In biblical literature, elevations often refer to high places, mountains, hills, and other raised geographical features that hold significant spiritual, historical, and symbolic importance. These elevations serve as settings for divine encounters, places of worship, and symbols of God's majesty and authority.

Mountains and Hills

Mountains and hills are frequently mentioned in the Bible as sites of divine revelation and covenant. Mount Sinai, for instance, is where Moses received the Ten Commandments from God. Exodus 19:20 states, "The LORD descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the summit." This elevation becomes a sacred space where God communicates His laws to His people.

Similarly, Mount Zion holds a central place in biblical theology. It is often synonymous with Jerusalem and represents God's chosen dwelling place. Psalm 48:2 describes it as "beautiful in loftiness, the joy of the whole earth, like the peaks of Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the Great King."

High Places

High places, or "bamot" in Hebrew, are elevated sites often used for worship. While some high places were dedicated to the worship of Yahweh, many became associated with idolatry and pagan practices. The Bible frequently condemns the use of high places for idol worship. For example, 2 Kings 17:11 notes, "They burned incense on all the high places like the nations that the LORD had driven out before them."

Despite their association with idolatry, high places were sometimes used for legitimate worship before the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Samuel offered sacrifices at high places, as seen in 1 Samuel 9:12-14 , where he is found at a high place blessing a sacrifice.

Symbolism of Elevations

Elevations in the Bible often symbolize closeness to God, spiritual ascent, and divine authority. The Psalms frequently use mountains as metaphors for God's strength and protection. Psalm 125:2 states, "As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds His people both now and forevermore."

Moreover, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) is delivered from an elevation, symbolizing the authority and divine wisdom of His teachings. The mountain setting underscores the significance of His message, drawing a parallel to Moses receiving the Law on Mount Sinai.

Prophetic and Eschatological Significance

Elevations also play a role in prophetic and eschatological visions. Isaiah 2:2 prophesies, "In the last days, the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it." This vision portrays a future where God's kingdom is exalted above all others, drawing people from every nation to worship Him.

In Revelation, the Apostle John describes a new heaven and a new earth, where the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descends from heaven. This imagery of elevation signifies the ultimate fulfillment of God's promises and the establishment of His eternal kingdom.

Elevations in the Bible, therefore, serve as powerful symbols of divine interaction, spiritual ascent, and the ultimate triumph of God's kingdom. They remind believers of the sacredness of God's creation and His sovereign rule over all the earth.3406. Yerimoth -- the name of a number of Isr.
... Or Yreymowth {yer-ay-mohth'}; or Yremowth {yer-ay-mohth'}; feminine plural from
ruwm; elevations; Jerimoth or Jeremoth, the name of twelve Israelites -- Jermoth ...
/hebrew/3406.htm - 6k

Of the Prayer Proper to the State of Contemplation...
... 2. These perfect operations are by spiritual authors severally named, as elevations,
inward stirrings of the spirit, Aspirations, &c.; we will in the following ...
/.../chapter ii of the prayer.htm

Of Contemplation in General; what it Is. ...
... shall be, to unite themselves actively and actually to God by efficacious, fervent,
amorous, and constant, yet withal silent and quiet, elevations of the spirit ...
/.../chapter i of contemplation in.htm

Internal Exercises Weaken the Body, yet Oft Prolong Life. ...
... our comfort this uneasiness will, by custom and constancy, continually diminish;
for, as Harphius observes, a soul after long practice of elevations of spirit ...
/.../chapter vi internal exercises weaken.htm

The Accession of Darius.
... Looking up as we do to these vast elevations from below, they seem invested with
a certain sublimity and grandeur which we imagine must continually impress the ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/abbott/darius the great/chapter iv the accession of.htm

The Means of Obtaining Peace Internal, is not the Delight of Sense ...
... There are many Souls dedicated to God, which receive from his Hand great Thoughts,
Visions, and mental Elevations, and yet for all that, the Lord keeps from em ...
/.../the spiritual guide which disentangles the soul/chap iii the means of.htm

Of the Great Desolation Usually Following an Intellectual Passive ...
... she think so she will find herself strangely deceived; for as the whole course of
a spiritual life consists of perpetual changes, of elevations and depressions ...
/.../chapter v of the great.htm

The Passing and the Permanent
... us that 'where rears the cliff there rolled the sea,' that through the cycles of
the shifting history of the world there have been elevations and depressions ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/the passing and the permanent.htm

For I was an Hungered, and Ye Gave Me no Meat...
... peace, both in the churches and the houses of my saints; and ye taught them to run
to adulteries, and fornications, and theatres, and dancings, and elevations. ...
/.../the extant works and fragments of hippolytus/piece xlvi for i was.htm

Of Certain Other Means by which we May Apply Our Works More ...
... Besides this, let us a hundred and a hundred times a day unite our life to Divine
love by the practice of ejaculatory prayers, elevations of heart and ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter ix of certain other.htm

Several Degrees and Stations in an Internal Life; as the Three ...
... or election of her own, but are suggested to her by the Divine Spirit entirely
possessing her; and although in these most sublime and blind elevations of the ...
/.../chapter i several degrees and.htm

Elevations (1 Occurrence)
... Multi-Version Concordance Elevations (1 Occurrence). Joshua 11:2 and unto
the kings who 'are' on the north in the hill-country, and ...
/e/elevations.htm - 6k

Elevation (7 Occurrences)

/e/elevation.htm - 9k

Eleven (25 Occurrences)

/e/eleven.htm - 16k

Frost (9 Occurrences)
... rare occurrence at sea-level; but on the hills and elevated plains it is usual in
winter, beginning with November, and on the highest elevations throughout the ...
/f/frost.htm - 14k

Rare (8 Occurrences)
... 6. (superl.) Characterized by wide separation of parts; of loose texture; not
thick or dense; thin; as, a rare atmosphere at high elevations. ...
/r/rare.htm - 9k

Relief (32 Occurrences)
... 7. (n.) The height to which works are raised above the bottom of the ditch.
8. (n.) The elevations and surface undulations of a country. ...
/r/relief.htm - 16k

Evenly (1 Occurrence)
... (adv.) With an even, level, or smooth surface; without roughness, elevations, or
depression; uniformly; equally; comfortably; impartially; serenely. ...
/e/evenly.htm - 6k

Mountain (298 Occurrences)
... 2. (n.) A range, chain, or group of such elevations; as, the White Mountains.
3. (n.) A mountain like mass; something of great bulk. ...
/m/mountain.htm - 48k

Place (9195 Occurrences)
... (2) The use of elevations for purposes of worship is so widespread as to be almost
universal, and rests, probably, on motives so primitive as to evade formal ...
/p/place.htm - 28k

Plane (5 Occurrences)
... 1. (n.) Any tree of the genus Platanus. 2. (a.) Without elevations or depressions;
even; level; flat; lying in, or constituting, a plane; as, a plane surface. ...
/p/plane.htm - 10k

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