Gates of Jerusalem
sha’ar yerushalyim
ירושלים שערי
Strong’s Hebrew: 8179.
שַׁ֫עַר shaar
— a gate
How many gates were there?
How many gates are there today?
How many gates will there be?
Is the gospel message hidden in the gates?
The prophet Ezekiel says that a day will come when there will be 12 gates in the city walls, one for each of Israel’s tribes. (Ezekiel 48:31-34).
There can be some confusion as to which gate is called what because, over the generations they have been given different names depending on who was in control of the city.
A GATE
שַׁ֫עַר shaar
gives access to the City; it is a seat of power, authority and influence; 1 Chronicles 9:22-23
Cities were walled with gates to protect those inside, it was a security defense; they were very thick. See pictures below.
The walls around the Old City of Jerusalem were built in the early 16th century by Turkish Sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent.
There are many stories connected to
Sha’ar Yerushalyim
the walls of Jerusalem.
Via the gates people entered and left the city, by them, Jerusalem was conquered numerous times, and here trading has taken place for thousands of years. Although the gates of Jerusalem were in a slightly different place in Biblical times, the city gates were a place to learn Torah and to teach the laws in scripture. Today, officially there are 8 gates in the walls of the Old City, although there are a few extra “unofficial” gates. 7 of the official gates are still in use, while one has been blocked off for hundreds of years.
If we count 12 the list would be:
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The Valley Gate (2:13; 3:13). Also 2Chronicles 26:9.
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The Gate of the Fountain (2:14; 3:15; 12:37), on Ophel at the Gihon spring that is mentioned in 2Kings 25:4. Jeremiah 39:4.
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The Sheep Gate (3:1; 12:39). North of the Temple.
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The Fish Gate (3:3; 12:39). Also 2Chronicles 33:14. Zephaniah 1:10.
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The Old Gate (3:6; 12:39). Also 2Chronicles 33:14, and 2Kings 22:14, college. Also called the First Gate. Zechariah 14:10.
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The Dung Gate (2:14; 3:14; 12:31). Probably same as Harsith Gate (Jeremiah 19:2); sometimes rendered the Gate of Potsherds/Pottery Gate. Leading to Hinnom. .
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The Water Gate (3:25, 26).
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The Horse Gate (3:28). Also 2Kings 11:16. 2Chronicles 23:15. Jeremiah 31:40. South-east of the Temple, and close to the city and house of David.
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The East Gate (3:29). East of the Temple, and connected with it.
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The Gate of Miphkad (3:31). Probably north-east of Temple. Also called The Registry Gate.
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The Gate of Ephraim (8:16; 12:39). Also 2Chronicles 25:23.
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The Prison Gate (12:39), or Gate of the Guard 2Kings 11:6, 19
In Nehemiah 3, the first sixteen verses refer to Jerusalem, and the latter sixteen verses to Zion (or the city of David), south of Moriah. Those who wish to study these, and a comparison with chapter 12, will find it explains most of the difficulties connected with the layout of the city.
Four of the gates of Jerusalem face the cardinal directions; the Damascus Gate to the north, the Golden Gate to the east, the Zion Gate to the south, and the Jaffa Gate to the west.
The remaining gates are:
the Flower, or Herods Gate,
the Lion Gate,
the Dung Gate,
and the New Gate.
The Old City of Jerusalem had eight gates in its walls.
Suleiman’s original walls had six gates:
Damascus Gate,
Herod’s Gate,
Stephen’s Gate,
Dung Gate,
Zion Gate and
Jappa Gate.
The gates were all designed and built to have an L-shaped entry instead of a straight line of entry. Taking this sharp ninety degree turn would have slowed down an invading army in the final moments of a siege. The “L” turns have been removed from Stephen’s Gate and the Dung Gate to better facilitate modern traffic but can still be seen in the other four gates.
The Gates Of Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s Day.
Nehemiah chapter 3 describes the building of the walls and gates of the city, giving the names of the individuals and families who performed the work and the portion of the wall or gates on which they were employed.
After the Babylonian Captivity, when the Jewish people returned to their homeland, Jerusalem lay in ruins. The Temple, the city walls, and the gates had been destroyed as a result of the three invasions of Nebuchadnezzar and his forces in 606 BC, 597 BC, and 586 BC.
Much work needed to be done, and Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah each led groups of the returned remnant in the task of rebuilding the city of Jerusalem.
Restoring the gates was a necessary element in rebuilding the walls and securing the city. The dictionary defines a gate as a movable structure controlling entrance or exit through an opening in a fence or wall or any means of entrance.
Under the adverse conditions which he encountered, Nehemiah’s task was enormous.
The job required a team effort, as described in chapter 3. To accomplish the task, Nehemiah assigned specific work places to individuals and families, who were assigned to work on sections of the wall or gates near their homes. This provided the motivation needed to complete the work and it also avoided wasting time that would have been needed to travel to other parts of the city. It assured the workers that they would be near their homes to protect their families in the event of an attack. Each family was to use all of its available talent, thus making it a household project v. 21, 23–24, 26, 28–30. In addition to local residents, many people who lived outside of Jerusalem were assigned to work on sections of the wall where homes were sparse v. 2, 5, 7, 27.
Some of the work assignments were given according to their roles in life .e.g. v. 1 the High Priest and other priests were assigned to rebuild the
Sheep Gate which was important to the priests
because animals were brought through that gate to the Temple for sacrificial offerings.
Beginning from the north wall of the Temple, and going forward counterclockwise 10 gates are mentioned in chapter 3.
The circumference of the walls was approximately 2 1/2 miles, or 4 km. and covering approximately 220 acres/890308 sq.metres.
There are spiritual applications for our lives today
reflected in the
10 gates names
and what they were connected to.
The Sheep Gate, Fish Gate, and Old Gate
were located in the northern section of the wall.
The Sheep Gate
is the first gate mentioned in Nehemiah.
The building of the wall and gates
begins from the Sheep Gate
in Nehemiah 3,
because
everything begins from the offering of
the Lamb
Yeshua HaMashiach/Jesus Christ.
The first gate is the Sheep Gate
and, next to it,
the Tower of Hananel, which means God’s mercy
or something to do with the mercy of God;
and the Tower of the Me’ah, which is the Hebrew word for one hundred.
As just mentioned, that is the gate to which they brought the sheep into Jerusalem to be sacrificed in the temple.
Recall, when Yeshua/Jesus said
if a shepherd loses a sheep,
he’ll leave the 99 and go after the 1?
(Luke 15:3-7)
If 1 sheep is missing,
it is not counted as a legitimate flock.
A flock had to be 100!
Sometimes, some of us go astray, maybe some fall away and young believers sometimes backslide. In times of stress and crisis, it can sometimes seem that the Lord has abandoned us, and so we wander off. This is not true and the Good Shepherd comes after us because He doesn’t want to lose any that the Father has given to Him. The Sheep Gate is representative of Messiahs statement in
John 10:27
The spiritual meaning of the Sheep Gate is that the High Priest built it, and that through that gate, lambs and sheep were brought to the temple for sacrifice.
Note that the sheep gate had no locks or bars,
for
the door of salvation
is open to everyone.
This was the only gate that was sanctified,
setting it apart as a special gate!
IN v. 1, 32 on the northeast corner of the wall. was the location of The Sheep Gate named because sheep were led through it to the Temple. It was near the market where sheep were sold and close to the Sheep Pool where the Temple sacrifices were washed. The Sheep Gate was also near another well known place, the Pool of Bethesda (Jn. 5:2).
The Tower of Hammeah (hundred) and the Tower of Hananel (12:39). Were Between the Sheep Gate and the Fish Gate.
The Tower of Hananel is also mentioned in Jeremiah 31:38 and Zechariah 14:10 as the northernmost part of the city.
The Sheep Gate is a reminder to us of calvarys’ cross. Yeshua/Jesus was “the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world” Jn. 1:29 Humanity is described as wayward sheep (Isa. 53:6) who need a shepherd to lead them into God’s eternal heavenly sheepfold. Yeshua/Jesus is the door through which sinners can enter the sheepfold and be redeemed (Jn. 10:1–9).Believers are bought with a price according to 1 Cor. 6:20, the blood of God’s Lamb, Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach
Then Eliashib, the high priest, rose up with his brethren, the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it, and set up the doors of it. (Nehemiah 3:1)
The Sheep Gate in Jerusalem was near the temple; it was where the sacrificial animals were brought in to be offered on the altar. It is in keeping that the priests should build this particular gate, for it speaks of Christ and His work upon the cross for us. That is exactly what the prophet had said:
He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. (Isaiah 53:7)
When John the Baptist marked Christ out for His ministry he said,
“Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
It makes one wonder if the Yeshua/Jesus came in at the Sheep Gate every time He entered the city except on the day of the Triumphal Entry?
We do know for sure that He came in through the Sheep Gate to the Pool of Bethesda, where He healed the blind man. That act was symbolic of the fact that He came as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world, the poor man who was healed is a picture of every sinner who, will find deliverance from sin if they are willing to come to the cross of Messiah.
Yeshua/Jesus not only came in through that gate, but they took Him out through that gate when He was arrested and also when He was led out to be crucified. The Sheep Gate was the place of judgment, telling us that He bore the judgment of our sin. This is the gate where we must begin with God, because He is not prepared to meet us anywhere else but at the cross.
It is interesting to note that,
next unto him the men of Jericho built. Nehemiah 3:2. Jericho was the city of the curse, and the men of Jericho were building right next to the Sheep Gate.
Surely, that’s not by chance!
Messiah bore the curse of sin on the cross for us.
in Galatians, Paul wrote saying:
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree. Galatians 3:13.
The old Sheep gate
שער כבשים
sha`ar ha-tso’-n or sha’ar ke-ves
is also known as
St Stephens gate
and
Lions gate
שער האריות Sha’ar ha-Arayot,
to the north of the Haram es-Sherif, or temple area from which the path leads down into the valley of the Kedron.
The first gate has implications in being called sheep (sacrifical lamb) and lion (of Judah/tribes) and Stephen seeing heaven opened, (martyr). This is where we too must begin our journey into His Kingdom/City…
At the foot of the cross where
freedom from the curse of sin awaits us.
Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach is the High Priest of the ReNewEd Covenant, He is the Lamb, who offered His life as the price of our sins.
As our spiritual High Priest, Yeshua/Jesus set up doors of the Sheep Gate, which means that
He is the Door of the sheep.
