Reference: Fire
American
In Scripture, is often connected with the presence of Jehovah; as in the burning bush, and on Mount Sinai, Ex 3:2; 19:18; Ps 18; Hab 1-3. The second coming of Christ will be "in flaming fire," 2Th 1:8. In the New Testament it illustrates the enlightening, cheering, and purifying agency of the Holy Spirit, Mt 3:11; Ac 2:3. By sending fire from heaven to consume sacrifices, God often signified his acceptance of them: as in the case of Abel, Ge 4:4; Abraham, Ge 15:17; Manoah, Jg 13:19-20; Elijah, 1Ki 18:38; and at the dedication of the tabernacle and the temple, Le 9:24; 2Ch 7:1. This sacred fire was preserved by the priests with the utmost care, Isa 31:9, in many ancient religions fire was worshipped; and children were made to pass through the fire to Moloch, 2Ki 17:17; Jer 7:31; Eze 16:21; 23:37. The Jews had occasion for fires, except for cooking, only during a small part of the year. Besides their ordinary hearths and ovens, they warmed their apartments with "a fire of coals" in a brazier, Jer 36:22-23; Lu 22:30. The were forbidden to kindle a fire on the Sabbath, Ex 35:3--a prohibition perhaps only of cooking on that day, but understood by many Jews even now in the fullest extent; it is avoided by employing gentile servants. Another provision of the Mosaic Law was designed to protect the standing corn, etc., in the dry summer season, Ex 22:6. The earth is to be destroyed by fire, 2Pe 3:7; of which the destruction of Sodom, and the volcanoes and earthquakes which so often indicate the internal commotions of the globe, may serve as warnings.
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And Abel gave an offering of the young lambs of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord was pleased with Abel's offering;
Then when the sun went down and it was dark, he saw a smoking fire and a flaming light which went between the parts of the bodies.
And the angel of the Lord was seen by him in a flame of fire coming out of a thorn-tree: and he saw that the tree was on fire, but it was not burned up.
And all the mountain of Sinai was smoking, for the Lord had come down on it in fire: and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a great burning; and all the mountain was shaking.
If there is a fire and the flames get to the thorns at the edge of the field, causing destruction of the cut grain or of the living grain, or of the field, he who made the fire will have to make up for the damage.
And fire came out from before the Lord, burning up the offering on the altar and the fat: and when all the people saw it, they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces.
So Manoah took the young goat with its meal offering, offering it on the rock to the Lord, who did strange things. And when the flame went up to heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar, while Manoah and his wife were looking on; and they went down on their faces to the earth.
Then the fire of the Lord came down, burning up the offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and drinking up the water in the drain.
And they made their sons and their daughters go through the fire, and they made use of secret arts and unnatural powers, and gave themselves up to doing evil in the eyes of the Lord, till he was moved to wrath.
And his rock will come to nothing because of fear, and his chiefs will go in flight from the flag, says the Lord, whose fire is in Zion, and his altar in Jerusalem.
And they have put up the high place of Topheth in the valley of the son of Hinnom, burning their sons and their daughters there in the fire; a thing which was not ordered by me and never came into my mind.
Now the king was seated in the winter house, and a fire was burning in the fireplace in front of him. And it came about that whenever Jehudi, in his reading, had got through three or four divisions, the king, cutting them with his penknife, put them into the fire, till all the book was burned up in the fire which was burning in the fireplace.
That you put my children to death and gave them up to go through the fire to them?
For she has been false to me, and blood is on her hands, and with her images she has been untrue; and more than this, she made her sons, whom she had by me, go through the fire to them to be burned up.
Truly, I give baptism with water to those of you whose hearts are changed; but he who comes after me is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to take up: he will give you baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire:
So that you may take food and drink at my table in my kingdom, and be seated like kings, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
And they saw tongues, like flames of fire, coming to rest on every one of them.
To give punishment to those who have no knowledge of God, and to those who do not give ear to the good news of our Lord Jesus:
But the present heaven and the present earth have been kept for destruction by fire, which is waiting for them on the day of the judging and destruction of evil men.
Easton
(1.) For sacred purposes. The sacrifices were consumed by fire (Ge 8:20). The ever-burning fire on the altar was first kindled from heaven (Le 6:9,13; 9:24), and afterwards rekindled at the dedication of Solomon's temple (2Ch 7:1,3). The expressions "fire from heaven" and "fire of the Lord" generally denote lightning, but sometimes also the fire of the altar was so called (Ex 29:18; Le 1:9; 2:3; 3:5,9).
Fire for a sacred purpose obtained otherwise than from the altar was called "strange fire" (Le 10:1-2; Nu 3:4).
The victims slain for sin offerings were afterwards consumed by fire outside the camp (Le 4:12,21; 6:30; 16:27; Heb 13:11).
(2.) For domestic purposes, such as baking, cooking, warmth, etc. (Jer 36:22; Mr 14:54; Joh 18:18). But on Sabbath no fire for any domestic purpose was to be kindled (Ex 35:3; Nu 15:32-36).
(3.) Punishment of death by fire was inflicted on such as were guilty of certain forms of unchastity and incest (Le 20:14; 21:9). The burning of captives in war was not unknown among the Jews (2Sa 12:31; Jer 29:22). The bodies of infamous persons who were executed were also sometimes burned (Jos 7:25; 2Ki 23:16).
(4.) In war, fire was used in the destruction of cities, as Jericho (Jos 6:24), Ai (Jos 8:19), Hazor (Jos 11:11), Laish (Jg 18:27), etc. The war-chariots of the Canaanites were burnt (Jos 11:6,9,13). The Israelites burned the images (2Ki 10:26; R.V., "pillars") of the house of Baal. These objects of worship seem to have been of the nature of obelisks, and were sometimes evidently made of wood.
Torches were sometimes carried by the soldiers in battle (Jg 7:16).
(5.) Figuratively, fire is a symbol of Jehovah's presence and the instrument of his power (Ex 14:19; Nu 11:1,3; Jg 13:20; 1Ki 18:38; 2Ki 1:10,12; 2:11; Isa 6:4; Eze 1:4; Re 1:14, etc.).
God's word is also likened unto fire (Jer 23:29). It is referred to as an emblem of severe trials or misfortunes (Zec 12:6; Lu 12:49; 1Co 3:13,15; 1Pe 1:7), and of eternal punishment (Mt 5:22; Mr 9:44; Re 14:10; 21:8).
The influence of the Holy Ghost is likened unto fire (Mt 3:11). His descent was denoted by the appearance of tongues as of fire (Ac 2:3).
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And Noah made an altar to the Lord, and from every clean beast and bird he made burned offerings on the altar.
Then the angel of God, who had been before the tents of Israel, took his place at their back; and the pillar of cloud, moving from before them, came to rest at their back:
And let them all be burned on the altar as a burned offering to the Lord: a sweet smell, an offering made by fire to the Lord.
But its inside parts and its legs are to be washed with water, and it will all be burned on the altar by the priest for a burned offering, an offering made by fire, for a sweet smell to the Lord.
And the rest of the meal offering will be for Aaron and his sons; it is most holy among the Lord's fire offerings.
That it may be burned by Aaron's sons on the altar, on the burned offering which is on the wood on the fire: it is an offering made by fire of a sweet smell to the Lord.
And of the peace-offering, let him give an offering made by fire to the Lord; the fat of it, all the fat tail, he is to take away near the backbone; and the fat covering the inside parts and all the fat on the inside parts,
All the ox, he is to take away outside the circle of the tents into a clean place where the burned waste is put, and there it is to be burned on wood with fire.
Then let the ox be taken away outside the tent-circle, that it may be burned as the other ox was burned; it is the sin-offering for all the people.
Give orders to Aaron and to his sons, saying, This is the law for the burned offering: the offering is to be on the fire-wood on the altar all night till the morning; and the fire of the altar is to be kept burning.
No sin-offering, the blood of which is taken into the Tent of meeting, to take away sin in the holy place, may be used for food: it is to be burned with fire.
And fire came out from before the Lord, burning up the offering on the altar and the fat: and when all the people saw it, they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces.
And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their vessels and put fire in them and perfume, burning strange fire before the Lord, which he had not given them orders to do. And fire came out from before the Lord, burning them up and causing their destruction before the Lord.
And the ox of the sin-offering and the goat of the sin-offering, whose blood was taken in to make the holy place free from sin, are to be taken away outside the tent-circle and their skins and their flesh and their waste are to be burned with fire.
And if a man takes as wife a woman and her mother, it is an act of shame; let them be burned with fire, all three of them, so that there may be no shame among you.
And if the daughter of a priest makes herself common and by her loose behaviour puts shame on her father, let her be burned with fire.
And Nadab and Abihu were put to death before the Lord when they made an offering of strange fire before the Lord, in the waste land of Sinai, and they had no children: and Eleazar and Ithamar did the work of priests before Aaron their father.
Now the people were saying evil against the Lord; and the Lord, hearing it, was angry and sent fire on them, burning the outer parts of the tent-circle.
So that place was named Taberah, because of the fire of the Lord which had been burning among them.
Now while the children of Israel were in the waste land, they saw a man who was getting sticks on the Sabbath day. And those who saw him getting sticks took him before Moses and Aaron and all the people. read more. And they had him shut up, because they had no directions about what was to be done with him. Then the Lord said to Moses, Certainly the man is to be put to death: let him be stoned by all the people outside the tent-circle. So all the people took him outside the tent-circle and he was stoned to death there, as the Lord gave orders to Moses.
Then, after burning up the town and everything in it, they put the silver and gold and the vessels of brass and iron into the store-house of the Lord's house.
And Joshua said, Why have you been a cause of trouble to us? Today the Lord will send trouble on you. And all Israel took part in stoning him; they had him stoned to death and then burned with fire.
Then the secret force came quickly from their place, and running forward when they saw his hand stretched out, went into the town and took it, and put fire to it straight away.
And the Lord said to Joshua, Have no fear of them: for tomorrow at this time I will give them all up dead before Israel; you are to have the leg-muscles of their horses cut and their war-carriages burned with fire.
And Joshua did to them as the Lord had said to him; he had the leg-muscles of their horses cut and their war-carriages burned with fire.
And they put every person in it to death without mercy, giving every living thing up to the curse, and burning Hazor.
As for the towns made on hills of earth, not one was burned by Israel but Hazor, which was burned by Joshua.
Then separating the three hundred men into three bands, he gave every man a horn, and a vessel in which was a flaming branch.
And when the flame went up to heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar, while Manoah and his wife were looking on; and they went down on their faces to the earth.
And they took that which Micah had made, and his priest, and came to Laish, to a people living quietly and without thought of danger, and they put them to the sword without mercy, burning down their town.
And he took the people out of the town and put them to work with wood-cutting instruments, and iron grain-crushers, and iron axes, and at brick-making: this he did to all the towns of the children of Ammon. Then David and all the people went back to Jerusalem.
And they took out the image of Asherah from the house of Baal, and had it burned.
Now when Solomon's prayers were ended, fire came down from heaven, burning up all the offerings; and the house was full of the glory of the Lord.
And all the children of Israel were looking on when the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord was on the house; and they went down on their knees, with their faces to the earth, worshipping and praising the Lord, and saying, He is good; for his mercy is unchanging for ever.
And the bases of the door-pillars were shaking at the sound of his cry, and the house was full of smoke.
Is not my word like fire? says the Lord; and like a hammer, smashing the rock to bits?
And their fate will be used as a curse by all the prisoners of Judah who are in Babylon, who will say, May the Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, who were burned in the fire by the king of Babylon;
Now the king was seated in the winter house, and a fire was burning in the fireplace in front of him.
And, looking, I saw a storm-wind coming out of the north, a great cloud with flames of fire coming after one another, and a bright light shining round about it and in the heart of it was something coloured like electrum.
In that day I will make the families of Judah like a pot with fire in it among trees, and like a flaming stick among cut grain; they will send destruction on all the peoples round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem will be living again in the place which is hers, that is, in Jerusalem.
Truly, I give baptism with water to those of you whose hearts are changed; but he who comes after me is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to take up: he will give you baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire:
But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be in danger of being judged; and he who says to his brother, Raca, will be in danger from the Sanhedrin; and whoever says, You foolish one, will be in danger of the hell of fire.
And Peter had come after him at a distance, even into the house of the high priest; and he was seated with the captains, warming himself in the light of the fire.
Now the servants and the police had made a fire of coals because it was cold; they were warming themselves in front of it and Peter was there with them, warming himself.
And they saw tongues, like flames of fire, coming to rest on every one of them.
Being gentle to one another and having forgiveness for one another, if anyone has done wrong to his brother, even as the Lord had forgiveness for you:
And let the peace of Christ be ruling in your hearts, as it was the purpose of God for you to be one body; and give praise to God at all times.
For the bodies of the beasts whose blood is taken into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin are burned outside the circle of the tents.
And his head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;
To him will be given of the wine of God's wrath which is ready unmixed in the cup of his wrath and he will have cruel pain, burning with fire before the holy angels and before the Lamb:
But those who are full of fear and without faith, the unclean and takers of life, those who do the sins of the flesh, and those who make use of evil powers or who give worship to images, and all those who are false, will have their part in the sea of ever-burning fire which is the second death.
Fausets
Ever burning on the altar, first kindled, according to Jewish tradition, from heaven (Le 6:9,13; 9:24). But Scripture represents the altar fire as lighted naturally before this. Knobel observes the rule Le 1:7, "the sons of Aaron shall put fire upon the altar, and lay the wood in order upon the fire," must refer to the first burnt offering; the rule afterwards was to be that in Le 6:13; Ex 40:29; Le 8:16,21-28; 9:10,13-14,17,20. The heavenly fire in Le 9:24 did not kindle the fuel but consumed the victim. So God testified His accepting sacrifices (Jg 6:21; 13:19-20; 1Ki 18:38; 1Ch 21:26; 2Ch 7:1; probably Ge 4:4). Hence, the Hebrew for "accept" is "turn to ashes" (Ps 20:3 margin).
The ever burning fire symbolized Jehovah's ever continuing sacrificial worship; so in the New Testament, Heb 13:15; 1Th 5:17. This distinguishes it from the pagan idol Vesta's fire, the Magian fire, that of the Parsees, etc. The fires of Moloch and the sun god were nature worship, into which Sabeanism declined from the one God over all; the Jews often fell into this apostasy (Isa 27:9; 2Ki 23:11-12). The "strange fire" (Le 10:1) is generally explained common fire, not taken from the holy fire of the altar. But no express law forbade burning incense by ordinary fire, except the incense burned by the high priest in entering the holiest place on the day of atonement (Le 16:12), and probably the rule was hence taken as to the daily incense offering. They presented an incense offering not commanded in the law, apart from the morning and evening sacrifice.
Being an act of "will worship" it was "strange fire." Nadab and Abihu probably intended to accompany the people's shouts with an incense offering to the praise of God. The time and the manner of their offering were "strange" and selfwilled. So, the fire of the holy God (Ex 19:18), which had just sanctified Aaron's service, consumed his two oldest sons. So the gospel that saves the humble seals death to the presumptuous (2Co 2:16; Col 2:23). (See AARON.) Fire by its pure, penetrating, all consuming agency, symbolizes the holiness of God which consumes sin as a thing that cannot abide in His presence (Heb 10:27; 12:29). The risen Lord's "eyes are like a flame of fire" (Re 2:18,23) "searching the reins and hearts." He shall come "in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that, know not God and obey not the gospel" (2Th 1:8).
The flaming fire marked His manifestation in the bush (Ex 3:2). Again the same symbol appeared in the pillar of cloud and fire (Ex 13:21-22), in His giving the law on Sinai (Ex 19:18); so at His second advent (Da 7:9-10; Mal 3:2; 4:1; 2Pe 3:7,10). John the Baptist, as the last and greatest prophet of the Old Testament dispensation, declared of the Messiah, "He shall baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire," referring to His judicial aspect, "burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire" (Mt 3:11-12). Fire also symbolizes the purifying of believers by testing dealings (Mal 3:2), also the holy zeal kindled in them as at Pentecost (Acts 2; Isa 4:4). The same Holy Spirit. who sanctifies believers by the fire of affliction dooms unbelievers to the fire of perdition.
In 1Co 3:13-15, "every man's work ... the (judgment) day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is ... if any man's work shall be burnt, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire." As the "gold," "hay," etc., are figurative, so the fire. Not purgatorial, i.e. purificatory and punitive, but probatory; not restricted, as Rome teaches, to those dying in "venial sin," the supposed intermediate class between those entering heaven at once and those dying in mortal sin and doomed to hell; but universal, testing the godly and ungodly alike (2Co 5:10; Mr 9:49).
This fire is not until the last day, the supposed fire of purgatory is at death. The fire of Paul is to try the works, the fire of purgatory the persons, of men. Paul's fire causes loss to the sufferers, Rome's fire the supposed gain of heaven at last to those purged by fire. A Christian worker, if he builds converts on Christ alone, besides being saved himself, shall have them as his crown and special reward (2Co 1:14; 1Th 2:19; 2Jo 1:8). But if his work be of unscriptural materials, that the fire will destroy, he shall lose the special "reward" of the work so lost, but himself shall be saved because in Christ, "yet so as by fire," i.e. having a narrow ESCAPE (Zec 3:2; Am 4:11; Jg 1:23).
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And Abel gave an offering of the young lambs of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord was pleased with Abel's offering;
And the angel of the Lord was seen by him in a flame of fire coming out of a thorn-tree: and he saw that the tree was on fire, but it was not burned up.
And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, guiding them on their way; and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light: so that they were able to go on day and night: The pillar of cloud went ever before them by day, and the pillar of fire by night.
And all the mountain of Sinai was smoking, for the Lord had come down on it in fire: and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a great burning; and all the mountain was shaking.
And all the mountain of Sinai was smoking, for the Lord had come down on it in fire: and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a great burning; and all the mountain was shaking.
And at the door of the House of the Tent of meeting, he put the altar of burned offerings, offering on it the burned offering and the meal offering, as the Lord had given him orders.
And Aaron's sons, the priests, are to put fire on the altar and put the wood in order on the fire:
Give orders to Aaron and to his sons, saying, This is the law for the burned offering: the offering is to be on the fire-wood on the altar all night till the morning; and the fire of the altar is to be kept burning.
And he took all the fat on the inside parts, and the fat on the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, to be burned on the altar;
And the inside parts and the legs were washed with water and all the sheep was burned by Moses on the altar; it was a burned offering for a sweet smell: it was an offering made by fire to the Lord, as the Lord gave orders to Moses. And he put the other sheep before the Lord, the sheep with which they were made priests; and Aaron and his sons put their hands on the head of the sheep, read more. And he put it to death; and Moses took some of the blood and put it on the point of Aaron's right ear and on the thumb of his right hand and on the great toe of his right foot. Then he took Aaron's sons, and Moses put some of the blood on the point of their right ears and on the thumbs of their right hands and on the great toes of their right feet: and Moses put the blood on and round the altar. And he took the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat on the inside parts, and the fat on the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and the right leg; And out of the basket of unleavened bread which was before the Lord he took one unleavened cake, and one cake of bread with oil on it, and one thin cake, and put them on the fat and on the right leg: And he put them all on the hands of Aaron and on the hands of his sons, waving them for a wave offering before the Lord. And Moses took them from their hands, and they were burned on the altar on the burned offering, as a priest's offering for a sweet smell, an offering made by fire to the Lord.
But the fat and the kidneys and the fat on the liver of the sin-offering were burned by him on the altar as the Lord gave orders to Moses.
And they gave him the parts of the burned offering, in their order, and the head, to be burned on the altar. And the inside parts and the legs, when they had been washed with water, were burned on the burned offering on the altar.
And he put the meal offering before the Lord, and taking some of it in his hand he had it burned on the altar, separately from the burned offering of the morning.
And fire came out from before the Lord, burning up the offering on the altar and the fat: and when all the people saw it, they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces.
And fire came out from before the Lord, burning up the offering on the altar and the fat: and when all the people saw it, they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces.
And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their vessels and put fire in them and perfume, burning strange fire before the Lord, which he had not given them orders to do.
And he is to take a vessel full of burning coal from the altar before the Lord and in his hand some sweet perfume crushed small, and take it inside the veil;
Let this book of the law be ever on your lips and in your thoughts day and night, so that you may keep with care everything in it; then a blessing will be on all your way, and you will do well.
So they sent men to make a search round Beth-el. (Now the name of the town in earlier times was Luz.)
Then the angel of the Lord put out the stick which was in his hand, touching the meat and the cakes with the end of it; and a flame came up out of the rock, burning up the meat and the cakes: and the angel of the Lord was seen no longer.
So Manoah took the young goat with its meal offering, offering it on the rock to the Lord, who did strange things. And when the flame went up to heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar, while Manoah and his wife were looking on; and they went down on their faces to the earth.
May he keep all your offerings in mind, and be pleased with the fat of your burned offerings; (Selah.)
When Zion has been washed from her sin by the Lord, and Jerusalem made clean from her blood by a judging and a burning wind.
So by this will the sin of Jacob be covered, and this is all the fruit of taking away his punishment; when all the stones of the altar are crushed together, so that the wood pillars and the sun-images will not be put up again.
I went on looking till the seats of kings were placed, and one like a very old man took his seat: his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head was like clean wool; his seat was flames of fire and its wheels burning fire. A stream of fire was flowing and coming out from before him: a thousand thousands were his servants, and ten thousand times ten thousand were in their places before him: the judge was seated and the books were open.
And I have sent destruction among you, as when God sent destruction on Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a burning stick pulled out of the fire: and still you have not come back to me, says the Lord.
And the Lord said to the Satan, May the Lord's word be sharp against you, O Satan, the word of the Lord who has taken Jerusalem for himself: is this not a burning branch pulled out of the fire?
But by whom may the day of his coming be faced? and who may keep his place when he is seen? for he is like the metal-tester's fire and the cleaner's soap.
But by whom may the day of his coming be faced? and who may keep his place when he is seen? for he is like the metal-tester's fire and the cleaner's soap.
For see, the day is coming, it is burning like an oven; all the men of pride and all who do evil will be dry stems of grass: and in the day which is coming they will be burned up, says the Lord of armies, till they have not a root or a branch.
Truly, I give baptism with water to those of you whose hearts are changed; but he who comes after me is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to take up: he will give you baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire: In whose hand is the instrument with which he will make clean his grain; he will put the good grain in his store, but the waste will be burned up in the fire which will never be put out.
Every man's work will be made clear in that day, because it will be tested by fire; and the fire itself will make clear the quality of every man's work. If any man's work comes through the test, he will have a reward. read more. If the fire puts an end to any man's work, it will be his loss: but he will get salvation himself, though as by fire.
Even as you have been ready, in part, to say that we are your glory, in the same way that you are ours, in the day of the Lord Jesus.
To the one it is a perfume of death to death; to the other a perfume of life to life. And who is enough for such things?
For we all have to come before Christ to be judged; so that every one of us may get his reward for the things done in the body, good or bad.
These things seem to have a sort of wisdom in self-ordered worship and making little of oneself, and being cruel to the body, not honouring it by giving it its natural use.
To give punishment to those who have no knowledge of God, and to those who do not give ear to the good news of our Lord Jesus:
But only a great fear of being judged, and of the fire of wrath which will be the destruction of the haters of God.
For our God is an all-burning fire.
Let us then make offerings of praise to God at all times through him, that is to say, the fruit of lips giving witness to his name.
And to the angel of the church in Thyatira say: These things says the Son of God, whose eyes are like a flame of fire, and his feet like polished brass:
And I will put her children to death; and all the churches will see that I am he who makes search into the secret thoughts and hearts of men: and I will give to every one of you the reward of your works.
Hastings
Morish
God was early revealed in fire. The searching character of His righteous judgement was thus set forth, whether in the acceptance of good or the condemnation of evil. When Moses at Horeb approached the burning bush he was cautioned not to draw near, but to remove his shoes, for the ground was holy. God spake to him out of the burning bush. Ex 3:1-6. On Mount Sinai "the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire." Ex 24:17. Moses declared to Israel, "The Lord thy God is a consuming fire." De 4:24. When Aaron began his ministrations in the tabernacle fire came out "from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat." Le 9:24: cf. 1Ki 18:38; 1Ch 21:26; 2Ch 7:1-3. Nadab and Abihu offered 'strange fire,' and fire went out from the Lord and consumed them. Le 10:1-2. Thus God manifested Himself in fire to Moses. He showed His acceptance of the sacrifices by fire from heaven; He vindicated His servant Elijah, when he stood alone against the prophets of Baal, by consuming the sacrifice, the wood and the stone, by fire from heaven (1Ki 18:38); and He vindicated His own honour by fire, by destroying those who were disobedient in approaching to Him. The general idea in 'fire' is that of judgement.
In the N.T. it is repeated, "Our God is a consuming fire" (Heb 12:29), to consume the dross in the Christian, as gold is tried and purified in the fire; and to judge and punish the wicked with unquenchable fire; who are also described as being BAPTISED WITH FIRE. Mt 3:11-12. One of the most awful things connected with this word is the description of the place of eternal punishment as THE LAKE OF FIRE. Re 19:20; Rev.20:10, 14, 15. What mercy to be delivered therefrom!
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Now Moses was looking after the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he took the flock to the back of the waste land and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord was seen by him in a flame of fire coming out of a thorn-tree: and he saw that the tree was on fire, but it was not burned up. read more. And Moses said, I will go and see this strange thing, why the tree is not burned up, And when the Lord saw him turning to one side to see, God said his name out of the tree, crying, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And he said, Do not come near: take off your shoes from your feet, for the place where you are is holy. And he said, I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses kept his face covered for fear of looking on God.
And the glory of the Lord was like a flame on the top of the mountain before the eyes of the children of Israel.
And fire came out from before the Lord, burning up the offering on the altar and the fat: and when all the people saw it, they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces.
And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their vessels and put fire in them and perfume, burning strange fire before the Lord, which he had not given them orders to do. And fire came out from before the Lord, burning them up and causing their destruction before the Lord.
For the Lord your God is an all-burning fire, and he will not let the honour which is his be given to any other.
Then the fire of the Lord came down, burning up the offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and drinking up the water in the drain.
Then the fire of the Lord came down, burning up the offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and drinking up the water in the drain.
Truly, I give baptism with water to those of you whose hearts are changed; but he who comes after me is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to take up: he will give you baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire: In whose hand is the instrument with which he will make clean his grain; he will put the good grain in his store, but the waste will be burned up in the fire which will never be put out.
For our God is an all-burning fire.
And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who did the signs before him, by which they were turned from the true way who had the mark of the beast, and who gave worship to his image: these two were put living into the sea of ever-burning fire.
Smith
is represented as the symbol of Jehovah's presence and the instrument of his power, in the way either of approval or of destruction.
etc. There could not be a better symbol for Jehovah than this of fire, it being immaterial, mysterious, but visible, warming, cheering, comforting, but also terrible and consuming. Parallel with this application of fire and with its symbolical meaning are to be noted the similar use for sacrificial purposes and the respect paid to it, or to the heavenly bodies as symbols of deity, which prevailed among so many nations of antiquity, and of which the traces are not even now extinct; e.g. the Sabean and Magian systems of worship.
Fire for sacred purposes obtained elsewhere than from the altar was called "strange fire," and for the use of such Nadab and Abihu were punished with death by fire from God.
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And the angel of the Lord was seen by him in a flame of fire coming out of a thorn-tree: and he saw that the tree was on fire, but it was not burned up.
Then the angel of God, who had been before the tents of Israel, took his place at their back; and the pillar of cloud, moving from before them, came to rest at their back:
And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their vessels and put fire in them and perfume, burning strange fire before the Lord, which he had not given them orders to do. And fire came out from before the Lord, burning them up and causing their destruction before the Lord.
And Nadab and Abihu were put to death before the Lord when they made an offering of strange fire before the Lord, in the waste land of Sinai, and they had no children: and Eleazar and Ithamar did the work of priests before Aaron their father.
Death overtook Nadab and Abihu when they made an offering of strange fire before the Lord.
Watsons
FIRE. God hath often appeared in fire, and encompassed with fire, as when he showed himself in the burning bush; and descended on Mount Sinai, in the midst of flames, thunderings, and lightning, Ex 3:2; 19:18. Hence fire is a symbol of the Deity: "The Lord thy God is a consuming fire," De 4:24. The Holy Ghost is compared to fire: "He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire," Mt 3:11. To verify this prediction, he sent the Holy Ghost, which descended upon his disciples, in the form of tongues, or like flames of fire, Ac 2:3. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to enlighten, purify, and sanctify the soul; and to inflame it with love to God, and zeal for his glory. Fire from heaven fell frequently on the victims sacrificed to the Lord, as a mark of his presence and approbation. It is thought, that God in this manner expressed his acceptance of Abel's sacrifices, Ge 4:4. When the Lord made a covenant with Abraham, a fire like that of a furnace passed through the divided pieces of the sacrifices, and consumed them, Ge 15:17. Fire fell upon the sacrifices which Moses offered at the dedication of the tabernacle, Le 9:24; and upon those of Manoah, Samson's father, Jg 13:19-20; upon Solomon's, at the dedication of the temple, 2Ch 7:1; and on Elijah's, at Mount Carmel, 1Ki 18:38. The fire which came down from heaven, first upon the altar in the tabernacle, and afterward descended anew upon the altar in the temple of Solomon, at its consecration, was there constantly fed and maintained by the priests, day and night, in the same manner as it had been in the tabernacle. The Jews have a tradition, that Jeremiah, foreseeing the destruction of the temple, took this fire and hid it in a pit; but that at the rebuilding of the temple, being brought again from thence, it revived upon the altar. But this is a fiction: and the generality of them allow, that, at the destruction of the temple, it was extinguished; and in the time of the second temple, nothing was made use of for all their burnt offerings but common fire only. The ancient Chaldeans adored the fire, as well as the old Persians, and some other people of the east. The torments of hell are described by fire, both in the Old and New Testament. Our Saviour makes use of this similitude, to represent the punishment of the damned, Mr 9:44. He likewise speaks frequently of the eternal fire prepared for the devil, his angels, and reprobates, Mt 25:41. The sting and remorse of conscience is the worm that will never die; and the wrath of God upon their souls and bodies, the fire that shall never go out. There are writers who maintain, that by the worm is to be understood a living and sensible, not an allegorical and figurative, worm; and by fire, a real elementary and material fire. Among the abettors of this opinion are Austin, Cyprian, Chrysostom, Jerom, &c. The word of God is compared to fire: "Is not my word like a fire?" Jer 23:20. It is full of life and efficacy; like a fire it warms, melts, and heats; and is powerful to consume the dross, and burn up the chaff and stubble. Fire is likewise taken for persecution, dissension, and division: "I am come to send fire on earth," Lu 12:49; as if it was said, upon my coming and publishing the Gospel, there will follow, through the devil's malice and corruption of men, much persecution to the professors thereof, and manifold divisions in the world, whereby men will be tried, whether they will be faithful or not.
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And Abel gave an offering of the young lambs of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord was pleased with Abel's offering;
Then when the sun went down and it was dark, he saw a smoking fire and a flaming light which went between the parts of the bodies.
And the angel of the Lord was seen by him in a flame of fire coming out of a thorn-tree: and he saw that the tree was on fire, but it was not burned up.
And all the mountain of Sinai was smoking, for the Lord had come down on it in fire: and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a great burning; and all the mountain was shaking.
And fire came out from before the Lord, burning up the offering on the altar and the fat: and when all the people saw it, they gave a loud cry, falling down on their faces.
For the Lord your God is an all-burning fire, and he will not let the honour which is his be given to any other.
So Manoah took the young goat with its meal offering, offering it on the rock to the Lord, who did strange things. And when the flame went up to heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar, while Manoah and his wife were looking on; and they went down on their faces to the earth.
Then the fire of the Lord came down, burning up the offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and drinking up the water in the drain.
Now when Solomon's prayers were ended, fire came down from heaven, burning up all the offerings; and the house was full of the glory of the Lord.
The wrath of the Lord will not be turned back till he has done, till he has put into effect, the purposes of his heart: in days to come you will have full knowledge of this.
Truly, I give baptism with water to those of you whose hearts are changed; but he who comes after me is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to take up: he will give you baptism with the Holy Spirit and with fire:
Then will he say to those on the left, Go from me, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire which is ready for the Evil One and his angels:
And they saw tongues, like flames of fire, coming to rest on every one of them.