Topical Encyclopedia
The term "Judgment Hall" refers to the place where judicial proceedings were conducted during the time of the New Testament. In the context of the Roman Empire, it often denotes the official residence or headquarters of a Roman governor, where legal matters and trials were held. The Greek term "praetorium" is frequently translated as "Judgment Hall" in the Berean Standard Bible.
Biblical References:1.
John 18:28-29 : "Then they led Jesus away from Caiaphas to the Praetorium. It was early morning, and they did not enter the Praetorium to avoid being defiled and unable to eat the Passover. So Pilate went out to them and asked, 'What accusation are you bringing against this man?'" This passage describes the events leading up to the trial of Jesus before Pontius Pilate. The Praetorium, or Judgment Hall, was the place where Pilate, the Roman governor, conducted his official duties, including the trial of Jesus.
2.
Mark 15:16 : "Then the soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called the whole company together." Here, the Judgment Hall is identified as the location where Jesus was mocked and beaten by Roman soldiers before His crucifixion. The term "palace" indicates the grandeur and official capacity of the place.
3.
Acts 23:35 : "he said, 'I will hear your case when your accusers arrive.' And he ordered that Paul be kept under guard in Herod’s palace." Although not directly called a Judgment Hall, Herod's palace served a similar function as a place where legal proceedings were conducted, in this case, involving the Apostle Paul.
Historical and Cultural Context:The Judgment Hall, or Praetorium, was an integral part of Roman administrative and judicial systems. It was typically located within the governor's residence or a military headquarters. The Roman governors, such as Pilate, were responsible for maintaining law and order in the provinces, and the Judgment Hall was where they exercised their judicial authority.
The Jewish leaders brought Jesus to the Judgment Hall to seek a Roman verdict, as they lacked the authority to execute capital punishment. This highlights the complex interplay between Roman and Jewish legal systems during the period.
Theological Significance:The events that transpired in the Judgment Hall are pivotal in the narrative of the Passion of Christ. It was here that Jesus was unjustly tried and sentenced to death, fulfilling the prophecies of the suffering Messiah. The Judgment Hall serves as a symbol of the miscarriage of justice and the innocence of Christ, who bore the sins of humanity.
The trials of Jesus and Paul in the Judgment Hall also underscore the theme of divine sovereignty amidst human injustice. Despite the apparent power of Roman authorities, the ultimate purpose and plan of God were being fulfilled through these events.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Judgment HallJUDGMENT HALL
juj'-ment hol (to praitorion, "Then led they Jesus.... unto the hall of judgment.... and they themselves went not into the judgment hall" (John 18:28 the King James Version); "Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again" (John 18:33 the King James Version); "(Pilate) went again into the judgment hall" (John 19:9); "He commanded him to be kept in Herod's judgment hall" (Acts 23:35)):
"Judgment hall" is one of the ways in which the King James Version translates praitorion, which it elsewhere renders "Praetorium" (Mark 15:16); "the common hall" (Matthew 27:27). In this passage the English Revised Version renders it "palace"; inJohn 18:33;John 19:9Acts 23:35, "palace" is also given by the English Revised Version; inPhilippians 1:13, the King James Version renders, "palace," while the Revised Version (British and American) gives "the praetorian guard." Praitorion accordingly is translated in all these ways, "Praetorium," "the common hall," "the judgment hall," "the palace," "the praetorian guard." In the passages In the Gospels, the American Standard Revised Version renders uniformly "Praetorium."
The word originally meant the headquarters in the Roman camp, the space where the general's tent stood, with the camp altar; the tent of the commander-in-chief. It next came to mean the military council, meeting in the general's tent. Then it came to be applied to the palace in which the Roman governor or procurator of a province resided. In Jerusalem it was the magnificent palace which Herod the Great had built for himself, and which the Roman procurators seem to have occupied when they came from Caesarea to Jerusalem to transact public business.
Praitorion inPhilippians 1:13 has been variously rendered, "the camp of the praetorian soldiers," "the praetorian guard," etc. For what is now believed to be its true meaning, see PRAETORIUM.
John Rutherfurd
Smith's Bible Dictionary
Judgment HallThe wordpraetorium is so translated five times in the Authorized Version of the New Testament, and in those five passages it denotes two different places.
- In (John 18:28,33;19:9) it is the residence which Pilate occupied when he visited Jerusalem. The site of Pilate's praetorium in Jerusalem has given rise to much dispute, some supposing it to be the palace of King Herod, others the tower of Antonia; but it was probably the latter, which was then and long afterward the citadel of Jerusalem.
- In (Acts 23:35) Herod's judgment hall or praetorium in Caesarea was doubtless a part of that magnificent range of buildings the erection of which by King Herod is described in Josephus. The word "palace," or "Caesar's court." in the Authorized Version of (Philemon 1:13) is a translation of the same word praetorium. It may here have denoted the quarter of that detachment of the praetorian guards which was in immediate attendance upon the emperor, and had barracks in Mount Palatine at Rome.
Greek
4232. praitorion -- Praetorium (official residence of a governor)...... Of Latin origin; the praetorium or governor's courtroom (sometimes including the
whole edifice and camp) -- (common,
judgment)
hall (of
judgment), palace
...Library
When Jesus to theJudgment Hall
... CHRISTMAS When Jesus to thejudgment hall. 6,6,8,6,8,8. I. When Jesus to thejudgment
hall. By cruel men was led,. He wore a purple robe of scorn,....
In Pilate'sJudgment Hall
... The DESIRE of AGES Chapter 77 In Pilate'sJudgment Hall.... In thejudgment hall of
Pilate, the Roman governor, Christ stands bound as a prisoner....
John Chapter xviii. 28-32.
... 2. "And it was morning; and they themselves," that is, those who brought Jesus,
"went not into thejudgment hall," to wit, into that part of the house which...
Christ Before Pilate.
... Hence, early upon that Friday morning, the great dignitaries of Israel were assembled
before the hatedjudgment hall of Pilate, a building they could not enter...
Further, the Martyrdom of Barsamya, the Bishop of the Blessed City...
... the day after Lysinus, [3211] the judge of the country, had heard the case of Sharbil
the priest; as the judge was sitting in hisjudgment-hall, the Sharirs of...
Art Thou a King?
... ART THOU A KING? 'Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto thehall ofjudgment: and
it was early; and they themselves went not into thejudgment hall, lest they...
Antony, However, According to his Custom, Returned Alone to his...
... And he was very zealous in thejudgment hall to stir up to readiness those who were
summoned when in their contest, while those who were being martyred he...
Of the Absence of any Discrepancies in the Accounts which the...
... He proceeds thus: "And they themselves went not into thejudgment-hall, lest
they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover....
A Homily on Guria and Shamuna, Composed by Mar Jacob.
... With guilelessness and yet with wisdom stood they in thejudgment-hall,.... Nor guileless
only: for in thejudgment-hall with the wisdom of serpents too....
"The Lord is Risen"
... In this glorified Being they beheld the prisoner whom they had seen in thejudgment
hall, the one for whom they had plaited a crown of thorns....
Resources
What is the Judgment Seat of Christ / Bema Seat of Christ? | GotQuestions.orgWhat happens at the final judgment? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does it means that mercy triumphs over judgment (James 2:13)? | GotQuestions.orgJudgment: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
Bible Dictionary •
Bible Encyclopedia •
Topical Bible •
Bible Thesuarus
