Hebrew word · H1002

בִּירָה

habirah

palace

Fortress, fortified citadel or acropolis; by extension the royal or temple complex within it. Related to Akkadian birtu and Aramaic bîrtā, 'fortress'.

Appears 16 times in 16 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) palace, castle

2) temple

Aramaic equivalent: bi.ra (בִּירְתָא "citadel" H1001)

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Esther 3:15

Range of meaning

Fortress, fortified citadel or acropolis; by extension the royal or temple complex within it. Related to Akkadian birtu and Aramaic bîrtā, 'fortress'.

Against the English

KJV 'Shushan the palace' suggests a single palace building. Modern versions use 'citadel' or 'fortress', which is more accurate.

How it drifted

Earlier English used 'palace' loosely; to a modern reader it suggests a building, not a walled royal hill.

Used elsewhere in the period

Nehemiah 1:1 and Daniel 8:2 also say 'Shushan the bîrāh'. Nehemiah 2:8 uses it for the fortress by the temple; 1 Chronicles 29:1, 19 uses it for the temple complex. The Elephantine papyri (5th century BC) call the Jewish garrison town 'Yeb the bîrtā'.

From the study of 1 Chronicles 29:1

Range of meaning

A fortified royal citadel, an acropolis or palace-fortress. The word is borrowed from Akkadian birtu ('fortress') and Aramaic birta. It appears only in late biblical books: Esther ('Susa the citadel', ten times), Nehemiah 1:1, 2:8 and 7:2, Daniel 8:2, and in Chronicles here, at 29:19 and (in plural form) at 2 Chr 17:12 and 27:4.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and BSB say 'palace', NIV says 'palatial structure', and some versions simply say 'temple'. 'Palace' catches the royal side but loses the sense of a fortified seat of power. 'Temple' gives the right referent but loses the image completely.

How it drifted

Not drift in the usual sense, but a loss of image. The Chronicler chose an imperial word for a king's stronghold, and most English readers never notice it.

Used elsewhere in the period

Persian-period usage throughout. The Aramaic Elephantine papyri (5th century BC) speak of 'Yeb the fortress' (yeb birta). Nehemiah 2:8 mentions 'the citadel that belongs to the house', a fortress next to the Second Temple, later rebuilt under the Hasmoneans and Herod as the Baris and then the Antonia (Josephus). The Septuagint here seems to flatten it to a general word for 'the building'.

From the study of 1 Chronicles 29:19

Range of meaning

A fortified palace, citadel, acropolis or stronghold. In biblical Hebrew it shows up only in late books: Nehemiah (the citadel by the temple, Neh 2:8; 7:2), Esther and Daniel ('Susa the citadel'), and Chronicles (1 Chr 29:1, 19; plus the related biraniyyot, 'fortresses', 2 Chr 17:12; 27:4).

Against the English

KJV, WEB, YLT and BSB say 'palace'. Some modern versions say 'temple' or 'palatial structure'. 'Temple' gets the referent right but loses the image of a royal stronghold. 'Palace' keeps the royal side, though a modern reader may think of a king's home rather than God's house.

Used elsewhere in the period

A loanword from Akkadian birtu, 'fortress, citadel', which came into Hebrew and Aramaic in the Assyrian and Persian periods. The Aramaic Elephantine papyri (5th century BC) call the fortress-town Yeb birta. Later Jewish usage (Mishnah) calls the temple mount or temple birah.

Where it appears

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 29:1 הַבִּירָ֔ה the temple

    Then King David said to the whole assembly, “My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced. The task is great because this palace is not for man, but for the LORD God.

    Here: A late loanword for a royal fortress-palace (as in 'Susa the citadel'). Here it is applied, unusually, to the temple, pictured as the residence of the divine King.

  2. 1 Chronicles 29:19 הַבִּירָ֥ה the temple

    And give my son Solomon a whole heart to keep and carry out all Your commandments, decrees, and statutes, and to build Your palace for which I have made provision.”

    Here: A late word, borrowed from Akkadian, for a fortified palace or citadel. It calls the temple a royal stronghold, since 29:1 says 'the birah is not for man but for the LORD God'.

Nehemiah · 3

  1. Nehemiah 1:1 הַבִּירָֽה׃ the citadel

    These are the words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: In the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa,

  2. Nehemiah 2:8 הַבִּירָ֤ה the citadel

    And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel to the temple, for the city wall, and for the house I will occupy.” And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests.

    Here: A fortified stronghold, a word of the Persian period. Here it is the fortress guarding the temple, usually placed north of the temple mount. It is not a royal palace.

  3. Nehemiah 7:2 הַבִּירָ֖ה the citadel

    Then I put my brother Hanani in charge of Jerusalem, along with Hananiah the commander of the fortress, because he was a faithful man who feared God more than most.

    Here: "The citadel." A Persian-period word for a fortified stronghold, here the fortress next to the temple mentioned in 2:8. It means a military post, not a royal residence.

Esther · 10

  1. Esther 1:2 הַבִּירָֽה׃ the citadel

    In those days King Xerxes sat on his royal throne in the citadel of Susa.

  2. Esther 1:5 הַבִּירָ֜ה the citadel

    At the end of this time, in the garden court of the royal palace, the king held a seven-day feast for all the people in the citadel of Susa, from the least to the greatest.

  3. Esther 2:3 הַבִּירָה֙ the citadel

    and let the king appoint commissioners in each province of his kingdom to assemble all the beautiful young women into the harem at the citadel of Susa. Let them be placed under the care of Hegai, the king’s eunuch in charge of the women, and let them be given beauty treatments.

  4. Esther 2:5 הַבִּירָ֑ה the citadel

    Now there was at the citadel of Susa a Jewish man from the tribe of Benjamin named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish.

  5. Esther 2:8 הַבִּירָ֖ה the citadel

    When the king’s command and edict had been proclaimed, many young women gathered at the citadel of Susa under the care of Hegai. Esther was also taken to the palace and placed under the care of Hegai, the custodian of the women.

  6. Esther 3:15 הַבִּירָ֑ה the citadel

    The couriers left, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa. Then the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was in confusion.

    Here: The fortified royal acropolis on its mound, where the palace and court stood, as distinct from the lower town. The decree is posted where the powerful live.

  7. Esther 8:14 הַבִּירָֽה׃ פ the citadel

    The couriers rode out in haste on their royal horses, pressed on by the command of the king. And the edict was also issued in the citadel of Susa.

  8. Esther 9:6 הַבִּירָ֗ה the citadel

    In the citadel of Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men,

  9. Esther 9:11 הַבִּירָ֖ה the citadel

    On that day the number of those killed in the citadel of Susa was reported to the king,

  10. Esther 9:12 הַבִּירָ֡ה the citadel

    who said to Queen Esther, “In the citadel of Susa the Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men, including Haman’s ten sons. What have they done in the rest of the royal provinces? Now what is your petition? It will be given to you. And what further do you request? It will be fulfilled.”

Daniel · 1

  1. Daniel 8:2 הַבִּירָ֔ה the citadel

    And in the vision I saw myself in the citadel of Susa, in the province of Elam. I saw in the vision that I was beside the Ulai Canal.

    Here: 'The fortress' or 'the citadel'. Together with the city name it forms a fixed title, 'Susa the citadel' (as in Esther 1:2 and Nehemiah 1:1), meaning the fortified royal acropolis.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.