BUILDER (בּﯴנֵ֣ה; οικοδομέω; τεχνίτης, G5493). The verb “to build” is used scores of times in the Bible, but the noun “builder” is used infrequently. Of the eight occurrences of “builder” in the OT, five of them refer to men involved in the building (1 Kings 5:18) or rebuilding (2 Kings 12:11; 22:6; 2 Chron 34:11; Ezra 3:10) of the Temple in Jerusalem. Once it is used of the builders who made Tyre a beautiful city (Ezek 27:4); twice of the men who aided Nehemiah in the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem (Neh 4:5, 18); and once it is used metaphorically in a Messianic passage in which it is stated that the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone (Ps 118:22).

In the NT the word is used six times. Five of them are quotations of Psalm 118:22 (Matt 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:7), and the sixth says that God is the builder of the city which has foundations to which Abraham looked forward (Heb 11:10).

A great deal is known about building in ancient times because of the hundreds of buildings that survive in whole or in part. Every new mound excavated by archeologists reveals the foundations of many buildings, both large and small. The best of the builders were highly skilled craftsmen. (See Build, Building.)