Hour
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
(Dan. 3:15; 4:16; Mark 15:25, 33-34; Acts 2:15; 23:23; John 11:9)—a measure of time. Sundials and measurement by the sun’s shadow were known in the ancient Near East, and the “steps of Ahaz” may have served such a purpose (2 Kings 20:9-11). By New Testament times the daylight period was commonly reckoned as twelve variable hours from sunrise to sunset (John 11:9). The day could be marked by the third, sixth, and ninth hours, while the night was divided into watches (Acts 2:15; 3:1; 10:9; Mark 13:35).