In biblical contexts, the term "trench" is often associated with military and agricultural practices, reflecting the historical and cultural backdrop of the ancient Near East. The concept of a trench appears in various passages, illustrating its significance in both practical and metaphorical terms.

Military Use

Trenches were commonly used in ancient warfare as defensive structures. They provided protection for soldiers and were often part of a larger fortification system. In 2 Kings 3:16, the prophet Elisha instructs the Israelites to dig trenches in the valley as a divine strategy against the Moabites: "This is what the LORD says: 'Make this valley full of ditches.'" . These trenches were miraculously filled with water, confusing the Moabite army and leading to Israel's victory. This account highlights the strategic importance of trenches in military operations and the belief in divine intervention in battle.

Agricultural Use

In agricultural settings, trenches were used for irrigation and drainage, essential for sustaining crops in the arid climate of the region. The practice of digging trenches for water management is implied in various biblical narratives, though not always explicitly mentioned. The use of trenches in agriculture underscores the dependence on water and the ingenuity required to cultivate the land effectively.

Metaphorical Significance

Trenches also carry metaphorical weight in Scripture, symbolizing preparation, protection, and divine provision. The act of digging a trench can be seen as a demonstration of faith, as in the case of Elisha's command to the Israelites. It represents a readiness to receive God's blessings and a proactive stance in spiritual warfare.

New Testament Reference

In the New Testament, the concept of a trench is mentioned in a prophetic context. In Luke 19:43, Jesus foretells the destruction of Jerusalem, saying, "For the days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side." . The term "embankment" here can be understood as a trench or siege ramp, illustrating the impending judgment and the thoroughness of the coming siege.

Cultural and Historical Context

Understanding the use of trenches in biblical times requires an appreciation of the historical and cultural milieu. Trenches were integral to both daily life and extraordinary events, serving as tools for survival and symbols of divine interaction. The biblical references to trenches reflect the broader themes of faith, obedience, and the interplay between human effort and divine sovereignty.

In summary, the concept of a trench in the Bible encompasses practical applications in warfare and agriculture, as well as deeper spiritual meanings. It serves as a reminder of the need for preparation, the importance of faith, and the assurance of God's provision and protection.Trench

A passage of approach to the walls of a besieged city, like a deep ditch; the earth thrown up constituting a wall. The Redeemer, weeping over Jerusalem a few days before he was crucified under its walls, said, "The days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side," Luke 19:43. The Romans fulfilled this prediction by enclosing the entire city of Jerusalem by a wall, that the Jews might neither escape nor be relieved from without. In 1 Samuel 26:5, "trench" appears to mean the circle formed by camp equipage. See CAMP, ENCAMPMENTS.

1. (v. t.) To cut; to form or shape by cutting; to make by incision, hewing, or the like.

2. (v. t.) To fortify by cutting a ditch, and raising a rampart or breastwork with the earth thrown out of the ditch; to entrench.

3. (v. t.) To cut furrows or ditches in; as, to trench land for the purpose of draining it.

4. (v. t.) To dig or cultivate very deeply, usually by digging parallel contiguous trenches in succession, filling each from the next; as, to trench a garden for certain crops.

5. (v. i.) To encroach; to entrench.

6. (v. i.) To have direction; to aim or tend.

7. (n.) A long, narrow cut in the earth; a ditch; as, a trench for draining land.

8. (n.) An alley; a narrow path or walk cut through woods, shrubbery, or the like.

9. (n.) An excavation made during a siege, for the purpose of covering the troops as they advance toward the besieged place. The term includes the parallels and the approaches.

TRENCH

trench, trensh.

See SIEGE, (5), (8).

5482. charax -- a pointed stake, a rampart
... besieging. Word Origin from the same as charagma Definition a pointed stake,
a rampart NASB Word Usage barricade (1). trench. From ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5482.htm - 6k

2851. kolasis -- correction
... Cognate: 2851 (from , "a buffeting, a blow") -- properly, punishment that "fits"
(matches) the one punished (R. Trench); from living in the from one's (cf. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2851.htm - 7k

1380. dokeo -- to have an opinion, to seem
... an . [1380 () is the root of: 1378 (), 1391 (), and 2106 (). Each cognate
stresses "the about a matter" (R. Trench, 304).]. Word ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1380.htm - 9k

1203. despotes -- lord, master
... [1203 () implies someone exercising "unrestricted power and absolute domination,
confessing no limitations or restraints" (R. Trench, 96).]. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1203.htm - 7k

3996. pentheo -- to mourn, lament
... 3996 ("mourn over a death") refers to " grief" (, 360) -- it of a person and cannot
be hid. (This is the same meaning of 3996 throughout , cf. , R. Trench, .). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3996.htm - 7k

3950. parorgismos -- irritation
... from 3949 , see there) -- irritation (exasperation, bitterness) which is provoked,
ie by someone causing a personal ("up-close") sense of anger (R. Trench, 127 ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3950.htm - 7k

979. bios -- life, living
... is "the period or duration of . . in a secondary sense, the by which life is
sustained; and thirdly, the in which that life is spent" (R. Trench). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/979.htm - 7k

3473. morologia -- foolish talking
... grip) on reality. This is the "talk of fools, involving foolishness and sinning
together" (R. Trench, 121). See 3474 (). Word Origin ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3473.htm - 7k

5355. phthonos -- envy
... at another's good; . .without longing to raise oneself to the level of him whom
he envies, but only to the envied to his own level" (R. Trench, 90). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5355.htm - 7k

1504. eikon -- an image, ie lit. statue, fig. representation
... Cor 4:4; Col 1:15). "1504 () , of which it not merely resembles, but from
which " (R. Trench). 1504 () then is more than a "shadow ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1504.htm - 7k

2742c. charuts -- a trench, moat
... charuts. 2742d . a trench, moat. Transliteration: charuts Short Definition: moat. ...
part. of charats Definition a trench, moat NASB Word Usage moat (1). ...
/hebrew/2742c.htm - 5k

1356a. geb -- a pit, trench, ditch
... 1356, 1356a. geb. 1356b . a pit, trench, ditch. Transliteration: geb
Short Definition: cisterns. Word Origin from gub Definition ...
/hebrew/1356a.htm - 5k

1356. geb -- a pit, trench, ditch
... 1355, 1356. geb. 1356a . a pit, trench, ditch. Transliteration: geb Phonetic
Spelling: (gabe) Short Definition: beam. beam, ditch, pit ...
/hebrew/1356.htm - 5k

2426. chel -- rampart, fortress
... rampart (3), ramparts (2), walls (1). army, bulwark, host, poor, rampart,
trench, wall. Or (shortened) chel {khale}; a collateral ...
/hebrew/2426.htm - 6k

8585. t'alah -- a watercourse
... a watercourse. Transliteration: t'alah Phonetic Spelling: (teh-aw-law') Short
Definition: conduit. conduit, cured, healing, little river, trench, watercourse ...
/hebrew/8585.htm - 5k

4570. magal -- an entrenchment, track
... 2), paths (5), tracks (2), ways (2), wayside (1). going, path, trench, wayside.
Or feminine mapgalah {mah-gaw-law'}; from the same ...
/hebrew/4570.htm - 6k

7023. qir -- a wall
... Or qir (Isa. 22:5) {keer}; or (feminine) qiyrah {kee-raw'}; from quwr; a wall (as
built in a trench) -- + mason, side, town, X very, wall. see HEBREW quwr. ...
/hebrew/7023.htm - 6k

6979. qur -- to bore, dig
... A primitive root; to trench; by implication, to throw forth; also (denominative
from qiyr) to wall up, whether literal (to build a wall) or figurative (to estop ...
/hebrew/6979.htm - 6k

2742. charuwts -- sharp, diligent
... Or charuts {khaw-roots'}; passive participle of charats; properly, incised or (active)
incisive; hence (as noun masculine or feminine) a trench (as dug), gold ...
/hebrew/2742.htm - 6k

8585a. tealah -- a watercourse
... Word Origin from alah Definition a watercourse NASB Word Usage channel (1), channels
(1), conduit (4), trench (3). 8585, 8585a. tealah. 8585b . ...
/hebrew/8585a.htm - 5k

CMRC Trench. The Law of Love.
... VII. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 294. CMRC Trench. The Law of Love. 2 Kings,
iv.3. 1 Pour forth the oil,"pour boldly forth; It will not ...
/.../various/book of hymns for public and private devotion/294 c m r c.htm

How the Impatient and the Patient are to be Admonished.
... is relinquished, all other good things also that have been done are overthrown,
it is rightly enjoined on Ezekiel that in the altar of God a trench be made; to ...
/.../leo/writings of leo the great/chapter ix how the impatient.htm

The Lost Coin.
... justly anticipating from the mere fact of a repetition, that the second will present
some features which were not contained in the first, Dr. Trench finds the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/arnot/the parables of our lord/xxiii the lost coin.htm

The Trial by Fire
... And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord: and he made a trench
about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.33. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture f/the trial by fire.htm

Elijah the Great Heart of Israel.
... the people to him, and he repaired a broken altar of the Lord that stood there with
twelve stones for the twelve tribes of Israel, and made a trench all around ...
/.../lathbury/childs story of the bible/chapter xxvii elijah the great.htm

Pagan Cemeteries.
... The coffin, roughly cut and shaped, was buried at a depth of fourteen feet, in a
trench a trifle longer and larger than itself, and the space between the ...
/.../lanciani/pagan and christian rome/chapter vi pagan cemeteries.htm

Love and Remorse
... place where Saul had pitched: and David beheld the place where Saul lay, and Abner
the son of Xer, the captain of his host: and Saul lay in the trench, and the ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture f/love and remorse.htm

How the Emperor Severus Divided from the Rest by a Rampart that ...
... the assaults of enemies, is made of sods, cut out of the earth, and raised high
above the ground, like a wall, having in front of it the trench whence the sods ...
/.../bede/bedes ecclesiastical history of england/chap v how the emperor.htm

"Something"
... For up by the trench would poor Mother Margaret fain build herself a little house,
if she might; she took all the broken bricks, ay, and she got a few whole ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/wells/bible stories and religious classics/something.htm

Some Other Memorable Places of the City.
... XII. We conclude with the trench brought round the city by Titus, wherein
he shut it up in the siege. "Beginning from the tents ...
/.../lightfoot/from the talmud and hebraica/chapter 35 some other memorable.htm

Trench (8 Occurrences)
... 3. (vt) To cut furrows or ditches in; as, to trench land for the purpose of draining
it. ... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. TRENCH. trench, trensh. ...
/t/trench.htm - 10k

Ditch (9 Occurrences)
... 1. (n.) A trench made in the earth by digging, particularly a trench for draining
wet land, for guarding or fencing enclosures, or for preventing an approach ...
/d/ditch.htm - 10k

Kishon (6 Occurrences)
... The bed runs along the bottom of a trench some 20 ft. ... In time of heavy rains the
trench is swiftly filled, and the soft soil of the plain goes to mud. ...
/k/kishon.htm - 12k

Furrow (3 Occurrences)
... An opening in the ground made by the plough (Psalm 65:10; Hosea 10:4, 10). Noah
Webster's Dictionary. 1. (n.) A trench in the earth made by, or as by, a plow. ...
/f/furrow.htm - 9k

Parable (52 Occurrences)
... Jewish and other non-Biblical parables are discussed and illustrated by examples
in Trench's Notes on the Parables of our Lord, introductory essay, chapter iv ...
/p/parable.htm - 38k

Tremendous (9 Occurrences)

/t/tremendous.htm - 9k

Siege (63 Occurrences)
... way of approach, was a dam thrown across the narrow strait to obtain access to the
walls (Ezekiel 26:8). Very often, too, there was a trench, sometimes filled ...
/s/siege.htm - 51k

Love (703 Occurrences)
... The distinction between these two Greek words is thus fitly described by Trench:,
"Agapan has more of judgment and deliberate choice; philein has more of ...
/l/love.htm - 65k

Violate (14 Occurrences)
... 2. (vt) To do violence to, as to anything that should be held sacred or respected;
to profane; to desecrate; to break forcibly; to trench upon; to infringe. ...
/v/violate.htm - 10k

Ungodly (41 Occurrences)
... 22:5), "worthless"; in the New Testament asebes (Romans 5:6), eg indicating that
the persons so called are both irreverent and impious): Trench says that the ...
/u/ungodly.htm - 18k

What is the story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal? | GotQuestions.org

Summary of the Book of Daniel - Bible Survey | GotQuestions.org

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Trench: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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