### Core Meaning & Semantic Range
The Hebrew word **bôwr**, represented by `{{H953}}`, is a versatile term for a **pit hole**. It appears 69 times across 64 unique verses in the Bible. Its meaning ranges from a literal hole in the ground to a place of confinement like a **cistern**, **dungeon**, or **prison**, and it can even be translated as a **fountain** or **well**.
### Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis
In the biblical narrative, `{{H953}}` is used in several key contexts. It serves as a place of confinement and punishment, as when Joseph's brothers cast him into a pit that was empty with no water [[Genesis 37:24]]. Similarly, the prophet Jeremiah was cast into a dungeon `{{H953}}` that contained no water, but only mire [[Jeremiah 38:6]]. It can also represent a source of life and sustenance, such as the "wells `{{H953}}` digged" that the Israelites would inherit as a blessing [[Deuteronomy 6:11]]. This duality is also seen metaphorically, where going down into the "pit `{{H953}}`" is equivalent to death [[Psalms 28:1]], yet it can also be a "fountain `{{H953}}`" that casts out water [[Jeremiah 6:7]].
### Related Words & Concepts
Several related words expand upon the concept of a pit and its functions:
* `{{H875}}` **bᵉʼêr** (a pit; especially a well): This word is often used synonymously with `{{H953}}` to refer to a source of water. In Proverbs, one is advised to "Drink waters out of thine own cistern `{{H953}}`, and running waters out of thine own well `{{H875}}`" [[Proverbs 5:15]].
* `{{H7845}}` **shachath** (a pit (especially as a trap); figuratively, destruction): This word emphasizes the pit as a place of danger and ruin, as seen when one who "made a pit `{{H953}}`... is fallen into the ditch `{{H7845}}` which he made" [[Psalms 7:15]].
* `{{H7585}}` **shᵉʼôwl** (Hades or the world of the dead (as if a subterranean retreat), including its accessories and inmates; grave, hell, pit): `{{H953}}` is frequently used in parallel with `{{H7585}}` to describe the realm of the dead, where those who "go down into the pit `{{H953}}` cannot hope for thy truth" [[Isaiah 38:18]].
* `{{H1004}}` **bayith** (a house... [phrase] dungeon, [phrase] prison): When combined with `{{H953}}`, this term specifically denotes a prison or dungeon, as in "the dungeon `{{H1004}}``{{H953}}`" where the firstborn of the captive was smitten [[Exodus 12:29]].
### Theological Significance
The theological weight of `{{H953}}` is significant, representing starkly contrasting themes of divine judgment and deliverance.
* **A Place of Trial and Deliverance:** The pit is often a place of unjust suffering from which God rescues the righteous. Joseph was lifted from the pit [[Genesis 37:28]], and the Psalmist praises the LORD who "brought me up also out of an horrible pit `{{H953}}`" [[Psalms 40:2]]. Jeremiah was also rescued from the dungeon `{{H953}}` by Ebedmelech [[Jeremiah 38:13]].
* **A Symbol of Death and Judgment:** To "go down into the pit `{{H953}}`" is a common biblical metaphor for death and separation from God [[Psalms 143:7]]. It is the destination for the wicked and for the armies of foreign nations, who bear their shame with them that descend into the pit ([[Ezekiel 32:24]], [[Ezekiel 32:29]]).
* **A Source of Life and Blessing:** In contrast, a `{{H953}}` as a well or cistern represents God's provision and blessing. The Israelites were promised to possess "wells `{{H953}}` digged, which thou diggedst not" as part of their inheritance in the promised land [[Deuteronomy 6:11]].
### Summary
In summary, `{{H953}}` is far more than a simple geographical feature. It carries a powerful duality, representing both life and death. It can be a "cistern `{{H953}}`" providing life-sustaining water [[Isaiah 36:16]] or a "dungeon `{{H953}}`" of mire, despair, and near-death [[Jeremiah 38:6]]. It serves as a potent biblical symbol for both divine judgment and entrapment [[Proverbs 28:17]] and for providential blessing and miraculous deliverance [[Psalms 40:2]].
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