Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Afflictions of the The Wicked » Are for examples to others
But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly they shall be wounded. So they shall be confounded; their tongue falls on themselves; everyone seeing them shall flee. And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall in wisdom think of His doing.
I have cut off the nations; their towers are ruined. I made their streets waste, so that none passes by; their cities are laid waste, without a man, there being no inhabitant. I said, Surely you will fear Me; you will receive instruction; then her dwelling shall not be cut off, all that I appointed for her. But they rose early, corrupting all their doings.
But with many of them God was not well pleased, for they were scattered in the wilderness. And these things were our examples, that we should not be lusters after evil, as they also lusted. Nor should we be idolaters, even as some of them, as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play." read more.
Nor let us commit fornication, as some of them fornicated, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted Him and were destroyed by serpents. Nor murmur as some of them also murmured and were destroyed by the destroyer. And all these things happened to them as examples; and it is written for our warning on whom the ends of the world have come.
Nor let us commit fornication, as some of them fornicated, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted Him and were destroyed by serpents. Nor murmur as some of them also murmured and were destroyed by the destroyer. And all these things happened to them as examples; and it is written for our warning on whom the ends of the world have come.
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, He condemned them with an overthrow, setting an example to men intending to live ungodly.
Arrows » Illustrative » Of God's judgment
Yea, He has fitted him for instruments of death; He has made His arrows hotly pursue.
For You shall make them turn the back; You shall make ready Your arrows on Your strings against their faces.
When I shall send on them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their ruin, which I will send to destroy you; even I will increase the famine on you, and break your staff of bread;
I will heap evils on them. I will spend My arrows on them. Exhaustion by famine, and consumption by burning heat, and bitter destruction, and the teeth of beasts I will send on them, with the poison of crawling things of the dust. The sword outside, and the terror inside, shall destroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling also with the man of grey hairs. read more.
I said I would dash them to pieces; I would make the memory of them to cease from among men, were it not the provocation of an enemy I feared, lest their enemies should misconstrue; lest they should say, Our hand is high and Jehovah has not done all this. For they are a nation without wisdom, neither is there any understanding in them. If they were wise, they would understand this; they would consider their latter end! How shall one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them and Jehovah had shut them up? For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are grapes of gall. Their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison of serpents, and the cruel venom of asps. Is not this laid up in store with Me and sealed up among My treasures? Vengeance and retribution belong to Me. Their foot shall slide in time, for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come on them make haste. For Jehovah will bring His people justice; and He shall have compassion on His servants, for He sees that their power is gone, and only the imprisoned and abandoned remain. And He shall say, Where are their gods, their rock in whom they trusted? Who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? Let them rise up and help you; let it be your hiding place. See now that I, I am He, and there is no god with me. I kill, and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is no deliverer out of My hand. For I lift up My hand to Heaven and say, I live forever! If I sharpen My glittering sword, and if My hand takes hold in judgment, I will give vengeance to My enemies and will reward those that hate Me. I will make My arrows drunk with blood, and My sword shall devour flesh, with the blood of the slain and of the captives, from the hairy scalp of the enemy.
I said I would dash them to pieces; I would make the memory of them to cease from among men, were it not the provocation of an enemy I feared, lest their enemies should misconstrue; lest they should say, Our hand is high and Jehovah has not done all this. For they are a nation without wisdom, neither is there any understanding in them. If they were wise, they would understand this; they would consider their latter end! How shall one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them and Jehovah had shut them up? For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are grapes of gall. Their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison of serpents, and the cruel venom of asps. Is not this laid up in store with Me and sealed up among My treasures? Vengeance and retribution belong to Me. Their foot shall slide in time, for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come on them make haste. For Jehovah will bring His people justice; and He shall have compassion on His servants, for He sees that their power is gone, and only the imprisoned and abandoned remain. And He shall say, Where are their gods, their rock in whom they trusted? Who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? Let them rise up and help you; let it be your hiding place. See now that I, I am He, and there is no god with me. I kill, and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is no deliverer out of My hand. For I lift up My hand to Heaven and say, I live forever! If I sharpen My glittering sword, and if My hand takes hold in judgment, I will give vengeance to My enemies and will reward those that hate Me. I will make My arrows drunk with blood, and My sword shall devour flesh, with the blood of the slain and of the captives, from the hairy scalp of the enemy.
Punishment of the The Wicked » Future described as » Often sudden and unexpected
But God said to him, Fool! This night your soul shall be required of you, then whose shall be those things which you have prepared?
A man who hardens his neck when reproved shall be suddenly broken, and there will be no healing.
For when they shall say, Peace and safety! Then sudden destruction comes on them, as travail upon a woman with child. And they shall not escape.
Let destruction come upon him, he will not know; and let his net which he has concealed catch him, let him fall in it, into destruction.