Mortar
Mortar is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Judea in modern-day Israel. Known today as Jerusalem. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.
Biblical History
The Mortar (Hebrew: Maktesh) appears in Zephaniah 1:11 as a district within or near Jerusalem where merchants and traders conducted their business. The prophet Zephaniah, writing during the reign of King Josiah (circa 640-609 BC), pronounced judgment against the inhabitants of the Mortar, declaring that all the merchant people would be cut off and all who trade with silver would be destroyed. The name itself means "mortar" or "hollow," likely describing a depression or basin-shaped area in the topography of Jerusalem that naturally lent itself to use as a marketplace. This commercial quarter represented the materialism and spiritual complacency that Zephaniah condemned throughout his prophecy. The merchants of the Mortar symbolized those in Judah who were more devoted to accumulating wealth than to faithfulness toward God. Zephaniah's warning about this district formed part of his broader oracle concerning the coming Day of the Lord, when God would search Jerusalem with lamps and punish those settled comfortably in their sins.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
The Mortar is generally identified with a valley or depression within ancient Jerusalem, most commonly associated with the Tyropoeon Valley (the central valley running through the city) or possibly a section of the Kidron Valley. Some scholars locate it in the area of the later Second Quarter of Jerusalem. Archaeological excavations in Jerusalem's Old City and the City of David have uncovered extensive commercial districts from the Iron Age period, including weights, seals, and storage facilities consistent with merchant activity. The precise location remains debated, as Jerusalem's topography has been significantly altered by millennia of construction, destruction, and fill deposits.
Verse Appearances (1)
Zeph
Sources: ISBE Encyclopedia · OpenBible Geocoding (CC BY) · Pleiades Gazetteer View all →