Five-minute study · Day 183 · Proverbs 18
Proverbs 18:10
A word worth stopping on: tower מִגְדָּל migdal
'The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.' The Hebrew word for tower here is migdal, and it does not mean a building you admire from a distance. A migdal was a fortified watchtower, built thick-walled and tall on a hilltop or at the edge of a vineyard. When raiders appeared on the horizon, you ran to the migdal. Your life depended on getting inside.
Word study: tower
- Hebrew
- מִגְדָּל
- Pronounced
- migdal
- Strong's
- H4026
- Definition
- A tower, especially a fortified watchtower. From gadal, 'to be great, to grow.' A structure made great by height and strength.
Migdal appears 49 times in the Hebrew Bible. BDB classifies its uses: watchtowers in vineyards (Isaiah 5:2), towers in city walls (2 Chronicles 26:9), the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:4-5), and fortified towers used as last-resort shelters during attack (Judges 9:51).
The fortress function is the key to Proverbs 18:10. Judges 9:51 describes a migdal in the city of Thebez: 'There was a strong tower within the city, and thither fled all the men and women, and all they of the city, and shut it to them, and gat them up to the top of the tower.' When Abimelech attacked the city, the entire population ran to the migdal. It was the final refuge.
Waltke's commentary on Proverbs notes the deliberate contrast between verses 10 and 11. Verse 10: 'The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.' Verse 11: 'The rich man's wealth is his strong city, and as an high wall in his own conceit.' The two verses are placed side by side for comparison. The righteous person runs to God's name. The rich person trusts in wealth. The proverb says one refuge is real and the other is imaginary.
Migdal Eder, the 'tower of the flock,' appears in Genesis 35:21 and Micah 4:8. It was a shepherd's watchtower near Bethlehem, used to guard flocks against predators and thieves. The Targum identifies Migdal Eder as the place where the Messiah would be revealed. Early Jewish tradition placed it within sight of the fields where, centuries later, shepherds heard the angels announce the birth of Christ.
The verb 'runneth' (ruts) conveys urgency. You do not stroll to a watchtower during an attack. You sprint. The proverb pictures a person under threat, running hard toward the one refuge that can hold.
Historical context · Iron Age Israel, 1200-586 BC
The Architecture of Survival
Archaeological excavations across Israel have uncovered dozens of migdal structures dating from the Bronze and Iron Ages. These towers served multiple functions: agricultural lookouts, border fortifications, and urban defensive positions. The typical migdal had walls several feet thick, a single narrow entrance that could be barred from inside, and multiple stories reached by internal stairs or ladders.
At Shechem (modern Tell Balata), archaeologists discovered the remains of a massive migdal-temple from the Late Bronze Age, identified by many scholars as the 'tower of Shechem' (migdal Shechem) mentioned in Judges 9:46-49. Its walls were over seventeen feet thick. The structure could hold hundreds of people. When Abimelech attacked, the entire population of the city gathered inside this tower as their last defense.
Smaller migdal structures dotted the agricultural landscape. Isaiah 5:2 describes a vineyard owner who 'built a tower in the midst of it.' These vineyard towers served as lookout posts during harvest season, when the ripening grapes attracted both thieves and animals. The watchman in the tower could see threats approaching from miles away and raise an alarm. The towers were often equipped with storage rooms for tools and provisions.
The city of Migdal (also called Magdala) on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee takes its name from such a tower. Recent excavations at Magdala have uncovered a first-century synagogue with a stone block carved with a menorah, one of the earliest depictions of the temple menorah ever found. Mary Magdalene's name means 'Mary of the Tower.'
For the original readers of Proverbs 18:10, the image was as concrete as a fire station is today. Everyone knew where the nearest migdal was. Everyone knew the protocol: when danger comes, you run.
For reflection
The proverb says the righteous person runs into God's name. Running implies awareness of danger and a decision about direction. You have to know you are in trouble, and you have to know where the tower is. What is the threat you are currently running from, and where are you running to?
The verb is 'runneth,' present tense, habitual action. The righteous person makes a practice of running to this tower.
Sources: BDB Lexicon; Waltke, 'Proverbs 15-31'; Mazar, 'Excavations at Migdal'; Judges 9:46-51 archaeological correlations