מִגְדָּל
migdâl · H4026 · Hebrew · 51 occurrences
This name belongs to 2 places
- Towerfirst named in Nehemiah 3:12 verses
- Towerfirst named in Nehemiah 3:112 verses
A word for 5 things
Meanings
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a tower
A relatively high structure made of stone, used for guarding the surrounding area or protecting against outside hostile forces, and associated with security and protection
ExamplesGenesis 11:4 And they said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let’s make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of all the earth.”
Genesis 11:5 Now the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the men had built.
Judges 8:9 So he said also to the men of Penuel, “When I return safely, I will tear down this tower.”
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tower
Literally: tower, but with focus on a tower as a small population center: small fortified population center; possibly built to provide protection to the surrounding countryside
Examples2 Kings 17:9 And the sons of Israel did things secretly against the LORD their God which were not right. Moreover, they built for themselves high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city.
2 Kings 18:8 He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city.
1 Chronicles 27:25 Now Azmaveth the son of Adiel was responsible for the king’s storehouses. And Jonathan the son of Uzziah was responsible for the storehouses in the country, the cities, the villages, and the towers.
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Tower of the Hundred
Tower; located in Jerusalem protecting the northern approach to the city, east of the Fish Gate and the Tower of Hananeel
ExamplesNehemiah 3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and installed its doors. They consecrated the wall to the Tower of the Hundred and the Tower of Hananel.
Nehemiah 12:39 and above the Gate of Ephraim, by the Ancient Gate, by the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Sheep Gate; and they stopped at the Gate of the Guard.
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Tower of Hananel
Tower; located in Jerusalem at the northwestern corner of the wall surrounding the Temple Mount
ExamplesNehemiah 3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and installed its doors. They consecrated the wall to the Tower of the Hundred and the Tower of Hananel.
Nehemiah 12:39 and above the Gate of Ephraim, by the Ancient Gate, by the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Sheep Gate; and they stopped at the Gate of the Guard.
Jeremiah 31:38 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when the city will be rebuilt for the LORD from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.
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Tower of Ovens
Tower; located in bakers' quarter in northwestern Jerusalem
ExamplesNehemiah 3:11 Malchijah the son of Harim and Hasshub the son of Pahath-moab repaired another section and the Tower of Furnaces.
Nehemiah 12:38 The second choir proceeded to the left, while I followed them with half of the people on the wall, above the Tower of Furnaces, to the Broad Wall,
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a platform
A raised level surface made of wood for people or things to stand on and be visible from a relatively large distance
ExamplesNehemiah 8:4 Ezra the scribe stood at a wooden podium which they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right; and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left.
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bank, terrace, heap
Meaning unsure; possibly: a quantity of a certain substance shaped like a tower
ExamplesSong of Solomon 5:13 “His cheeks are like a bed of balsam, Banks of herbal spices; His lips are lilies Dripping with drops of myrrh.
How it’s used In 8 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Whose, or of whatGenitive or possessive
23 occurrences in 13 groups
- חֲנַנְאֵלHananel 4
- עֹזstrength, might 3
- Other words · 11 groups that occur once or twice (16) 16
Words describing itAdjectives, demonstratives, participles
9 occurrences in 8 groups
- יָצָאto go out 3
- בָּנָהto build, to rebuild, to establish 2
- גָּבֹהַּhigh 1
- גָּדוֹלgreat, large 1
- זֶהthis 1
- חָצֵרcourt, courtyard 1
Named alongside itApposition
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- עֲרוּגָהraised bed 1
What it doesIt is the subject
2 occurrences in 2 groups
- הָיָהto be, to become 1
- נָפַלto fall 1
What is done to itIt is the object
12 occurrences in 5 groups
- בָּנָהto build, to rebuild, to establish 5
- נָתַץto tear down 3
- סָפַרto count, to tell 2
- הָרַסto tear down, to overthrow 1
- רָאָהto see 1
What is said to be itIt is the predicate
5 occurrences in 4 groups
- צַוָּארneck 2
- אַףanger, nose 1
- שַׁדbreast 1
- שֵׁםname 1
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
21 occurrences in 6 groups
- עַלon, upon, over, against 10
- עַדto, as far as, until 7
- מִןfrom 4
- כlike/as 4
- בin/on/with 3
- לto/for 1
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
2 occurrences in 2 groups
- גָּגroof 1
- פֶּתַחentrance, doorway 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 8 words
- מָצוּד mâtsûwd · H4686 · prey, victim, (trammel) net
- The target term ('tower' or 'castle') and מָצֹוד (mâtsûwd, H4686) ('fortress' or 'stronghold') both denote fortified defensive structures, in the sense of military architecture.
- מְצוּרָה mᵉtsûwrâh · H4694 · fortification, siege-works
- Both words refer to fortified structures or defensive installations; מִגְדָּל (migdâl, H4026) emphasizes a tower or castle structure, while מְצוּרָה (mᵉtsûwrâh, H4694) emphasizes fortified or fenced defensive works, and both could substitute in context as types of fortifications.
- מִבְצָר mibtsâr · H4013 · fortress, stronghold, fortified city
- Both words denote fortification structures with an overlapping defensive or protective sense (fortress and tower or castle). They are distinct Hebrew words that could substitute in many contexts of defensive structures.
- טִירָה ṭîyrâh · H2918 · camp, encampment, village
- The target term (מִגְדָּל, 'tower' or 'castle') and טִירָה (ṭîyrâh, H2918) ('castle', 'palace' or 'habitation') both denote fortified structures, overlapping in sense as words for defensive or elevated buildings.
- מִצְפֶּה mitspeh · H4707 · lookout, watchtower
- Both words denote elevated defensive structures used for observation and protection. The target term is a more general term for tower or castle structures and occurs frequently, while מִצְפֶּה (mitspeh, H4707) emphasizes the watchtower function and is rare.
- מָצוֹר mâtsôwr · H4692 · distress, siege
- Both מִגְדָּל (migdâl, H4026) and מָצֹור (mâtsôwr, H4692) denote fortified or defensive structures, overlapping in the sphere of fortification, tower, and stronghold, and could substitute for one another in contexts describing defensive architecture.
- מְצַד mᵉtsad · H4679 · prey, victim, (trammel) net
- The target term (מִגְדָּל, 'tower' or 'castle') and מְצַד (mᵉtsad, H4679) ('fort' or 'stronghold') both denote fortified defensive structures and could substitute for each other in many military or defensive contexts.
- מָעוֹז mâʻôwz · H4581 · stronghold, refuge
- Both words denote fortified defensive structures, tower on the one hand and fortress or stronghold on the other, and can substitute in sense; both indicate overlapping military-defensive architecture.
In the other Testament 1 word
- πύργος pýrgos · G4444 · tower, watchtower
- Greek πύργος renders Hebrew מִגְדָּל in defensive/architectural contexts, both denoting a fortified tower structure used for watching or warfare.
Semantic domains 5 entries
- Constructions001003002
- מִגְדָּל denotes a tower as a built structure, as in Genesis 11:4-5's account of the tower of Babel, placing it among architectural constructions.
- Fortifications001003002003
- The same word describes a tower's defensive military function, as in Judges 8:9's Gideon's threat to "tear down this tower" of Penuel, tying the structure to fortified defense.
- Towns001003002011
- The word can also denote a fortified town built around such a tower, an extension of the tower-structure sense to the settlement it anchors.
- Names of Constructions003001003
- The word forms part of several place names built on this root, such as Migdal-el and Migdal-gad below, tying the common noun to named towers or tower-cities.
- Quantity002001001046
- The word's gloss also includes 'flower,' used once of a raised or towering growth pattern in plants (Song of Solomon 5:13's "beds of balsam...towers of perfumes"), an image of abundance drawn from the tower's height.
Word family 8 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H4026. migdal or migdalah מִגְדָּל noun masculine tower, Gen 11:5 Gen 11:11t.; construct…
or migdalah מִגְדָּל noun masculine tower, Gen 11:5 Gen 11:11t.; construct מִגְדַּל Jdg 8:17 Jdg 8:21t.; plural מִגְדָּלִים2Ch 26:9 2Ch 26:6t.; מִגְדָּלֶיהָ Psa 48:12; Eze 26:4; pluralf. מִגְדָּלוֺת2Ch 32:5 2Ch 32:2t.; construct מִגְדְּלוֺת Son 5:13 (?); suffix מִגְדְּלֹתַיִךְ Eze 26:9; Eze 27:11; —
1 tower Gen 11:4-5, Jdg 8:9; Jdg 9:51 (twice in verse); Jdg 9:52 (twice in verse); 2Ki 9:17; 2Ki 17:9; 2Ki 18:8; 1Ch 27:25; 2Ch 14:6; 2Ch 26:9-10, 2Ch 26:11; 2Ch 27:4; 2Ch 32:5; Neh 3:25-26, Neh 3:27; Isa 2:15; Isa 30:25; Isa 33:18; Eze 26:4, Eze 26:9; Eze 27:11; Psa 48:13, watch-tower in vineyard Isa 5:2; figurative of God as refuge Psa 61:4; Pro 18:10; beautiful neck like tower of David Son 4:4; an ivory tower Son 7:5; breasts Son 8:10. (compare MI22 מגדלתה, Sabean (more precisely Lihyânian) מגדלנהן, Eut, see DHMEpigr. Denkm. 4, 1. 5). Special towers mentioned on Lebanon Cant 7:5, Penuel Jdg 8:17, Shechem Jdg 9:46-47, Jdg 9:49; and at Jerusalem, the tower of David Cant 4:4 (the arsenal), מֵאָה Neh 3:1, חֲנַנְאֵל Neh 3:1; Neh 12:39; Jer 31:38; Zec 14:10, תַּנּוּרִים Neh 3:11; Neh 12:38 (tower of the furnaces).
2 elevated stage, pulpit of wood Neh 8:4.
3 raised bed || עֲרוּגָה Son 5:13, but ᵑ9 ᵐ5 Hi Bö De rightly read מְגַדְּלוֺת.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 4 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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