Topical Bible: The Wicked are Compared to Fiery Oven

Bible > Topical > The Wicked are Compared to Fiery Oven

◄ The Wicked are Compared to Fiery Oven ►

Jump to: Torrey's • Library • Subtopics • Terms

Topical Encyclopedia

In biblical literature, the imagery of a fiery oven is employed to depict the fate and judgment of the wicked. This metaphor is rich in symbolism, conveying the intensity and severity of divine retribution against those who oppose God and His righteous ways.

Psalm 21:9 :
The psalmist vividly describes the fate of the wicked in Psalm 21:9, stating, "You will place them in a fiery furnace at the time of Your appearing. In His wrath the LORD will engulf them, and the fire will consume them." This verse portrays the wicked as being subjected to the consuming fire of God's judgment, emphasizing the totality and inescapability of divine justice.

Malachi 4:1 :
The prophet Malachi echoes this imagery in Malachi 4:1: "For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the coming day will set them ablaze, says the LORD of Hosts, not leaving them root or branch." Here, the fiery furnace symbolizes the day of the Lord's judgment, where the wicked are likened to stubble consumed by fire, leaving nothing behind. This passage underscores the complete eradication of evil and the purifying nature of God's judgment.

Matthew 13:41-42 :
In the New Testament, Jesus uses similar imagery in His parables. In Matthew 13:41-42, He explains, "The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of His kingdom every cause of sin and all who practice lawlessness. And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." This passage highlights the final separation of the righteous from the wicked, with the latter being cast into a fiery furnace, symbolizing eternal punishment and suffering.

Symbolism and Theological Implications:
The comparison of the wicked to a fiery oven serves multiple theological purposes. It illustrates the holiness and justice of God, who cannot tolerate sin and will ultimately judge all unrighteousness. The imagery of fire conveys both the purifying and destructive aspects of God's judgment. For the righteous, it is a reminder of God's protection and deliverance from evil, while for the wicked, it is a warning of the dire consequences of living in opposition to God's will.

Historical and Cultural Context:
In ancient Near Eastern culture, ovens were commonly used for baking and refining, reaching extremely high temperatures. The biblical authors draw on this familiar imagery to communicate the intensity of God's judgment. The fiery oven metaphor would have resonated with the original audience, who understood the consuming power of fire and its ability to purify and destroy.

Conclusion:
The biblical comparison of the wicked to a fiery oven serves as a powerful reminder of the seriousness of sin and the certainty of divine judgment. It calls believers to live in righteousness and reverence before God, while warning the wicked of the impending consequences of their actions.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Psalm 21:9
You shall make them as a fiery oven in the time of your anger: the LORD shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Hosea 7:4
They are all adulterers, as an oven heated by the baker, who ceases from raising after he has kneaded the dough, until it be leavened.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Appendix xii. The Baptism of Proselytes
... 2. On the other hand, when the wicked leave the ... on the subject of Angels represents,
as compared with that ... how to have Abraham cast into the fiery oven, at the ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/appendix xii the baptism of.htm

Who Can Tell?
... if thou hadst come forth in thy fiery chariot, if thou ... days I add is a long lease
compared with that ... of God which shall certainly come upon the wicked, but we ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 5 1859/who can tell.htm

God's Providence
... come from a land of dreams; and fiery visions that ... of the minor parts of God's works
compared with the ... We see the wicked prosper; they flourish, and great is ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 54 1908/gods providence.htm

One Thing is Needful;
... 10. Unto a dreadful burning lake, All on a fiery flame, Hell is compared, for to ...
Incensed by the sin Of those who do reject his path, And wicked ways walk ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/one thing is needful.htm

Letter cxxx. To Demetrias.
... present time are not worthy to be compared with the ... cooled the flames of the blazing
fiery furnace, until ... This godless and wicked teaching was formerly ripe in ...
/.../jerome/the principal works of st jerome/letter cxxx to demetrias.htm

The Alarum
... nothing else will bestir you, remember the fiery darts of ... to be of so dwarfish a
stature compared with these ... this text: "God is angry with the wicked every day ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 17 1871/the alarum.htm

Concerning the Unity of God . On the Article, I Believe in one God ...
... And even this is still little compared with the impieties ... Apostles, but of one of
the three wicked disciples of ... This story of Simon Magus and his fiery car' is ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture vi concerning the unity.htm

The Pharisee and the Publican
... proved it too, that as he was no wicked man with ... all), if their notions and
conversations be compared together ... sinners in the day that shall burn like an oven? ...
/.../bunyan/the pharisee and publican/the pharisee and the publican.htm

A Discourse Upon the Pharisee and the Publican
... proved it too, that, as he was no wicked man with ... all, if their notions and
conversations be compared together ... sinners in the day that shall burn like an oven? ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a discourse upon the pharisee.htm

A Defence of the Doctrine of Justification, by Faith in Jesus ...
... error, and of antichrist; because the act in so doing, is most wicked; yea, and ... man,
even in his first and best estate; but earthly, when compared with Christ ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a defence of the doctrine.htm