Reference: Prison
Easton
The first occasion on which we read of a prison is in the history of Joseph in Egypt. Then Potiphar, "Joseph's master, took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound" (Ge 39:20-23). The Heb word here used (sohar) means properly a round tower or fortress. It seems to have been a part of Potiphar's house, a place in which state prisoners were kept.
The Mosaic law made no provision for imprisonment as a punishment. In the wilderness two persons were "put in ward" (Le 24:12; Nu 15:34), but it was only till the mind of God concerning them should be ascertained. Prisons and prisoners are mentioned in the book of Psalms (Ps 69:33; 79:11; 142:7). Samson was confined in a Philistine prison (Jg 16:21,25). In the subsequent history of Israel frequent references are made to prisons (1Ki 22:27; 2Ki 17:4; 25:27,29; 2Ch 16:10; Isa 42:7; Jer 32:2). Prisons seem to have been common in New Testament times (Mt 11:2; 25:36,43). The apostles were put into the "common prison" at the instance of the Jewish council (Ac 5:18,23; 8:3); and at Philippi Paul and Silas were thrust into the "inner prison" (Ac 16:24; comp. Ac 4:3; 12:4-5).
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And he took Joseph and put him in prison: even in the place where the king's prisoners lay bound. And there continued he in prison, but the LORD was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and got him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison; read more. which committed to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison house. And whatsoever was done there, that did he. And the keeper of the prison looked unto nothing that was under his hand, because the LORD was with him, and because that whatsoever he did, the LORD made it come luckily to pass.
And they put him inward, that Moses should declare unto them what the LORD said thereto.
and they put him inward, for it was not declared what should be done unto him.
But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes; and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters. And he was made to grind in the prison house.
And when their hearts were merry, they said, "Send for Samson and let him play before us." And they fetched Samson out of the prison house, and he played before them, and they set him between the pillars.
and say, 'Thus sayeth the king. Put ye this fellow in the prison house and feed him with bread and water straightly, until I return in peace.'"
For the LORD heareth the poor, and despiseth not his prisoners.
O let the sorrowful sighing of the prisoners come before thee; and according unto the power of thy arm, preserve those that are appointed to die.
Bring my soul out of prison, that I may give thanks unto thy name - which thing if thou wilt grant me, then shall the righteous resort unto my company.
That thou mayest open the eyes of the blind; let out the prisoners, and them that sit in darkness, out of the dungeon house.
what time as the king of Babylon's Host laid siege unto Jerusalem. But Jeremiah the prophet lay bound in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house:
When John, being in prison, heard the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said unto him,
I was sick and ye visited me. I was in prison and ye came unto me.'
I was naked, and ye clothed me not. I was sick and in prison, and ye visited me not.'
And they laid hands on them, and put them in hold until the next day. For it was now eventide.
and laid hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
saying, "The prison found we shut as sure as was possible and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened we found no man within."
But Saul made havoc of the congregation, entering into every house: and drew out both man and woman, and thrust them into prison.
And when he had caught him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to be kept, intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. Then was Peter kept in prison. But prayer was made without ceasing of the congregation unto God for him.
Which jailer, when he had received such commandment, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
Hastings
Imprisonment, in the modern sense of strict confinement under guard, had no recognized place as a punishment for criminals under the older Hebrew legislation (see Crimes and Punishments,
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and they took him and cast him into a pit. But the pit was empty and had no water therein.
And he took Joseph and put him in prison: even in the place where the king's prisoners lay bound. And there continued he in prison,
And the keeper of the prison looked unto nothing that was under his hand, because the LORD was with him, and because that whatsoever he did, the LORD made it come luckily to pass.
And they dreamed, either of them, in one night: both the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt which were bound in the prison house, either of them his dream, and each man's dream of a sundry interpretation.
And at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt: from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his seat, unto the firstborn of the captive that was in prison, and all firstborn of the cattle.
But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes; and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters. And he was made to grind in the prison house.
And when their hearts were merry, they said, "Send for Samson and let him play before us." And they fetched Samson out of the prison house, and he played before them, and they set him between the pillars.
Whereupon Asa was wroth with the seer and put him in the converting house, for he was displeased with him because of that. Moreover Asa oppressed certain of the people the same season.
And whosoever will not diligently fulfill the law of thy God, and the king's law, shall have his judgment for the deed, whether it be unto death, or to be banished, or to be condemned in goods, or to be put in prison."
he smote Jeremiah, and put him in the stocks, that are by the high gate of Benjamin, in the house of the LORD.
'The LORD hath ordained thee to be priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, that thou shouldest be the chief in the house of the LORD above all prophets, and preachers, and that thou mightest put them in prison, or in the stocks.
Now Jeremiah walked free among the people at that time, and was not put in prison as yet.
Wherefore the princes were angry with Jeremiah, causing him to be beaten, and to be laid in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe. For he was the ruler of the prison.
Wherefore the princes were angry with Jeremiah, causing him to be beaten, and to be laid in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe. For he was the ruler of the prison.
Wherefore the princes were angry with Jeremiah, causing him to be beaten, and to be laid in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe. For he was the ruler of the prison. Thus was Jeremiah put into the dungeon and prison, and so lay there a long time.
Thus was Jeremiah put into the dungeon and prison, and so lay there a long time.
Moreover, Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah, "What have I offended against thee, against thy servants or against this people, that ye have caused me to be put in prison?
he went out of the king's house, and spake to the king, which then sat under the port of Benjamin, these words:
In the thirty seventh year after that Jehoiachin the king of Judah was carried away in the twenty fifth day of the twelfth Month, Evilmerodach king of Babylon, the same year that he reigned, gave Jehoiachin the king of Judah his pardon, and let him out of prison,
Thou also, through the blood of thy covenant, shalt let thy prisoners out of the pit, wherein is no water.
For Herod had taken John and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife.
And sent and beheaded John in the prison,
And they laid hands on them, and put them in hold until the next day. For it was now eventide.
and laid hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
Which jailer, when he had received such commandment, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
Which jailer, when he had received such commandment, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
And Paul dwelt full two years in his lodging. And received all that came to him,
in stripes, in prisonment, in strife, in labour, in watching, in fasting,
In which spirit, he also went and preached unto the spirits that were in prison,
Morish
In Egypt, in Babylon, among the Romans, and doubtless in most other nations, these were used as places in which to secure prisoners. Joseph was cast into prison, and his feet were hurt with fetters (Ps 105:18), though it does not appear that there was any trial as to the crime of which he was accused. God interfered on his behalf, and made the keeper or jailor favourable to him, and he committed all the prisoners into Joseph's care. This was the royal prison, but the condition of the place is not known: he called it 'the dungeon.'
Jeremiah was confined in 'the court of the prison,' a place to which the Jews could come and where they could converse with him. Jer 32:2-12. Jehoiachin was in prison in Babylon. Jer 52:31. The prison at Jerusalem, under the Romans, is more fully described. Peter was bound by two chains, and lay asleep between two soldiers. It was under military rule, and the soldiers were responsible for the safety of the prisoners. The angel conducted Peter through the first and second guard to the outer iron gate that led into the city. This shows what is meant by the 'inner prison' mentioned elsewhere. Acts 12. At Philippi there was a jailor who was responsible for the safety of the prisoners. He, supposing some had escaped, was about to destroy himself, when Paul stopped him. Ac 16:23-27.
Fallen angels are said to be kept in 'everlasting chains,' Jude 1:6; and there are spirits which are kept in prison. 1Pe 3:19. The abyss in which Satan is to be shut up for the thousand years is also called a prison, which may refer to the same place. Re 20:7.
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what time as the king of Babylon's Host laid siege unto Jerusalem. But Jeremiah the prophet lay bound in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house: where Zedekiah the king of Judah caused him to be laid, because he had prophesied of this manner, "Thus sayeth the LORD: Behold, I will deliver this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, which shall take it. read more. As for Zedekiah the king of Judah, he shall not be able to escape the Chaldeans, but surely he shall come into the hands of the king of Babylon: which shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and one of them shall look another in the face. And Zedekiah shall be carried unto Babylon, and there shall he be, until the time that I visit him, sayeth the LORD. But if thou takest in hand to fight against the Chaldeans, thou shalt not prosper." And Jeremiah said, "Thus hath the LORD spoken unto me, 'Behold, Hananel the son of Shallum thine Uncle's son shall come unto thee, and require thee to redeem the land, that lieth in Anathoth unto thyself: for by reason of kindred it is thy part to redeem it, and to buy it out.' And so, Hananel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison, according to the word of the LORD - and said unto me, 'Buy my land, I pray thee, that lieth in Anathoth in the country of Benjamin: for by heritage thou hast right to loose it out for thyself; therefore redeem it.' Then I perceived, that this was the commandment of the LORD, and so I loosed the land from Hananel of Anathoth, mine Uncle's son, and weighed him there the money: even seven sicles, and ten silver pence. I caused him also to make me a writing, and to seal it, and called record thereby, and weighed him there the money upon the weights. So I took the evidence with the copy, when it was orderly sealed and read over, and I gave the evidence unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, in the sight of Hananel my cousin, and in the presence of the witnesses that be named in the evidence, and before all the Jews that were thereby in the court of the prison.
In the thirty seventh year after that Jehoiachin the king of Judah was carried away in the twenty fifth day of the twelfth Month, Evilmerodach king of Babylon, the same year that he reigned, gave Jehoiachin the king of Judah his pardon, and let him out of prison,
and when they had beaten them sore, they cast them into prison commanding the jailer to keep them surely. Which jailer, when he had received such commandment, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. read more. At midnight, Paul and Silas prayed, and lauded God. And the prisoners heard them. And suddenly, there was a great earthquake, so that the foundation of the prison was shaken, and by and by all the doors opened, and every man's bonds were loosed. When the keeper of the prison waked out of his sleep, and saw the prison doors open, he drew out his sword and would have killed himself, supposing the prisoners had been fled.
In which spirit, he also went and preached unto the spirits that were in prison,
The angels also, which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day:
And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Smith
[For imprisonment as a punishment, see PUNISHMENTS] It is plain that in Egypt special places were used as prisons, and that they were under the custody of a military officer.
See Punishments
During the wandering in the desert we read on two occasions of confinement "in ward" --
but as imprisonment was not directed by the law, so we hear of none till the time of the kings, when the prison appears as an appendage to the palace, or a special part of it.
Private houses were sometimes used as places of confinement. By the Romans the tower of Antoni, was used as a prison at Jerusalem,
and at Caesarea the praetorium of Herod. The royal prisons In those days were doubtless managed after the Roman fashion, and chains, fetters and stocks were used as means of confinement. See
One of the readiest places for confinement was a dry or partially-dry wall or pit.
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And they put him inward, that Moses should declare unto them what the LORD said thereto.
and they put him inward, for it was not declared what should be done unto him.
and say, 'Thus sayeth the king. Put ye this fellow in the prison house and feed him with bread and water straightly, until I return in peace.'"
But they said, "We drink no wine, for Jonadab the yea, ye shall have no vineyards: but for all your time ye shall dwell in tents, that ye may live long in the land, wherein ye be strangers.' read more. Thus have we obeyed the commandment of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father, in all that he hath charged us, and so we drink no wine all our life long: we, nor our wives, our sons, and our daughters. Neither build we any house to dwell therein, we have also among us neither vineyards, nor corn land to sow: but we dwell in tents, we obey, and do according unto all that Jonadab our father commanded us. But now that Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came up into the land, we said, 'Come, let us go to Jerusalem, that we may escape the host of the Chaldeans and the Assyrians: and so we dwell now at Jerusalem.'"
Which jailer, when he had received such commandment, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
And when there arose great debate, the captain fearing lest Paul should have been plucked asunder of them, commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him from among them, and to bring him into the castle.