Topical Bible: The Harvest: Failure of a Cause of Great Grief

◄ The Harvest: Failure of a Cause of Great Grief ►

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Topical Encyclopedia

The concept of the harvest is a recurring theme throughout the Bible, symbolizing both physical sustenance and spiritual abundance. However, the failure of the harvest is depicted as a profound cause of grief and lamentation, reflecting both material loss and spiritual desolation.

Biblical Context

In the agrarian society of ancient Israel, the harvest was a critical time of year, representing the culmination of months of labor and the primary source of sustenance for the community. A successful harvest was seen as a blessing from God, while a failed harvest was often interpreted as a sign of divine displeasure or judgment.

Old Testament References

The Old Testament frequently addresses the theme of harvest failure as a cause of great sorrow. In the book of Joel, the prophet vividly describes the devastation caused by locusts, which leads to the ruin of the harvest: "The fields are ruined, the ground is mournful; for the grain is destroyed, the new wine is dried up, and the oil fails" (Joel 1:10). This imagery underscores the deep grief and despair that accompany the loss of essential resources.

Jeremiah also speaks to the anguish of a failed harvest, linking it to the spiritual state of the people: "The harvest is past, the summer has ended, but we have not been saved" (Jeremiah 8:20). Here, the failure of the harvest serves as a metaphor for missed opportunities for repentance and redemption, highlighting the spiritual implications of physical scarcity.

New Testament Insights

While the New Testament shifts focus to the spiritual harvest, the theme of loss and grief remains. Jesus uses the imagery of the harvest to describe the urgency of spiritual work: "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few" (Matthew 9:37). The potential for a failed spiritual harvest, due to a lack of laborers, carries with it a sense of urgency and sorrow for lost souls.

Theological Implications

From a theological perspective, the failure of the harvest is not merely a physical calamity but a reflection of the spiritual condition of God's people. It serves as a call to repentance and a reminder of the dependence on God's provision. The grief associated with a failed harvest is both a natural human response to loss and a spiritual prompt to seek reconciliation with God.

Cultural and Historical Significance

In the cultural and historical context of the Bible, the harvest was a time of joy and celebration, as seen in the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot) and the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). The failure of the harvest, therefore, disrupted not only the economic stability of the community but also its religious and social rhythms. The lamentations over a failed harvest reflect a deep communal grief that extends beyond individual loss to encompass the well-being of the entire nation.

Conclusion

The failure of the harvest as a cause of great grief is a powerful motif in the Bible, illustrating the interconnectedness of physical and spiritual realities. It serves as a poignant reminder of human dependence on divine provision and the consequences of turning away from God's commandments. Through the lens of Scripture, the grief of a failed harvest becomes a call to return to faithfulness and trust in God's enduring promises.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Isaiah 16:9
Therefore I will mourn with the weeping of Jazer the vine of Sibmah: I will water you with my tears, O Heshbon, and Elealeh: for the shouting for your summer fruits and for your harvest is fallen.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Joel 1:11
Be you ashamed, O you farmers; howl, O you vinedressers, for the wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Prayer Born of Compassion
... and the men best qualified to work in the harvest. Moving the missionary cause by
forces this side of God has been its bane, its weakness and its failure. ...
/.../bounds/the essentials of prayer/x prayer born of compassion.htm

Vain Toil
... Like every great cause, this one was launched amidst high hopes ... done for Him but
shall in the harvest-day be ... is as needful as food, and its failure to answer ...
//christianbookshelf.org/maclaren/expositions of holy scripture a/vain toil.htm

Restoring the Creator-Creature Relation
... or whom you will; honor followed honor as harvest the seed. ... but smoke screens to
conceal the real cause that lies ... course of the life is upset by failure to put ...
/.../tozer/the pursuit of god/viii restoring the creator-creature relation.htm

"My Times are in Thy Hand"
... hand of the great Husbandman, and the harvest of that ... the book of the future which
should cause distrust to ... my own hand, they would prove a failure; but since ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 37 1891/my times are in thy.htm

One Worker Preparing for Another
... and water the seed, and perhaps another to gather the harvest. ... think the least of
what they give to God's cause. ... that your work may be no failure, though in ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 38 1892/one worker preparing for another.htm

The Pattern of Service
... not feed, and busy activity in Christ's cause may starve ... not whether the promise
of harvest is most ... Belgravia and Whitechapel; the mournful failure of legalised ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture d/the pattern of service.htm

Home and the Home-Maker.
... In time, such a life leads to failure and gloom, to secret ... than in the moon, and
looks for his harvest to the ... to live, or glad to die for the cause he serves. ...
/.../questionable amusements and worthy substitutes/x home and the home-maker.htm

The Servant's Triumph
... at the bar of men, pleads His cause, calls His ... As to the adversary's failure, I need
only recall the ... wintry interval between seed time and harvest, yet 'in due ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/the servants triumph.htm

Galatians Chapter vi.
... Were not the cause of this what I have stated ... hand, and makes mention of a new and
wondrous harvest. ... refer this warning to the consequences of failure to share ...
/.../galatians chapter vi.htm

Smitten in Vain
... there were yet three months to the harvest; and I ... God, and recounts the dreary monotony
of failure attending all ... warned, and presents them as the cause of the ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture a/smitten in vain.htm