Topical Bible: Fire: Kept Alive by Fuel

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In the biblical context, fire serves as a powerful symbol and a practical element, often representing God's presence, judgment, and purification. The maintenance of fire through fuel is a concept that appears both literally and metaphorically throughout Scripture.

Literal Use of Fire and Fuel

In the Old Testament, fire is a crucial component of the sacrificial system. The priests were commanded to keep the altar fire burning continuously. Leviticus 6:12-13 states, "The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add wood to the fire, arrange the burnt offering on it, and burn the fat portions of the peace offerings on it. The fire must be kept burning on the altar continually; it must not be extinguished." This perpetual fire symbolized the ongoing presence of God and the continuous need for atonement and worship.

The use of wood as fuel for the altar fire underscores the necessity of human participation in divine worship. The priests' responsibility to add wood daily highlights the cooperation between divine command and human obedience. This act of maintaining the fire can be seen as a reflection of the Israelites' commitment to their covenant relationship with God.

Metaphorical Use of Fire and Fuel

Fire is also used metaphorically in Scripture to describe the fervor of faith and the presence of the Holy Spirit. In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is depicted as tongues of fire at Pentecost, symbolizing the empowering presence of God among believers (Acts 2:3). This imagery suggests that just as physical fire requires fuel to burn, spiritual fervor requires the nourishment of faith, prayer, and the Word of God.

Proverbs 26:20 provides a metaphorical insight into the nature of fire and fuel: "Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, a conflict ceases." Here, the proverb uses the imagery of fire to illustrate how strife and discord are fueled by words and actions, much like a fire is sustained by wood. This analogy serves as a moral teaching on the importance of controlling one's speech and actions to prevent unnecessary conflict.

Fire as Judgment and Purification

Fire is frequently associated with God's judgment and purification. In the prophetic literature, fire often symbolizes divine judgment against sin and rebellion. For instance, Isaiah 66:15-16 declares, "For behold, the LORD will come with fire—His chariots are like a whirlwind—to execute His anger with fury and His rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by His sword, the LORD will execute judgment on all flesh, and many will be slain by the LORD."

Conversely, fire also represents purification and refinement. Malachi 3:2-3 speaks of the Lord as a refiner's fire, purifying the sons of Levi: "But who can endure the day of His coming? Who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap. And He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver." This passage illustrates the dual role of fire as both a destructive and purifying force, emphasizing the transformative power of God's holiness.

Conclusion

The concept of fire kept alive by fuel in the Bible serves as a multifaceted symbol of God's presence, judgment, and the spiritual fervor required of believers. Whether in the literal maintenance of the altar fire or the metaphorical fire of faith, the necessity of fuel underscores the ongoing relationship between divine provision and human responsibility.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Proverbs 26:20
Where no wood is, there the fire goes out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceases.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Isaiah 9:5
For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Whether the Fire of Hell is of the Same Species as Ours?
... Reply to Objection 2: This fire of ours is kept alive with fuel, and is kindled
by man, because it is introduced into a foreign matter by art and force. ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether the fire of hell 2.htm

Examples from Nature Proving that Bodies May Remain Unconsumed and ...
... Proving that Bodies May Remain Unconsumed and Alive in Fire ... be kept, and when it
had been kept as many ... can explain the strange properties of fire itself, which ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 4 examples from nature proving.htm

Why Man is of Two Sexes; what is his First Death, and what the ...
... And as fire cannot burn and be kept alive unless it be nourished [296] by some rich
fuel [297] in which it may have sustenance, so the fuel and food of the ...
/.../lactantius/the divine institutes/chap xiii why man is of.htm

The Disasters Suffered by the Romans in the Punic Wars, which were ...
... life on fire, by ceaselessly feeding it with fresh fuel. But at the time we speak
of, the fire in the temple was not content with being kept alive: it raged. ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 18 the disasters suffered by.htm

Perseverance in Holiness
... That fear is kept alive in our hearts by reading the Scriptures; for as we ... Know the
gospel well and thoroughly, and this will bring fuel to the fire of the ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 35 1889/perseverance in holiness.htm

2 Timothy i. 1, 2
... As fire requires fuel, so grace requires our ... v.19.) For by sloth and carelessness
it is quenched, and by watchfulness and diligence it is kept alive. ...
/.../homily i 2 timothy i.htm

Of the Fact that the Precepts of the Gospel are Milder than those ...
... beyond these limits, yet even while it is kept in check ... all the thorns of carnal
desires in the fire of the ... But as sin is alive in one who loves marriage, so is ...
/.../cassian/the conferences of john cassian/chapter xxxiii of the fact.htm

Christian Morals. Part iii.
... been long made, before some train of their causes have already taken fire, laying
open ... Common gratitude must be kept alive by the additionary fuel of new ...
//christianbookshelf.org/browne/christian morals/christian morals part iii.htm

Of Hell
... touched it, and only one hand or one foot kept in a ... or three circumstances attending
the never-dying worm and the unquenchable fire. ... Tremblingly alive all o'er ...
/.../wesley/sermons on several occasions/sermon 73 of hell.htm

How the War of the Jews with the Romans Began, and Concerning ...
... what they left behind them, and set fire to their camp. ... the seditious besieged the
towers, and kept them guarded ... in private; but they took him alive, and drew ...
/.../chapter 17 how the war.htm