248. The Seat of Judgment

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In some parts of the East a seat is placed in the court-yard, where the master of the house may sit and give judgment on all domestic affairs. This seat is usually placed in some shady part of the court, against a wall or column. Thus in the text, Eli “sat upon a seat by a post.” So David sat upon a seat by the wall (1 Sam. 20:2525And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon a seat by the wall: and Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul's side, and David's place was empty. (1 Samuel 20:25)). These seats probably had no backs, and were therefore placed near the post or wall for support. Thus we are told that Eli fell backward from his seat at the gate and died (1 Sam. 4:1818And it came to pass, when he made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck brake, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years. (1 Samuel 4:18)). The Assyrian monuments have many representations of such backless seats.