1 Chronicles 26:16

16 To Shuppim and Hosah [the lot came forth] westward, with the gate Shallecheth, by the way of the ascent, ward against ward.

1 Chronicles 26:16 Meaning and Commentary

1 Chronicles 26:16

To Shuppim and Hosah the lot came forth westward
Of Shuppim no mention is before made; of Hosah, see ( 1 Chronicles 26:10 1 Chronicles 26:11 ) their lot was to be placed at the gates on the western wall, where were four; the two more southward being assigned to the sons of Obededom, whose lot also was southward, are taken notice of under the division in the preceding verse; Parbar was another, ( 1 Chronicles 26:18 ) , and another follows here:

with the gate Shallecheth, by the causeway of the going up;
this gate was in later times called Coponius, from the name of a Roman commander, in the times of Herod, who might give it this name on his account; it might have the name of Shallecheth either from "sending out", or carrying out the filth of the temple through it; or rather from "casting up the causeway", as here expressed, which was the going up, or ascent, Solomon made, by which he went up to the temple, ( 1 Kings 20:5 ) and which agrees with the description Josephus F1 gives of one of the gates on the western wall, that it led to the royal palace, the valley between being filled up for the passage; on each side of which causeway, it is said, grew oaks and teil trees, see ( Isaiah 6:13 ) which served both to keep up the causeway, and to make a fine, pleasant, shady walk for the king to pass through to the temple; all which are observed by Dr. Lightfoot F2:

ward against ward;
for as the gates answered one another, so the wards or watches at them.


FOOTNOTES:

F1 Antiqu. l. 15. c. 11. sect. 5.
F2 Ut supra, (Prospect of the Temple), c. 5. sect. 1.

1 Chronicles 26:16 In-Context

14 And the lot eastward fell to Shelemiah. Then for Zechariah his son, a wise counselor, they cast lots; and his lot came out northward.
15 To obed-edom southward; and to his sons the house of Asuppim.
16 To Shuppim and Hosah [the lot came forth] westward, with the gate Shallecheth, by the way of the ascent, ward against ward.
17 Eastward [were] six Levites, northward four a day, southward four a day, and towards Asuppim, two [and] two.
18 At Parbar westward, four at the causey, [and] two at Parbar.
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