Reference: Gate
American
The gates of eastern walled towns were usually of wood, Jg 16:3, often covered with thick plates of iron or copper, Ps 107:16; Isa 45:2; Ac 12:10, secured by bolts and bars, De 3:5; 1Ki 4:13, and flanked by towers, 2Sa 18:24,33. A city was usually regarded as taken when its gates were won, De 28:52; Jg 5:8. Hence "gate" sometimes signifies power, dominion; almost in the same sense as the Turkish sultan's palace is called the Porte, or Gate. God promises Abraham that his posterity shall possess the gates of their enemies- their towns, their fortresses, Ge 22:17. So too, "the gates of hell," that is, the power of hell, or hell itself.
In oriental cities there was always an open space or place adjacent to each gate, and these were at the same time the market places, and the place of justice, Ge 23:10-18; Ru 4:1-12; De 16:18; 21:19; 25:6-7; Pr 22:22; Am 5:10,12,15. There, too, people assembled to spend their leisure hours, Ge 19:1. Hence "they that sit in the gate" is put for idlers, loungers, who are coupled with drunkards, Ps 69:12. The woes of a city were disclosed in the mourning or loneliness of these places of resort, Isa 14:31; Jer 14:2. Here too the public proclamations were made, and the messages of prophets delivered, Pr 1:21; 8:3; Isa 29:21; Jer 17:19; 26:10. Near the gate of a city, but without it, executions took place, 1Ki 21:13; Ac 7:58; Heb 13:12. To exalt the gate of a house through pride, increased one's exposure to robbery, Pr 17:19. To open it wide and high was significant of joy and welcome, as when the Savior ascended to heaven, Ps 24:7,9; and the open gates of the new Jerusalem in contrast with those of earthly cities carefully closed and guarded at nightfall, indicate the happy security of that world of light, Re 21:25.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
The two angels entered Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting at Sodom's gate. When Lot saw [them], he got up to meet them. He bowed [with his] face to the ground
I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
Ephron was present with the Hittites. So in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham: "No, my lord. Listen to me. I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead." read more. Abraham bowed down to the people of the land and said to Ephron in the presence of the people of the land, "Please listen to me. Let me pay the price of the field. Accept it from me, and let me bury my dead there." Ephron answered Abraham and said to him "My lord, listen to me. Land worth 400 shekels of silver-what is that between you and me? Bury your dead." Abraham agreed with Ephron, and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver that he had agreed to in the hearing of the Hittites: 400 shekels of silver at the current commercial rate. So Ephron's field at Machpelah near Mamre-the field with its cave and all the trees anywhere within the boundaries of the field-became Abraham's possession in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city.
All these were fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, besides a large number of rural villages.
"Appoint judges and officials for your tribes in all your towns the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.
his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown.
The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so his name will not be blotted out from Israel. But if the man doesn't want to marry his sister-in-law, she must go to the elders at the [city] gate and say, 'My brother-in-law refuses to preserve his brother's name in Israel. He isn't willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.'
They will besiege you within all your gates until your high and fortified walls, that you trust in, come down throughout your land. They will besiege you within all your gates throughout the land the Lord your God has given you.
Israel chose new gods, then war was in the gates. Not a shield or spear was seen among 40,000 in Israel.
But Samson stayed in bed until midnight when he got up, took hold of the doors of the city gate along with the two gateposts, and pulled them out, bar and all. He put them on his shoulders and took them to the top of the mountain overlooking Hebron.
Boaz went to the gate [of the town] and sat down there. Soon, the family redeemer Boaz had spoken about came by. Boaz called him by name and said, "Come over here and sit down." So he went over and sat down. Then Boaz took 10 men of the city's elders and said, "Sit here." And they sat down. read more. He said to the redeemer, "Naomi, who has returned from the land of Moab, is selling a piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech. I thought I should inform you: Buy [it] back in the presence of those seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you want to redeem [it], do so. But if you do not want to redeem [it], tell me, so that I will know, because there isn't anyone other than you to redeem [it], and I am next after you." "I want to redeem [it]," he answered. Then Boaz said, "On the day you buy the land from Naomi, you will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the deceased man, to perpetuate the man's name on his property." The redeemer replied, "I can't redeem [it] myself, or I will ruin my [own] inheritance. Take my right of redemption, because I can't redeem it." At an earlier period in Israel, a man removed his sandal and gave [it] to the other party in order to make any matter [legally] binding concerning the right of redemption or the exchange of property. This was [the method of] legally binding a transaction in Israel. So the redeemer removed his sandal and said to Boaz, "Buy back [the property] yourself." Boaz said to the elders and all the people, "You are witnesses today that I am buying from Naomi everything that belonged to Elimelech, Chilion, and Mahlon. I will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon's widow, as my wife, to perpetuate the deceased man's name on his property, so that his name will not disappear among his relatives or from the gate of his home. You are witnesses today." The elders and all the people who were at the gate said, "We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is entering your house like Rachel and Leah, who together built the house of Israel. May you be powerful in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem. May your house become like the house of Perez, the son Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring the Lord will give you by this young woman."
David was sitting between the two gates when the watchman went up to the roof of the gate and over to the wall. The watchman looked out and saw a man running alone.
The king was deeply moved and went up to the gate chamber and wept. As he walked, he cried, "My son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son!"
The two wicked men came in and sat opposite him. Then the wicked men testified against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, "Naboth has cursed God and king!" So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones.
Lift up your heads, you gates! Rise up, ancient doors! Then the King of glory will come in.
Lift up your heads, you gates! Rise up, ancient doors! Then the King of glory will come in.
Those who sit at the city gate talk about me, and drunkards make up songs about me.
For He has broken down the bronze gates and cut through the iron bars.
She cries out above the commotion; she speaks at the entrance of the city gates:
Beside the gates at the entry to the city, at the main entrance, she cries out:
One who loves to offend loves strife; one who builds a high threshold invites injury.
Don't rob a poor man because he is poor, and don't crush the oppressed at the gate,
Wail, you gates! Cry out, city! Tremble with fear, all Philistia! For a cloud of dust is coming from the north, and there is no one missing from [the invader's] ranks.
those who, with [their] speech, accuse a person of wrongdoing, who set a trap at the gate for the mediator, and without cause deprive the righteous of justice.
"I will go before you and level the uneven places; I will shatter the bronze doors and cut the iron bars in two.
Judah mourns; her gates languish. [Her people] are on the ground in mourning; Jerusalem's cry rises up.
This is what the Lord said to me, "Go and stand in the People's Gate, through which the kings of Judah enter and leave, and in all the gates of Jerusalem.
When the officials of Judah heard these things, they went up from the king's palace to the Lord's temple and sat at the entrance of the New Gate.
They hate the one who convicts [the guilty] at the city gate and despise the one who speaks with integrity.
For I know your crimes are many and your sins innumerable. They oppress the righteous, take a bribe, and deprive the poor of justice at the gates.
Hate evil and love good; establish justice in the gate. Perhaps the Lord, the God of Hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
They threw him out of the city and began to stone him. And the witnesses laid their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
After they passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and immediately the angel left him.
Therefore Jesus also suffered outside the gate, so that He might sanctify the people by His own blood.
Each day its gates will never close because it will never be night there.
Easton
(1.) Of cities, as of Jerusalem (Jer 37:13; Ne 1:3; 2:3; 3:3), of Sodom (Ge 19:1), of Gaza (Jg 16:3).
(2.) Of royal palaces (Ne 2:8).
(3.) Of the temple of Solomon (1Ki 6:34-35; 2Ki 18:16); of the holy place (1Ki 6:31-32; Eze 41:23-24); of the outer courts of the temple, the beautiful gate (Ac 3:2).
(4.) Tombs (Mt 27:60).
(5.) Prisons (Ac 12:10; 16:27).
(6.) Caverns (1Ki 19:13).
(7.) Camps (Ex 32:26-27; Heb 13:12).
The materials of which gates were made were,
(1.) Iron and brass (Ps 107:16; Isa 45:2; Ac 12:10).
(2.) Stones and pearls (Isa 54:12; Re 21:21).
(3.) Wood (Jg 16:3) probably.
At the gates of cities courts of justice were frequently held, and hence "judges of the gate" are spoken of (De 16:18; 17:8; 21:19; 25:6-7, etc.). At the gates prophets also frequently delivered their messages (Pr 1:21; 8:3; Isa 29:21; Jer 17:19-20; 26:10). Criminals were punished without the gates (1Ki 21:13; Ac 7:59). By the "gates of righteousness" we are probably to understand those of the temple (Ps 118:19). "The gates of hell" (R.V., "gates of Hades") Mt 16:18, are generally interpreted as meaning the power of Satan, but probably they may mean the power of death, denoting that the Church of Christ shall never die.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
The two angels entered Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting at Sodom's gate. When Lot saw [them], he got up to meet them. He bowed [with his] face to the ground
And Moses stood at the camp's entrance and said, "Whoever is for the Lord, [come] to me." And all the Levites gathered around him. He told them, "This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says, 'Every man fasten his sword to his side; go back and forth through the camp from entrance to entrance, and each of you kill his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.' "
"Appoint judges and officials for your tribes in all your towns the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.
"If a case is too difficult for you-concerning bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults-cases disputed at your gates, you must go up to the place the Lord your God chooses.
his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown.
The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so his name will not be blotted out from Israel. But if the man doesn't want to marry his sister-in-law, she must go to the elders at the [city] gate and say, 'My brother-in-law refuses to preserve his brother's name in Israel. He isn't willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.'
But Samson stayed in bed until midnight when he got up, took hold of the doors of the city gate along with the two gateposts, and pulled them out, bar and all. He put them on his shoulders and took them to the top of the mountain overlooking Hebron.
But Samson stayed in bed until midnight when he got up, took hold of the doors of the city gate along with the two gateposts, and pulled them out, bar and all. He put them on his shoulders and took them to the top of the mountain overlooking Hebron.
For the entrance of the inner sanctuary, he made olive wood doors. The pillars of the doorposts were five-sided. The two doors were made of olive wood. He carved cherubim, palm trees and flower blossoms on them and overlaid them with gold, hammering gold over the cherubim and palm trees.
The two doors were made of cypress wood; the first door had two folding sides, and the second door had two folding panels. He carved cherubim, palm trees and flower blossoms on them and overlaid them with gold applied evenly over the carving.
When Elijah heard [it], he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Suddenly, a voice came to him and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
The two wicked men came in and sat opposite him. Then the wicked men testified against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, "Naboth has cursed God and king!" So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones.
They said to me, "The survivors in the province, who returned from the exile, are in great trouble and disgrace. Jerusalem's wall has been broken down, and its gates have been burned down."
and replied to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"
And [let me have] a letter [written] to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest, so that he will give me timber to rebuild the gates of the temple's fortress, the city wall, and the home where I will live." The king granted my [requests], for I was graciously strengthened by my God.
The sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate. They built it with beams and installed its doors, bolts, and bars.
For He has broken down the bronze gates and cut through the iron bars.
Open the gates of righteousness for me; I will enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.
She cries out above the commotion; she speaks at the entrance of the city gates:
Beside the gates at the entry to the city, at the main entrance, she cries out:
those who, with [their] speech, accuse a person of wrongdoing, who set a trap at the gate for the mediator, and without cause deprive the righteous of justice.
"I will go before you and level the uneven places; I will shatter the bronze doors and cut the iron bars in two.
I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling stones, and all your walls of precious stones.
This is what the Lord said to me, "Go and stand in the People's Gate, through which the kings of Judah enter and leave, and in all the gates of Jerusalem. Announce to them: Hear the word of the Lord, kings of Judah, all Judah, and all the residents of Jerusalem who enter through these gates.
When the officials of Judah heard these things, they went up from the king's palace to the Lord's temple and sat at the entrance of the New Gate.
But when he was at the Benjamin Gate, an officer of the guard was there, whose name was Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, and he apprehended Jeremiah the prophet, saying, "You are deserting to the Chaldeans."
The great hall and the sanctuary each had a double door, and each of the doors had two swinging panels. There were two panels for one door and two for the other.
It should be: And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.
and placed it in his new tomb, which he had cut into the rock. He left after rolling a great stone against the entrance of the tomb.
And a man who was lame from his mother's womb was carried there and placed every day at the temple gate called Beautiful, so he could beg from those entering the temple complex.
They were stoning Stephen as he called out: "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"
After they passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and immediately the angel left him.
After they passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and immediately the angel left him.
When the jailer woke up and saw the doors of the prison open, he drew his sword and was going to kill himself, since he thought the prisoners had escaped.
Therefore Jesus also suffered outside the gate, so that He might sanctify the people by His own blood.
The 12 gates are 12 pearls; each individual gate was made of a single pearl. The broad street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
Fausets
The oriental resort for business, converse, bargaining, and news (Ge 19:1; 23:10; Ps 69:12), for addresses and reading the law (2Ch 32:6; Ne 8:1,3; Pr 1:21; Jer 17:19), or administering justice (Jos 20:4; Ru 4:1; De 16:18; 21:19). Pr 22:22, "neither oppress the afflicted in the gate," i.e. in the place of justice, in lawsuits. Ps 69:12, "they that sit in the gate speak against Me (Messiah), and I was the song of the drunkards," i.e., not only among drunken revelers, but in the grave deliberations of the judges in the place of justice I was an object of obloquy. Am 5:12, "they turn aside the poor in the gate," i.e. they refuse them their right in the place of justice; (Am 5:10) "they hate him that rebuketh in the gate," namely, the judge who condemns them (Zec 8:16).
Isa 29:21, "they lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate," i.e., they try by bribes and misrepresentations to ensnare into a false decision the judge who would in public court reprove them for their iniquity, or to ensnare the prophet who publicly reproves them (Jer 7:2). "The Sublime Porte," the title for the Sultan of Turkey, is derived from the eastern usage of dispensing law in the gateway. The king's or chief's place of audience (1Ki 22:10; 2Sa 19:8; Job 29:7; La 5:14). The object of a foe's attack and therefore strengthened especially (Jg 5:8; Ps 147:18), shut at nightfall (De 3:5; Jos 2:5,7; 1Sa 23:7). The market place for country produce (2Ki 7:1; Ne 13:16-19). The open spaces near the gates were used for pagan sacrifices (Ac 14:13; 2Ki 23:8).
Josiah defiled "the high places of the gates in the entering in of the gate." The larger gates had two valves, and were plated with metal and secured with locks and bars. Those without iron plating were easily set on fire (Jg 9:52). Sentences of the law were inscribed on and above them, to which allusion occurs De 6:9; an usage followed by Muslims in modern times. Some gates were of solid stones (Re 21:21; Isa 54:12). Massive stone doors are found in ancient houses of Syria, single slabs, several inches thick, 10 ft. high, turning on stone pivots above and below. The king's principal gate at Ispahan afforded sanctuary to criminals (Chardin, 7:368). In Esther's time "none might enter into the king's gate clothed with sackcloth" (Es 4:2). "The Beautiful Gate" of Herod's temple (Ac 3:2) was the outer one, made of Corinthian brass, surpassing in costliness even nine others of the outer court, which were covered with gold and silver.
It was so heavy that twenty men were required to close it, but it was found open unexpectedly shortly before the overthrow of Jerusalem (Josephus, B. J., 5:5, sec. 3; 6: 5, sec. 3; contra Apion, 2:9). The doorway consisted of lintel, threshold, and side-posts (Ex 12:7,22). In Ge 22:17, "thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies," the sense is, shall sit in judgment on them, as in the Assyrian sculptures the king is represented sitting in judgment upon prisoners. Thus the Persian satrap in the Lycian Xanthus monument sits at the gate dictating terms to the Greek ambassadors, and Sennacherib, at his tent door, gives judgment on the Jews taken at Lachish (British Museum, 59). In front of the larger edifices in the remains at Persepolis and Nineveh (Khorsabad) are propylaea, or "porches," like that "for Solomon's throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment, covered with cedar from one side of the floor to the other" (1Ki 7:7).
The threshold in the Assyrian palaces is one slab of gypsum with cuneatic inscriptions; human-headed bulls with eagles' wings guard the portals, like and probably borrowed from the cherubim which guarded the gate of Eden; besides there are holes 12 in. square, lined round with tiles, with a brick to cover them above and containing small baked clay idols with lynx head and human body, or human head and lion's body, probably like the teraphim, from Arabic tarf "a boundary," and akin to the Persian "telifin" talismans. (See TERAPHIM.) Thus the place of going out and coming in was guarded, as especially sacred, from all evil by the inscriptions, the compound figured gods outside, and the hidden teraphim. Daniel "sat in" such a "gate" before the palace of Babylon as "ruler over the whole province of Babylon" (Da 2:48-49) The courtiers of Ahasuerus attended him "in the gate" similarly (Es 3:2).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
The two angels entered Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting at Sodom's gate. When Lot saw [them], he got up to meet them. He bowed [with his] face to the ground
I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
Ephron was present with the Hittites. So in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham:
They must take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat them.
Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and brush the lintel and the two doorposts with some of the blood in the basin. None of you may go out the door of his house until morning.
All these were fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, besides a large number of rural villages.
Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
"Appoint judges and officials for your tribes in all your towns the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.
his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown.
At nightfall, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I don't know where they were going. Chase after them quickly, and you can catch up with them!"
The men pursued them along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they left to pursue them, the gate was shut.
When someone flees to one of these cities, stands at the entrance of the city gate, and states his case before the elders of that city, they are to bring him into the city and give him a place to live among them.
Israel chose new gods, then war was in the gates. Not a shield or spear was seen among 40,000 in Israel.
When Abimelech came to attack the tower, he approached its entrance to set it on fire.
Boaz went to the gate [of the town] and sat down there. Soon, the family redeemer Boaz had spoken about came by. Boaz called him by name and said, "Come over here and sit down." So he went over and sat down.
He made the Hall of the Throne where he would judge-the Hall of Judgment. It was paneled with cedar from the floor to the rafters.
Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah, clothed in royal attire, were each sitting on his own throne. They were on the threshing floor at the entrance to Samaria's gate, and all the prophets were prophesying in front of them.
Elisha said, "Hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord says: 'About this time tomorrow at the gate of Samaria, six quarts of fine meal [will sell] for a shekel and 12 quarts of barley [will sell] for a shekel.' "
He set military commanders over the people and gathered the people in the square of the city gate. Then he encouraged them, saying,
all the people gathered together at the square in front of the Water Gate. They asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel.
While he was facing the square in front of the Water Gate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law.
The Tyrians living there were importing fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah in Jerusalem. I rebuked the nobles of Judah and said to them: "What is this evil you are doing-profaning the Sabbath day? read more. Didn't your ancestors do the same, so that our God brought all this disaster on us and on this city? And now you are rekindling [His] anger against Israel by profaning the Sabbath!" When shadows began to fall on the gates of Jerusalem just before the Sabbath, I gave orders that the gates be closed and not opened until after the Sabbath. I posted some of my men at the gates, so that no goods could enter during the Sabbath day.
The entire royal staff at the King's Gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded this to be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage.
He only went as far as the King's Gate, since [the law] prohibited anyone wearing sackcloth from entering the King's Gate.
When I went out to the city gate and took my seat in the town square,
Those who sit at the city gate talk about me, and drunkards make up songs about me.
Those who sit at the city gate talk about me, and drunkards make up songs about me.
He sends His word and melts them; He unleashes His winds, and the waters flow.
She cries out above the commotion; she speaks at the entrance of the city gates:
Don't rob a poor man because he is poor, and don't crush the oppressed at the gate,
those who, with [their] speech, accuse a person of wrongdoing, who set a trap at the gate for the mediator, and without cause deprive the righteous of justice.
I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling stones, and all your walls of precious stones.
"Stand in the gate of the house of the Lord and there call out this word: Hear the word of the Lord, all [you people] of Judah who enter through these gates to worship the Lord.
This is what the Lord said to me, "Go and stand in the People's Gate, through which the kings of Judah enter and leave, and in all the gates of Jerusalem.
The elders have left the city gate, the young men, their music.
Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many generous gifts. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon. At Daniel's request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to manage the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king's court.
They hate the one who convicts [the guilty] at the city gate and despise the one who speaks with integrity.
For I know your crimes are many and your sins innumerable. They oppress the righteous, take a bribe, and deprive the poor of justice at the gates.
These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another; render honest and peaceful judgments in your gates.
And a man who was lame from his mother's womb was carried there and placed every day at the temple gate called Beautiful, so he could beg from those entering the temple complex.
Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the town, brought oxen and garlands to the gates. He, with the crowds, intended to offer sacrifice.
The 12 gates are 12 pearls; each individual gate was made of a single pearl. The broad street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
Hastings
Morish
Beside the ordinary use of gates for the protection of a city, 'in the gate' was the place where many important things were transacted. When Boaz wanted the question settled respecting Ruth and the inheritance, he went up to the gate: the subject was debated with a nearer relative, then concluded, and witnessed by the elders. Ru 4:1-12; cf. Jos 20:4; 1Sa 4:18; 2Sa 15:2; Ac 14:13. To 'sit in the gate' was a place of honour: "they that sit in the gate speak against me." Ps 69:12. It should have been the place of true judgement and justice, but was not always so. Isa 29:21; Am 5:10,12; Zec 8:16. It was, at least at times, the king's chief place of audience. 2Sa 19:8; 1Ki 22:10; Job 29:7; La 5:14. From this it would be a symbol of power: thus the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church which Christ builds. Mt 16:18.
The gates of cities were of wood cased with iron to strengthen them and prevent them being burnt with fire. cf. Jg 9:52. The prison at Jerusalem had an outer gate of iron, the only iron one we read of. Ac 12:10.
Doubtless the gates of Solomon's temple were adorned to agree with the rest of the work. In the N.T. we read of THE BEAUTIFUL GATE of the temple, Ac 3:10; and Josephus relates that Herod made an outer gate of Corinthian brass, costing more than those adorned with gold and silver. The gates of the New Jerusalem are described as pearls: "every several gate was of one pearl," Re 21:12-25: the entrances must be in keeping with the rest of the city. The pearls represent the glories of Christ as seen in the church: cf. Mt 13:46.
The gate is used symbolically as the entrance both to life and to destruction: the former is narrow and the way straitened, and alas, there are but few that find it; whereas for the latter the gate is wide and the way is broad, and many there are that enter through it. Mt 7:13-14.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
When someone flees to one of these cities, stands at the entrance of the city gate, and states his case before the elders of that city, they are to bring him into the city and give him a place to live among them.
When Abimelech came to attack the tower, he approached its entrance to set it on fire.
Boaz went to the gate [of the town] and sat down there. Soon, the family redeemer Boaz had spoken about came by. Boaz called him by name and said, "Come over here and sit down." So he went over and sat down. Then Boaz took 10 men of the city's elders and said, "Sit here." And they sat down. read more. He said to the redeemer, "Naomi, who has returned from the land of Moab, is selling a piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech. I thought I should inform you: Buy [it] back in the presence of those seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you want to redeem [it], do so. But if you do not want to redeem [it], tell me, so that I will know, because there isn't anyone other than you to redeem [it], and I am next after you." "I want to redeem [it]," he answered. Then Boaz said, "On the day you buy the land from Naomi, you will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the deceased man, to perpetuate the man's name on his property." The redeemer replied, "I can't redeem [it] myself, or I will ruin my [own] inheritance. Take my right of redemption, because I can't redeem it." At an earlier period in Israel, a man removed his sandal and gave [it] to the other party in order to make any matter [legally] binding concerning the right of redemption or the exchange of property. This was [the method of] legally binding a transaction in Israel. So the redeemer removed his sandal and said to Boaz, "Buy back [the property] yourself." Boaz said to the elders and all the people, "You are witnesses today that I am buying from Naomi everything that belonged to Elimelech, Chilion, and Mahlon. I will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon's widow, as my wife, to perpetuate the deceased man's name on his property, so that his name will not disappear among his relatives or from the gate of his home. You are witnesses today." The elders and all the people who were at the gate said, "We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is entering your house like Rachel and Leah, who together built the house of Israel. May you be powerful in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem. May your house become like the house of Perez, the son Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring the Lord will give you by this young woman."
So the king got up and sat in the gate, and all the people were told: "Look, the king is sitting in the gate." Then they all came into the king's presence. Meanwhile, each Israelite had fled to his tent.
When I went out to the city gate and took my seat in the town square,
Those who sit at the city gate talk about me, and drunkards make up songs about me.
those who, with [their] speech, accuse a person of wrongdoing, who set a trap at the gate for the mediator, and without cause deprive the righteous of justice.
The elders have left the city gate, the young men, their music.
They hate the one who convicts [the guilty] at the city gate and despise the one who speaks with integrity.
For I know your crimes are many and your sins innumerable. They oppress the righteous, take a bribe, and deprive the poor of justice at the gates.
These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another; render honest and peaceful judgments in your gates.
"Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.
When he found one priceless pearl, he went and sold everything he had, and bought it.
It should be: And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.
and they recognized that he was the one who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the temple complex. So they were filled with awe and astonishment at what had happened to him.
After they passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and immediately the angel left him.
Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the town, brought oxen and garlands to the gates. He, with the crowds, intended to offer sacrifice.
[The city] had a massive high wall, with 12 gates. Twelve angels were at the gates; [on the gates], names were inscribed, the names of the 12 tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west. read more. The city wall had 12 foundations, and on them were the 12 names of the Lamb's 12 apostles. The one who spoke with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. The city is laid out in a square; its length and width are the same. He measured the city with the rod at 12,000 stadia. Its length, width, and height are equal. Then he measured its wall, 144 cubits according to human measurement, which the angel used. The building material of its wall was jasper, and the city was pure gold like clear glass. The foundations of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone: the first foundation jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. The 12 gates are 12 pearls; each individual gate was made of a single pearl. The broad street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. I did not see a sanctuary in it, because the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its sanctuary. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because God's glory illuminates it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Each day its gates will never close because it will never be night there.
Smith
Gate.
The gate and gateways of eastern cities anciently held and still hold an important part, not only in the defence but in the public economy of the place. They are thus sometimes taken as representing the city itself.
Ge 22:17; 24:60; De 12:12; Jg 5:8; Ru 4:10; Ps 87:2; 122:2
Among the special purposes for which they were used may be mentioned.
1. As places of public resort.
Ge 19:1; 23:10; 34:20,24; 1Sa 4:18
etc.
2. Places for public deliberation, administration of Justice, or of audience for kings and rulers or ambassadors.
De 16:18; 21:19; 25:7; Jos 20:4; Jg 9:35
etc.
3. Public markets.
In heathen towns the open spaces near the gates appear to have been sometimes used as places for sacrifice.
comp 2Kin 23:8 Regarded therefore as positions of great importance, the gates of cities were carefully guarded, and closed at nightfall.
They contained chambers over the gateway.
The doors themselves of the larger gates mentioned in Scripture were two leaved, plated with metal, closed with locks and fastened with metal bars.
De 3:6; Ps 107:16; Isa 46:1-2
Gates not defended by iron were of course liable to be set on fire by an enemy.
The gateways of royal palaces and even of private houses were often richly ornamented. Sentences from the law were inscribed on and above the gates.
The gates of Solomon's temple were very massive and costly, being overlaid with gold and carving.
Those of the holy place were of olive wood, two-leaved and overlaid with gold; those of the temple of fir.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
The two angels entered Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting at Sodom's gate. When Lot saw [them], he got up to meet them. He bowed [with his] face to the ground
I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
Ephron was present with the Hittites. So in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham:
They blessed Rebekah, saying to her: Our sister, may you become thousands upon ten thousands. May your offspring possess the gates of their enemies.
So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city and spoke to the men there.
All the able-bodied men listened to Hamor and his son Shechem, and all the able-bodied men were circumcised.
All these were fortified with high walls, gates, and bars, besides a large number of rural villages. We completely destroyed them, as we had done to Sihon king of Heshbon, destroying the men, women, and children of every city.
Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
You will rejoice before the Lord your God-you, your sons and daughters, your male and female slaves, and the Levite who is within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance among you.
"Appoint judges and officials for your tribes in all your towns the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.
his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown.
But if the man doesn't want to marry his sister-in-law, she must go to the elders at the [city] gate and say, 'My brother-in-law refuses to preserve his brother's name in Israel. He isn't willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.'
At nightfall, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I don't know where they were going. Chase after them quickly, and you can catch up with them!"
The men pursued them along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they left to pursue them, the gate was shut.
When someone flees to one of these cities, stands at the entrance of the city gate, and states his case before the elders of that city, they are to bring him into the city and give him a place to live among them.
Israel chose new gods, then war was in the gates. Not a shield or spear was seen among 40,000 in Israel.
Gaal son of Ebed went out and stood at the entrance of the city gate. Then Abimelech and the people who were with him got up from their ambush.
but Abimelech pursued him, and Gaal fled before him. Many wounded died as far as the entrance of the gate.
Then Abimelech and the units that were with him rushed forward and took their stand at the entrance of the city gate. The other two units rushed against all who were in the countryside and struck them down.
When Abimelech came to attack the tower, he approached its entrance to set it on fire.
I will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon's widow, as my wife, to perpetuate the deceased man's name on his property, so that his name will not disappear among his relatives or from the gate of his home. You are witnesses today."
David was sitting between the two gates when the watchman went up to the roof of the gate and over to the wall. The watchman looked out and saw a man running alone.
For the entrance of the inner sanctuary, he made olive wood doors. The pillars of the doorposts were five-sided. The two doors were made of olive wood. He carved cherubim, palm trees and flower blossoms on them and overlaid them with gold, hammering gold over the cherubim and palm trees.
The two doors were made of cypress wood; the first door had two folding sides, and the second door had two folding panels.
The two doors were made of cypress wood; the first door had two folding sides, and the second door had two folding panels. He carved cherubim, palm trees and flower blossoms on them and overlaid them with gold applied evenly over the carving.
Elisha said, "Hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord says: 'About this time tomorrow at the gate of Samaria, six quarts of fine meal [will sell] for a shekel and 12 quarts of barley [will sell] for a shekel.' "
Then Josiah brought all the priests from the cities of Judah, and he defiled the high places from Geba to Beer-sheba, where the priests had burned incense. He tore down the high places of the gates at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city (on the left at the city gate).
The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
For He has broken down the bronze gates and cut through the iron bars.
Bel crouches; Nebo cowers. Their idols are consigned to beasts and cattle. The [images] you carry are loaded, as a burden for the weary [animal]. The gods cower; they crouch together; they are not able to rescue the burden, but they themselves go into captivity.
Lord, after all this, will You restrain Yourself? Will You keep silent and afflict severely?
The great hall and the sanctuary each had a double door, and each of the doors had two swinging panels. There were two panels for one door and two for the other.
Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the town, brought oxen and garlands to the gates. He, with the crowds, intended to offer sacrifice.
The 12 gates are 12 pearls; each individual gate was made of a single pearl. The broad street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
Watsons
GATE is often used in Scripture to denote a place of public assembly, where justice was administered, De 17:5,8; 21:19; 22:15; 25:6-7, &c. One instance of these judgments appears in that given at the gate of Bethlehem, between Boaz and a relation of Naomi, on the subject of Ruth, Ru 4:2; another in Abraham's purchase of a field to bury Sarah, Ge 23:10,18. The gate of judgment is a term still common to the Arabians to express a court of justice, and even introduced by the Saracens into Spain. "I had several times," says Jacob, "visited the Alhambra, the ancient palace and fortress of the Moorish kings: it is situated on the top of a hill, overlooking the city, and is surrounded by a wall of great height and thickness. The entrance is through an archway, over which is carved a key, the symbol of the Mohammedan monarchs. This gate, called the gate of judgment, according to eastern forms, was the place where the kings administered justice." In Morocco, the gate is still the place where judgment is held. "All complaints," says Host, "are brought, in the first instance, to the cadi, or governor, who, for that purpose, passes certain hours of the day in the gate of the city, partly for the sake of the fresh air, and partly to see all those who go out; and, lastly, to observe a custom which has long prevailed, of holding judgment there. The gate is contrived accordingly, being built like a square chamber, with two doors, which are not directly opposite to each other, but on two adjoining sides, with seats on the other sides. In this manner David sat between two gates," 2Sa 18:24. Gate sometimes signifies power, dominion, almost in the same sense as the Turkish emperor's palace is called the Porte. God promises Abraham that his posterity shall possess the gates of their enemies, their towns, their fortresses, Ge 22:17. Jesus Christ says to Peter, "Thou art Peter; and on this rock will I build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it," Mt 16:18. This may mean either the powers of hell, or invisible spirits; or simply death,
See Verses Found in Dictionary
I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
Ephron was present with the Hittites. So in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham:
Abraham's possession in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city.
you must bring out to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing and stone them to death.
"If a case is too difficult for you-concerning bloodshed, lawsuits, or assaults-cases disputed at your gates, you must go up to the place the Lord your God chooses.
his father and mother must take hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown.
the young woman's father and mother will take the evidence of her virginity and bring [it] to the city elders at the gate.
The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so his name will not be blotted out from Israel. But if the man doesn't want to marry his sister-in-law, she must go to the elders at the [city] gate and say, 'My brother-in-law refuses to preserve his brother's name in Israel. He isn't willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.'
Then Boaz took 10 men of the city's elders and said, "Sit here." And they sat down.
David was sitting between the two gates when the watchman went up to the roof of the gate and over to the wall. The watchman looked out and saw a man running alone.
It should be: And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.