Bible Dictionary
VAULT
A vault is a hidden chamber or tomb. Isaiah’s reference may concern people sleeping in sacred tombs or vaults of idol temples in an attempt to receive revelation through dreams.
Definition
Vault refers to a hidden or secret chamber, particularly a tomb or vault connected with an idol temple. In Isaiah’s accusation, the term is associated with lodging in secret places.
Biblical Usage
Isaiah describes people who lodged in secret places, with the margin offering vaults and the King James Version monuments. The passage is understood as referring to a practice connected with seeking knowledge of the future through dreams.
Historical Background
The practice described is known as incubation: sleeping in sacred tombs or temple vaults in order to receive revelation through dreams.
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>volt (natsar, "to guard," "protest"): Isaiah's charge against Israel as "a people that .... lodge in the secret places" (Isa 65:4, margin "vaults," the King James Version "monuments") probably refers to the custom of sleeping in sacred tombs or vaults of idol temples to learn the future through dreams by the method known as incubation.</p><p>See DIVINATION, 6, (ii); 7, 1; FAMILIAR; WITCHCRAFT; and Expository Times, IX, 157 ff.</p>