Topical Bible: Disease: Sent from God

◄ Disease: Sent from God ►

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In the biblical narrative, disease is often depicted as a tool or consequence used by God to fulfill His divine purposes. Throughout Scripture, instances of disease are portrayed as both a direct judgment from God and a means to demonstrate His power and sovereignty.

Old Testament Instances

1. Plagues of Egypt: One of the most prominent examples of disease as a divine instrument is found in the account of the plagues of Egypt. In Exodus 9:8-12, God sends a plague of boils upon the Egyptians as a judgment against Pharaoh's hardened heart. This act serves to demonstrate God's power and to compel Pharaoh to release the Israelites from bondage. The text states, "Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 'Take handfuls of soot from a furnace, and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. It will become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on men and beasts throughout the land.'"

2. Punishment for Disobedience: In Deuteronomy 28, God outlines the blessings for obedience and the curses for disobedience to His covenant. Among the curses, diseases are specifically mentioned as a consequence of Israel's unfaithfulness. Deuteronomy 28:21-22 states, "The LORD will make the pestilence cling to you until He has exterminated you from the land you are entering to possess. 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."

3. Miriam's Leprosy: In Numbers 12, Miriam is struck with leprosy as a punishment for speaking against Moses. This incident illustrates how disease can serve as a direct response to sin. Numbers 12:9-10 records, "So the anger of the LORD burned against them, and He departed. As the cloud lifted from above the tent, suddenly Miriam became leprous, white as snow."

New Testament Context

1. Herod's Death: In Acts 12:21-23, King Herod is struck down by an angel of the Lord and dies a gruesome death, "because he did not give glory to God." The passage describes how Herod was "eaten by worms and died," indicating a divine judgment through disease.

2. Warnings to the Church: In the New Testament, disease is also mentioned in the context of church discipline. In 1 Corinthians 11:29-30, Paul warns the Corinthian church about the consequences of partaking in the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner: "For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep."

Theological Implications

The use of disease as a divine instrument underscores the biblical theme of God's sovereignty and justice. It serves as a reminder of the seriousness of sin and the reality of divine judgment. However, it is also important to recognize that not all instances of disease are portrayed as direct judgments from God. The Book of Job, for example, presents a narrative where suffering and disease occur without being attributed to personal sin or divine retribution, highlighting the complexity of understanding suffering within the biblical framework.

Throughout Scripture, the presence of disease calls believers to reflect on their relationship with God, to seek His mercy, and to trust in His ultimate plan for redemption and restoration.

Nave's Topical Index

Leviticus 14:34
When you be come into the land of Canaan, which I give to you for a possession, and I put the plague of leprosy in a house of the land of your possession;
Nave's Topical Index

Library

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

Ancient Syriac Documents Relating to the Earliest Establishment of ...
... Abgar: "The apostle of Jesus is come hither, as He sent thee word." Thadd??us, moreover,
began to heal every disease and sickness by the power of God, so that ...
/.../unknown/the decretals/ancient syriac documents relating to.htm

Concerning the Disease that Herod Fell into and the Sedition which ...
... CHAPTER 6. Concerning The Disease That Herod Fell Into And ... ambassadors made haste
to Rome; but sent, as instructed ... pulled down what was dedicated to God; so he ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 6 concerning the disease.htm

Concerning Ahaziah; the King of Israel; and Again Concerning the ...
... their own, that the king sent to a foreign god to inquire about his recovery? and
to bid them return and tell the king that he would not escape this disease. ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 2 concerning ahaziah the.htm

Acts of the Holy Apostle Thadd??us,
... And He sent us in His name to proclaim repentance and ... us power to expel demons, and
heal every disease and every ... come to the one living and true God, the God ...
/.../unknown/acts of the holy apostle thaddaeus/acts of the holy apostle.htm

Whether it was Fitting that God Should Become Incarnate in the ...
... that the Son of Man should not be sent immediately after ... For first of all God left
man under the natural ... the law, but of his nature, the disease gained strength ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether it was fitting that 4.htm

The Namelessness of God.
... was burdening the soul of man like some disease, and wishing ... to him first, as it
was possible for God to appear ... orders him to say, "He who is hath sent me to ...
/.../justins hortatory address to the greeks/chapter xxi the namelessness of god.htm

"As Verily as Sin is Unclean, So Verily is it Unkind" --A Disease ...
... is unclean, so verily is it unkind""a disease or monstrous ... and fair in itself, and
Grace was sent out to ... point from whence it came: that is God; with more ...
/.../julian/revelations of divine love/chapter lxiii as verily as.htm

In what Manner the Iberians were Converted to Christianity.
... this expression of faith, and called upon God, the boy ... the queen herself having fallen
sick sent for the ... her son before; and immediately the disease was removed ...
/.../the ecclesiastical history of scholasticus/chapter xx in what manner the.htm

Conversion of the Iberians .
... Frumentius thus led the Indians to the knowledge of God. ... and the queen, who was
suffering from a severe disease, hearing of her by report, sent for her. ...
/.../chapter xxiii conversion of the iberians.htm