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What the Bible Says About Walls

Overview

The Bible addresses walls across 89 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Ezekiel, Isaiah and Nehemiah. Closely related themes include Sieges, Jerusalem, Country, Love of and Sciences. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David, Saul, Jonathan and Abner.

Key Bible verses about walls

Old Testament

2 Kings

2 Kings 3:27

Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering upon the wall. And there was great indignation against Israel: and they departed from him, and returned to their own land.

2 Kings 6:26

And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.

2 Kings 6:30

And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh.

2 Kings 18:26

Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebna, and Joah, unto Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and talk not with us in the Jews' language in the ears of the people that are on the wall.

2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 25:23

And Joash the king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Bethshemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits. the corner: Heb. the gate of it that looketh

2 Chronicles 26:9

Moreover Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the corner gate, and at the valley gate, and at the turning of the wall, and fortified them. fortified: or, repaired

2 Chronicles 32:5

Also he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall without, and repaired Millo in the city of David, and made darts and shields in abundance. darts: or, swords, or, weapons

2 Chronicles 36:19

And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof.

Nehemiah

Nehemiah 1:3

And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

Nehemiah 2:12

And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem: neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon.

Nehemiah 2:13

And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and to the dung port, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, and the gates thereof were consumed with fire.

Nehemiah 2:14

Then I went on to the gate of the fountain, and to the king's pool: but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass.

Nehemiah 2:15

Then went I up in the night by the brook, and viewed the wall, and turned back, and entered by the gate of the valley, and so returned.

Nehemiah 2:16

And the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the nobles, nor to the rulers, nor to the rest that did the work.

Nehemiah 2:17

Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach.

Nehemiah 12:27

And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedication with gladness, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, psalteries, and with harps.

Isaiah

Isaiah 2:15

And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall,

Isaiah 5:5

And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down: trodden: Heb. for a treading

Isaiah 22:10

And ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall.

Isaiah 22:23

And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house.

Isaiah 25:12

And the fortress of the high fort of thy walls shall he bring down, lay low, and bring to the ground, even to the dust.

Isaiah 26:1

In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks.

Isaiah 30:13

Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant.

Isaiah 56:5

Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.

Isaiah 60:18

Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.

Isaiah 62:6

I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence, make: or, are the LORD's remembrancers

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 4:2

And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about. battering: chief leaders

Ezekiel 4:3

Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel. an: or, a flat plate, or, slice

Ezekiel 8:7

And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall.

Ezekiel 8:8

Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door.

Ezekiel 12:5

Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby. Dig: Heb. Dig for thee

Ezekiel 13:10

Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter: a wall: or, a slight wall

Ezekiel 13:11

Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it.

Ezekiel 13:12

Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it?

Ezekiel 13:13

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it.

Ezekiel 13:14

So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

Ezekiel 13:15

Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered morter, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it;

Ezekiel 43:8

In their setting of their threshold by my thresholds, and their post by my posts, and the wall between me and them, they have even defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger. and the: or, for there was but a wall between me and them

People in the Bible and walls

Biblical figures whose stories intersect with this theme.

In the Bible dictionary

Studying walls for yourself

  • Begin with Genesis 49:6, then read the passages below in canonical order.
  • Compare how Ezekiel, Isaiah and Nehemiah each treat the theme.
  • Consider the lives of David, Saul and Jonathan and how their stories intersect with it.
  • Widen the study to related themes: Sieges, Jerusalem, Country, Love of and Sciences.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Bible say about walls?

The Bible addresses walls across 89 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Ezekiel, Isaiah and Nehemiah. Closely related themes include Sieges, Jerusalem, Country, Love of and Sciences. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David, Saul, Jonathan and Abner.

How many Bible verses are about walls?

The Bible references walls in 89 verses (King James Version).

Where does the Bible first mention walls?

In canonical order, the first of these passages is Genesis 49:6: “O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall. digged: or, houghed oxen”

Which people in the Bible are associated with walls?

David, Saul, Jonathan, Abner and Gideon.

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