mount Zion

AI summary: Mount Zion gathers together the physical and symbolic power of Jerusalem in a concentrated form. As the hill of David's city it is rooted in royal history, but biblical poetry and prophecy quickly expand it into a wider image of God's presence, chosen city, and future reign. That same symbolic force continues into the New Testament, where Zion language can point beyond the earthly hill to the gathered people of God and the heavenly city. The cross references present Mount Zion as both a real summit in Jerusalem and a major theological symbol of worship, kingship, and hope.¹

Sunny; height, one of the eminences on which Jerusalem was built. It was surrounded on all sides, except the north, by deep valleys, that of the Tyropoeon (q.v.) separating it from Moriah (q.v.), which it surpasses in height by 105 feet. It was the south-eastern hill of Jerusalem. When David took it from the Jebusites (Josh. 15:63; 2 Sam. 5:7) he built on it a citadel and a palace, and it became “the city of David” (1 Kings 8:1; 2 Kings 19:21, 31; 1 Chr. 11:5). In the later books of the Old Testament this name was sometimes used (Ps. 87:2; 149:2; Isa. 33:14; Joel 2:1) to denote Jerusalem in general, and sometimes God’s chosen Israel (Ps. 51:18; 87:5). In the New Testament (see SION) it is used sometimes to denote the Church of God (Heb. 12:22), and sometimes the heavenly city (Rev. 14:1). ³