Place Old Testament
Potsherd Gate
Also known as Potsherd (Gate) =ESV, NIV; east =KJV
The Potsherd Gate was a gate in Jerusalem near the Valley of Ben Hinnom, where Jeremiah was instructed to proclaim a message of judgment against Judah. Mentioned once in Scripture, at Jeremiah 19:2.
Why it matters. A gate in Jerusalem mentioned by Jeremiah
- Primary passages
- Location
- 31.777, 35.235 (approximate, within about 2 km)
Coordinates from STEPBible TIPNR (palopenmaps.org link). Approximate; not independently verified.
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Potsherd Gate
The Potsherd Gate, also known as the Harsith Gate, was one of the gates of Jerusalem mentioned in the book of Jeremiah (Jer. 19:2). The Lord instructed Jeremiah to go to the Potsherd Gate, which was near the entrance of the Valley of Ben Hinnom (or Gehenna), and proclaim a message of judgment against the people of Judah (Jer. 19:1-2). The Valley of Ben Hinnom was notorious for the practice of child sacrifice to the pagan god Molech (Jer. 32:35). Jeremiah was told to shatter an earthenware jar in front of the elders and priests as a symbol of the impending destruction of Jerusalem and its people (Jer. 19:10-11). The Potsherd Gate likely received its name from the fragments of broken pottery (potsherds) that were discarded in the nearby valley. The gate's location near the Valley of Ben Hinnom, a place associated with idolatry and judgment, underscores the severity of Jeremiah's prophetic message and the consequences of Judah's unfaithfulness to God.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
Connections
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Appears in Scripture
Named in 1 verse across 1 book. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.
Jeremiah (1 verse)