Court

Court in Scripture refers to enclosed areas associated with the tabernacle, the temple, or royal palaces. The tabernacle court was a rectangular enclosure approximately 150 by 75 feet, bounded by curtain-hung posts, containing the altar of burnt offering and the laver (Exodus 27:9–19; 40:8). Solomon's temple had both an inner court (the priests' court, 1 Kings 6:36) and a great outer court (the people's court). Herod's expanded temple complex had multiple courts — including the Court of the Gentiles, the Court of Women, the Court of Israel, and the Court of Priests.

The metaphor of dwelling in the courts of God's house runs through the Psalms as the supreme expression of spiritual desire: My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD (Psalm 84:2). Better is one day in thy courts than a thousand elsewhere (Psalm 84:10). The royal courts of Persia appear in Esther and Nehemiah, where access to the inner court of the king was regulated by strict protocol. The court of the guard in Jerusalem served as Jeremiah's place of confinement and continued prophetic ministry (Jeremiah 37:21; 38:6–13).