In biblical times, doorposts held significant symbolic and practical importance, often serving as a place for religious expression and covenantal reminders. The Hebrew word for doorpost is "mezuzah," which also refers to the small case affixed to the doorpost containing specific Scripture passages.

Passover and the Doorposts

One of the most notable references to doorposts in the Bible is found in the account of the Passover in the Book of Exodus. As God prepared to deliver the Israelites from Egyptian bondage, He instructed them to mark their doorposts with the blood of a lamb. This act served as a sign for the Lord to "pass over" their homes during the final plague, the death of the firstborn. Exodus 12:7 states, "They are to take some of the blood and put it on the two side posts and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs." This event established the Passover as a perpetual ordinance for the Israelites, symbolizing God's deliverance and protection.

The Shema and the Doorposts

In Deuteronomy, the doorposts are again highlighted as a place for the Israelites to display their devotion to God. Deuteronomy 6:9 instructs, "Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates." This command is part of the Shema, a central declaration of faith in Judaism, emphasizing the importance of keeping God's commandments at the forefront of daily life. The practice of affixing a mezuzah to the doorpost, containing the Shema and other passages, continues to be a tangible reminder of God's presence and commandments.

Prophetic Imagery

The prophets also used doorposts as a metaphor for spiritual truths. In Ezekiel 45:19, the prophet describes a future temple where the blood of a sin offering is to be placed on the doorposts, symbolizing purification and atonement. This imagery underscores the doorpost as a place of divine encounter and sanctification.

New Testament References

While the New Testament does not explicitly mention doorposts in the same ritualistic context as the Old Testament, the concept of Christ as the Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7) echoes the protective and redemptive symbolism associated with the blood on the doorposts during the original Passover. Believers are reminded of the ultimate deliverance and protection found in Christ's sacrifice.

Cultural and Spiritual Significance

Throughout biblical history, doorposts have served as a physical and spiritual threshold, marking the transition from the outside world into the sanctity of the home. They represent a place of decision, covenant, and divine protection. The act of marking or inscribing the doorposts with God's Word serves as a continual reminder of His presence and the call to live in obedience to His commandments.The Jews were commanded to write the divine name on the posts (mezuzoth') of their doors (Deuteronomy 6:9). The Jews, misunderstanding this injunction, adopted the custom of writing on a slip of parchment these verses (Deuteronomy 6:4-9, and 11:13-21), which they enclosed in a reed or cylinder and fixed on the right-hand door-post of every room in the house. 4201. mezuzah -- a doorpost, gatepost
... 4200, 4201. mezuzah or mezuzah. 4202 . a doorpost, gatepost. Transliteration:
mezuzah or mezuzah Phonetic Spelling: (mez-oo-zaw') Short Definition: doorposts ...
/hebrew/4201.htm - 6k

539. aman -- to confirm, support
... to confirm, support NASB Word Usage believe (26), believed (11), believes (2), bringing
(1), carried (1), chronic (1), confirmed (5), doorposts (1), endure (1 ...
/hebrew/539.htm - 6k

The Dedication
... Egyptians. That the Israelites might be spared, they were directed to place
upon their doorposts the blood of a slain lamb. Every ...
//christianbookshelf.org/white/the desire of ages/chapter 5 the dedication.htm

On the Holy Ghost and his Descent Upon the Apostles
... to tell the Israelites in the land that on a certain night they were to take a lamb
in each family, kill it, and sprinkle its blood on the doorposts of their ...
/.../kinkead/baltimore catechism no 4/lesson 9 on the holy.htm

Light through Darkness
... After the settlement in Canaan the divine precepts were to be repeated daily in
every home; they were to be written plainly upon the doorposts and gates, and ...
/.../white/the story of prophets and kings/chapter 38 light through darkness.htm

The World's Sin-Bearer
... Thus the conceptions of vicarious suffering, and of a death which is a deliverance,
and of blood which, sprinkled on the doorposts, guards the house from the ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture i/the worlds sin-bearer.htm

The Passover visit
... Having sprinkled the doorposts with the blood of the slain lamb, they were to
eat the lamb, roasted, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. ...
/.../white/the desire of ages/chapter 8 the passover visit.htm

John Chapter xiii. 5-Jan
... now that prophetic emblem is fulfilled in truth, when Christ is led as a sheep to
the slaughter, [1121] that by His blood sprinkled on our doorposts, that is ...
/.../augustine/homilies on the gospel of john/tractate lv john chapter xiii.htm

Political and Religious Life of the Jewish Dispersion in the West ...
... that the Hellenistic Jew, living in the midst of a hostile, curious, and scurrilous
population, did not care to exhibit over his house and doorposts, at the ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter vi political and religious.htm

The Dead Christ
... This reminded them of how in Egypt the blood of this lamb, sprinkled on the lintels
and doorposts of their huts, saved them from the visit of the destroying ...
/.../stalker/the trial and death of jesus christ/chapter xxii the dead christ.htm

The Festal Life
... I am the true Paschal Lamb, whose blood sprinkled on the doorposts averts the sword
of the destroying Angel, whose flesh, partaken of, gives immortal life. ...
/.../maclaren/romans corinthians to ii corinthians chap v/the festal life.htm

The God of the Rain
... Thou shalt bind my words for a sign upon your hands, and they shall be as frontlets
between your eyes, and thou shalt write them upon the doorposts of thine ...
/.../kingsley/the gospel of the pentateuch/sermon xvii the god of.htm

Doorposts (15 Occurrences)
... the house. Multi-Version Concordance Doorposts (15 Occurrences). Exodus
12:7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the ...
/d/doorposts.htm - 11k

Lintel (4 Occurrences)
... Exodus 12:7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts
and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. ...
/l/lintel.htm - 8k

Posts (68 Occurrences)
... Exodus 12:7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts
and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. ...
/p/posts.htm - 27k

Door (249 Occurrences)
... The doorway was enclosed by the stone threshold (1 Kings 14:17), the two doorposts
on either side, and the lintel above (Exodus 12:7). Doors were frequently two ...
/d/door.htm - 40k

Door-post (5 Occurrences)
Door-post. Doorpost, Door-post. Doorposts . Multi-Version Concordance ... (Root
in JPS ASV YLT). Doorpost, Door-post. Doorposts . Reference Bible.
/d/door-post.htm - 8k

Door-posts (11 Occurrences)
Door-posts. Doorposts, Door-posts. Doors . Easton's Bible Dictionary ... (ASV
JPS). Doorposts, Door-posts. Doors . Reference Bible.
/d/door-posts.htm - 10k

Strike (168 Occurrences)
... Exodus 12:22 You shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in
the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is ...
/s/strike.htm - 46k

Lambs (107 Occurrences)
... (See RSV). Exodus 12:7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two
doorposts and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. (See NIV) ...
/l/lambs.htm - 39k

Tops (37 Occurrences)
... Exodus 12:7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and
on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. (See NIV). ...
/t/tops.htm - 18k

Destroyer (23 Occurrences)
... Exodus 12:23 For Yahweh will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when he sees
the blood on the lintel, and on the two doorposts, Yahweh will pass over ...
/d/destroyer.htm - 16k

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