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 Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison. But the LORD was with Joseph, and showed him mercy, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. read more. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatever they did there, was done by him. The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him: and that which he did the LORD made it to prosper.
And they put him in custody, that the mind of the LORD might be shown to them.
And they put him in custody, because it was not declared what should be done to him.
But the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison-house.
And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison-house; and he made them sport: and they set him between the pillars.
And say, Thus saith the king, Put this man in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction, and with water of affliction, until I come in peace.
For the LORD heareth the poor, and despiseth not his prisoners.
Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die;
Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall encompass me; for thou wilt deal bountifully with me.
To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house.
For then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house.
Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,
Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came to me.
I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody to the next day: for it was now evening.
And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
Saying, The prison truly we found shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.
As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and hauling men and women committed them to prison.
And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after the passover to bring him forth to the people. Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing by the church to God for him.
Who, having received such a charge, 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: and the pit was empty; there was no water in it.
And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.
The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him: and that which he did the LORD made it to prosper.
And he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.
And they dreamed a dream both of them, each man his dream in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream; the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were bound in the prison.
And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat on his throne, to the first-born of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the first-born of cattle.
But the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison-house.
And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison-house; and he made them sport: and they set him between the pillars.
Then Asa was wroth with the seer, and put him in a prison house; for he was in a rage with him because of this thing. And Asa oppressed some of the people the same time.
And whoever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, let judgment be executed speedily upon him, whether it be to death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprisonment.
Then Pashur struck Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the LORD.
The LORD hath made thee priest in the stead of Jehoiada the priest, that ye should be officers in the house of the LORD, for every man that is mad, and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put him in prison, and in the stocks.
Now Jeremiah came in and went out among the people: for they had not put him into prison.
Wherefore the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and beat him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe: for they had made that the prison.
Wherefore the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and beat him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe: for they had made that the prison.
Wherefore the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and beat him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe: for they had made that the prison. When Jeremiah had entered into the dungeon, and into the cabins, and Jeremiah had remained there many days;
When Jeremiah had entered into the dungeon, and into the cabins, and Jeremiah had remained there many days;
Moreover Jeremiah said to king Zedekiah, In what have I offended against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison?
And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him out of prison,
As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit in which is no water.
For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife.
And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.
And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody to the next day: for it was now evening.
And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in to him,
In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings, in fastings;
By which also he went and preached to the spirits 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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For then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house. For Zedekiah king of Judah had confined him, saying, Why dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it; read more. And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape from the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes; And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him, saith the LORD: though ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not prosper. And Jeremiah said, The word of the LORD came to me, saying, Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thy uncle shall come to thee, saying, Buy for thee my field that is in Anathoth: for the right of redemption is thine to buy it. So Hanameel my uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison, according to the word of the LORD, and said to me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD. And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncle's son, that was in Anathoth, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver. And I subscribed the contract, and sealed it, and took witnesses, and weighed him the money in the balances. So I took the evidence of the purchase, both that which was sealed according to the law and custom, and that which was open: And I gave the evidence of the purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, in the sight of Hanameel my uncle's son, and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the book of the purchase, before all the Jews that sat in the court of the prison.
And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him out of prison,
And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely. Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. read more. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises to God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had fled.
By which also he went and preached to the spirits in prison;
And the angels who kept not their first state, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness to the judgment of the great day.
And when the thousand years have expired, Satan shall be loosed from 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 he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.
And they put him in custody, that the mind of the LORD might be shown to them.
And they put him in custody, because it was not declared what should be done to him.
And say, Thus saith the king, Put this man in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction, and with water of affliction, until I come in peace.
But they said, We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever: Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye are strangers. read more. Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters; Nor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed: But we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. But it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said, Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the army of the Syrians: so we dwell at Jerusalem.
Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
And when there arose a great dissension, the chief captain, fearing lest Paul would have been pulled in pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among them, and to bring him into the castle.