)

Judges 9:49 All the people likewise each cut down his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them at the base of the stronghold, and set the stronghold on fire on them; so that all the people of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Judges 9:51 But there was a strong tower within the city, and there fled all the men and women, and all they of the city, and shut themselves in, and got them up to the roof of the tower.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Judges 9:52 Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, and drew near to the door of the tower to burn it with fire.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

2 Samuel 5:9 So David took the strong tower for his living-place, naming it the town of David. And David took in hand the building of the town all round, starting from the Millo.
(BBE)

2 Samuel 22:3 God, my rock, in him I will take refuge; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge. My savior, you save me from violence.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT)

2 Samuel 22:51 He is the tower of salvation for his king: and sheweth mercy to his anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.
(KJV JPS WBS NAS)

2 Kings 5:24 And when he came to the tower, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house: and he let the men go, and they departed.
(KJV WBS)

2 Kings 9:17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, "I see a company." Joram said, "Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say,'Is it peace?'"
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

2 Kings 17:9 The children of Israel did secretly things that were not right against Yahweh their God: and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city;
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

2 Kings 18:8 He struck the Philistines to Gaza and its borders, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

1 Chronicles 11:7 And David took the strong tower for his living-place, so it was named the town of David.
(BBE)

2 Chronicles 20:24 And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped.
(KJV JPS ASV BBE WBS YLT RSV)

2 Chronicles 33:14 And after this he hath built an outer wall to the city of David, on the west of Gihon, in the valley, and at the entering in at the fish-gate, and it hath gone round to the tower, and he maketh it exceeding high, and he putteth heads of the force in all the cities of the bulwarks in Judah.
(YLT)

Nehemiah 2:8 And a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king's park, so that he may give me wood to make boards for the doors of the tower of the house, and for the wall of the town, and for the house which is to be mine. And the king gave me this, for the hand of my God was on me.
(BBE)

Nehemiah 3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brothers the priests, and they built the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up its doors; even to the tower of Hammeah they sanctified it, to the tower of Hananel.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Nehemiah 3:11 Malchijah the son of Harim, and Hasshub the son of Pahathmoab, repaired another portion, and the tower of the furnaces.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Nehemiah 3:25 Palal the son of Uzai repaired over against the turning of the wall, and the tower that stands out from the upper house of the king, which is by the court of the guard. After him Pedaiah the son of Parosh repaired
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Nehemiah 3:26 (Now the Nethinim lived in Ophel, to the place over against the water gate toward the east, and the tower that stands out.)
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Nehemiah 3:27 After him the Tekoites repaired another portion, over against the great tower that stands out, and to the wall of Ophel.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Nehemiah 7:2 I made my brother Hanani, and Hananiah, the ruler of the tower, responsible for the government of Jerusalem: for he was a man of good faith, fearing God more than most.
(BBE)

Nehemiah 8:4 And Ezra the scribe took his place on a tower of wood which they had made for the purpose; and by his side were placed Mattithiah and Shema and Anaiah and Uriah and Hilkiah and Maaseiah on the right; and on the left, Pedaiah and Mishael and Malchijah and Hashum and Hashbaddanah, Zechariah and Meshullam.
(BBE YLT)

Nehemiah 12:38 The other company of those who gave thanks went to meet them, and I after them, with the half of the people, on the wall, above the tower of the furnaces, even to the broad wall,
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Nehemiah 12:39 and above the gate of Ephraim, and by the old gate, and by the fish gate, and the tower of Hananel, and the tower of Hammeah, even to the sheep gate: and they stood still in the gate of the guard.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Psalms 9:9 Yahweh will also be a high tower for the oppressed; a high tower in times of trouble.
(WEB JPS ASV BBE YLT)

Psalms 18:2 Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT)

Psalms 31:3 For you are my Rock and my strong tower; go in front of me and be my guide, because of your name.
(BBE)

Psalms 46:7 Jehovah of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
(See JPS BBE YLT)

Psalms 46:11 Jehovah of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
(See JPS BBE YLT)

Psalms 48:3 In its buildings God is seen to be a high tower.
(BBE YLT)

Psalms 59:9 Oh, my Strength, I watch for you, for God is my high tower.
(WEB JPS ASV BBE YLT)

Psalms 59:16 But I will sing of your strength. Yes, I will sing aloud of your loving kindness in the morning. For you have been my high tower, a refuge in the day of my distress.
(WEB JPS ASV BBE YLT)

Psalms 59:17 To you, my strength, I will sing praises. For God is my high tower, the God of my mercy.
(WEB JPS ASV BBE YLT)

Psalms 61:3 For you have been a refuge for me, a strong tower from the enemy.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Psalms 62:2 He only is my rock and my salvation: He is my high tower; I shall not be greatly moved.
(See JPS ASV BBE YLT)

Psalms 62:6 He only is my rock and my salvation: He is my high tower; I shall not be moved.
(See JPS ASV BBE YLT)

Psalms 69:25 Their tower is desolated, In their tents there is no dweller.
(YLT)

Psalms 71:7 I am a wonder to all; but you are my strong tower.
(BBE)

Psalms 91:2 Who says of the Lord, He is my safe place and my tower of strength: he is my God, in whom is my hope.
(BBE)

Psalms 94:22 But Yahweh has been my high tower, my God, the rock of my refuge.
(WEB JPS ASV DBY)

Psalms 144:2 my loving kindness, my fortress, my high tower, my deliverer, my shield, and he in whom I take refuge; who subdues my people under me.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT)

Proverbs 10:29 The way of the Lord is a strong tower for the upright man, but destruction to the workers of evil.
(BBE)

Proverbs 12:12 The resting-place of the sinner will come to destruction, but the root of upright men is for ever.
(See RSV)

Proverbs 18:10 The name of Yahweh is a strong tower: the righteous run to him, and are safe.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Proverbs 18:19 A brother wounded is like a strong town, and violent acts are like a locked tower.
(BBE)

Song of Songs 4:4 Your neck is like David's tower built for an armory, whereon a thousand shields hang, all the shields of the mighty men.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Song of Songs 7:4 Your neck is like an ivory tower. Your eyes are like the pools in Heshbon by the gate of Bathrabbim. Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon which looks toward Damascus.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Isaiah 2:15 For every lofty tower, for every fortified wall,
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Isaiah 5:2 He dug it up, gathered out its stones, planted it with the choicest vine, built a tower in its midst, and also cut out a winepress therein. He looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Isaiah 17:3 The strong tower has gone from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus: the rest of Aram will come to destruction, and be made like the glory of the children of Israel, says the Lord of armies.
(BBE)

Isaiah 25:2 For you have made a town a waste place: a strong town a mass of broken walls; the tower of the men of pride has come to an end; it will never be put up again.
(BBE)

Isaiah 25:12 And the strong tower of your walls has been broken by him, made low, and crushed even to the dust.
(BBE)

Isaiah 32:14 For the palace will be forsaken. The populous city will be deserted. The hill and the watchtower will be for dens forever, a delight for wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks;
(Root in WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Isaiah 33:16 He high places doth inhabit, Strongholds of rock 'are' his high tower, His bread hath been given, his waters stedfast.
(YLT)

Jeremiah 6:27 I have set thee for a tower and a fortress among my people, that thou mayest know and try their way.
(KJV JPS WBS YLT)

Jeremiah 16:19 O Lord, my strength and my strong tower, my safe place in the day of trouble, the nations will come to you from the ends of the earth, and say, The heritage of our fathers is nothing but deceit, even false things in which there is no profit.
(BBE)

Jeremiah 31:38 Behold, the days come, says Yahweh, that the city shall be built to Yahweh from the tower of Hananel to the gate of the corner.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 48:1 Concerning Moab: 'Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel: Wo unto Nebo, for it is spoiled, Put to shame, captured hath been Kiriathaim, Put to shame hath been the high tower, Yea, it hath been broken down.
(YLT)

Lamentations 2:8 It is the Lord's purpose to make waste the wall of the daughter of Zion; his line has been stretched out, he has not kept back his hand from destruction: he has sent sorrow on tower and wall, they have become feeble together.
(BBE)

Ezekiel 29:10 therefore, behold, I am against you, and against your rivers, and I will make the land of Egypt an utter waste and desolation, from the tower of Seveneh even to the border of Ethiopia.
(WEB KJV ASV WBS)

Ezekiel 30:6 Thus says Yahweh: They also who uphold Egypt shall fall; and the pride of her power shall come down: from the tower of Seveneh shall they fall in it by the sword, says the Lord Yahweh.
(WEB KJV ASV WBS)

Micah 4:8 You, tower of the flock, the hill of the daughter of Zion, to you it will come, yes, the former dominion will come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Habakkuk 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
(KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS RSV)

Zechariah 14:10 All the land will be made like the Arabah, from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; and she will be lifted up, and will dwell in her place, from Benjamin's gate to the place of the first gate, to the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananel to the king's winepresses.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Tower

Watch-towers or fortified posts in frontier or exposed situations are mentioned in Scripture, as the tower of Edar, etc., (Genesis 35:21; Isaiah 21:5,8,11; Micah 4:8) etc.; the tower of Lebanon. (2 Samuel 8:6) Besides these military structures, we read in Scripture of towers built in vineyards as an almost necessary appendage to them. (1 Samuel 5:2; Matthew 22:33; Mark 12:1) Such towers are still in use in Palestine in vineyards, especially near Hebron, and are used as lodges for the keepers of the vineyards.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Tower of the furnaces

(Nehemiah 3:11; 12:38), a tower at the north-western angle of the second wall of Jerusalem. It was probably so named from its contiguity to the "bakers' street" (Jeremiah 37:21).

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) A mass of building standing alone and insulated, usually higher than its diameter, but when of great size not always of that proportion.

2. (n.) A projection from a line of wall, as a fortification, for purposes of defense, as a flanker, either or the same height as the curtain wall or higher.

3. (n.) A structure appended to a larger edifice for a special purpose, as for a belfry, and then usually high in proportion to its width and to the height of the rest of the edifice; as, a church tower.

4. (n.) A citadel; a fortress; hence, a defense.

5. (n.) A headdress of a high or tower like form, fashionable about the end of the seventeenth century and until 1715; also, any high headdress.

6. (n.) High flight; elevation.

7. (v. i.) To rise and overtop other objects; to be lofty or very high; hence, to soar.

8. (v. t.) To soar into.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

BABEL, TOWER OF

This expression does not occur in the Old Testament, but is used popularly for the tower mighdol built by the inhabitants of the world who, traveling in the East, built a city on the Plain of Shinar, with a tower "whose top may reach unto heaven"-an expression which is regarded as meaning "a very high tower."

1. General Form of Babylonian Temple-Towers:

There was a great difference, however, between a Canaanite mighdol or watchtower, and the great Tower at Babylon. The watchtower was simply a high structure, probably without any special shape or form, which depended upon the will of the architect and the nature of the ground upon which it was erected. The Tower of Babel or Babylon, however, was a structure peculiar to Babylonia and Assyria. According to all accounts, and judging from the ruins of the various erections extant in those countries, Babylonian towers were always rectangular, built in stages, and provided with an inclined ascent continued along each side to the top. As religious ceremonies were performed thereon, they were generally surmounted by a chapel in which sacred objects or images were kept.

2. Their Babylonian Name:

These erections had, with the Babylonians, a special name: ziqquratu, meaning, apparently, "peak," or the highest point of a mountain, this word being applied to the mountain-height upon which Ut-napishtim, the Babylonian Noah, offered sacrifices on coming forth from the ark (or ship) when the waters of the great Flood had sufficiently subsided. It has also been thought that they were used as observatories when the Babylonians studied the starry heavens. This is probable, but as these structures were of no great height, it is possible that, in the clear atmosphere of the Babylonian plains, there was no real necessity to go above the surface of the earth when making their observations.

3. Whereabouts of the Tower of Babel:

There has been much difference of opinion as to the geographical position of the Tower of Babel. Most writers upon the subject, following the tradition handed down by the Jews and Arabs, have identified it with the great Temple of Nebo in the city of Borsippa, now called the Birs-Nimroud (explained as a corruption of Birj Nimroud, "Tower of Nimrod"). This building, however, notwithstanding its importance, was to all appearance never regarded by the Babylonians as the Tower of Babel, for the very good reason that it was not situated in Babylon, but in Borsippa, which, though called, in later times, "the second Babylon," was naturally not the original city of that name. The erection regarded by the Babylonians as the great Tower of their ancient city was E-temen-ana-ki, "the Temple of the foundation of heaven and earth," called by Nabopolassar and Nebuchadrezzar ziqqurat Babili, "the Tower of Babylon"-the world-renowned temple dedicated to Merodach and his consort Zer-panitum, Babylon's chief deities.

4. Its Position at Babylon:

This structure was situated in the southern portion of the city, not far from the right bank of the Euphrates, and according to Weissbach, is now represented by a depression within which is the original rectangular core of unbaked brick. From its shape, the Arabs have made this site Sahan, "the dish." These remains of the great temple-tower of Babylon, within the memory of men not so very old, towered, even in its ruined state, high above the surrounding plain. The burnt bricks of the ancient Babylonians, however, who "had brick for stone, and slime (bitumen) for mortar" (Genesis 11:3), are still good and have a commercial value, so they were all cleared out, with whatever precious material in the way of antiquities they may have contained, to repair, it is said, the banks of the Hindiyeh Canal. Certain records in the shape of conical "cylinders," however, came into the market, and were acquired by the museums of Europe and America. As these refer to the restoration of the building by Nabopolassar, and the part taken by his sons Nebuchadrezzar and Nabu-sum-lisir in the ceremonies attending the rebuilding, it is very probable that they formed part of the spoils acquired.

5. A Babylonian Description of the Tower:

E-temen-ana-ki, to give the Babylonian (Sumerian) name, consisted of six stages built upon a platform, and provided with a sanctuary at the top. A tablet seemingly giving a detailed description of this building was for a time in the hands of the late George Smith in the year 1876. Unfortunately he had not time to give a translation of the document, or to publish the text, but his detailed account of it (Athenaeum, February 12, 1876) is exceedingly interesting. First there was the outer court called the "grand court," measuring, according to G. Smith's estimate, 1,156 ft. by 900 ft., and a smaller one, called "the court of Ishtar and Zagaga," 1,056 ft. by 450 ft. Round the court were six gates admitting to the temples:

(1) the grand gate;

(2) the gate of the rising sun (east);

(3) the great gate;

(4) the gate of the colossi;

(5) the gate of the canal; and

(6) the gate of the tower-view.

6. The Platform:

After this came a space or platform apparently walled-a ki-gallu square in form, and measuring 3 ku each way. Its size is doubtful, as the value of the ku is unknown. The sides of this enclosure faced the cardinal points. In its walls were four gates, one on each side, and named from the points toward which they looked. Within this enclosure stood a large building measuring 10 gar (Smith: 200 ft.) each way. Unfortunately, the name of this erection was damaged, so that its nature and use are uncertain.

7. The Chapels and Shrines:

Round the base of the Tower were small temples or chapels dedicated to the various gods of the Babylonians. On the East were 16 shrines, the principal of them being dedicated to Nebo and Tasmetu, his spouse; on thee North were two temples dedicated to Ea. (Ae) and Nusku respectively; on the South was a single temple to the two great gods, Anu and Bel (Enlil?). It was on the West, however, that the principal buildings lay-a double house with a court between the wings 35 cubits (Smith: 58 ft.) wide. These two wings were not alike in dimensions, the erection on one side being 100 cubits by 20 (166 ft. by 34 ft.) and on the other 100 cubits by 65 (166 ft. by 108 ft.). In these western chambers stood the couch of the god, and the golden throne mentioned by Herodotus, with other objects of great value. The couch was stated to have measured 9 cubits by 4 (15 ft. by 6 feet 8 inches).

8. The Tower in Its First Stage:

In the center of these groups of buildings stood the great Tower in stages, called by the Babylonians "the Tower of Babel" (ziqqurat Babili). The stages decreased from the lowest upward, but each was square in plan. The first or foundation-stage was 15 gar each way by 5 1/2 gar high (300 ft. by 110 ft. high), and seems to have been decorated with the usual double recesses which are a characteristic of Assyr-Bab architecture.

9. The Remaining Stages:

The second stage was 13 gar square and 3 gar high (260 ft. by 60 ft.). A term was applied to it which G. Smith did not understand, but he notes that it probably had sloping sides. The stages from the 3rd to the 5th were all of equal height, namely, 1 gar (20 ft.), and were respectively 10 gar (200 ft.), 8 1/3 gar (170 ft.) and 7 gar (140 ft.) square. The dimensions of the 6th stage were omitted, but may be restored in accordance with the others, namely, 5 1/2 gar square (110 ft.) by 1 gar (20 ft.) high.

10. The Chapel at the Top:

On this was raised what Smith calls the 7th stage, namely, the upper temple or sanctuary of the god Bel-Merodach, 4 gar long, 3 1/2 gar broad and 2 1/2 gar high (80 ft., 60 ft., and 50 ft., respectively). He does not mention the statue of the god, but it may be supposed that it was set up in this topmost erection. The total height of the tower above its foundation was therefore 15 gar (300 ft.), the same as the breadth of its base. It cannot be said that it was by any means a beautiful erection, but there was probably some symbolism in its measurements, and in appearance it probably resembled (except the decoration) the temple tower of Calah as restored in the frontispiece to Layard's Monuments of Nineveh, 1st series, in which a step-pyramid with a similarly highbasement stage is shown.

11. Herodotus' Description:

With this detailed description, which is quite what would be expected in a Babylonian account of such a celebrated temple, the description in Herodotus (i.181) agrees. He states that it was a temple square in form, two furlongs (1,213 ft.) each way, in the midst of which was built a solid tower a furlong square (nearly 607 ft.). This, however, must have been the platform, which, with the six stages and the chapel on the top, would make up the total of eight stages of which Herodotus speaks. The ascent by which the top was reached he describes as running "outside round about all the towers"-wording which suggests, though not necessarily, that it was spiral-i.e. one had to walk round the structure 7 times to reach the top. Representations on Babylonian boundary-stones suggest that this view would be correct, though a symmetrical arrangement of inclined paths might have been constructed which would have greatly improved the design. At the middle of the ascent, Herodotus says, there was a stopping-place with seats to rest upon, which rather favors this idea. At the top of the last tower there was a large cell, and in the cell a large couch was laid, well covered; and by it a golden table. There was no image there, nor did any human being spend the night there, except only a woman of the natives of the place chosen by the god, "as say the Chaldeans who are the priests of this god." These men told Herodotus that the god often came to the cell, and rested upon the couch, "but," he adds, "I do not believe them." After mentioning parallels to this at Egyptian Thebes and Patam in Lycia, he goes on to speak of another cell below (that referred to in G. Smith's tablet) wherein was a great image of Zeus (Bel-Merodach) sitting, with a footstool and a large table, all of gold, and weighing no less than 800 talents. Outside of this cell was an altar to the god, made of gold; and also another altar, whereon full-grown animals were sacrificed, the golden altar being for sucklings only. The Chaldeans also told him that there was, in the precincts of the building, a statue 12 cubits high, and of solid gold. Darius Hystaspis desired to take possession of this valuable object, but did not venture. His son Xerxes, however, was not so considerate of the feelings of the people and the priesthood, for he also killed the priest when he forbade him to meddle with it.

12. The Builders of the Tower:

The Bible record does not state who the people were who journeyed in the East and built the city and the Tower. The indefinite "they" might be taken to mean whatever people were there at the time the record was written, and probably presupposes that the reader would certainly know. As the Tower of Babel bears, in the native inscriptions, a Sumero-Akkadian name, it may be supposed that the builders referred to belonged to that race.

13. Traditions Concerning Its Destruction:

It is noteworthy that nothing is said in Genesis concerning the stoppage of the erection, though they ceased to build the city. Bochart records a Jewish tradition which makes the tower to have been split through to its foundation by fire which fell from heaven-suggested probably by the condition of the tower at "the second Babylon," i.e. the Birs Nimroud. Another tradition, recorded by Eusebius (Prep. Evang., ix; Chronicon, 13; Syncel. Chron., 44) makes it to have been blown down by the winds; "but when it approached the heavens, the winds assisted the gods, and overturned the work upon its contrivers: and the gods introduced a diversity of tongues among men, who, until that time, had all spoken the same language."

14. The Meaning of "Babel":

The place where they built the Tower was called Babylon, on account of the confusion of languages. Here we have again the statement as in Genesis that the meaning of Babel is "confusion." This, as is well known, is based upon the purely Hebrew etymological law, which makes balal, "to confuse," or "mingle," assume a reduplicate form; but as far as the cuneiform inscriptions, which are now very numerous, give us information, Babel, from baldlu, "to mingle" (the root in question), was an impossibility. But on the Babylonian side, that the rendering of the name as Bab-ili (-ilani), "gate of god" ("of the gods") was a folk-etymology, is undoubted, notwithstanding that the Sumero-Akkadian form Ka-dingira, with the same meaning, is far from rare. It is noteworthy, however, that one of the forms used by Nebuchadrezzar is Babilam, with the mimmation or "emming," which is a characteristic of the Babylonian language; moreover, a place-name Babalam also occurs, which may be a still earlier, and perhaps the original, form. Notwithstanding that one would like to see in Babalam, "the place of bringing together," and in Babilam, "the bringer together," the termination -am would seem to be an insurmountable difficulty.

15. The Ultimate Destruction of the Tower:

That the building of the city would have been stopped when the confusion of tongues took place is natural-the departure of the greater part of the inhabitants made this inevitable. When the population increased again, the building of the city was continued, with the result that Babylon ultimately became the greatest city of then known world. The Tower, notwithstanding what had been said as to its destruction, remained, and when, as happened from time to time, its condition became ruinous, some energetic Babylonian king would restore it. Alexander and Philip of Macedon began clearing away the rubbish to rebuild the great temple of B.C.lus (Bel-Merodach) connected with it and there is hardly any doubt that the Tower would have been restored likewise, but the untimely death of the former, and the deficient mental caliber of the latter for the ruling of a great empire, put an end to the work. The Tower therefore remained unrepaired-"The tower was exceedingly tall. The third part of it sank down into the ground, a second third was burned down, and the remaining third was standing until the time of the destruction of Babylon" (Rabbi Yehanan, Sanhedhrin, 109, 1).

16. No Idea of Reaching Heaven:

Concerning the reputed intention of the builders of the Tower, to carry it as high as the heavens, that, notwithstanding the Talmud and other writings, may be dismissed at once. The intention was to build a very high tower, and that is all that is implied by the words employed. That the Babylonians would have liked their tower to reach heaven may be conceded, and the idea may be taken as symbolical of Babylon's pride, the more especially as they regarded it as "the house of the foundation of heaven and earth." Though at present brought lower than the other temple-towers of Babylonia, its renown remains as one of the great glories of that renowned capital. Dedicated as it was to the gods whom they worshipped, and chiefly to the glory of Merodach, the representative of Babylonian monotheism, the Babylonians' descendants, the native Christians, have no reason to remember this erection of their forefathers with shame, but rather with pride. The rallyingpoint of nations, Babylon, while it existed, was always a great commercial center, and many are the languages which have resounded in the Tower's vicinity. The confusion of tongues led to the Jewish fiction that the air of Babylon and Borsippa caused forgetfulness, and was therefore injurious to students of the Law, causing them to forget it as the builders of the Tower had of old forgotten their speech (Rashi, Sanhedhrin, 109, 1). This, however, did not prevent the rabbis of Babylon from being more celebrated than those of the Holy Land, and even of Jerusalem itself.

See also ASTRONOMY.

T. G. Pinches

FURNACES, TOWER OF THE

(Nehemiah 3:11).

See JERUSALEM.

HAMMEAH, THE TOWER OF

ha-me'-a, ham'-e-a (ha-me'ah (Nehemiah 3:1); the King James Version Meah): The origin of the name is obscure; in the margin the meaning is given "Tower of the hundred"; it has been suggested that it may have been 100 cubits high or had 100 steps. It was the most important point on the walls of Jerusalem in going West from the Sheep Gate, and is mentioned along with the T. of HANANEL (which see) (Nehemiah 3:1), and was therefore near the Northeast corner, and probably stood where the Baris and Antonia afterward were, near the Northwest corner of the charam where are today the Turkish barracks.

See JERUSALEM.

E. W. G. Masterman

HANANEL, THE TOWER OF

ban'-an-el (chanan'el, "El (God) is gracious"; the King James Version Hananeel, ha-nan'e-el): A tower in the walls of Jerusalem adjoining (Nehemiah 3:1; Nehemiah 12:39) the tower of HAMMEAH (which see). The company of Levites coming from the West passed "by the fish gate, and the tower of Hananel, and the tower of Hammeah, even unto the sheep gate" (Nehemiah 12:39). In Jeremiah 31:38 it is foretold "that the city shall be built to Yahweh from the tower of Hananel unto the gate of the corner"-apparently the whole stretch of North wall. In Zechariah 14:10 it says Jerusalem "shall dwell in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananel unto the king's winepresses." These last were probably near Siloam, and the distance "from the tower of Hananel unto the king's winepresses" describes the greatest length of the city from North to South. All the indications point to a tower, close to the tower of Hammeah, near the Northeast corner, a point of the city always requiring special fortification and later the sites successively of the Baris and of the Antonia.

See JERUSALEM.

E. W. G. Masterman

IVORY, TOWER OF

(mighdal hashen): In Songs 7:4 the neck of the Shulammite is compared in whiteness and stateliness to a (or the) tower of ivory. The definite article may suggest that the comparison is with some actual tower in or near Jerusalem; but more probably the language is simply a figure.

TOWER

tou'-er.

See FORTIFICATION, I, 5; CITY, II, 1.

TOWER OF BABEL

See ASTRONOMY; BABEL, TOWER OF; TONGUES, CONFUSION OF.

TOWER OF DAVID

(Songs 4:4).

See JERUSALEM.

TOWER OF IVORY

(mighdal hashen): Occurs only in Songs 7:4. Cheyne would, not unreasonably, emend the text and read the "tower of Shenir" as a parallel to the "tower of Lebanon" in the same verse. If the reading "tower of ivory" is correct, the reference must be to some piece of furniture in the adornment of which ivory was much used, and when we compare the word mighdal here with its use for a "pulpit" in Nehemiah 8:4, we can think only of a reminiscence of something of the nature of the throne of ivory made by Solomon (1 Kings 10:18).

W. M. Christie

TOWER OF LEBANON

(mighdal ha-lebhanon): (Songs 7:4)): The designation "which looketh toward Damascus" compels us to identify it with some portion of, or something in, the eastern range of "Lebanon, toward the sun-rising" (Joshua 13:5). It would then of necessity correspond to the chief summit of Hermon, on which there has been from ancient times also a tower-like temple, and from which the view is almost of boundless extent, Damascus with its gardens and groves being surprisingly near and appearing like a beautiful island in a wide extended sea.

See LEBANON.

W. M. Christie

TOWER OF SHECHEM

(mighdal shekhem): Mentioned only in Judges 9:46-49. It seems along with the Beth-millo and the Beth-el-berith to have comprised the three strongest parts of the fortification when Abimelech besieged the town. It was, however, abandoned by its defenders, who took refuge in the Beth-millo, in which they were slain.

Greek

4444. purgos -- a tower
... a tower. Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: purgos Phonetic Spelling:
(poor'-gos) Short Definition: a tower, fortified structure Definition: a ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4444.htm - 6k

4011. Perge -- Perga, a city of Pamphylia
... Perga. Probably from the same as Pergamos; a tower; Perga, a place in Asia Minor --
Perga. see GREEK Pergamos. (perge) -- 1 Occurrence. (pergen) -- 1 Occurrence ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4011.htm - 6k

304. anabathmos -- a going up, an ascent
... Short Definition: a step, a flight of steps Definition: a step, a flight of steps;
the well-known stairs leading up from the temple to the tower of Antonia at ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/304.htm - 6k

3093. Magadan -- Magadan, an unidentified place near the Sea of ...
... Magdala. Of Chaldee origin (compare migdal); the tower; Magdala (ie Migdala), a
place in Palestine -- Magdala. see HEBREW migdal. (magadan) -- 1 Occurrence. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3093.htm - 6k

4241. prepo -- to be fitting, proper, suitable
... Apparently a primary verb; to tower up (be conspicuous), ie (by implication) to
be suitable or proper (third person singular present indicative, often used ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4241.htm - 7k

2701. katatrecho -- to run down
... run down. From kata and trecho; to run down, ie Hasten from a tower -- run down.
see GREEK kata. see GREEK trecho. (katedramen) -- 1 Occurrence. 2700, 2701. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2701.htm - 6k

3925. parembole -- to put in beside or between, interpose
... From a compound of para and emballo; a throwing in beside (juxtaposition), ie
(specially), battle-array, encampment or barracks (tower Antonia) -- army, camp ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3925.htm - 6k

Strong's Hebrew

4029. Migdal-eder -- "flock tower," a tower near Bethlehem
... Migdal-eder. 4030 . "flock tower," a tower near Bethlehem. Transliteration:
Migdal-eder Phonetic Spelling: (mig-dal'-ay'-der) Short Definition: Eder. ...
/hebrew/4029.htm - 6k

4026. migdal -- a tower
migdal or migdalah. 4025, 4026. migdal or migdalah. 4027 . a tower.
Transliteration: migdal or migdalah Phonetic Spelling: (mig-dawl') Short Definition: ...
/hebrew/4026.htm - 6k

971. bachin -- tower
... 970, 971. bachin. 972 . tower. Transliteration: bachin Phonetic Spelling:
(bakh-een') Short Definition: tower. Word Origin see bachun. tower ...
/hebrew/971.htm - 5k

969. bachown' -- a tower
... bachown'. 969a . a tower. Transliteration: bachown' Phonetic Spelling: (baw-khone')
Short Definition: tower. tower From bachan; an assayer or metals -- tower. ...
/hebrew/969.htm - 5k

4023a. migdol -- a tower
... migdol. 4023b . a tower. Transliteration: migdol Short Definition: tower. Word
Origin from gadal Definition a tower NASB Word Usage tower (1). 4023, 4023a. ...
/hebrew/4023a.htm - 5k

3968. Meah -- a tower on the N. wall of Jer.
... 3967, 3968. Meah. 3969 . a tower on the N. wall of Jer. ... Word Origin from meah
Definition a tower on the N. wall of Jer. NASB Word Usage hundred (2). Meah. ...
/hebrew/3968.htm - 6k

2606. Chananel -- "God is gracious," a tower in Jer.
... Chananel. 2607 . "God is gracious," a tower in Jer. ... Word Origin from chanan and
el Definition "God is gracious," a tower in Jer. NASB Word Usage Hananel (4). ...
/hebrew/2606.htm - 6k

4028. Migdal-gad -- "tower of Gad," a city in Judah
... 4027, 4028. Migdal-gad. 4029 . "tower of Gad," a city in Judah. Transliteration:
Migdal-gad Phonetic Spelling: (migdal-gawd') Short Definition: Migdal-gad. ...
/hebrew/4028.htm - 6k

4027. Migdal-el -- "tower of God," a stronghold in Naphtali
... Migdal-el. 4028 . "tower of God," a stronghold in Naphtali. Transliteration:
Migdal-el Phonetic Spelling: (mig-dal-ale') Short Definition: Migdal-el. ...
/hebrew/4027.htm - 6k

969a. bachun -- a tower
... bachun. 969b . a tower. Transliteration: bachun Short Definition: towers. Word
Origin from bachan Definition a tower NASB Word Usage siege towers (1). ...
/hebrew/969a.htm - 5k

Library

The Tower of Babel.
... THE TOWER OF BABEL. Babel means confusion. Was it not a strange name to
give a tower? How did it get this? After Noah left the ...
/.../anonymous/mother stories from the old testament/the tower of babel.htm

Thy Neck is as a Tower of ivory; Thine Eyes Like the Fish-Pools in ...
... 4. Thy neck is as a tower of ivory; thine eyes like the fish-pools in Heshbon, which
are in the gate of the daughter of the multitude; thy nose is as the tower ...
//christianbookshelf.org/guyon/song of songs of solomon/4 thy neck is as.htm

Concerning the Tower of Babylon, and the Confusion of Tongues.
... Years. From The Creation To The Death Of Isaac. CHAPTER 4. Concerning The
Tower Of Babylon, And The Confusion Of Tongues. 1. Now ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 4 concerning the tower.htm

My High Tower
... HYMNS MY HIGH TOWER. "He only is my rock and my salvation: He is my defence,
I shall not be moved.""Psalm 62:6. Paul Gerhardt, 1676. ...
/.../bevan/hymns of ter steegen and others second series/my high tower.htm

Habakkuk-On his Watch-Tower
... HABAKKUK-ON HIS WATCH-TOWER. "Lord, teach us to pray.""Luke 11.i. "I will stand
upon my watch, and set me upon the tower.""Habakkuk 2.i. ...
/.../whyte/lord teach us to pray/ix habakkuk-on his watch-tower.htm

Thy Neck is Like the Tower of David, Builded with Bulwarks; a ...
... CHAPTER IV. 4. Thy neck is like the tower of David, builded with bulwarks;
a thousand shields hang upon it, all the armor of mighty men. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/guyon/song of songs of solomon/4 thy neck is like.htm

The Building of Another Tower than Babel.
... ORIGINAL HYMNS HYMN XXI. The Building of another Tower than Babel. 8.8.8.8
James Montgomery. The Building of another Tower than Babel. ...
/.../montgomery/sacred poems and hymns/hymn xxi the building of.htm

Caesarea. Strato's Tower.
... A Chorographical Century. Chapters 51-60 Chapter 57 Caesarea. Strato's Tower.
The Arabian interpreter thinks the first name of this ...
/.../lightfoot/from the talmud and hebraica/chapter 57 caesarea stratos tower.htm

Tower of Babel.
... Book IV. Chapter XXVIII."Tower of Babel. "But the foolish men who were
then, whereas they ought to have abandoned the opinion ...
/.../unknown/recognitions of clement /chapter xxviii tower of babel.htm

Wesley visits Lord George in the Tower
... Chapter 18. On the Isle of Man; City Road Chapel; Wesley Visits Lorg George
Gordon Wesley Visits Lord George in the Tower. Saturday ...
/.../wesley/the journal of john wesley/wesley visits lord george in.htm

Subtopics

Tower

Tower for Watchmen (Sentinels)

Tower in the Desert

Tower in the Walls of Jerusalem

Tower of Babel

Tower of David

Tower of Divine Protection

Tower of Edar

Tower of Edar the Flock

Tower of Hananeel

Tower of Ivory