Bible Dictionaries
Pavilion

Holman Bible Dictionary

(puh vihl uh n) A large, often richly decorated tent. KJV used pavilion seven times: three times in the literal sense of tents used in military campaigns (1Kings 20:12,1 Kings 20:16; Jeremiah 43:10 ); twice of the thick canopy of clouds surrounding God (2 Samuel 22:12; Psalm 18:11 ) which illustrates the mystery of God; and twice as an image of God's protection (Psalm 27:5; Psalm 31:20 ). NAS, NIV, and NRSV substituted various terms (booths, canopy, shelter, tabernacle, tent) in each of these passages. The NAS used pavilion in the literal sense of tent in Daniel 11:45 . Elsewhere in modern translations, pavilion appears in poetic passages: a pavilion for the sun (Psalm 19:5 NIV); God's pavilion of clouds ( Job 36:29 NAS, REB, NIV, NRSV); a pavilion protecting Jerusalem from heat and rain ( Isaiah 4:5 , RSV).