FIRE. Besides the ordinary senses of the word ` fire,' which need no explanation, there are other uses of it in Scripture which require to be discrimi nated. The destructive enetgies of this element, and the torment which it inflicts, rendered it a fit symbol of—t. Whatever does damage and con sumes (Prov. xvi. 27 ; Is. ix. IS). 2. Of severe trials, vexations, and misfortunes (Zech. xii. 6 ; Cor. 13, ; I Pet. i 7). 3. Of the punish ments beyond the grave (Matt. v. 22 ; Mark ix. 44 ; Rev. xiv. ; xxi. 8). [HELL.] Fire from heaven," fire of the Lord,' usually denotes lightning in the O. T. ; but, when connected with sacrifices, the fire of the Lord ' is often to be understood as the fire of the altar, and sometimes the holocaust itself (Exod. xxix. 18 ; Lev. i. 9 ; 3 ; 5, 9 ; Num. xxviii. 6 ; Sant ii. 28 ; Is xx. 16 ; Aral. i. DO).
The uses of fire among the Hebrews were various :— 1. The domestic use for cooking, roasting, and baking [BREAD ; Foot)].
2. In winter they warmed themselves and their apartments by a fire of coals ' (Jer. xxxvi. 22, 23 ; Luke xxii. 55-6). In the rooms it would seem tbat a brazier with charcoal was usually employed, as is still the case in western Asia, although the ovens and fire-places used in baking bread might have been, and doubtless were, as now, often employed to keep rooms properly warm [BREAD ; COAL].
3. The religious use of fire was for consuming the victims on the altar of burnt-offerin,s, and in burnin, the incense on the golden altar Aence the remarlAble phrase in Is. xxxi. 9—` the Lord, whose fire is in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem.' 4. In time of war torches were often carried by the soldiers ; which explains the use of torches in the attack of Gideon upon the camp of the Alidian ites (Judg. vii. 16). This military use of torches was very general among ancient nations, and is al luded to by many of their writers (Statius, Thai. iv. 5. 7 ; Stobzeus, Serm. p. 194 ; Alichaelis, in Symbol. Liter. Brenzens. iii. 254.) 5. Burning criminals alive does not appear to have been knovvn to the Hebrews ; but as an ad ditional disgrace the bodies were in particular cases burnt after death had been inflicted (Josh. vii. 25 ; compare verse 15) ; and it is in this sense that the allusions to burning as a punishment are to be understood, except when the reference is to a foreign usage, as in Dan. iii. 22, 24, S9'.
6. In time of war towns were often destroyed by 6re. This, as a war usage, belongs to all times and nations ; but among the Hebrews there were some particular notions connected with it, as an act of strong abhorrence, or of devotement to abiding desolation. The principal instances histo rically commemorated are the destruction by fire ef Jericho (Josh. vi. 24) ; Ai (Josh. viii. 19) ; Hazor (Josh. xi. 1) ; Laish (Judg. xviii. 27) ; the towns of the I3enjamites (Judg. xx. 48) ; Ziklag, by the Amalekites (i Sam. xxx. r) ; Gezer, by Pharaoh (1 Kin,s ix. 16) ; and the temple and palaces of Jerusalem, by :Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings xxv. 9). Even the war-chariots of the Canaanites were burnt by the Israelites, probably on the principle of pre cluding the possibility of recovery by the enemy of instruments of strength for which they had them selves no use. The frequency with which towns were fired in ancient warfare is shewn by the very numerous threats by the prophets that the towns of Israel should be burned by their foreign enemies.
Some great towns, not of Israel, are particularly named ; and it would be an interesting task to trace, as far as the materials exist, the fulfilment of these prophecies in those more marked ex amples. Among the places thus threatened we find Damascus (Is. xliii. 12, 13), Gaza, Tyre, Te man (Amos i. 7, io, 12). The temples and idols of a conquered town or people were very often burned by the victors, and this was enjoined as a duty to the Israelites (Dem. vii. 5, 25 ; xii. 3 , 16 ; ls. Ili 12, 13).
There vvere some special regulations respecting the use of fire among the Israelites. The most remarkable of these was the prohibition to light 3. fire on the Sabbath (Exod. xxxv. 3). As the pri mary design of this law appears to have been to prevent the proper privileges of the Sabbath-day from being lost to any one through the care and time required in cooking victuals (Exod. xvi. 23), it is doubted whether the use of fire for warmth on the Sabbath-day was included in this interdiction. In practice, it would appear that the fire was nevet lighted or kept up for cooking on the Sabbath day, and that consequently there were no fires in the houses during the Sabbaths of the greater part of the year ; but it may be collected that, in win ter, fires for warming apartments were kept up from the previous day. Alichaelis is very much mistaken with respect to the climate of Palestine, in supposing that the inhabitants could, without much discomfort, dispense with fires for warmth during winter (Moth/Alms Recht, iv. 195). The modern Jews, -although there is no cooking in their houses, have fires on the Sabbath-day, which are attended to by a Christian servant ; or a char woman is hired to attend to the fires of several houses, which she visits repeatedly durin, the day.
Another law required the damage cl'one by a conflagration in the fields to be made good by the party through whose incaution it had been kindled (Exod. xxii. 6). This was a most useful and necessary law in a country where the warmth and drought of summer soon render the herbage and underwood highly combustible, so that a fire once kindled often spreads most extensively, and pro duces disastrous consequences (Judg. ix. 15 ; xv. 5). This law was calculated to teach caution in the use of fire to the herdsmen in the fields, who were the parties most concerned. And it is to be remembered that the herdsmen were generally sub stantial persons, and had their assistant shepherds, for whose imprudence they were made responsible. Still no inference is to be drawn from this law with regard to fires breaking out in towns, the cir cumstances being so very different.
In the sacerdotal services no fire but that of the altar of burnt-offerings could lawfully be used. That fire was originally kindled supernaturally, and was ever after kept up. From it the fire used in the censers for burning incense was always taken ; and for neglecting this and using common fire, Nadab and Abihtt were struck dead by fire from heaven ' (Lev. x. 2 ; Num. iii. 4, xxvi. 61).
Respectin, passing through the fire,' see Mo Locx ; anefor the pillar of fire,' see ExoDus.
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