The materials used in buildings were commonly bricks, sometimes
also stones (Lev. 14:40, 42), which were held together by cement
(Jer. 43:9) or bitumen (Gen. 11:3). The exterior was usually
whitewashed (Lev. 14:41; Ezek. 13:10; Matt. 23:27). The beams
were of sycamore (Isa. 9:10), or olive-wood, or cedar (1 Kings
7:2; Isa. 9:10).
The form of Eastern dwellings differed in many respects from
that of dwellings in Western lands. The larger houses were built
in a quadrangle enclosing a court-yard (Luke 5:19; 2 Sam. 17:18;
Neh. 8:16) surrounded by galleries, which formed the
guest-chamber or reception-room for visitors. The flat roof,
surrounded by a low parapet, was used for many domestic and
social purposes. It was reached by steps from the court. In
connection with it (2 Kings 23:12) was an upper room, used as a
private chamber (2 Sam 18:33; Dan. 6:11), also as a bedroom (2
Kings 23:12), a sleeping apartment for guests (2 Kings 4:10),
and as a sick-chamber (1 Kings 17:19). The doors, sometimes of
stone, swung on morticed pivots, and were generally fastened by
wooden bolts. The houses of the more wealthy had a doorkeeper or
a female porter (John 18:16; Acts 12:13). The windows generally
opened into the courtyard, and were closed by a lattice (Judg.
5:28). The interior rooms were set apart for the female portion
of the household.
The furniture of the room (2 Kings 4:10) consisted of a couch
furnished with pillows (Amos 6:4; Ezek. 13:20); and besides
this, chairs, a table and lanterns or lamp-stands (2 Kings
4:10).
Dwellings
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