In biblical terms, "pressing" often refers to the act of exerting pressure or force, both in a physical and metaphorical sense. This concept appears in various contexts throughout Scripture, illustrating themes of perseverance, struggle, and the pursuit of spiritual goals.

Physical Pressing

1. Wine and Olive Presses: In ancient Israel, pressing was a common agricultural practice, particularly in the production of wine and olive oil. The Bible frequently mentions winepresses and olive presses as symbols of abundance and blessing. For example, in Proverbs 3:10 , it is written, "then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine." This imagery underscores the prosperity and divine favor associated with a fruitful harvest.

2. Threshing and Pressing: The process of threshing and pressing grain is also depicted in Scripture. Judges 6:11 describes Gideon threshing wheat in a winepress to hide it from the Midianites, illustrating the pressing need for sustenance and survival during times of oppression.

Metaphorical Pressing

1. Spiritual Perseverance: The Apostle Paul uses the metaphor of pressing to describe the Christian's spiritual journey. In Philippians 3:14 , he writes, "I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus." Here, pressing signifies the determined effort required to pursue spiritual maturity and eternal reward.

2. Trials and Tribulations: Pressing can also symbolize the trials and tribulations believers face. In 2 Corinthians 4:8 , Paul states, "We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair." This passage highlights the resilience and hope that Christians are called to maintain despite external pressures.

3. Jesus in Gethsemane: The Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed before His crucifixion, is a poignant example of pressing in a spiritual context. The name "Gethsemane" itself means "oil press," symbolizing the intense pressure and anguish Jesus experienced as He prepared to fulfill His sacrificial mission (Matthew 26:36-46).

Pressing in Worship and Devotion

1. Persistent Prayer: The concept of pressing is also evident in the call to persistent prayer. Jesus encourages His followers to be persistent in their petitions, as seen in the parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8 . This narrative emphasizes the importance of continual and fervent prayer in seeking God's justice and intervention.

2. Pressing into the Kingdom: In Luke 16:16 , Jesus states, "The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John; since that time, the gospel of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it." This pressing into the kingdom reflects the urgency and determination required to embrace the message of salvation and enter into a relationship with God.

In summary, the concept of pressing in the Bible encompasses both physical and spiritual dimensions, illustrating the effort, perseverance, and resilience required in the life of faith. Whether through the imagery of agricultural practices or the metaphor of spiritual striving, pressing serves as a powerful reminder of the Christian's call to endure and pursue God's purposes with unwavering commitment.1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Press.

2. (a.) Urgent; exacting; importunate; as, a pressing necessity.

4846. sumpnigo -- to choke
... live.]. Word Origin from sun and pnigo Definition to choke NASB Word Usage
choke (2), choked (2), pressing against (1). choke, throng. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4846.htm - 7k

4918. sunthlibo -- to press together
... sides, crowd upon. Word Origin from sun and thlibo Definition to press together
NASB Word Usage pressing (2). throng. From sun and ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4918.htm - 6k

318. anagke -- necessity
... 318 (perhaps cognate with 43 , "arm," which is derived from , "a bent/uplifted arm
poised to meet a pressing need") -- ; a requiring action, ie in a situation. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/318.htm - 7k

3791. ochleo -- to disturb, trouble
... 3791 ("to trouble, confuse") refers to pressing someone, by carrying them along
with the torrential force of a . 3791 () is used twice in the NT (Lk 6:18; Ac 5 ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3791.htm - 7k

598. apothlibo -- to press hard
... crowd. Word Origin from apo and thlibo Definition to press hard NASB Word
Usage pressing (1). press, crowd from every side. From ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/598.htm - 6k

1347. dikaiosis -- the act of pronouncing righteous, acquittal
... [1347 (), in ancient secular Greek, is closely associated with the pressing need
to be released from (Josephus, 18:14; Plutarch ( 14:3). Thuccydides (3.82.4 ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1347.htm - 8k

316. anagkaios -- necessary
... See 318 (). Word Origin from anagke Definition necessary NASB Word Usage close
(1), more necessary (1), necessary (5), pressing (1). necessary, needful. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/316.htm - 7k

1945. epikeimai -- to lie on
... from epi and keimai Definition to lie on NASB Word Usage am under (1), assailing
(1), imposed (1), insistent (1), lying (1), placed (1), pressing around (1). ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1945.htm - 7k

4330. mits -- squeezing, pressing, wringing
... 4329, 4330. mits. 4331 . squeezing, pressing, wringing. Transliteration:
mits Phonetic Spelling: (meets) Short Definition: churning. ...
/hebrew/4330.htm - 6k

808. ashish -- foundation
... foundation From the same as 'esh (in the sense of pressing down firmly; compare
'ashuwyah); a (ruined) foundation -- foundation. see HEBREW 'esh. ...
/hebrew/808.htm - 6k

1660. gath -- a wine press
... winepress fat. Probably from nagan (in the sense of treading out grapes); a
wine-press (or vat for holding the grapes in pressing them) -- (wine-)press (fat). ...
/hebrew/1660.htm - 6k

1413. gadad -- to penetrate, cut
... A primitive root (compare guwd); to crowd; also to gash (as if by pressing into) --
assemble (selves by troops), gather (selves together, self in troops), cut ...
/hebrew/1413.htm - 6k

8285. sherah -- a bracelet
... bracelet. From sharar in its original sense of pressing; a wrist-band (as compact
or clasping) -- bracelet. see HEBREW sharar. 8284, 8285. sherah. 8286 . ...
/hebrew/8285.htm - 6k

Faustus Warns against Pressing Too Far the Argument, that if Jesus ...
... Book XXVII. Faustus warns against pressing too far the argument, that if
Jesus was not born He cannot have suffered. Augustin accepts ...
/.../faustus warns against pressing too.htm

Pronunciation.
... PRONUNCIATION. ` When before k, sound the letter by pressing the back of the tongue
against the soft palate, and expelling the letter with a clicking sound. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/various/indian methodist hymn-book/pronunciation.htm

Psalm LVI.
... Held in a winepress is His Body, that is, His Church. What is, in a winepress?
In pressings. But in a winepress fruitful is the pressing. ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm lvi.htm

That in the Time of this Work the Remembrance of the Holiest ...
... more helpful to all thy friends, bodily and ghostly, quick and dead"such a blind
stirring of love unto God for Himself, and such a privy pressing upon this ...
/.../anonymous/the cloud of unknowing/here beginneth the ninth chapter.htm

Of the Incomparable Love which the Mother of God, Our Blessed Lady ...
... [164] And, in fine, maternal love, the most pressing, the most active and the most
ardent of all, what must it not have worked in the heart of such a Mother ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter viii of the incomparable.htm

part ii.
... An alleged requisition, not pressing equally upon all in its ordinary operations,
cannot rise out of the necessary relations of the spiritual universe, and ...
//christianbookshelf.org/clark/the faithful steward/part ii.htm

Christ Stimulating Sluggish Discipleship
... full of danger, and may be the cover of a great deal of self-deception; and, at
any rate, is not in consonance with Christ's supreme and pressing and immediate ...
/.../expositions of holy scripture a/christ stimulating sluggish discipleship.htm

How Love Effects the Union of the Soul with God in Prayer.
... united and joined to his divine goodness: for there is truly a difference between
joining or uniting one thing to another, and clasping or pressing one thing ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter i how love effects.htm

Your Apology Says that There are Three Opinions as to the Origin ...
... This then, forsooth, is the pressing question, whether our souls were created by
God or by the devil, and not whether the opinion of Origen is true that our ...
/.../30 your apology says that.htm

1 Peter iv. 8
... THE Apostle is, in this Verse, after the most earnest manner, pressing upon the
Christians to whom he writes, the most fervent and unconfined Love towards one ...
/.../sermon xi 1 peter iv.htm

Pressing (16 Occurrences)
... 1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Press. 2. (a.) Urgent; exacting; importunate; as, a pressing
necessity. Multi-Version Concordance Pressing (16 Occurrences). ...
/p/pressing.htm - 11k

Instant (19 Occurrences)
... 2. (a.) Pressing; urgent; importunate; earnest. 3. (a.) Closely pressing or impending
in respect to time; not deferred; immediate; without delay. ...
/i/instant.htm - 13k

Throng (21 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (imp.) of Thring. 2. (n.) A multitude of persons or
of living beings pressing or pressed into a close body or assemblage; a crowd. ...
/t/throng.htm - 12k

Touch (82 Occurrences)
... the resistance of the keys of an instrument to the fingers; as, a heavy touch, or
a light touch; also, the manner of touching, striking, or pressing the keys ...
/t/touch.htm - 35k

Crowd (166 Occurrences)
... 2. (vt) To press or drive together; to mass together. 3. (vt) To fill by pressing
or thronging together; hence, to encumber by excess of numbers or quantity. ...
/c/crowd.htm - 35k

Press (57 Occurrences)
... 19. (n.) An upright case or closet for the safe keeping of articles; as, a clothes
press. 20. (n.) The act of pressing or thronging forward. 21. ...
/p/press.htm - 46k

Adoption (5 Occurrences)
... He employed the idea metaphorically much in the manner of Christ's parables, and,
as in their case, there is danger of pressing the analogy too far in its ...
/a/adoption.htm - 23k

Crafts (2 Occurrences)
... Pliny mentions many other oils which were extracted in Egypt. The oils were usually
extracted by first crushing the fruit and then pressing the crushed mass. ...
/c/crafts.htm - 30k

Need (914 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) A state that requires supply or relief;
pressing occasion for something; necessity; urgent want. ...
/n/need.htm - 7k

Necessity (22 Occurrences)
... inevitableness; indispensableness. 2. (n.) The condition of being needy or
necessitous; pressing need; indigence; want. 3. (n.) That ...
/n/necessity.htm - 13k

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