The term "road-side" in biblical contexts often refers to the areas adjacent to roads or paths, which were significant in the daily life and spiritual teachings of the biblical world. Roads in ancient Israel and surrounding regions were vital for travel, trade, and communication, and the road-side often served as a setting for important biblical events and teachings.

Biblical References:

1. Parable of the Sower: One of the most notable references to the road-side is found in the Parable of the Sower, as recounted in the Synoptic Gospels. In Matthew 13:4 , Jesus describes how "as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it." The road-side here symbolizes a hardened heart where the word of God is sown but quickly snatched away by evil influences. This imagery underscores the spiritual peril of a heart unprepared to receive divine truth.

2. Healing of Bartimaeus: The road-side is also the setting for the healing of Bartimaeus, the blind beggar. In Mark 10:46 , it is written, "As Jesus and His disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. And a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road." This account highlights the road-side as a place of encounter with Jesus, where faith and persistence lead to miraculous healing.

3. The Good Samaritan: The parable of the Good Samaritan, found in Luke 10:30-37, takes place along a road where a man is attacked by robbers and left for dead. The road-side becomes a place of moral testing and divine compassion, as the Samaritan tends to the wounded man, demonstrating love and mercy beyond cultural boundaries.

4. Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch: In Acts 8:26-40, Philip is directed by an angel of the Lord to go to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza. It is along this road-side that Philip encounters the Ethiopian eunuch, leading to a profound moment of evangelism and baptism. This narrative illustrates the road-side as a divinely appointed place for the spread of the Gospel.

Cultural and Historical Context:

In the ancient Near East, roads were often unpaved and could be treacherous, frequented by travelers, traders, and sometimes bandits. The road-side, therefore, was a place of both opportunity and danger. It was common for beggars and those in need to position themselves along these routes, hoping for alms from passersby. The road-side also served as a venue for teaching and public discourse, as seen in the ministry of Jesus and the apostles.

Spiritual Significance:

The road-side in biblical narratives often serves as a metaphor for the journey of life, where individuals encounter divine truth, face moral choices, and experience God's intervention. It is a place where the ordinary intersects with the extraordinary, where faith is tested and revealed. The teachings and events associated with the road-side challenge believers to remain open to God's word, to show compassion to those in need, and to be ready for divine appointments in the midst of daily life.

A Bible-Riddle
... out at him from behind some bushes, and Samson, being a very strong man, broke its
jaws and killed it, and left its carcass behind some bushes by the roadside. ...
/.../chidley/fifty-two story talks to boys and girls/a bible-riddle.htm

The Angel of Death
... A turf-thatched hovel at the roadside showed a light as they swept by and a
long scream clove the air, but the Arab was not to be halted. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the yoke/chapter xli the angel of.htm

The Man that Stopped Jesus
... might have supposed that He would be oblivious of externals, and especially of the
individual sorrows of one poor blind beggar sitting by the roadside, it was ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture e/the man that stopped jesus.htm

Field Hymns.
... While Jesus whispers to you,. "came to him during a brief turn of outdoor work by
the roadside and presently grew to twenty-four lines. Soon after, Prof. ...
/.../brown/the story of the hymns and tunes/chapter xii field hymns.htm

Life of Bunyan
... there, and yonder is old Bunyan's self"the brawny tramper dispread on the settle,
retailing to the more clownish residents tap-room wit and roadside news. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/hamilton/life of bunyan/life of bunyan.htm

When travelling lately through the Simplon
... When travelling lately through the Simplon"one of the great Alpine passes leading
from Switzerland into Italy"I observed, close by the roadside, at regular ...
/.../the cities of refuge or the name of jesus/i when travelling lately through.htm

Sown among Thorns
... If you do not bring forth fruit to holiness, and the end is not everlasting life,
I would be better employed in breaking stones on the road-side than in ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 34 1888/sown among thorns.htm

The visit to Media.
... The rides, the walks, the flowers gathered by the road-side, the rambles among pebbles
on the beach, the songs, the games, and even the little picture-book of ...
//christianbookshelf.org/abbott/cyrus the great/chapter iii the visit to.htm

In the Dungeon of Giant Discourager
... He lives on Mount Moriah, and we shall find him at home, no doubt. Oh see, here
is a monument by the roadside! Let us stop and read the inscription. Oh! ...
/.../berry/adventures in the land of canaan/chapter nine in the dungeon.htm

The Great Denial
... Keeping in the shadow of the trees by the roadside, keeping in the shadow of
the houses in the streets, they stole after the moving mass. ...
/.../stalker/the trial and death of jesus christ/chapter iii the great denial.htm

Roadside (9 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Roadside (9 Occurrences). Matthew 13:4 As he sowed, some
seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them. (WEB). ...
/r/roadside.htm - 9k

Road-side (2 Occurrences)
Road-side. Roadside, Road-side. Roadway . Multi-Version Concordance Road-side
(2 Occurrences). ... (WEY). Roadside, Road-side. Roadway . Reference Bible.
/r/road-side.htm - 7k

Road (155 Occurrences)
... Matthew 13:4 As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and
devoured them. (Root in WEB NAS). ... This is what was sown by the roadside. ...
/r/road.htm - 37k

Path (91 Occurrences)
... Path (91 Occurrences). Matthew 13:4 As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside,
and the birds came and devoured them. ... This is what was sown by the roadside. ...
/p/path.htm - 33k

Beside (326 Occurrences)
... (See RSV). Matthew 13:4 As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds
came and devoured them. ... This is what was sown by the roadside. (See NAS). ...
/b/beside.htm - 36k

Roads (34 Occurrences)

/r/roads.htm - 16k

Understand (208 Occurrences)
... been sown in his heart. This is what was sown by the roadside. (WEB KJV
WEY ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV). Matthew 13:51 Jesus saith ...
/u/understand.htm - 36k

Loud (222 Occurrences)
... Matthew 20:30 two blind men sitting by the roadside heard that it was Jesus who
was passing by, and cried aloud, "Sir, Son of David, pity us." (Root in WEY BBE ...
/l/loud.htm - 37k

Gutter (3 Occurrences)
... channel; an eaves trough. 2. (n.) A small channel at the roadside or elsewhere,
to lead off surface water. 3. (n.) Any narrow channel ...
/g/gutter.htm - 8k

Gourd (4 Occurrences)
... This is a creeping, vinelike plant which may frequently be seen trained over the
rough temporary sun-shelters erected in fields or by the roadside in Palestine ...
/g/gourd.htm - 12k

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