beam

A shaped piece of wood whose length far exceeds its girth. In the Bible, “beam” refers to part of a loom and to timbers for construction. The “weaver’s beam” was the large bar on which the warp cords were wound. It served as the model for a huge spear handle in biblical tradition (1Sam 17:7; 2Sam 21:19; 1Chr 11:23; 1Chr 20:5). Construction beams were used to support walls and ceilings (1Kgs 6:6; 1Kgs 6:9) and could level stone courses (1Kgs 6:36). They could also be used in gates (Neh 2:8; Neh 3:3; Neh 3:6) either as swing pivots or bars for locking against intrusion.