The term "stank" is not directly found in the Bible; however, it can be understood in the context of biblical themes related to odor, decay, and moral corruption. In the Scriptures, the concept of a foul smell is often used metaphorically to describe sin, corruption, or divine displeasure.

Biblical Context and Symbolism

1. Odor and Sacrifice: In the Old Testament, the aroma of sacrifices is frequently mentioned. A pleasing aroma to the Lord signifies acceptance and favor (e.g., Genesis 8:21, Leviticus 1:9). Conversely, a stench or foul odor can symbolize rejection or divine displeasure. Isaiah 65:5 speaks of those who provoke God to anger, saying, "These are smoke in My nostrils, a fire that burns all day long."

2. Decay and Corruption: The imagery of decay is used to describe moral and spiritual corruption. In Exodus 7:18 , during the first plague in Egypt, the Nile waters turned to blood, causing the fish to die and the river to stink, symbolizing the judgment and corruption brought upon Egypt.

3. Moral Filth: The Bible often uses physical cleanliness as a metaphor for spiritual purity. In Isaiah 3:24 , a prophecy against the daughters of Zion includes the transformation of "fragrance into a stench," illustrating the consequences of their pride and sin.

4. Divine Judgment: The stench of death and decay is also associated with divine judgment. In Amos 4:10 , God recounts sending plagues and the stench of camps as a form of judgment, yet the people did not return to Him.

5. New Testament References: While the New Testament does not explicitly use the term "stank," the concept of spiritual decay is present. In John 11:39 , when Jesus is about to raise Lazarus, Martha warns, "Lord, by now he stinks. It has already been four days." This highlights the reality of death and decay, setting the stage for Jesus' miraculous power over death.

Theological Implications

The metaphorical use of stench in the Bible serves as a powerful reminder of the consequences of sin and the need for spiritual renewal. It underscores the importance of living a life pleasing to God, characterized by righteousness and purity. The imagery of odor, whether pleasing or foul, reflects one's spiritual state and relationship with God.1. (a.) Weak; worn out.

2. (v. i.) To sigh.

3. (imp.) Stunk.

4. (n.) Water retained by an embankment; a pool water.

5. (n.) A dam or mound to stop water.

6. (p. p.) of Stink

An Exhortation to Mourning and Confession of Sins for Christ is ...
... For he had been dead four days and his flesh stank in the tomb; but He Whose flesh
saw no corruption was three days in the sepulchre, for He knew no evils of ...
/.../ambrose/works and letters of st ambrose/chapter vii an exhortation to.htm

Answer to Mr. W's First Objection.
... is supposed to have wrought, is that of Lazarus's resurrection; which, in truth,
was a most prodigious miracle, if his corps was putrified and stank; and if ...
/.../section 1 answer to mr.htm

Not the Soul, but the Natural Body which Died, is that which is to ...
... instance of a resurrection, the flesh lay prostrate in weakness, the flesh was almost
putrid in the dishonour of its decay, the flesh stank in corruption, and ...
/.../tertullian/on the resurrection of the flesh/chapter liii not the soul but.htm

Christ Our Lesson and Our Teacher
... they were sober truth. The colonnades of the stately temple of Ephesus
stank with proofs of their correctness. Out of that mass ...
/.../expositions of holy scripture ephesians peter/christ our lesson and our.htm

Come Ye, Let us Hear How Death Convicts the People: that Harsher ...
... 17. I wonder at the Holy Spirit, that He thus dwelt: in the midst of a People
whose savour stank, as their conversation."18. Onions ...
/.../ephraim/hymns and homilies of ephraim the syrian/hymn lxvii come ye let.htm

Fragment vi. And an Ark of Imperishable Wood was the Saviour ...
... For the man who has sinned also has this confession to make: "My wounds stank, and
were corrupt, because of my foolishness." [1856] But the Lord was without sin ...
/.../the extant works and fragments of hippolytus/fragment vi and an ark.htm

On Psalm xxii. Or xxiii. From the Commentary by the Holy Bishop ...
... For the sinner, indeed, makes this confession: "My wounds stank, and were corrupt,
because of my foolishness." [1207] But the Lord was without sin, made of ...
/.../the extant works and fragments of hippolytus/on psalm xxii or xxiii.htm

I Will Now Call to Mind My Past Foulness...
... heretofore, to be satiated in things below; and I dared to grow wild again, with
these various and shadowy loves: my beauty consumed away, and I stank in Thine ...
/.../augustine/the confessions of saint augustine/chapter i i will now.htm

The Occurrences at Alexandria.
... along, polluted always with blood and slaughter and drownings, as it became for
Pharaoh through the agency of Moses, when he changed it into blood, and it stank ...
/.../pamphilius/church history/chapter xxi the occurrences at alexandria.htm

On Repentance and Remission of Sins, and Concerning the Adversary.
... again? He that woke Lazarus who was four days dead and already stank, shall
He not, O man, much more easily raise thee who art alive? ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture ii on repentance and.htm

Stank (6 Occurrences)
... 6. (pp) of Stink. Multi-Version Concordance Stank (6 Occurrences). ... (KJV DBY). Exodus
8:14 They gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. ...
/s/stank.htm - 8k

Wearied (36 Occurrences)
... Exodus 7:18 and the fish that 'are' in the River die, and the River hath stank,
and the Egyptians have been wearied of drinking waters from the River.' (YLT). ...
/w/wearied.htm - 17k

Wroth (65 Occurrences)
... Exodus 16:20 Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left
of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth ...
/w/wroth.htm - 26k

Ishtob (2 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 10:6 And when the children of Ammon saw that they stank before David, the
children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Bethrehob and the Syrians of ...
/i/ishtob.htm - 7k

Reeked (1 Occurrence)
... (imp. & pp) of Reek. Multi-Version Concordance Reeked (1 Occurrence). Exodus 8:14
They gathered them together in heaps, and the land stank. (See NIV). ...
/r/reeked.htm - 6k

Plague (142 Occurrences)
... (1.) The river Nile was turned into blood, and the fish died, and the river stank,
so that the Egyptians loathed to drink of the river (Exodus 7:14-25). ...
/p/plague.htm - 49k

Piled (10 Occurrences)
... They ate there by the heap. (See NIV). Exodus 8:14 They gathered them together
in heaps, and the land stank. (See NAS NIV). Exodus ...
/p/piled.htm - 9k

Bethrehob (2 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 10:6 And when the children of Ammon saw that they stank before David, the
children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Bethrehob and the Syrians of ...
/b/bethrehob.htm - 8k

Standstill (1 Occurrence)

/s/standstill.htm - 6k

Manna (19 Occurrences)
... man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted" (Exodus 16:21);
a portion of the previous day's gathering bred worms and stank if kept ...
/m/manna.htm - 21k

Stank: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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