Topical Bible: Besieged

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In biblical times, the concept of being besieged was a common military strategy employed by nations and armies to conquer fortified cities or territories. The term "besieged" refers to the act of surrounding a city or stronghold with armed forces in order to isolate it from outside support and compel its surrender. This tactic is frequently mentioned in the Bible, illustrating both the physical and spiritual battles faced by the people of God.

Old Testament Instances

One of the earliest mentions of a siege in the Bible is found in the account of the conquest of Jericho. In Joshua 6, the Israelites, under Joshua's leadership, besieged the city of Jericho as part of their divinely ordained conquest of Canaan. The unique strategy given by God involved marching around the city for seven days, culminating in the miraculous collapse of the city walls: "So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. When the people heard the sound of the trumpet, they shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat" (Joshua 6:20).

The siege of Samaria by the Arameans is another significant event, recorded in 2 Kings 6-7. The city was besieged to the point of severe famine, leading to desperate conditions within the city walls. However, through divine intervention, the siege was lifted when the Lord caused the Arameans to hear the sound of a great army, prompting them to flee: "For the Lord had caused the Arameans to hear the sound of chariots, horses, and a great army, so that they said to one another, 'Look, the king of Israel has hired the kings of the Hittites and Egyptians to attack us!'" (2 Kings 7:6).

The fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians is perhaps the most poignant example of a siege in the Old Testament. In 2 Kings 25, the Babylonian army, led by King Nebuchadnezzar, besieged Jerusalem for an extended period, eventually breaching the city walls and leading to the destruction of the Temple and the exile of the Jewish people: "By the ninth day of the fourth month, the famine in the city was so severe that the people of the land had no food" (2 Kings 25:3).

Spiritual Implications

The concept of being besieged is not limited to physical warfare but extends to spiritual battles as well. The Bible often uses the imagery of a siege to describe the spiritual struggles and trials faced by believers. In Psalm 31:21, David praises God for His protection during times of spiritual siege: "Blessed be the LORD, for He has shown me His loving devotion in a city under siege" .

The Apostle Paul, in his letters, frequently alludes to the spiritual warfare that Christians must endure. In Ephesians 6:11-12, he exhorts believers to "put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" .

Prophetic and Eschatological Context

The theme of siege also appears in prophetic and eschatological contexts. The prophets often warned of impending sieges as judgments from God due to the people's disobedience. For instance, the prophet Isaiah foretold the siege of Jerusalem by the Assyrians, which was averted by divine intervention (Isaiah 37).

In the New Testament, Jesus Himself prophesied the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, which occurred in AD 70: "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you will know that her desolation is near" (Luke 21:20). This event served as a fulfillment of prophecy and a foreshadowing of the ultimate spiritual battles that will culminate in the end times.

Conclusion

The concept of being besieged in the Bible serves as a powerful reminder of the physical and spiritual battles that God's people have faced throughout history. It underscores the importance of reliance on divine intervention and the necessity of spiritual preparedness in the face of adversity.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

(imp. & p. p.) of Besiege.

Strong's Hebrew

4692. matsor -- siege enclosure, siege, entrenchment
... Word Origin from tsur Definition siege enclosure, siege, entrenchment NASB Word
Usage besieged (3), defense (1), fortified (1), fortress (1), rampart (1 ...
/hebrew/4692.htm - 6k

6696a. tsur -- to confine, bind, besiege
... 6696, 6696a. tsur. 6696b . to confine, bind, besiege. Transliteration:
tsur Short Definition: besieged. Word Origin a prim. root ...
/hebrew/6696a.htm - 5k

5341. natsar -- to watch, guard, keep
... root Definition to watch, guard, keep NASB Word Usage besieged (2), Besiegers (1),
cunning (1), guard (2), guarding (1), guards (2), hidden things (1), keep (7 ...
/hebrew/5341.htm - 6k

4693. Matsor -- a country Southwest of the Red Sea
... besieged places, defense, fortified. The same as matsowr in the sense of a limit;
Egypt (as the border of Palestine) -- besieged places, defense, fortified. ...
/hebrew/4693.htm - 6k

2583. chanah -- to decline, bend down, encamp
... root Definition to decline, bend down, encamp NASB Word Usage besieged* (2), camp
(25), camped (96), camping (5), coming to an end (1), encamp (3), encamped (3 ...
/hebrew/2583.htm - 6k

1129. banah -- to build
... root Definition to build NASB Word Usage besieged* (1), build (112), build* (1),
builders (10), building (16), builds (8), built (177), construct (1 ...
/hebrew/1129.htm - 6k

4013. mibtsar -- fortification
... Word Origin from batsar Definition fortification NASB Word Usage besieged (1),
fortifications (5), fortified (17), fortified cities (1), fortified city (1 ...
/hebrew/4013.htm - 6k

5921. al -- upon, above, over
... 82), because* (49), before (10), before* (19), behalf (18), behind* (2), beside
(47), beside* (6), besides (5), besiege* (1), besieged* (13), besieging (1 ...
/hebrew/5921.htm - 8k

Library

At that Time Judah Besieged the Syrians who were Posted in the ...
... At that time Judah besieged the Syrians who were posted in the citadel.? At that
time Judah besieged the Syrians who were posted in the citadel. ...
/.../severus/life and writings of sulpitius severus /chapter xxiii at that time.htm

Argument. Perpetua, when Besieged by Her Father, Comforts Him when ...
... Perpetua, When Besieged by Her Father, Comforts Him When Led with Others to the
Tribunal, She Avows Herself a Christian, and is Condemned with the Rest to the ...
/.../chapter ii argument perpetua when besieged.htm

How Aretas and Hyrcanus Made an Expedition against Aristobulus and ...
... CHAPTER 2. How Aretas And Hyrcanus Made An Expedition Against Aristobulus And Besieged
Jerusalem; And How Scaurus The Roman General Raised The Siege. ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 2 how aretas and.htm

Concerning the Death of Antiochus Epiphane. How Antiochus Eupator ...
... How Antiochus Eupator Fought Against Juda And Besieged Him In The Temple And
Afterwards Made Peace With Him And Departed; Of Alcimus And Onias. ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 9 concerning the death.htm

Concerning Masada and those Sicarii who Kept It; and How Silva ...
... CHAPTER 8. Concerning Masada And Those Sicarii Who Kept It; And How Silva Betook
Himself To Form The Siege Of That Citadel. Eleazar's Speeches To The Besieged. ...
/.../chapter 8 concerning masada and.htm

How Pompey when the Citizens of Jerusalem Shut their Gates against ...
... CHAPTER 4. How Pompey When The Citizens Of Jerusalem Shut Their Gates Against Him
Besieged The City And Took It By Force; As Also What Other Things He Did In ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 4 how pompey when.htm

Concerning the Successors of Judas, who were Jonathan and Simon ...
... He was afterward an auxiliary to Antiochus, against Trypho, whom he besieged in
Dora, before he went on his expedition against the Medes; yet could not he make ...
/.../chapter 2 concerning the successors.htm

The Siege. (xxi, xxxii-xxxiv, xxxvii, xxxviii. )
... His powers of spiritual vision may prove to be also those of political and even
of military foresight, and either inspire the besieged to a victorious ...
//christianbookshelf.org/smith/jeremiah/3 the siege xxi xxxii-xxxiv.htm

Hyrcanus Receives the High Priesthood, and Ejects Ptolemy Out of ...
... round with seven encampments; but did just nothing at the first, because of the
strength of the walls, and because of the valor of the besieged, although they ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 8 hyrcanus receives the.htm

And Now I am Come to this Part of My Narration...
... though I was then very powerful, and all were greatly afraid of me; and at the same
time that the greatest of our cities, Jerusalem, was besieged, and that ...
/.../josephus/the life of flavius josephus/section 65 and now i.htm

Thesaurus

Besieged (34 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (imp. & pp) of Besiege. Multi-Version Concordance
Besieged (34 Occurrences). Deuteronomy 20:19 When you ...
/b/besieged.htm - 16k

Besiege (17 Occurrences)
... by wielding an axe against them; for you may eat of them, and you shall not cut
them down; for is the tree of the field man, that it should be besieged of you? ...
/b/besiege.htm - 12k

Sargon (1 Occurrence)
... At the very beginning of his reign he besieged and took the city of Samaria
(2 Kings 17:6; 18:9-12). On an inscription found in ...
/s/sargon.htm - 10k

Marched (51 Occurrences)
... (See RSV). 2 Kings 6:24 And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Aram
gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. (See NIV). ...
/m/marched.htm - 21k

Sama'ria (102 Occurrences)
... king of Aram gathered all his host together; and there were thirty and two kings
with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and besieged Samaria, and ...
/s/sama'ria.htm - 34k

Omri (16 Occurrences)
... Omri lost not a moment, but leaving Gibbethon in the hands of the Philistines, he
marched to Tirzah, which he besieged and captured, while Zimri perished in ...
/o/omri.htm - 20k

Ravaged (11 Occurrences)
... time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him,
and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah ...
/r/ravaged.htm - 9k

Eleventh (19 Occurrences)
... 2 Kings 25:2 So the city was besieged to the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. ... Jeremiah
52:5 So the city was besieged to the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. ...
/e/eleventh.htm - 12k

Dora
... middle of the 11th century. Sidon was besieged by land, and the inhabitants
were compelled to flee to Tyre. Dor seems to have been ...
/d/dora.htm - 9k

Dor (7 Occurrences)
... middle of the 11th century. Sidon was besieged by land, and the inhabitants
were compelled to flee to Tyre. Dor seems to have been ...
/d/dor.htm - 13k

Resources

What is the significance of the city of Jerusalem? | GotQuestions.org

When and how was Judah conquered by the Babylonians? | GotQuestions.org

How many times has Jerusalem been destroyed? | GotQuestions.org

Besieged: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus

Concordance

Besieged (34 Occurrences)

Deuteronomy 20:19
When you shall besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an axe against them; for you may eat of them, and you shall not cut them down; for is the tree of the field man, that it should be besieged of you?
(WEB JPS ASV DBY NAS RSV)

Judges 9:50
Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it.
(See NIV)

1 Samuel 11:1
Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said unto Nahash: 'Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee.'
(See NAS RSV NIV)

2 Samuel 11:1
It happened, at the return of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY NAS RSV NIV)

2 Samuel 20:15
They came and besieged him in Abel of Beth Maacah, and they cast up a mound against the city, and it stood against the rampart; and all the people who were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV NIV)

1 Kings 16:17
Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV)

1 Kings 20:1
Ben Hadad the king of Syria gathered all his army together; and there were thirty-two kings with him, and horses and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and fought against it.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV NIV)

2 Kings 6:24
It happened after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his army, and went up and besieged Samaria.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV)

2 Kings 6:25
There was a great famine in Samaria. Behold, they besieged it, until a donkey's head was sold for eighty pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV)

2 Kings 16:5
Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV NIV)

2 Kings 17:5
Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV)

2 Kings 18:9
It happened in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV)

2 Kings 19:24
I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places.
(KJV WBS)

2 Kings 24:10
At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS RSV)

2 Kings 24:11
And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants besieged it.
(WBS)

2 Kings 25:2
So the city was besieged to the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS RSV)

1 Chronicles 20:1
It happened, at the time of the return of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that Joab led forth the army, and wasted the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. Joab struck Rabbah, and overthrew it.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV NIV)

2 Chronicles 32:1
After these things, and this faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came, and entered into Judah, and encamped against the fortified cities, and thought to win them for himself.
(See NAS)

Psalms 31:21
Praise be to Yahweh, for he has shown me his marvelous loving kindness in a strong city.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Psalms 60:9
Who will bring me into the strong city? Who has led me to Edom?
(See NAS)

Psalms 108:10
Who will bring me into the fortified city? Who has led me to Edom?
(See NAS)

Psalms 139:5
Behind and before Thou hast besieged me, And Thou dost place on me Thy hand.
(YLT)

Ecclesiastes 9:14
There was a little city, and few men within it; and a great king came against it, besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV WBS RSV)

Isaiah 1:8
The daughter of Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, like a hut in a field of melons, like a besieged city.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV)

Isaiah 37:25
I have digged, and drunk water; and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of the besieged places.
(KJV WBS)

Jeremiah 32:2
For then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house.
(KJV WBS)

Jeremiah 37:5
Then Pharaoh's army was come forth out of Egypt: and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they departed from Jerusalem.
(KJV JPS DBY WBS)

Jeremiah 39:1
It happened when Jerusalem was taken, (in the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem, and besieged it;
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS RSV)

Jeremiah 52:5
So the city was besieged to the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS RSV)

Lamentations 3:5
He has built against me, and surrounded me with gall and travail.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Ezekiel 4:3
Take for yourself an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between you and the city: and set your face toward it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS)

Ezekiel 6:12
He who is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he who is near shall fall by the sword; and he who remains and is besieged shall die by the famine: thus will I accomplish my wrath on them.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS)

Daniel 1:1
In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Jerusalem, and besieged it.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS NAS RSV NIV)

Zechariah 12:2
"Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and on Judah also will it be in the siege against Jerusalem.
(See NIV)

Subtopics

Besieged

Related Terms

Siege (63 Occurrences)

Besieged (34 Occurrences)

Fortified (79 Occurrences)

Fort (8 Occurrences)

Fortress (75 Occurrences)

Fortification (5 Occurrences)

Gihon (6 Occurrences)

Watchman (19 Occurrences)

Issue (59 Occurrences)