Reference: Fenced cities
Easton
There were in Palestine (1) cities, (2) unwalled villages, and (3) villages with castles or towers (1Ch 27:25). Cities, so called, had walls, and were thus fenced. The fortifications consisted of one or two walls, on which were towers or parapets at regular intervals (2Ch 32:5; Jer 31:38). Around ancient Jerusalem were three walls, on one of which were ninety towers, on the second fourteen, and on the third sixty. The tower of Hananeel, near the north-east corner of the city wall, is frequently referred to (Ne 3:1; 12:39; Zec 14:10). The gateways of such cities were also fortified (Ne 2:8; 3:3,6; Jg 16:2-3; 1Sa 23:7).
The Hebrews found many fenced cities when they entered the Promised Land (Nu 13:28; 32:17,34-42; Jos 11:12-13; Jg 1:27-33), and we may estimate the strength of some of these cities from the fact that they were long held in possession by the Canaanites. The Jebusites, e.g., were enabled to hold possession of Jerusalem till the time of David (2Sa 5:6-7; 1Ch 11:5).
Several of the kings of Israel and Judah distinguished themselves as fortifiers or "builders" of cities.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But the people living in the land are strong, and the towns are walled and very great; further, we saw the children of Anak there.
But we ourselves will be ready armed to go before the children of Israel till we have taken them to their place: but our little ones will be safe in the walled towns against the people of the land.
And the children of Gad were the builders of Dibon and Ataroth and Aroer; And Atroth-shophan and Jazer and Jogbehah; read more. And Beth-nimrah and Beth-haran: walled towns and shut-in places for sheep. And the children of Reuben were the builders of Heshbon and Elealeh and Kiriathaim; And Nebo and Baal-meon, (their names being changed,) and Sibmah: and they gave other names to the towns they made. And the children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, went to Gilead and took it, driving out the Amorites who were living there. And Moses gave Gilead to Machir, the son of Manasseh; and he made it his living-place. And Jair, the son of Manasseh, went and took the towns of Gilead, naming them Havvoth-Jair. And Nobah went and took Kenath and its small towns, naming it Nobah, after himself.
And all the towns of these kings, and all the kings, Joshua took, and put them to the sword: he gave them up to the curse, as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had said. As for the towns made on hills of earth, not one was burned by Israel but Hazor, which was burned by Joshua.
And Manasseh did not take away the land of the people of Beth-shean and its daughter-towns, or of Taanach and its daughter-towns, or of the people of Dor and its daughter-towns, or of the people of Ibleam and its daughter-towns, or of the people of Megiddo and its daughter-towns, driving them out; but the Canaanites would go on living in that land. And whenever Israel became strong, they put the Canaanites to forced work, without driving them out completely. read more. And Ephraim did not make the Canaanites who were living in Gezer go out; but the Canaanites went on living in Gezer among them. Zebulun did not make the people of Kitron or the people of Nahalol go out; but the Canaanites went on living among them and were put to forced work. And Asher did not take the land of the people of Acco, or Zidon, or Ahlab, or Achzib, or Helbah, or Aphik, or Rehob, driving them out; But the Asherites went on living among the Canaanites, the people of the land, without driving them out. Naphtali did not take the land of the people of Beth-shemesh or of Beth-anath, driving them out; but he was living among the Canaanites in the land; however, the people of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath were put to forced work.
And it was said to the Gazites, Samson is here. So they went round, watching for him all day at the doorway of the town, but at night they kept quiet, saying, When daylight comes we will put him to death. And Samson was there till the middle of the night; then he got up, and took a grip on the doors of the town, pulling them up, together with their two supports and their locks, and put them on his back and took them up to the top of the hill in front of Hebron.
And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the people of the land: and they said to David, You will not come in here, but the blind and the feeble-footed will keep you out; for they said, David will not be able to come in here. But David took the strong place of Zion, which is the town of David.
And Azmaveth, the son of Adiel, was controller of the king's property; Jonathan, the son of Uzziah, had control of all store-houses in country places and in the towns and little towns and strong places;
Then he took heart, building up the wall where it was broken down, and making its towers higher, and building another wall outside; and he made strong the Millo in the town of David, and got together a great store of all sorts of instruments of war.
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.
Then Eliashib, the chief priest, got up with his brothers the priests, and took in hand the building of the sheep doorway; they made it holy and put its doors in position; as far as the tower of Hammeah they made it holy, even to the tower of Hananel.
The sons of Hassenaah were the builders of the fish doorway; they put its boards in place and put up its doors, with their locks and rods.
Joiada, the son of Paseah, and Meshullam, the son of Besodeiah, made good the old doorway; they put its boards in place and put up its doors, with their locks and rods.
And over the doorway of Ephraim and by the old door and the fish door and the tower of Hananel and the tower of Hammeah, as far as the sheep door: and at the doorway of the watchmen they came to a stop.
See, the days are coming, says the Lord, for the building of the Lord's town, from the tower of Hananel to the doorway of the angle.
And all the land will become like the Arabah, from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; and she will be lifted up and be living in her place; from the doorway of Benjamin to the place of the first doorway, to the doorway of the angle, and from the tower of Hananel to the king's wine-crushing places, men will be living in her.
Fausets
The distinction between a "city" and a "village" in the Bible is, the former had walls. The village had sometimes a watchman's tower, where the villagers repaired when in danger. Such towers Uzziah built in the desert for the protection of husbandmen and cattle from marauding tribes (2Ch 26:10). David too had "castles" (1Ch 27:25). Argob in Bashan, Og's kingdom, E. of Jordan, had "three-score cities fenced with high walls, gates and bars, beside unwalled towns a great many" (De 3:4-5); all which Israel took. (See ARGOB.) Villages in the Hauran sometimes consist of houses joined together and the entrance closed by a gate for security against Arab marauders.
Build often means "fortify" (2Ch 11:5-10; 16:6; 1Ki 15:17). The defenses consisted of one or more walls with battlemented parapets and towers at intervals (2Ch 32:5; Jer 31:38), whereon were war engines, also a citadel or tower, the last resource of the defenders (Jg 9:46,51; 2Ki 9:17; 2Ch 26:9,15). Ninety towers crowned the oldest of Jerusalem's three walls, fourteen the second, sixty the third (B. J., 5:4, section 2). The tower of Hananeel is mentioned Jer 31:38; Zec 14:10; Ne 3:1, where also is mentioned "the tower of Meah," "the tower of the furnaces" (Ne 3:11), "the great tower that lieth out even unto the wall of Ophel" (Ne 3:27). An out-work is meant by the "ditch" or "trench," possibly a wall lining the ditch (1Ki 21:23; 2Sa 20:15).
The castle of Antonia was the citadel of Jerusalem in our Lord's time; it served also to overawe the town, the Roman soldiers occupying it (Ac 21:34). Canaan's "cities fenced up to heaven" were leading causes of the spies' and Israel's unbelieving panic (Nu 13:28; De 1:28; 9:1-2). These the Israelites "rebuilt," i.e. refortified (Nu 32:17,34-42). So fenced was "the stronghold of Zion" that it remained in the Jebusites' hands until David's time (2Sa 5:6-7). Samaria yielded to the mighty hosts of Assyria only after a three years' siege (2Ki 17:5; 18:10).
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But the people living in the land are strong, and the towns are walled and very great; further, we saw the children of Anak there.
But we ourselves will be ready armed to go before the children of Israel till we have taken them to their place: but our little ones will be safe in the walled towns against the people of the land.
And the children of Gad were the builders of Dibon and Ataroth and Aroer; And Atroth-shophan and Jazer and Jogbehah; read more. And Beth-nimrah and Beth-haran: walled towns and shut-in places for sheep. And the children of Reuben were the builders of Heshbon and Elealeh and Kiriathaim; And Nebo and Baal-meon, (their names being changed,) and Sibmah: and they gave other names to the towns they made. And the children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, went to Gilead and took it, driving out the Amorites who were living there. And Moses gave Gilead to Machir, the son of Manasseh; and he made it his living-place. And Jair, the son of Manasseh, went and took the towns of Gilead, naming them Havvoth-Jair. And Nobah went and took Kenath and its small towns, naming it Nobah, after himself.
Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts feeble with fear by saying, The people are greater and taller than we are, and the towns are great and walled up to heaven; and more than this, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.
At that time we took all his towns; there was not one town of the sixty towns, all the country of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan, which we did not take. All these towns had high walls round them with doors and locks; and in addition we took a great number of unwalled towns.
Give ear, O Israel: today you are to go over Jordan, to take the heritage of nations greater and stronger than yourselves, and towns of great size with walls as high as heaven; A people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, of whom you have knowledge and of whom it has been said, All are forced to give way before the sons of Anak.
Then all the townsmen of the tower of Shechem, hearing of it, went into the inner room of the house of El-berith.
But in the middle of the town there was a strong tower, to which all the men and women of the town went in flight and, shutting themselves in, went up to the roof of the tower.
And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the people of the land: and they said to David, You will not come in here, but the blind and the feeble-footed will keep you out; for they said, David will not be able to come in here. But David took the strong place of Zion, which is the town of David.
And of Jezebel the Lord said, Jezebel will become food for dogs in the heritage of Jezreel.
Then the king of Assyria went through all the land and came up to Samaria, shutting it in with his forces for three years.
And at the end of three years they took it; in the sixth year of Hezekiah's rule, which was the ninth year of Hoshea, king of Israel, Samaria was taken.
And Azmaveth, the son of Adiel, was controller of the king's property; Jonathan, the son of Uzziah, had control of all store-houses in country places and in the towns and little towns and strong places;
Now Rehoboam kept in Jerusalem, building walled towns in Judah. He was the builder of Beth-lehem and Etam and Tekoa read more. And Beth-zur and Soco and Adullam And Gath and Mareshah and Ziph And Adoraim and Lachish and Azekah And Zorah and Aijalon and Hebron, walled towns in Judah and Benjamin.
Then King Asa, with all Judah, took away the stones and wood with which Baasha was building Ramah, and he made use of them for building Geba and Mizpah.
And he put up towers in the waste land and made places for storing water, for he had much cattle, in the low hills and in the table land; and he had farmers and vine-keepers in the mountains and in the fertile land, for he was a lover of farming.
Then he took heart, building up the wall where it was broken down, and making its towers higher, and building another wall outside; and he made strong the Millo in the town of David, and got together a great store of all sorts of instruments of war.
Then Eliashib, the chief priest, got up with his brothers the priests, and took in hand the building of the sheep doorway; they made it holy and put its doors in position; as far as the tower of Hammeah they made it holy, even to the tower of Hananel.
Malchijah, the son of Harim, and Hasshub, the son of Pahath-moab, were working on another part, and the tower of the ovens.
After him the Tekoites were making good another part, opposite the great tower which comes out, and up to the wall of the Ophel.
See, the days are coming, says the Lord, for the building of the Lord's town, from the tower of Hananel to the doorway of the angle.
See, the days are coming, says the Lord, for the building of the Lord's town, from the tower of Hananel to the doorway of the angle.
And all the land will become like the Arabah, from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; and she will be lifted up and be living in her place; from the doorway of Benjamin to the place of the first doorway, to the doorway of the angle, and from the tower of Hananel to the king's wine-crushing places, men will be living in her.
And some said one thing and some another, among the people: and as he was not able to get a knowledge of the facts because of the noise, he gave orders for Paul to be taken into the army building.
Smith
Fenced cities,
i.e. cities fortified or defended. The fortifications of the cities of Palestine, thus regularly "fenced," consisted of one or more walls (sometimes of thick stones, sometimes of combustible material), crowned with battlemented parapets, having towers at regular intervals,
on which in later times engines of war were placed, and watch was kept by day and night in time of war.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And all that day Abimelech was fighting against the town; and he took it, and put to death the people who were in it, and had the town pulled down and covered with salt.
Then he took heart, building up the wall where it was broken down, and making its towers higher, and building another wall outside; and he made strong the Millo in the town of David, and got together a great store of all sorts of instruments of war.
See, the days are coming, says the Lord, for the building of the Lord's town, from the tower of Hananel to the doorway of the angle.