Dysentery is an infectious disease characterized by severe diarrhea with the presence of blood and mucus in the feces. It is typically caused by bacterial or protozoan infections and is often associated with poor sanitation and hygiene. In the context of the Bible, while the specific term "dysentery" is not directly mentioned, the symptoms and conditions related to it can be inferred from various passages that discuss plagues, diseases, and the consequences of disobedience to God's commandments.

Biblical Context and References

In the ancient Near East, where the events of the Bible took place, dysentery would have been a common affliction due to the lack of modern sanitation and medical knowledge. The Bible often attributes diseases and plagues to divine judgment or as a test of faith. For instance, in Deuteronomy 28, God warns the Israelites of the consequences of disobedience, which include various diseases: "The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, with blight and mildew, which will plague you until you perish" (Deuteronomy 28:22). While not explicitly mentioning dysentery, the symptoms described could encompass such afflictions.

Historical and Cultural Insights

In biblical times, diseases like dysentery would have been understood within the framework of divine retribution or as a call to repentance. The Israelites were given laws concerning cleanliness and dietary practices, which, if followed, would have mitigated the spread of infectious diseases. Leviticus 11 outlines dietary laws, and Leviticus 15 provides regulations on bodily discharges, emphasizing the importance of cleanliness and separation to prevent contamination.

Spiritual and Moral Lessons

The occurrence of diseases such as dysentery in the biblical narrative often serves as a reminder of the importance of obedience to God's laws and the consequences of sin. The physical ailments experienced by individuals or communities are frequently depicted as a reflection of spiritual maladies. In the New Testament, Jesus' healing of the sick, including those with various diseases, underscores His authority over both physical and spiritual realms. His compassion for the afflicted is evident in passages such as Matthew 4:24: "News about Him spread all over Syria, and people brought to Him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed—and He healed them" .

Practical Implications for Believers

For contemporary believers, the biblical references to disease and healing encourage a holistic approach to health, emphasizing both physical well-being and spiritual health. The Bible's teachings on cleanliness, community responsibility, and care for the sick remain relevant, urging believers to uphold practices that promote health and prevent disease. Furthermore, the call to trust in God's provision and seek His guidance in times of illness is a recurring theme, as seen in James 5:14-15: "Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick" .

In summary, while dysentery as a specific term is not mentioned in the Bible, the principles surrounding disease, health, and divine intervention are woven throughout the biblical narrative, offering insights into the spiritual and practical dimensions of dealing with illness.(n.) A disease attended with inflammation and ulceration of the colon and rectum, and characterized by griping pains, constant desire to evacuate the bowels, and the discharge of mucus and blood.DYSENTERY

dis'-en-ter-i (dusenteria):

In Acts 28:8 the Revised Version (British and American) uses this word in place of the phrase "bloody flux" of the King James Version to describe the disease by which the father of Publius was affected in Malta at the time of Paul's shipwreck. The acute form of this disease is often attended with high temperature, hence, Luke speaks of it as "fever and dysentery" (puretois kai dusenteria).

The disease is still occasionally epidemic in Malta where there have been several bad outbreaks among the garrison in the last century, and it has proved to be an intractable and fatal disease there. It is due to parasitic microbe, the Bacillus dysenteriae. In 2 Chronicles 21:19 there is reference to an epidemic of a similar nature in the days of Jehoram. The malady, as predicted by Elisha, attacked the king and assumed a chronic form in the course of which portions of the intestine sloughed. This condition sometimes occurs in the amoebic form of dysentery, cases of which sometimes last over two years.

Alexander Macalister

1420. dusenterion -- dysentery
... dysentery. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: dusenterion Phonetic
Spelling: (doos-en-ter-ee'-ah) Short Definition: dysentery Definition: dysentery ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1420.htm - 6k2914. techor -- tumors (a result of dysentery)
... 2913, 2914. techor. 2915 . tumors (a result of dysentery). Transliteration:
techor Phonetic Spelling: (tekh-ore') Short Definition: tumors. ...
/hebrew/2914.htm - 6k

"Go Forward on Your Knees"
... Dr. Corbett said that for fifteen years he had been laid aside every year with that
terrible scourge of the East"dysentery; and the doctors at last gave a ...
/.../goforth/how i know god answers prayer/iii go forward on your.htm

Carey's Family and Friends
... Not only did she remain to the last a peasant woman, with a reproachful tongue,
but the early hardships of Calcutta and the fever and dysentery of Mudnabati ...
/.../smith/the life of william carey/chapter viii careys family and.htm

Acts XXVIII
... Publius was not without a reward for his kindness. (8) "And it came to pass that
the father of Publius lay afflicted with fever and dysentery; to whom Paul ...
/.../mcgarvey/a commentary on acts of the apostles/acts xxviii.htm

To the Rev. A. Brandram
... unable to procure medical advice at Santander: for, to tell the truth, ever since
I left Corunna I have been afflicted with a terrible dysentery, and latterly ...
/.../borrow/letters of george borrow/to the rev a brandram 31.htm

The End of Paul's Long Journey
... He welcomed us and entertained us most generously for three days. Now it happened
that the father of Publius was lying ill from fever and dysentery. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/sherman/the childrens bible/the end of pauls long.htm

The Destruction that came Upon the Philistines, and Upon
... At length God sent a very destructive disease upon the city and country of Ashdod,
for they died of the dysentery or flux, a sore distemper, that brought death ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 1 the destruction that.htm

Six Years in North Bengal --Missionary and Indigo Planter
... Houseless, with his maddened wife, and her sister and two of his four children down
with dysentery, due to the bad food and exposure of six weeks in the ...
/.../smith/the life of william carey/chapter iv six years in.htm

Malachy's Pity for his Deceased Sister. He Restores the Monastery ...
... 15. (9). At the same place he healed a cleric, named Michael, who was suffering
from dysentery and despaired of, by sending him something from his table. ...
/.../chapter ii malachys pity for.htm

The Great Furnace for a Great Soul
... At the end of that time, in the hot weather, it sickened with dysentery, and in
spite of her prayers and entreaties that she might be allowed to deal with the ...
/.../cable/the fulfilment of a dream of pastor hsis/chapter xi the great furnace.htm

Chronological Recapitulation of the Whole Work: Also Concerning ...
... great tribulation by reason of pestilence, which continued almost, two years, divers
grievous sicknesses raging, but more especially the disease of dysentery. ...
/.../chap xxiv chronological recapitulation of.htm

Dysentery (1 Occurrence)
...DYSENTERY. ... The acute form of this disease is often attended with high temperature,
hence, Luke speaks of it as "fever and dysentery" (puretois kai dusenteria). ...
/d/dysentery.htm - 8k

Flux (26 Occurrences)
... 5. (n.) A fluid discharge from the bowels or other part; especially, an excessive
and morbid discharge; as, the bloody flux or dysentery. See Bloody flux. ...
/f/flux.htm - 16k

Bloody (19 Occurrences)
... fluks (puretos kai dusenteria, literally "fever and dysentery"): The disease by
which the father of Publius was afflicted in Malta (Acts 28:8). the Revised ...
/b/bloody.htm - 17k

Publius (2 Occurrences)
... On this occasion Paul miraculously healed the father of Publius, who "lay sick of
fever and dysentery" (Acts 28:8). The exactitude of the medical terms here ...
/p/publius.htm - 9k

Sick (117 Occurrences)
... in both cases there is reference to the presence of worms (compare Acts 12:23 and
2 Maccabees 9:9). The disease of Publius' father was also dysentery (Acts 28:8 ...
/s/sick.htm - 44k

Visited (40 Occurrences)
... them, and departed. (See RSV). Acts 28:8 It happened that the father of
Publius lay sick of fever and dysentery. Paul entered in ...
/v/visited.htm - 18k

Feverish (2 Occurrences)
... Acts 28:8 and it came to pass, the father of Publius with feverish heats and dysentery
pressed, was laid, unto whom Paul having entered, and having prayed ...
/f/feverish.htm - 7k

Recurrent (1 Occurrence)
... Multi-Version Concordance Recurrent (1 Occurrence). Acts 28:8 It happened
that the father of Publius lay sick of fever and dysentery. ...
/r/recurrent.htm - 6k

Each (2772 Occurrences)

/e/each.htm - 7k

Disease (213 Occurrences)
... Fevers of several kinds, dysentery, leprosy, intestinal worms, plague, nervous diseases
such as paralysis and epilepsy, insanity, ophthalmia and skin diseases ...
/d/disease.htm - 39k

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