Hashem loves the gates of Tzion, more than all the dwellings of Yaakov.Psalms 87:2 (The Israel Bible™)אֹהֵב יְהוָה שַׁעֲרֵי צִיּוֹן מִכֹּל מִשְׁכְּנוֹת יַעֲקֹבHear the verse in Hebrewo-HAYV a-do-NAI sha-a-RAY tzi-YON mi-KOL mish-k’-NOT ya-a-KOV
Jerusalem Gates
This psalm praises Hashem’s (God's) connection to Tzion (Zion). In order to express God’s love for Yerushalayim (Jerusalem), the psalmist writes: “Hashem loves the gates of Tzion, more than all the dwellings of Yaakov.” The wall currently surrounding Jerusalem’s Old City, built in 1538 by the Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, has several gates around its perimeter. The gate at the southwestern corner of the wall is called “Zion Gate,” or Shaar Tzion in Hebrew, from this verse. However, the Arabic name for this gate is David’s Gate, referring to the traditional location of David’s tomb. The Zion Gate is also quite significant in modern Israeli history; it was through this gate that the Palmach Brigade of the Israeli army broke into the Old City during the 1948 War of Independence, releasing the Jewish quarter from its isolation.
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