Cotes

Cotes (also spelled coates) refers to pens or enclosures for flocks, mentioned in 2 Chronicles 32:28 as part of Hezekiah's preparation of storehouses and provisions during his reign — he provided stalls for all manner of beasts, and cotes for flocks. The term denotes sheltered enclosures or folds where sheep and other livestock were protected at night, equivalent to what is elsewhere called a fold or sheepfold in the biblical text.

Animal husbandry was central to the Israelite economy, and the maintenance of adequate sheltering for flocks was a practical concern. Hezekiah's construction of cotes reflects the prosperity and careful administration associated with his reign in Chronicles, which portrays him as a model king who accumulated wealth and organized provisions systematically in preparation for the Assyrian threat.