Topical Bible: Famine: Caused: Wasting of the Body

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Famine, a severe shortage of food resulting in widespread hunger, is a recurring theme in the Bible, often depicted as a divine judgment or a test of faith. The physical effects of famine are profound, leading to the wasting of the body, a condition where individuals suffer extreme weight loss and malnutrition due to the lack of sustenance.

In the Scriptures, famine is frequently portrayed as a consequence of disobedience to God’s commandments. The physical toll of famine is vividly described in various passages, illustrating the dire circumstances faced by those who endure it. One such instance is found in the book of Lamentations, which laments the suffering of Jerusalem following its destruction. The prophet Jeremiah writes, "Their skin has shriveled on their bones; it has become as dry as a stick" (Lamentations 4:8). This imagery captures the severe emaciation and physical decline experienced during times of famine.

The wasting of the body during famine is not only a physical affliction but also a spiritual and communal crisis. In the book of Deuteronomy, God warns the Israelites of the consequences of turning away from His commandments, including the threat of famine: "You will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of your sons and daughters the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and distress with which your enemies will afflict you" (Deuteronomy 28:53). This passage underscores the desperation and moral decay that can accompany extreme hunger, as well as the breakdown of societal norms.

The account of Joseph in the book of Genesis provides another perspective on famine. Joseph, through divine insight, interprets Pharaoh’s dreams and predicts seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine. His prudent management of resources during the years of plenty ensures that Egypt is prepared for the coming scarcity. Genesis 41:30-31 states, "But seven years of famine will follow them, and all the abundance in the land of Egypt will be forgotten. The famine will ravage the land. The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe." This narrative highlights the importance of foresight and divine guidance in mitigating the effects of famine.

Famine also serves as a backdrop for demonstrating faith and reliance on God. In 1 Kings 17, the prophet Elijah is sent to a widow in Zarephath during a time of drought and famine. Despite her meager resources, she provides for Elijah, and God miraculously sustains her household. The account illustrates God’s provision and the sustaining power of faith amidst physical deprivation.

Throughout the Bible, famine is a multifaceted phenomenon, representing both a physical reality and a spiritual metaphor. It serves as a reminder of human vulnerability, the consequences of sin, and the necessity of dependence on God for sustenance and deliverance. The wasting of the body during famine is a poignant symbol of the broader spiritual and communal challenges faced by God’s people in times of trial.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Lamentations 4:8
Their visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin sticks to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ezekiel 4:17
That they may want bread and water, and be astonished one with another, and consume away for their iniquity.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Treatise v. An Address to Demetrianus.
... have said that all these things are caused by us ... famine, as if drought made a greater
famine than rapacity ... does not rob were suffering loss and wasting his own ...
/.../cyprian/the treatises of cyprian/treatise v an address to.htm

The Exhortation of the Last HomilyIs Continued in This. ...
... nothing would alarm us, neither death, nor famine, nor the ... is but striking at a shadow,
and wasting his own ... God, the publication of the sentence, caused it to ...
/.../chrysostom/on the priesthood/homily v the exhortation of.htm

The Uproar in Ephesus.
... fell down from Jupiter?" They were wasting their time and ... to the individuals who
had caused the insurrection ... drought, which was followed by famine and pestilence ...
/.../dick/lectures on the acts of the apostles/lecture xxiii the uproar in.htm

God's Providence
... Again we are brought low through affliction and famine. ... our very rising, have been
those which have caused the sturdy ... but I think it would be wasting time to ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 54 1908/gods providence.htm

Justinian.
... Vigilius caused him to be deported to the island of ... The besiegers went on wasting
the Campagna, and preventing ... also suffered terribly both from famine and from ...
/.../allies/the formation of christendom volume vi/chapter iv justinian.htm

Conclusion --Repent Ye, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand.
... Its Misery the Result of Disunion Caused by Following ... were starving last year and
where the famine is even ... but somewhere beyond it, feels his body over with an ...
/.../the kingdom of god is within you/chapter xii conclusionrepent ye for.htm

Funeral Oration on the Great S. Basil, Bishop of C??sarea in ...
... For it is not contempt which has caused me to fall short ... was it his part to fight,
or rend the body of the ... There was a famine, the most severe one ever recorded ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/oration xliii funeral oration on.htm

The Nile and Egypt
... excessive, and in either case meant famine, and perhaps ... features, and a vigorous
and portly body, such as ... dwellings,"and earth falleth into a wasting sickness ...
/.../chapter i the nile and egypt.htm

The Holy City; Or, the New Jerusalem:
... to this day, been one great reason of that crossness of judgment and persuasion
that hath been found among the saints, and that hath caused that lingering and ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the holy city or the.htm