Nehemiah 3:15–21

The eastern wall

The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallun son of Col-Hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt it, roofing it over and putting its doors and bolts and bars in place. He also repaired the wall of the Pool of Siloam, by the King’s Garden, as far as the steps going down from the City of David. 16  Beyond him, Nehemiah son of Azbuk, ruler of a half-district of Beth Zur, made repairs up to a point opposite the tombs of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the Heroes.

17 Next to him, the repairs were made by the Levites under Rehum son of Bani. Beside him, Hashabiah, ruler of half the district of Keilah, carried out repairs for his district. 18 Next to him, the repairs were made by their countrymen under Binnui son of Henadad, ruler of the other half-district of Keilah. 19 Next to him, Ezer son of Jeshua, ruler of Mizpah, repaired another section, from a point facing the ascent to the armory as far as the angle. 20 Next to him, Baruch son of Zabbai zealously repaired another section, from the angle to the entrance of the house of Eliashib the high priest. 21 Next to him, Meremoth son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, repaired another section, from the entrance of Eliashib’s house to the end of it.

These verses describe the wall that ran along the eastern side of Ophel and the temple mount, overlooking the Kidron Valley. The exact nature and location of many features of this section of the wall are uncertain, but we can describe a few of the main features.

The Pool of Siloam was a large reservoir of water brought from a nearby spring by tunnel and aqueduct. Its basic outline is still visible today. The nearby “artificial pool” may be the same as the King’s Pool mentioned in Nehemiah chapter 2. The exact relationship of the various storage pools in this area to those that still exist today is uncertain. The Fountain Gate apparently gave access to one of Jerusalem’s two main springs, the spring En Rogel, which was southeast of the city walls in the Kidron Valley. The Water Gate was the main gate in the middle of the eastern wall of the City of David. It led to the spring Gihon, the most important water source for Old Testament Jerusalem and the source of the water that was stored in Siloam and the other pools.

All these details stress the importance of water sources for an ancient city. Water sources were especially critical for a city like Jerusalem, where there is no rain for five or six months each summer. Water was collected in reservoirs and cisterns during the rainy season, so that women could go to these places to draw water during the dry season.