Wells
What is a Well?
Wells were one of the most common sources of water in a region largely dependent on rainwater. The Middle East has only a few rivers that flow year-round, and rain only falls from October to April.
Wells provided the water necessary to survive the dry months (May—September). The need for wells separated the Middle East from neighboring lands (Deut 11:10–11).
As a key source of water, wells were essential for life. Wells were one of several methods of water collection in the arid ancient Near East, along with cisterns, conduits, dams, pools, reservoirs, spring houses, terraces, tunnels, etc. Wells and cisterns could be hewed out of rock (usually limestone) or earthen clay.
Wells were narrow at the top and expanded under the surface. The inside of the hole was then lined with rock, brick, or plaster, and the opening covered with a large rock to keep the water cool and clean as well as to regulate use (Gen 29:1–3, 7–8;)
Shade kept the water cool, and circulation occurring naturally or as the result of drawing water kept it fresh. The presence of a wood or stone cover indicated a fixed wellhead (a stone wall or other structure erected around the opening; compare Gen 29:1–3; 2 Sam 17:18).
Spring, stream, or rainwater could then be collected, either as runoff or seep from the earth, and stored.
Wells in the ancient Near East could be up to 144 feet deep (44 meters; compare John 4:11), and were often accessed by means of some kind of lifting device. Shallow wells had steps cut into the wall that led down to the water. Water was transported by clay jar, waterskin, or bucket (Gen 21:19; 24:20;
Well water was not as pure as spring water but was still considered to be of high quality (Jer 6:7; ).
Well water was used for drinking or watering livestock, rather than irrigation. Often a trough was cut nearby, usually in wood or stone, to aid in watering livestock
In extended periods of drought, wells could dry up (Jer 14:3; 51:36; Hos 13:15), and wells not cared for could lose their water (
13 For my people have committed two evils; kthey have forsaken me lthe fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
Jer 2:13).
A broken well was worthless (Jer 2:13; compare Jer 14:3).
3 And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters:
They came to the pits, and found no water;
They returned with their vessels empty;
They were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads.
Wells in the Ancient Near East
Wells in the ancient Near East were located near towns as well as in wilderness and desert areas. Drawing well water was a task for women and was difficult work (Gen 24:11, 26; compare the woman’s desire for “living water” in John 4:6–15).
Digging one’s own or owning a well was a sign of prosperity (2 Chr 26:10).
9 Moreover Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the corner gate, and at the valley gate, and at the turning of the wall, and fortified them. 10 Also he built towers in the desert, and digged many wells: for he had much cattle, both in the low country, and in the plains: husbandmen also, and vine dressers in the mountains, and in rCarmel: for he loved husbandry.
Later, wells were dug around private homes (2 Sam 17:18; compare Prov 5:15–17).
15 Drink waters out of thine own cistern,
And running waters out of thine own well.
Symbolically naming wells was a common practice (Gen 16:14), and the names of many settlements arose from the name of their well (compare Gen 21:31;
And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well. 31 Wherefore he called that place Beer-sheba; because there they sware both of them. 32
Num 21:16;
16 And from thence they went to Beer: that is the well whereof the LORD spake unto Moses, Gather the people together, and I will give them water. 17 Then Israel sang this song,
Spring up, O well;
Sing ye unto it:
18 The princes digged the well,
The nobles of the people digged it,
As a limited resource, wells were a vital social and economic asset. Disputes over them were common (Gen 21:25; 26:17).
Abraham asked Abimelech to swear an oath over Abraham’s well as a witness of ownership (Gen 21:30–31).
Enemies could target wells before open hostilities (Gen 26:15).
Israel pledged not to drink from the wells of Edom if they would be allowed to pass through their land (Num 20:17), and then offered to pay for their use (Num 20:19; compare Deut 2:27–28).
In the times of the kings, the digging of wells was a royal responsibility (2 Chr 26:10), and campaigning armies might dig their own (2 Kgs 19:24; Isa 37:25).
The use of wells and other water infrastructure was regulated by law. This included principles of ownership, access, and maintenance. For example, lack of use could negate one’s claim to ownership (Gen 26:18–22).
18 And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them. 19 And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. 20 And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him. 21 And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah. 22 And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land
Urinating or vomiting into a well was a sin against the Sumerian gods and society as a whole (Iwry, “The Curse …,” 228). Wells that had been filled in could be re-dug and reused (Gen 26:18).
Wells could be dangerous (see Prov 23:27). The Torah mandated the covering of wells or pits to prevent injury (Exod 21:33). To defend his teaching on the Sabbath, Jesus asks the crowd, “Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?” (Luke 14:5 ESV).
Wells were used in Scripture as hiding places (1 Sam 13:6; 2 Sam 17:18). At times they were also used as prisons (Gen 37:20, 22, 24–28).
Depending on the well, the bottom was generally either several feet of mud and dirty water or dust powder. Prisoners could die by sinking (Jer 38:6).
Polluted wells were well-known and created a great danger among the populace (Prov 25:26; Iwry, “The Curse …” 228.)
Wells in the Lives of God’s People
Wells played an important role in the story of God’s people. In Scripture, inanimate objects often play a role in the narrative (e.g., the land, the Jordan River, or the temple), and wells make a frequent appearance, especially in the Pentateuch.
They served as a place of rest and refreshment in a dry land. Wells just outside a city or village served as a meeting place for local women but also for travelers, where news would be passed along (1 Sam 9:11; compare 1 Sam 19:22).
In Scripture a number of important meetings take place at a well, including the meeting of a future wife (three times: Abraham’s servant and Rebekah, Gen 24:11; Jacob and Rachel, Gen 29:3; Moses and Zipporah, Exod 2:15;
see also the angel of the Lord and Hagar, Gen 16:14; Jesus and the Samaritan woman, John 4:1–45).
Wells and the Covenant
Wells play a significant role as an image of God’s provision (e.g., Judg 15:18–19; Deut 6:11; compare Neh 9:25). Wells stood symbolically for the land (Gen 26:22).
They were permanent features of the land. A well and its water were symbols of God’s promise and His care. David’s men risked their lives to bring David a drink from the well in Bethlehem (1 Sam 15–16; compare 1 Chr 11:17–18). Israel gathered to sing a song of praise for a well God had given them (Num 21:17–18): “Spring up, O well.—Sing to it.—the well that the princes made, that the nobles of the people dug, with the scepter and with their staffs” (ESV).
Pseudo-Philo described God Himself as a well in God’s provision of water at Massah and Meribah at the beginning and end of Israel’s wilderness wanderings (Liber Antiquitatem Biblicarum 10:7; 11:15; 20:8; compare Exod 17; Num 20).
Paul uses a similar argument in reference to the work of Christ (1 Cor 10:4; compare Neh 9:11–20; Pss 78:12–35; 105:39–41).
Metaphorical Usage
At Qumran, the well and water were understood allegorically as God’s law and the faithful followers, respectively (CD 6:2–11). As an image in common life, wells were pictures of physical beauty (Song 4:15).
Likewise, a dry or broken well served as a metaphor for disobedience. Because wells were the primary source of water, a dry well was a curse (Jer 14:3).
They could be used as an image for faithlessness or disobedience ( Prov 25:26)
26 A righteous man falling down before the wicked
Is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.
