Topical Bible: Forcing

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Topical Encyclopedia

In the context of the Bible, the concept of "forcing" can be understood in various ways, often relating to the exertion of power or influence over others, sometimes against their will. This entry explores the biblical perspective on forcing, examining its implications and occurrences within the Scriptures.

Old Testament References

1. Forcing in Warfare and Conquest: The Old Testament frequently describes instances where force was used in the context of warfare and conquest. The Israelites, under divine command, often engaged in battles to claim the land promised to them by God. For example, in the conquest of Canaan, the Israelites were instructed to drive out the inhabitants of the land (Joshua 6-12). This use of force was seen as fulfilling God's covenant with Abraham and was justified as part of divine judgment against the Canaanites' iniquities.

2. Forcing in Leadership and Authority: The kings of Israel and Judah sometimes used force to maintain or expand their rule. King Saul, for instance, attempted to force his will upon David, whom he saw as a threat to his throne (1 Samuel 18-19). This misuse of force is often portrayed negatively, highlighting the dangers of relying on human strength rather than trusting in God's sovereignty.

3. Forcing in Personal Relationships: The account of Amnon and Tamar (2 Samuel 13) is a tragic example of forcing in personal relationships. Amnon, driven by lust, forced himself upon his half-sister Tamar, an act condemned by Scripture as a grievous sin. This narrative underscores the violation of God's laws and the destructive consequences of using force to satisfy personal desires.

New Testament References

1. Forcing in the Ministry of Jesus: Jesus' ministry often challenged the use of force, advocating instead for love, compassion, and forgiveness. In Matthew 26:52, Jesus rebukes Peter for using a sword to defend Him, saying, "Put your sword back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by the sword." This teaching emphasizes the futility and danger of relying on force rather than divine providence.

2. Forcing in the Early Church: The early church faced persecution and attempts to force believers to renounce their faith. Acts 4:18-20 recounts how Peter and John were commanded by the Sanhedrin not to speak in the name of Jesus. Despite this, they refused to be silenced, demonstrating the power of faith over coercion. The apostles' response highlights the Christian call to stand firm in the face of forced opposition.

3. Forcing and Spiritual Warfare: The New Testament also speaks of spiritual forces at work against believers. Ephesians 6:12 states, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." This passage encourages Christians to rely on spiritual armor rather than physical force to withstand evil.

Theological Implications

The Bible presents a nuanced view of forcing, recognizing its place in certain contexts while cautioning against its misuse. Force, when aligned with God's will, can be a tool for justice and righteousness. However, when used for personal gain or contrary to God's commands, it leads to sin and destruction. Believers are called to discern the appropriate use of force, always prioritizing God's guidance and the principles of love and justice.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Force.

2. (n.) The accomplishing of any purpose violently, precipitately, prematurely, or with unusual expedition.

3. (n.) The art of raising plants, flowers, and fruits at an earlier season than the natural one, as in a hitbed or by the use of artificial heat.

Greek

3791. ochleo -- to disturb, trouble
... 3791 (from 3793, "a crowd") -- properly, to mob; (figuratively) to push with force
("forcing along"), exercising torrent-like momentum (like the force of a ). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3791.htm - 7k

1286. diaseio -- to shake violently, to intimidate
... 4579 , "shake") -- properly, shake violently, to manhandle (literally, "shake someone
to-and-fro"); intimidate, coerce (blackmail, extort), forcing someone to ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1286.htm - 7k

971. biazo -- to force
... positively). Word Origin from bia Definition to force NASB Word Usage forcing
his way (1), suffers violence (1). press, suffer violence. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/971.htm - 6k

Strong's Hebrew

4330. mits -- squeezing, pressing, wringing
... churning, forcing, wringing. From muwts; pressure -- churning, forcing, wringing.
see HEBREW muwts. 4329, 4330. mits. 4331 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/4330.htm - 6k

3533. kabash -- to subdue, bring into bondage
... root Definition to subdue, bring into bondage NASB Word Usage assault (1), brought
them into subjection (2), forced into bondage (1), forcing (1), subdue (1 ...
/hebrew/3533.htm - 6k

Library

The Breach with Gregory of Nazianzus.
... the Halys, about a hundred miles distant from C??sarea, so obscure that Eusebius
of Samosata remonstrated with Basil on the unreasonableness of forcing such a ...
/.../basil/basil letters and select works/vii the breach with gregory of.htm

On the Road to Jerusalem
... She was smiling the drawn, white smile of a mother who is forcing herself to be
cheerful in the face of danger, for the peace of those she loves. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the city of delight/chapter ii on the road.htm

Home-Discipline.
... in fond embrace, in grateful penitence and hopeful reformation, under the deep
conviction that every stroke of His rod was the work of love, forcing from them ...
/.../philips/the christian home/chapter xix home-discipline.htm

The Suffering Servant-ii
... Surely it is very hard work, and needs much forcing of words and much determination
not to see what is set forth in as plain light as can be conceived, to ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/the suffering servant-ii.htm

This ChapterContinues the Same Subject and Speaks of Another Kind ...
... With the help of divine grace true union can always be attained by forcing ourselves
to renounce our own will and by following the will of God in all things. ...
/.../the interior castle or the mansions/chapter iii this chapter continues.htm

The Gift and the Giver
... on the startling contradiction between His appearance and His claims"on the one
hand asserting divine prerogative, on the other forcing into prominence human ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture i/the gift and the giver.htm

The Eighteenth Theban Dynasty --(Continued)
... of their assailants; but a picked body of men, led by the same brave Amenemhabi
who had killed the mare, succeeded in making a breach and forcing an entrance ...
/.../chapter ithe eighteenth theban dynastycontinued.htm

These Words Speaketh Solomon, the Son of David the King and ...
... again; and that the winds [42] in like manner, and the mighty rivers which flow
into the sea, and the breezes that beat upon it, all act without forcing it to ...
/.../a metaphrase of the book of ecclesiastes/chapter i these words speaketh.htm

Ophites, Cainites, Sethites.
... [8360] He had been conceived by the permixture of a second ??on with inferior ??ons;
and afterwards, when he [8361] had been desirous of forcing his way into ...
/.../tertullian/against all heresies/chapter ii ophites cainites sethites.htm

The Necessity of Regeneration, Argued from the Immutable ...
... life in the darkness and confinement of the womb, it is born into open day; feels
the vital air rushing in on its lungs, and light forcing itself upon the ...
/.../practical discourses on regeneration/discourse iv the necessity of.htm

Thesaurus

Forcing (25 Occurrences)
...Forcing (25 Occurrences). Matthew 11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist till
now, the kingdom of heaven is forcing its way in, and men of force take it. ...
/f/forcing.htm - 15k

Water-hole (25 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 23:16 And the three men, forcing their way through the Philistine army,
got water from the water-hole of Beth-lehem, by the doorway into the town, and ...
/w/water-hole.htm - 14k

Whistle (3 Occurrences)
... 1. (vi) To make a kind of musical sound, or series of sounds, by forcing the breath
through a small orifice formed by contracting the lips; also, to emit a ...
/w/whistle.htm - 9k

Draining (20 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 23:16 And the three men, forcing their way through the Philistine army,
got water from the water-hole of Beth-lehem, by the doorway into the town, and ...
/d/draining.htm - 13k

Storm (62 Occurrences)
... 4. (n.) A violent assault on a fortified place; a furious attempt of troops to enter
and take a fortified place by scaling the walls, forcing the gates, or the ...
/s/storm.htm - 25k

Blow (124 Occurrences)
... to blow an organ. 17. (vt) To clear of contents by forcing air through;
as, to blow an egg; to blow one's nose. 18. (vt) To burst ...
/b/blow.htm - 42k

Ford (3 Occurrences)

/f/ford.htm - 11k

Force (250 Occurrences)
... Acts 26:11 And I gave them punishment frequently, in all the Synagogues, forcing
them to say things against God; and burning with passion against them, I went ...
/f/force.htm - 40k

Opener (2 Occurrences)
... Micah 2:13 The opener of the way will go up before them: forcing their way out they
will go on to the doorway and out through it: their king will go on before ...
/o/opener.htm - 7k

Wringing (1 Occurrence)
... Proverbs 30:33 For as the churning of milk brings forth butter, and the wringing
of the nose brings forth blood; so the forcing of wrath brings forth strife ...
/w/wringing.htm - 7k

Resources

Why should I believe in Christ's resurrection? | GotQuestions.org

Who were the Judaizers? | GotQuestions.org

When and how was Israel conquered by the Assyrians? | GotQuestions.org

Forcing: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus

Concordance

Forcing (25 Occurrences)

Matthew 11:12
And from the days of John the Baptist till now, the kingdom of heaven is forcing its way in, and men of force take it.
(BBE)

Luke 16:16
The law and the prophets were until John. From that time the Good News of the Kingdom of God is preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.
(WEB WEY NAS NIV)

Acts 7:19
He, having evil designs against our nation, was cruel to our fathers, and they were forced to put out their young children, so that they might not go on living.
(See NIV)

Acts 26:11
And I gave them punishment frequently, in all the Synagogues, forcing them to say things against God; and burning with passion against them, I went after them even into far-away towns.
(BBE)

Exodus 12:33
And the Egyptians were forcing the people on, to get them out of the land quickly; for they said, We are all dead men.
(BBE)

Exodus 19:21
And the Lord said to Moses, Go down and give the people orders to keep back, for fear that a great number of them, forcing their way through to see the Lord, may come to destruction.
(BBE)

Exodus 22:2
If a thief is taken in the act of forcing his way into a house, and his death is caused by a blow, the owner of the house is not responsible for his blood.
(BBE)

Deuteronomy 13:5
And that prophet or that dreamer of dreams is to be put to death; for his words were said with the purpose of turning you away from the Lord your God, who took you out of the land of Egypt and made you free from the prison-house; and of forcing you out of the way in which the Lord your God has given you orders to go. So you are to put away the evil from among you.
(BBE)

Deuteronomy 20:19
When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man's life) to employ them in the siege:
(KJV WBS)

1 Samuel 13:12
I said, Now the Philistines will come down on me at Gilgal, and I have made no prayer for help to the Lord: and so, forcing myself to do it, I made a burned offering.
(BBE)

2 Samuel 23:16
And the three men, forcing their way through the Philistine army, got water from the water-hole of Beth-lehem, by the doorway into the town, and took it back to David: but he would not take it, but, draining it out, made an offering of it to the Lord.
(BBE)

2 Kings 3:26
And when the king of Moab saw that the fight was going against him, he took with him seven hundred men armed with swords, with the idea of forcing a way through to the king of Aram, but they were not able to do so.
(BBE)

1 Chronicles 11:18
So the three, forcing a way through the Philistine army, got water from the water-hole of Beth-lehem, by the doorway into the town, and took it back to David; but David would not take it, but made an offering of it, draining it out to the Lord,
(BBE)

2 Chronicles 21:17
And they came up against Judah, forcing a way into it, and took away all the goods in the king's house, as well as his sons and his wives; so that he had no son but only Jehoahaz, the youngest.
(BBE)

2 Chronicles 28:18
And the Philistines, forcing their way into the towns of the lowlands and the south of Judah, had taken Beth-shemesh and Aijalon and Gederoth and Soco, with their daughter-towns, as well as Timnah and Gimzo and their daughter-towns, and were living there.
(BBE)

Nehemiah 5:5
Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children; and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought into bondage already; neither is it in our power to help it; for other men have our fields and our vineyards.'
(See NAS RSV)

Job 8:17
His roots are twisted round the stones, forcing their way in between them.
(BBE)

Psalms 17:11
They have made a circle round our steps: their eyes are fixed on us, forcing us down to the earth;
(BBE)

Proverbs 7:21
With her fair words she overcame him, forcing him with her smooth lips.
(BBE)

Proverbs 30:33
For as the churning of milk brings forth butter, and the wringing of the nose brings forth blood; so the forcing of wrath brings forth strife."
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE WBS YLT)

Isaiah 7:6
Let us go up against Judah, troubling her, and forcing our way into her, and let us put up a king in her, even the son of Tabeel:
(BBE)

Jeremiah 9:21
For death has come up into our windows, forcing its way into our great houses; cutting off the children in the streets and the young men in the wide places.
(BBE)

Jeremiah 46:15
Why has Apis, your strong one, gone in flight? he was not able to keep his place, because the Lord was forcing him down with strength.
(BBE)

Daniel 11:7
But out of a branch from her roots one will come up to take his place, who will come against the army, forcing his way into the strong place of the king of the north, and he will take them in hand and overcome them:
(BBE)

Micah 2:13
The opener of the way will go up before them: forcing their way out they will go on to the doorway and out through it: their king will go on before them, and the Lord at their head.
(BBE)

Subtopics

Forcing

Forcing Someone Against Their Will

Related Terms

Water-hole (25 Occurrences)

Whistle (3 Occurrences)

Draining (20 Occurrences)

Storm (62 Occurrences)

Blow (124 Occurrences)

Ford (3 Occurrences)

Force (250 Occurrences)

Opener (2 Occurrences)