Imagining, in the biblical context, often refers to the process of forming mental images or concepts that are not present to the senses. It can encompass both positive and negative connotations, depending on the context in which it is used in Scripture. The Bible addresses the concept of imagining in various ways, highlighting its potential to either align with God's will or deviate from it.

Positive Aspects of Imagining

Imagining can be a powerful tool for faith and vision when aligned with God's purposes. In the Old Testament, God often communicated His promises and plans through visions and dreams, which required the recipients to imagine the fulfillment of these divine revelations. For instance, in Genesis 15:5, God takes Abram outside and says, "Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them." Then He said to him, "So shall your offspring be." Here, Abram is invited to imagine the vastness of his future descendants, fostering faith in God's promise.

The New Testament also encourages believers to imagine and meditate on things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable (Philippians 4:8). This form of imagining is a spiritual discipline that aligns the believer's thoughts with God's truth and goodness.

Negative Aspects of Imagining

Conversely, the Bible warns against vain or evil imaginations that lead individuals away from God's truth. In Genesis 6:5, it is written, "Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great upon the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was altogether evil all the time." Here, the imaginations of humanity's heart are depicted as corrupt, leading to widespread wickedness and ultimately the judgment of the flood.

The Psalms frequently address the futility of wicked imaginations. Psalm 2:1 asks, "Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?" This rhetorical question highlights the futility of imagining schemes against God's anointed, emphasizing that such imaginations are ultimately fruitless.

In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul speaks against imaginations that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, he writes, "We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." This passage underscores the importance of submitting one's imaginations to the authority of Christ, ensuring they are in line with divine truth.

Imagining and Idolatry

Imagining can also lead to idolatry when individuals create mental images or concepts of God that are contrary to His revealed nature. Romans 1:21-23 describes how humanity, although knowing God, did not glorify Him as God and became futile in their thinking, leading to the worship of created things rather than the Creator. This passage warns against the dangers of allowing one's imaginations to distort the true image of God.

Imagining in Prophetic and Apocalyptic Literature

Prophetic and apocalyptic literature in the Bible often involves vivid imagery and symbolism that require the reader to engage their imagination. Books like Daniel and Revelation are replete with visions that convey spiritual truths and future events. These texts invite believers to imagine the ultimate fulfillment of God's redemptive plan and the establishment of His eternal kingdom.

In summary, imagining in the biblical sense can be a double-edged sword. When aligned with God's will, it serves as a means of faith, hope, and spiritual growth. However, when misused, it can lead to deception, idolatry, and rebellion against God. The Bible calls believers to cultivate imaginations that are rooted in truth and obedient to Christ, ensuring that their mental and spiritual landscapes reflect the glory and purposes of God.(p. pr. & vb. n.) of Imagine.2031. harhor -- fancy, imagining
... 2030, 2031. harhor. 2032 . fancy, imagining. Transliteration: harhor
Phonetic Spelling: (har-hor') Short Definition: fantasies. ...
/hebrew/2031.htm - 6k

Immediately after These Points, Celsus, Imagining that the Jews ...
... Chapter V. Immediately after these points, Celsus, imagining that the Jews
are Egyptians by descent? Immediately after these points ...
/.../origen/origen against celsus/chapter v immediately after these.htm

The Third Day He Rose Again from the Dead. The Glory of Christ's ...
... And do not impute lack of power to God, the Creator of all things, by imagining
his work to have ended in the fall into an abyss which He in His redemptive ...
/.../29 the third day he.htm

Romans x. 13
... upon such Accounts as these, they hope for his Favour at last, and perceive some
Satisfaction and Rest in that Hope for the present: imagining, perhaps, that St ...
/.../sermon x romans x 13.htm

Twenty Third Sunday after Trinity Enemies of the Cross of Christ ...
... them"lest they sometime be misled by such teachers"to hold steadily to what they
have received, not seeking anything else and not imagining, like self ...
/.../luther/epistle sermons vol iii/twenty third sunday after trinity.htm

And what did it Profit Me, that Scarce Twenty Years Old...
... when, imagining whatever was, was comprehended under those often Predicaments, I
essayed in such wise to understand, O my God, Thy wonderful and unchangeable ...
/.../augustine/the confessions of saint augustine/chapter xvi and what did.htm

Refutation of Dualism from Reason. Impossibility of Two Gods. The ...
... exists, and then walk wandering as if in darkness, often falling and going down
steep places, thinking it was dark and not light,"for, imagining that he sees ...
/.../select works and letters or athanasius/section 7 refutation of dualism.htm

Let Her Pout it Out.
... Don't fall into the very fault you condemn in Maria; that of imagining a sentiment
to be entertained by another which she does not hold, and then growing ...
//christianbookshelf.org/arthur/words for the wise/let her pout it out.htm

The Creator of the World Either Produced of Himself the Images of ...
... And any one, again, might bring against them the same charge, by imagining four
thousand three hundred and eighty heavens, or ??ons, since the days of the year ...
/.../irenaeus/against heresies/chapter xvi the creator of the.htm

Epistle Catholic.
... But since Eusebius, the present bishop of Nicomedia, imagining that with him rest
all ecclesiastical matters, [2447] because, having left Berytus and cast his ...
/.../ii epistle catholic.htm

The Resemblance Between the Old Testament and the New.
... and some madmen of the sect of the Anabaptists, who think of the people of Israel
just as they would do of some herd of swine, absurdly imagining that the Lord ...
/.../the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 10 the resemblance between.htm

Imagining (3 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Imagining (3 Occurrences). 2 Corinthians 12:19 You are
imagining, all this time, that we are making our defense at your bar. ...
/i/imagining.htm - 7k

Imaginings (1 Occurrence)

/i/imaginings.htm - 6k

Imagineth (1 Occurrence)

/i/imagineth.htm - 6k

Fiction (2 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) The act of feigning, inventing, or
imagining; as, by a mere fiction of the mind. 2. (n.) That ...
/f/fiction.htm - 7k

Reality (13 Occurrences)
... are asleep. (WEY). 2 Corinthians 12:19 You are imagining, all this time,
that we are making our defense at your bar. In reality it ...
/r/reality.htm - 11k

Defense (49 Occurrences)
... the matter. (WEB). 2 Corinthians 12:19 You are imagining, all this time,
that we are making our defense at your bar. In reality it ...
/d/defense.htm - 20k

Disposed (16 Occurrences)
... meet it, that this song hath testified to its face for a witness; for it is not
forgotten out of the mouth of its seed, for I have known its imagining which it ...
/d/disposed.htm - 11k

Distresses (20 Occurrences)
... meet it, that this song hath testified to its face for a witness; for it is not
forgotten out of the mouth of its seed, for I have known its imagining which it ...
/d/distresses.htm - 12k

Progress (9 Occurrences)
... the Christ. (WEY). 2 Corinthians 12:19 You are imagining, all this time,
that we are making our defense at your bar. In reality it ...
/p/progress.htm - 10k

Counterfeit (3 Occurrences)
... The Wisdom of Solomon 14:17 (anatupoo, "to make a likeness"), "counterfeit of his
visage," the Revised Version (British and American) "imagining the likeness ...
/c/counterfeit.htm - 9k

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Imagining: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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