A reservoir, in biblical terms, refers to a storage place for water, often constructed to collect and hold rainwater or water from other sources for use during dry periods. In the arid climate of the ancient Near East, reservoirs were essential for sustaining life, agriculture, and the overall well-being of communities. The Bible contains several references to water storage systems, which highlight their importance in the daily life and spiritual symbolism of the Israelites.

Biblical References and Context

1. Hezekiah's Tunnel and Pool: One of the most notable examples of ancient water engineering is found in the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah. To protect Jerusalem's water supply from the Assyrian siege, Hezekiah constructed a tunnel to divert water from the Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam. This is referenced in 2 Kings 20:20: "As for the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, along with all his might and how he made the pool and the tunnel to bring water into the city, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?" . This engineering feat ensured a steady water supply within the city walls, demonstrating the strategic and practical importance of reservoirs.

2. Cisterns: Cisterns were commonly used in ancient Israel to collect and store rainwater. Jeremiah 2:13 uses the imagery of cisterns to convey a spiritual message: "For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water" . Here, the prophet Jeremiah contrasts the life-giving water of God with the inadequate and unreliable cisterns, symbolizing the futility of relying on anything other than God for spiritual sustenance.

3. Symbolism of Water: Water, and by extension reservoirs, often symbolizes life, purity, and divine blessing in the Bible. In Isaiah 12:3, the prophet speaks of drawing water from the wells of salvation: "With joy you will draw water from the springs of salvation" . This metaphorical use of water underscores the spiritual nourishment and renewal that comes from a relationship with God.

4. Solomon's Pools: Although not directly mentioned in the Bible, Solomon's Pools are a series of ancient reservoirs located near Bethlehem, traditionally attributed to King Solomon. These pools were part of an extensive water supply system that served Jerusalem and its surrounding areas. They exemplify the advanced understanding and implementation of water management in biblical times.

Cultural and Historical Significance

Reservoirs and water storage systems were vital for the survival and prosperity of ancient Israelite society. They enabled agriculture, supported urban populations, and were crucial during times of siege or drought. The construction and maintenance of these systems required significant communal effort and cooperation, reflecting the collective responsibility for sustaining life in a challenging environment.

In addition to their practical function, reservoirs and water systems carried deep spiritual significance. They were often associated with God's provision and blessing, as well as the spiritual nourishment that comes from faithfulness to Him. The imagery of water as a source of life and purity is pervasive throughout Scripture, reinforcing the essential role of reservoirs in both the physical and spiritual realms of biblical life.1. (n.) A place where anything is kept in store; especially, a place where water is collected and kept for use when wanted, as to supply a fountain, a canal, or a city by means of aqueducts, or to drive a mill wheel, or the like.

2. (n.) A small intercellular space, often containing resin, essential oil, or some other secreted matter.

POOL; POND; RESERVOIR

pool, pond, rez'-er-vwar, rez'-er-vwar ((1) berekhah, "pool"; compare Arabic birkat, "pool"; compare berakhah, "blessing," and Arabic barakat, "blessing"; (2) agham, "pool," "marsh," "reeds"; compare Arabic 'ajam, "thicket," "jungle"; (3) miqwah, "reservoir," the King James Version "ditch" (Isaiah 22:11); (4) miqweh, "pond," the King James Version "pool" (Exodus 7:19); miqweh ha-mayim, English Versions of the Bible "gathering together of the waters" (Genesis 1:10); miqweh-mayim, "a gathering of water," the King James Version "plenty of water" (Leviticus 11:36); (5) kolumbethra, "pool," literally, "a place of diving," from kolumbao, "to dive"): Lakes (see LAKE) are very rare in Syria and Palestine, but the dry climate, which is one reason for the fewness of lakes, impels the inhabitants to make artificial pools or reservoirs to collect the water of the rain or of springs for irrigation and also for drinking. The largest of these are made by damming water courses, in which water flows during the winter or at least after showers of rain. These may be enlarged or deepened by excavation. Good examples of this are found at Diban and Madeba in Moab. Smaller pools of rectangular shape and usually much wider than deep, having no connection with water courses, are built in towns to receive rain from the roofs or from the surface of the ground. These may be for common use like several large ones in Jerusalem, or may belong to particular houses. These are commonly excavated to some depth in the soil or rock, though the walls are likely to rise above the surface. Between these and cylindrical pits or cisterns no sharp line can be drawn.

The water of springs may be collected in large or small pools of masonry, as the pool of Siloam (John 9:7). This is commonly done for irrigation when the spring is so small that the water would be lost by absorption or evaporation if it were attempted to convey it continuously to the fields. The pool (Arabic, birkat) receives the trickle of water until it is full. The water is then let out in a large stream and conducted where it is needed. (In this way by patient labor a small trickling spring may support much vegetation.)

'Agham does not seem to be used of artificial pools, but rather of natural or accidental depressions containing water, as pools by the Nile (Exodus 7:19; Exodus 8:5), or in the wilderness (Psalm 107:35; Psalm 114:8 Isaiah 14:23; Isaiah 35:7; Isaiah 41:18; Isaiah 42:15). In Isaiah 19:10 the rendering of the King James Version, "all that make sluices and ponds for fish," would be an exception to this statement, but the Revised Version (British and American) has "all they that work for hire shall be grieved in soul." Miqweh occurs with 'agham in Exodus 7:19 of the ponds and pools by the Nile. Berekhah is used of "the pool of Gibeon" (2 Samuel 2:13), "the pool in Hebron" (2 Samuel 4:12), "the pool of Samaria" (1 Kings 22:38), "the pools in Heshbon" (Songs 7:4), "the pool of Shelah," the King James Version "Shiloah" (Nehemiah 3:15); compare "the waters of Shiloah" (Isaiah 8:6). We read in Ecclesiastes 2:6, "I made me pools of water, to water therefrom the forest where trees were reared." There is mention of "the upper pool" (2 Kings 18:17 Isaiah 7:3; Isaiah 36:2), "the lower pool" (Isaiah 22:9), "the king's pool" (Nehemiah 2:14). Isaiah 22:11 has, "Ye made also a reservoir (miqwah) between the two walls for the water of the old pool (berekhah)." Kolumbethra is used of the pool of Bethesda (John 5:2, 4, 7) and of the pool of Siloam (John 9:7, 11).

See also CISTERN; NATURAL FEATURES; BJ, V, iv, 2.

Alfred Ely Day

RESERVOIR

rez'-er-vwor, -vwar (miqwah; the King James Version ditch (Isaiah 22:11)).

See DITCH; CISTERN; POOL.

4724. miqvah -- reservoir
... 4723b, 4724. miqvah. 4725 . reservoir. Transliteration: miqvah Phonetic
Spelling: (mik-vaw') Short Definition: reservoir. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/4724.htm - 6k

7975a. Shelach -- a reservoir in Jer.
... Shelach. 7975b . a reservoir in Jer. Transliteration: Shelach Short Definition:
Shelah. Word Origin from shalach Definition a reservoir in Jer. ...
/hebrew/7975a.htm - 5k

7975. Shiloach -- a reservoir in Jer.
... 7974, 7975. Shiloach. 7975a . a reservoir in Jer. Transliteration: Shiloach
Phonetic Spelling: (shee-lo'-akh) Short Definition: Shiloah. Shiloah, Siloah ...
/hebrew/7975.htm - 5k

1360. gebe -- a cistern, pool
... marish, pit. From an unused root meaning probably to collect; a reservoir; by analogy,
a marsh -- marish, pit. 1359, 1360. gebe. 1361 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/1360.htm - 5k

96. egel -- a drop
... drop. From an unused root (meaning to flow down or together as drops); a
reservoir -- drop. 95, 96. egel. 97 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/96.htm - 5k

1295. berekah -- a pool, pond
... fishpool. From barak; a reservoir (at which camels kneel as a resting-place) --
(fish-)pool. see HEBREW barak. 1294, 1295. berekah. 1296 . Strong's Numbers
/hebrew/1295.htm - 6k

The Great Reservoir
... The Great Reservoir. A sermon ... Now the heart is just the reservoir of man, and
our life is allowed to flow in its proper season. That life ...
//christianbookshelf.org/spurgeon/sermons on proverbs/the great reservoir.htm

The Great Reservoir
... The Great Reservoir. A Sermon (No.179). ... Now, the heart is just the reservoir
of man, and our life is allowed to flow in its proper season. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 4 1858/the great reservoir.htm

The Source of Power
... The description here confines itself to these: They are three"the 'bowl' or reservoir
above the lamp, the pipes from it to the seven lights, and the two olive ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture a/the source of power.htm

A Secret Life of Prayer.
... There was water in the pipe clear from the curbstone up to the spigot, but I could
not get it because the reservoir connection under the ground had been turned ...
/.../gordon/quiet talks on service/a secret life of prayer.htm

Israel and the Nations.
... each in his own cistern, it comes down for every family separately; but when, as
in modern city life, every house is supplied from the city reservoir, by means ...
/.../kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xxvi israel and the nations.htm

How Does it Come?
... What reservoir is there that does not need replenishing? ... Within it there is a tap
connected by pipes with the Yan Yean Reservoir up in the Plenty Ranges. ...
/.../macneil/the spirit-filled life/chapter xiv how does it.htm

The Sethian Theory Concerning "Mixture" and "Composition ...
... among the Persians in a city Ampa, [556] near the river Tigris, a well; and near
the well, at the top, has been constructed a certain reservoir, supplied with ...
/.../the refutation of all heresies/chapter xvi the sethian theory concerning.htm

August the Twelfth My Life and Hope
... JOHN v.19-30. Here is my reservoir. "The ... And here is my hope. "The Son also
quickeneth." He is not only a reservoir, He is a river. He ...
/.../jowett/my daily meditation for the circling year/august the twelfth my life.htm

September the Fifth Faith and Ridicule
... And what an infinite reservoir of power is waiting to be tapped by the hand
of faith! A ruler believes and his daughter is vitalized. ...
/.../my daily meditation for the circling year/september the fifth faith and.htm

Christ Thwarted
... Faith is the connection between the fountain and the reservoir. If there
be no such connection, how can the reservoir be filled? ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture d/christ thwarted.htm

Reservoir (1 Occurrence)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. POOL; POND; RESERVOIR. ...RESERVOIR. rez'-er-vwor,
-vwar (miqwah; the King James Version ditch (Isaiah 22:11)). ...
/r/reservoir.htm - 12k

Fountain (57 Occurrences)
... every plain." Besides its rain-water, its cisterns and fountains, Jerusalem had
also an abundant supply of water in the magnificent reservoir called "Solomon's ...
/f/fountain.htm - 30k

Ditch (9 Occurrences)
... word is used indiscriminately in the King James Version to represent at least three
different ideas: a conduit or trench (2 Kings 3:16); a reservoir or cistern ...
/d/ditch.htm - 10k

Pond (2 Occurrences)
... 2. (vt) To make into a pond; to collect, as water, in a pond by damming. 3. (vt)
To ponder. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. POOL; POND; RESERVOIR. ...
/p/pond.htm - 12k

Ramah (38 Occurrences)
... Traces of antiquity are found in the cisterns, a large reservoir and many
sarcophagi. ... West of the village is an ancient reservoir. ...
/r/ramah.htm - 26k

Cistern (21 Occurrences)
... 1. (n.) An artificial reservoir or tank for holding water, beer, or other liquids.
2. (n.) A natural reservoir; a hollow place containing water. Int. ...
/c/cistern.htm - 29k

Pool (25 Occurrences)
... A pond, or reservoir, for holding water (Hebrews berekhah; modern Arabic, birket),
an artificial cistern or tank. ... POOL; POND; RESERVOIR. ...
/p/pool.htm - 40k

Gibeon (39 Occurrences)
... The village stands amid striking remains of antiquity. About a hundred paces from
the village to the East is a large reservoir with a spring. ...
/g/gibeon.htm - 31k

Nephtoah (2 Occurrences)
... nears Jerusalem. There are ancient rock-cut tombs and a copious spring
which empties itself into a large masonry reservoir. The ...
/n/nephtoah.htm - 9k

Firmament (17 Occurrences)
... It formed a division between the waters above and the waters below (Genesis 1:7).
The raki'a supported the upper reservoir (Psalm 148:4). It was the support ...
/f/firmament.htm - 13k

What is cultural appropriation? | GotQuestions.org

Reservoir: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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