The term "disastrous" refers to events or situations that cause great harm, suffering, or destruction. In the context of the Bible, such events are often seen as manifestations of divine judgment, tests of faith, or consequences of human sinfulness. The Bible contains numerous accounts of disastrous events that serve as warnings, lessons, or turning points in the narrative of God's relationship with humanity.

Old Testament Examples

1. The Great Flood: One of the most catastrophic events recorded in the Bible is the Great Flood, which God sent to cleanse the earth of its widespread wickedness. Genesis 6:17 states, "And behold, I will bring floodwaters upon the earth to destroy every creature under the heavens that has the breath of life. Everything on the earth will perish." This disaster serves as a profound example of divine judgment and the importance of righteousness, as Noah and his family were spared due to their faithfulness.

2. The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah: The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire and brimstone due to their grievous sins. Genesis 19:24-25 recounts, "Then the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. Thus He overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all the inhabitants of the cities and everything that grew on the ground." This event underscores the severity of divine retribution against sin.

3. The Plagues of Egypt: The ten plagues that God inflicted upon Egypt were disastrous events that demonstrated His power and compelled Pharaoh to release the Israelites from bondage. Exodus 7-12 details these plagues, which culminated in the death of the firstborn in Egypt, leading to the Exodus of the Israelites.

New Testament References

1. The Destruction of Jerusalem: Jesus foretold the destruction of Jerusalem as a consequence of the nation's rejection of Him as the Messiah. In Matthew 24:2 , Jesus says, "Do you see all these things? Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down." This prophecy was fulfilled in A.D. 70 when the Romans destroyed the city and the Temple.

2. Warnings of Future Disasters: The New Testament contains warnings of future disasters as part of the eschatological narrative. In the Book of Revelation, various calamities are described as part of the end times. Revelation 6:12-14 describes a great earthquake and cosmic disturbances: "I watched as the Lamb opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake. The sun became black like sackcloth made of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind."

Theological Implications

Disastrous events in the Bible often serve as instruments of divine judgment, purification, or testing. They remind believers of the holiness and justice of God, the seriousness of sin, and the need for repentance and faithfulness. These events also highlight God's sovereignty and the ultimate hope of redemption and restoration for those who trust in Him. Throughout Scripture, the response to disaster is often a call to return to God, seek His mercy, and align one's life with His will.1. (a.) Full of unpropitious stellar influences; unpropitious; ill-boding.

2. (a.) Attended with suffering or disaster; very unfortunate; calamitous; ill-fated; as, a disastrous day; a disastrous termination of an undertaking.

1108. gnosis -- a knowing, knowledge
... For example, the Gnostics boasted of their "applied knowledge" gained by their
personal spiritual experiences -- and it was (is) disastrous! ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1108.htm - 7k

On the Councils, Or, the Faith of the Easterns.
... I feared lest while so many bishops were involved in the serious danger of disastrous
sin or disastrous mistake, you were holding your peace because a defiled ...
/.../the life and writings of st hilary of poitiers/on the councils or the.htm

A Threefold Cord
... I do not say anything about the disastrous effects that have followed from such
a conception of the medium by which this greatest of all Christian gifts is ...
/.../maclaren/romans corinthians to ii corinthians chap v/a threefold cord.htm

The Sons Reveal Themselves to the Mother.
... For how they are alive, after they had in your opinion died on that most disastrous
night, and how one of them now bears the name of Nicetas, and the other ...
/.../unknown/the clementine homilies/chapter vi the sons reveal themselves.htm

The Disasters Suffered by the Romans in the Punic Wars, which were ...
... great abundance of dying men made all hell rejoice at its riches, and give itself
up to sport: for certainly the ferocious wars, and disastrous quarrels, and ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 18 the disasters suffered by.htm

That those who Complain of Christianity Really Desire to Live ...
... an endless variety of sottish pleasures, and thus to generate from your prosperity
a moral pestilence which will prove a thousandfold more disastrous than the ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 30 that those who complain.htm

The Apostle's Theme
... I am free to admit that a past generation has wrapped theological cobwebs
round the gracious figure of Christ with disastrous results. ...
/.../maclaren/romans corinthians to ii corinthians chap v/the apostles theme.htm

Acts V
... testing his powers. If he had failed under the test, the consequences, as
we have suggested above, would have been disastrous. But now ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/mcgarvey/a commentary on acts of the apostles/acts v.htm

Semi-Parasitism.
... meantime stands thus: Any principle which secures the safety of the individual without
personal effort or the vital exercise of faculty is disastrous to moral ...
/.../drummond/natural law in the spiritual world/semi-parasitism.htm

Eve and Mary Continued.
... which are so delicate and difficult to determine, and, nevertheless, most grave
and important, since they entail, when neglected, the most disastrous results. ...
/.../sainte-foi/serious hours of a young lady/chapter vi eve and mary.htm

Abraham's Four Surrenders
... faith. If he had stopped to think, Lot might have known that it would be
disastrous to him and his family to go anywhere near Sodom. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/moody/men of the bible/i abrahams four surrenders.htm

Disastrous (2 Occurrences)
... 2. (a.) Attended with suffering or disaster; very unfortunate; calamitous; ill-fated;
as, a disastrous day; a disastrous termination of an undertaking. ...
/d/disastrous.htm - 7k

Jezebel (20 Occurrences)
... the "first time that a king of Israel had allied himself by marriage with a heathen
princess; and the alliance was in this case of a peculiarly disastrous kind ...
/j/jezebel.htm - 26k

Gilboa (8 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Boiling spring, a mountain range, now Jebel Fukua', memorable
as the scene of Saul's disastrous defeat by the Philistines. ...
/g/gilboa.htm - 12k

Ziklag (13 Occurrences)
... Two days after his return from this expedition, David received tidings of the
disastrous battle of Gilboa and of the death of Saul (2 Samuel 1:1-16). ...
/z/ziklag.htm - 13k

Nabathaeans
... Antony made a present of part of Malchus' territory to Cleopatra, and the Nabatean
kingdom was further humiliated by disastrous defeat in the war against Herod ...
/n/nabathaeans.htm - 11k

Nero
... his father predicted, amid the congratulations of his friends, that any offspring
of himself and Agrippina could only prove abominable and disastrous for the ...
/n/nero.htm - 41k

Nabataeans
... Antony made a present of part of Malchus' territory to Cleopatra, and the Nabatean
kingdom was further humiliated by disastrous defeat in the war against Herod ...
/n/nabataeans.htm - 11k

Jehoiakim (37 Occurrences)
... Jeremiah 36:23). During his disastrous reign there was a return to the old
idolatry and corruption of the days of Manasseh. After three ...
/j/jehoiakim.htm - 33k

Gibeah (52 Occurrences)
... which led to the almost utter extirpation of the tribe of Benjamin (Judges 19; 20),
only six hundred men surviving after a succession of disastrous battles. ...
/g/gibeah.htm - 30k

Warfare (18 Occurrences)
... At the battle of Ebenezer the ark was taken into the fight with disastrous results
to Israel (1 Samuel 4:4). On the other hand at the battle of Michmash, the ...
/w/warfare.htm - 34k

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