Gates

Passages on this topic

From Nave’s Topical Bible (1896), a historical reference index. The groupings are Nave’s; the verses are shown in the text used across this site.

Of cities

• Deuteronomy 3:5 All these cities were fortified with high walls and gates and bars, and there were many more unwalled villages.
• Joshua 6:26 At that time Joshua invoked this solemn oath: “Cursed before the LORD is the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho; at the cost of his firstborn he will lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest he will set up its gates.”
• 1 Samuel 23:7 When Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah, he said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has trapped himself by entering a town with gates and bars.”
• 2 Samuel 18:24 Now David was sitting between the two gates when the watchman went up to the roof of the gateway by the wall, looked out, and saw a man running alone.
• 2 Chronicles 8:5 He rebuilt Upper and Lower Beth-horon as fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars,

Made of iron

• Acts 12:10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city, which opened for them by itself. When they had gone outside and walked the length of one block, the angel suddenly left him.

Made of wood

• Nehemiah 1:3 And they told me, “The remnant who survived the exile are there in the province, in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.”

Made of brass

• Psalm 107:16 For He has broken down the gates of bronze and cut through the bars of iron.
• Isaiah 45:2 “I will go before you and level the mountains; I will break down the gates of bronze and cut through the bars of iron.

Double doors

• Isaiah 45:1 This is what the LORD says to Cyrus His anointed, whose right hand I have grasped to subdue nations before him, to disarm kings, to open the doors before him, so that the gates will not be shut:
• Ezekiel 41:24 and each door had two swinging panels. There were two panels for one door and two for the other.

The open square of, a place for idlers

• Genesis 19:1 Now the two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them, bowed facedown,
• 1 Samuel 4:18 As soon as the ark of God was mentioned, Eli fell backward from his chair by the city gate, and being old and heavy, he broke his neck and died. And Eli had judged Israel forty years.
• Psalm 69:12 Those who sit at the gate mock me, and I am the song of drunkards.
• Proverbs 1:21 in the main concourse she cries aloud, at the city gates she makes her speech:
• Jeremiah 17:19–20 This is what the LORD said to me: “Go and stand at the gate of the people, through which the kings of Judah go in and out; and stand at all the other gates of Jerusalem. Say to them, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah, all people of Judah and Jerusalem who enter through these gates.

Religious services held at

• Acts 14:13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates, hoping to offer a sacrifice along with the crowds.

The law read at

• Nehemiah 8 At that time all the people gathered together in the square before the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded for Israel. On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and… (whole chapter)

The place for the transaction of public business, announcement of legal transactions

• Genesis 23:10 Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth. So in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham,
• Genesis 23:16 Abraham agreed to Ephron’s terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the standard of the merchants.

Conferences on public affairs

• Genesis 34:20 So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city and addressed the men of their city:

Holding courts of justice

• Deuteronomy 16:18 You are to appoint judges and officials for your tribes in every town that the LORD your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.
• Deuteronomy 21:19 his father and mother are to lay hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown,
• Deuteronomy 22:15 Then the young woman’s father and mother shall bring the proof of her virginity to the city elders at the gate
• Joshua 20:4 When someone flees to one of these cities, stands at the entrance of the city gate, and states his case before its elders, they are to bring him into the city and give him a place to live among them.
• Ruth 4:1 Meanwhile, Boaz went to the gate and sat down there. Soon the kinsman-redeemer of whom he had spoken came along, and Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down.
• 2 Samuel 15:2 He would get up early and stand beside the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone had a grievance to bring before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out and ask, “What city are you from?” And if he replied, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel,”
• Proverbs 22:22 Do not rob a poor man because he is poor, and do not crush the afflicted at the gate,
• Zechariah 8:16 These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another, render true and sound judgments in your gates,

Place for public concourse

• Genesis 23:10 Now Ephron was sitting among the sons of Heth. So in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham,
• Proverbs 1:21 in the main concourse she cries aloud, at the city gates she makes her speech:
• Proverbs 8:3 Beside the gates to the city, at the entrances she cries out:
• Jeremiah 14:2 “Judah mourns and her gates languish. Her people wail for the land, and a cry goes up from Jerusalem.
• Jeremiah 22:2 saying, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, who sits on the throne of David— you and your officials and your people who enter these gates.

Thrones of kings at

• 1 Kings 22:10 Dressed in royal attire, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor by the entrance of the gate of Samaria, with all the prophets prophesying before them.
• 2 Chronicles 18:9 Dressed in royal attire, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor by the entrance of the gate of Samaria, with all the prophets prophesying before them.
• Jeremiah 38:7 Now Ebed-melech the Cushite, a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put into the cistern. While the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin,
• Jeremiah 39:3 Then all the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.

Punishment of criminals outside of

• Deuteronomy 17:5 you must bring out to your gates the man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you must stone that person to death.
• Jeremiah 20:2 he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put in the stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the LORD.
• Acts 7:58 They dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
• Hebrews 13:12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate, to sanctify the people by His own blood.

Closed at night

• Joshua 2:5 At dusk, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I do not know which way they went. Pursue them quickly, and you may catch them!”
• Joshua 2:7 So the king’s men set out in pursuit of the spies along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they had gone out, the gate was shut.

Closed on the Sabbath

• Nehemiah 13:19 When the evening shadows began to fall on the gates of Jerusalem, just before the Sabbath, I ordered that the gates be shut and not opened until after the Sabbath. I posted some of my servants at the gates so that no load could enter on the Sabbath day.

Guards at

• 2 Kings 7:17 Now the king had appointed the officer on whose arm he leaned to be in charge of the gate, but the people trampled him in the gateway, and he died, just as the man of God had foretold when the king had come to him.
• Nehemiah 13:19 When the evening shadows began to fall on the gates of Jerusalem, just before the Sabbath, I ordered that the gates be shut and not opened until after the Sabbath. I posted some of my servants at the gates so that no load could enter on the Sabbath day.
• Nehemiah 13:22 Then I instructed the Levites to purify themselves and guard the gates in order to keep the Sabbath day holy. Remember me for this as well, O my God, and show me mercy according to Your abundant loving devotion.

Jails made in the towers of

• Jeremiah 20:2 he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put in the stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the LORD.

Bodies of criminals exposed to view at

• 2 Kings 10:8 When the messenger arrived, he told Jehu, “They have brought the heads of the sons of the king.” And Jehu ordered, “Pile them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until morning.”

Figurative

Of the people of a city

• Isaiah 3:26 And the gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.

Of the gospel

• Isaiah 60:11 Your gates will always stand open; they will never be shut, day or night, so that the wealth of the nations may be brought into you, with their kings being led in procession.

Of the powers of hell (Hades)

• Matthew 16:18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.

Of death

• Job 38:17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Have you seen the gates of the shadow of death?
• Psalm 9:13 Be merciful to me, O LORD; see how my enemies afflict me! Lift me up from the gates of death,

Of the grave

• Isaiah 38:10 I said, “In the prime of my life I must go through the gates of Sheol and be deprived of the remainder of my years.”

Of righteousness

• Psalm 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter and give thanks to the LORD.

Of salvation

• Genesis 28:17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven!”
• Psalm 24:7 Lift up your heads, O gates! Be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of Glory may enter!
• Psalm 118:19–20 Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter and give thanks to the LORD. This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it.
• Isaiah 26:2 Open the gates so a righteous nation may enter— one that remains faithful.
• Matthew 7:13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.

Of death

• Isaiah 38:10 I said, “In the prime of my life I must go through the gates of Sheol and be deprived of the remainder of my years.”

Symbolical

• Revelation 21:12–13 The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and twelve angels at the gates. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south, and three on the west.
• Revelation 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, with each gate consisting of a single pearl. The main street of the city was pure gold, as clear as glass.
• Revelation 21:25 Its gates will never be shut at the end of the day, because there will be no night there.