Foreboding, in a biblical context, refers to a sense of impending doom or an intuitive anticipation of future misfortune. This feeling can be understood as a natural human response to uncertainty or as a spiritual discernment of coming events. The Bible addresses the concept of foreboding in various passages, often highlighting the importance of trusting in God's sovereignty and providence despite feelings of anxiety or fear.

Biblical Instances and Themes

1. Foreboding in the Old Testament:
· Genesis 41:8: Pharaoh's troubled spirit after dreaming of the seven lean cows and the seven thin ears of grain is an example of foreboding. His inability to understand the dream's meaning led to a sense of unease, prompting him to seek Joseph's interpretation.
· 1 Samuel 28:5-7: King Saul experienced foreboding when he saw the Philistine army. His fear led him to seek counsel from the medium at Endor, demonstrating how foreboding can drive individuals to seek guidance outside of God's will.

2. Foreboding in the New Testament:
· Matthew 24:6-7: Jesus speaks of wars and rumors of wars, which can evoke a sense of foreboding. He instructs His followers not to be alarmed, as these events must take place, emphasizing the need for faith and trust in God's plan.
· Luke 21:25-26 : "There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among the nations, bewildered by the roaring of the sea and the surging of the waves. Men will faint from fear and anxiety over what is coming upon the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken." This passage highlights the foreboding that will accompany the end times, urging believers to remain steadfast.

3. Foreboding and the Human Condition:
· Proverbs 12:25 : "Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up." This proverb acknowledges the burden of foreboding and the power of encouragement and hope in alleviating it.
· Psalm 55:22 : "Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken." This verse offers comfort to those experiencing foreboding, reminding them to rely on God's sustaining power.

4. Foreboding and Faith:
· Philippians 4:6-7 : "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." This passage encourages believers to counteract foreboding with prayer and trust in God's peace.
· 2 Timothy 1:7 : "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control." This verse reassures Christians that foreboding does not come from God, who equips His people with strength and love.

Theological Implications

Foreboding, while a natural human experience, is addressed in Scripture as an opportunity for believers to deepen their reliance on God. The Bible consistently points to God's sovereignty and faithfulness as the antidote to fear and anxiety. Through prayer, trust, and the encouragement of Scripture, Christians are called to navigate feelings of foreboding with faith, knowing that God is in control of the future.1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Forebode.

2. (n.) Presage of coming ill; expectation of misfortune.

2217. zophos -- deep gloom
... 2217 -- murky, appalling gloom, referring to darkness so dense and foreboding it
is "felt"; (figuratively) , associated with the nether world () bringing its ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2217.htm - 7k

Stillness in Storm
... former. The former prohibits 'taking thought,' by which our Lord of course
means not reasonable foresight, but anxious foreboding. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture e/stillness in storm.htm

Anxious Care
... Therefore I say unto you. Take no thought for your life.'"Matthew 6:24-25.
Foresight and foreboding are two very different things. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture a/anxious care.htm

Judas Hangs Himself.
... "Now my fearful foreboding has become a terrible certainty. ... Caiaphas said, "What
a fearful man!". "I had some foreboding of this," said Annas. ...
/.../stead/king of the jews/chapter vi judas hangs himself.htm

In the Hands of Giant Accuser
... the country. I entered that valley. The sun was sinking into the western
sea, and my thoughts grew gloomy and foreboding. All at ...
/.../berry/adventures in the land of canaan/chapter seven in the hands.htm

The Exile Continued.
... peering at him from some enclosure of the simple forest sanctuary, and as he recognised
Doeg the Edomite, Saul's savage herdsman, a cold foreboding of evil ...
//christianbookshelf.org/maclaren/the life of david/v the exilecontinued.htm

Circumstances and Consequences
... Amongst those difficulties the sacred writer places that natural foreboding, physical
shrinking and hesitation which paralyse men when, after lives spent in ...
/.../howard/standards of life and service/viii circumstances and consequences.htm

Prayer to the Most High
... such thought about ourselves, and about God, and about sin and its wages, and about
salvation, its price and its preciousness; every foreboding thought about ...
//christianbookshelf.org/whyte/lord teach us to pray/xv prayer to the most.htm

Triumph Over Death and the Grave
... But if there was no hereafter, no state of judgment and retribution to be expected;
if there was no consciousness of guilt, no foreboding of consequences upon ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/newton/messiah vol 2/sermon xliv triumph over death.htm

Christ's Summary of his Work
... possessions among His followers. But His words to men carry a trace of
His own conflict and a foreboding of theirs. For Him life ...
/.../christs summary of his work.htm

The Antichrist
... This name introduces to us one of the most solemn and foreboding subjects in the
Word of God. It brings before us one of the persons in the Trinity of Evil. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/pink/the antichrist/1 the antichrist.htm

Foreboding (1 Occurrence)
... 1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Forebode. 2. (n.) Presage of coming ill; expectation of
misfortune. Multi-Version Concordance Foreboding (1 Occurrence). ...
/f/foreboding.htm - 6k

Divine (39 Occurrences)
... Sir J. Davies. 6. (a.) Presageful; foreboding; prescient. 7. (a.) Relating to divinity
or theology. ... 14. (vi) To have or feel a presage or foreboding. 15. ...
/d/divine.htm - 19k

Forecast (2 Occurrences)

/f/forecast.htm - 8k

Omen (6 Occurrences)
... n.) An occurrence supposed to portend, or show the character of, some future event;
any indication or action regarded as a foreshowing; a foreboding; a presage ...
/o/omen.htm - 8k

Fatal (5 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (a.) Proceeding from, or appointed by, fate or destiny;
necessary; inevitable. 2. (a.) Foreboding death or great disaster. ...
/f/fatal.htm - 8k

Forebear (1 Occurrence)

/f/forebear.htm - 6k

Dark (234 Occurrences)
... villain; a dark deed. 5. (a.) Foreboding evil; gloomy; jealous; suspicious.
6. (a.) Deprived of sight; blind. 7. (n.) Absence of ...
/d/dark.htm - 44k

Dismal (1 Occurrence)
... 2. (a.) Gloomy to the eye or ear; sorrowful and depressing to the feelings; foreboding;
cheerless; dull; dreary; as, a dismal outlook; dismal stories; a dismal ...
/d/dismal.htm - 7k

Micaiah (27 Occurrences)
... prophetic inspiration. Micaiah's position was a delicate one. Foreboding
or foreseeing disaster, he did his best to avert it. This he ...
/m/micaiah.htm - 21k

Predictive (1 Occurrence)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (a.) Foretelling; prophetic; foreboding.
Multi-Version Concordance Predictive (1 Occurrence). 2 Corinthians ...
/p/predictive.htm - 6k

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