Bible Encyclopedias
Barn

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

barn ( מגוּרה , meghūrāh , "a granary," "fear," Haggai 2:19; אסם , 'āṣām , "a storehouse," Proverbs 3:10; ממּגוּרה , mammeghūrāh , "a repository," Joel 1:17; ἀποθήκη , apothḗkē , Matthew 6:26; Matthew 13:30; Luke 12:18 , Luke 12:24 ): A place for the storing of grain, usually a dry cistern in the ground, covered over with a thick layer of earth. "Grain is not stored in the East until it is threshed and winnowed. The apothēkē in Roman times was probably a building of some kind. But the immemorial usage of the East has been to conceal the grain, in carefully prepared pits or caves, which, being perfectly dry, will preserve it for years. It Thus escaped, as far as possible, the attentions of the tax-gatherer as well as of the robber - not always easily distinguished in the East; compare Jeremiah 41:8 " (Temple Dictionary , 215).

Figurative of heaven ( Matthew 13:30 ). See AGRICULTURE; GARNER .