Topical Encyclopedia
In the Bible, the concept of "cracks" is not directly mentioned as a specific term, but the imagery and symbolism associated with cracks can be found throughout Scripture. Cracks often symbolize weakness, vulnerability, and the potential for destruction or division. They can also represent the need for repair and restoration, both physically and spiritually.
Symbolism of Cracks1.
Weakness and Vulnerability: Cracks in structures, such as walls or foundations, often symbolize a lack of strength and stability. In the spiritual sense, this can be seen as a metaphor for the weaknesses in human character or faith. For example, in
Isaiah 30:13 , the prophet warns of the consequences of rebellion against God: "this iniquity will be to you like a breach ready to fall, a bulge in a high wall, whose collapse comes suddenly—in an instant."
2.
Judgment and Destruction: Cracks can also symbolize impending judgment or destruction. In
Nahum 3:12 , the prophet Nahum describes the vulnerability of Nineveh: "All your fortresses are fig trees with the first ripe figs; when shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater." This imagery suggests that the city's defenses are as fragile as a wall with cracks, ready to give way under pressure.
3.
Division and Separation: Cracks can represent division and separation, whether in relationships, communities, or nations. In
1 Kings 11:11-13 , God speaks to Solomon about the division of the kingdom due to his disobedience: "Since you have not kept My covenant and statutes, which I commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant." The tearing of the kingdom can be likened to a crack that divides and separates.
Repair and Restoration1.
Physical Restoration: The Bible often speaks of the need to repair physical structures, which can be seen as a metaphor for spiritual restoration. In
Nehemiah 4:7-9 , Nehemiah leads the people in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, addressing the breaches and cracks: "But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the breaches were being closed, they were furious."
2.
Spiritual Restoration: Just as physical cracks need repair, spiritual cracks require healing and restoration.
Psalm 51:17 speaks to the brokenness of the human spirit and the need for God's restoration: "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." Here, the brokenness is akin to cracks in the heart that God desires to mend.
3.
Unity and Wholeness: The repair of cracks can also symbolize the restoration of unity and wholeness.
Ephesians 4:3 encourages believers to "make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." This unity can be seen as the mending of cracks within the body of Christ, bringing believers together in harmony.
ConclusionWhile the Bible does not explicitly mention "cracks," the imagery associated with them is rich with meaning. Cracks symbolize weakness, vulnerability, and the need for repair, both physically and spiritually. Through God's grace and guidance, believers are called to address these cracks, seeking restoration and unity in their lives and communities.
Library
The Sins of the Elect and of the Penitent are of Many Kinds, but...
... And others returned them half-withered, and these stood apart; and others returned
their branches half-withered and havingcracks in them, and these stood apart...
Jesus Heals a Leper and Creates Much Excitement.
... like, scales were daily rubbed off, the flesh appeared quick or raw underneath."
In addition to the scaly symptoms, the skin becomes hard andcracks open, and...
The Great Mysteries in the Building of the Militant and Triumphant...
... He next examined those that hadcracks; and he hewed many of these, and commanded
them to be carried by the virgins to the building: and they were placed on...
The Hold Fast
... Look at many of the wretched houses in the streets around us, they are the disgrace
of the city; you will see settlements andcracks everywhere because of bad...
Life Amongst the Upper Ten Thousand
... All these groups were scattered by the yells of our outrider and thecracks of our
carter's whip, and the sellers of cooked food gathered their piles of little...
'As I have Loved'
... gulfs of separation, like the crevasses in a glacier, by the side of which our racial
animosities and class differences are merely superficialcracks on the...
Quartus a Brother
... The world then was like some great field of cooled lava on the slopes of a volcano,
all broken up by a labyrinth of clefts andcracks, at the bottom of which...
That There are Many Things which Reason Cannot Account For, and...
... Then there are the apples of Sodom which grow indeed to an appearance of ripeness,
but, when you touch them with hand or tooth, the pealcracks, and they...
The Christ Crowned, the Fact
... It is as though a few whiffs of wholesome life-giving air have breathed through
thecracks and crevices of the breastworks and fortifications of evil in which...
A Glance at the Disciples of Jesus on Holy Saturday.
... The effects of the earthquake were still visible, as little had been done towards
repairing the numerous rents andcracks in the floor, and in the walls....
Thesaurus
Cracks (9 Occurrences)... Multi-Version Concordance
Cracks (9 Occurrences).
... (BBE). Job 24:8 They are wet with
the rain of the mountains, and get into the
cracks of the rock for cover.
...Holes (36 Occurrences)
... 1 Samuel 13:6 When the men of Israel saw the danger they were in, (for the people
were troubled,) they took cover incracks in the hillsides and in the woods...
Overhanging (6 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 2:21 To take cover in thecracks of the rocks, and in the holes of the hills,
for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out...
Tremble (92 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 2:19 And men will go intocracks of the rocks, and into holes of the earth,
for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out...
Splendor (87 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 2:19 And men will go intocracks of the rocks, and into holes of the earth,
for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out...
Craft (14 Occurrences)
Dread (69 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 2:19 And men will go intocracks of the rocks, and into holes of the earth,
for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out...
Shaking (162 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 2:19 And men will go intocracks of the rocks, and into holes of the earth,
for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out...
Boats (11 Occurrences)
... She is manned with oarsmen of Sidon and Arvad, pilots of the wise men of Tyre, calkers
from Gebal to stop up thecracks and seams in her timbers, mariners and...
Ships (46 Occurrences)
... She is manned with oarsmen of Sidon and Arvad, pilots of the wise men of Tyre, calkers
from Gebal to stop up thecracks and seams in her timbers, mariners and...
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