Topical Encyclopedia
The concept of rapidity, or events occurring swiftly, is present throughout the Bible, often highlighting the urgency and immediacy of God's actions or the unfolding of prophetic events. While the term "rapidly" itself may not frequently appear in the Berean Standard Bible, the idea is conveyed through various narratives and teachings.
Divine Intervention and JudgmentIn the Scriptures, God's interventions often occur with great speed, underscoring His sovereignty and the certainty of His will. For instance, the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt was marked by rapid and decisive plagues that demonstrated God's power over Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt (Exodus 7-12). The swiftness of these events emphasized the urgency of God's command to let His people go.
Similarly, the judgment upon Sodom and Gomorrah was executed with sudden destruction, as described in
Genesis 19:24-25: "Then the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. Thus He overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation of the ground." The rapidity of this judgment serves as a warning of the consequences of sin and disobedience.
Prophetic FulfillmentThe Bible also speaks of the rapid fulfillment of prophetic events, particularly concerning the end times. In the New Testament, Jesus warns of the suddenness of His return, urging believers to remain vigilant.
Matthew 24:27 states, "For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man." This imagery of lightning conveys the swift and unexpected nature of His second coming.
The Apostle Paul echoes this theme in
1 Thessalonians 5:2-3, where he writes, "For you are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, 'Peace and security,' destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape." The rapid onset of these events serves as a call for readiness and spiritual alertness.
Human Response and ActionIn response to God's rapid actions, the Bible often calls for immediate obedience and action from His people. The urgency of repentance and faith is a recurring theme, as seen in the ministry of John the Baptist and Jesus. In
Mark 1:15, Jesus proclaims, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel." The immediacy of this message underscores the necessity of a prompt response to God's call.
The early church also exemplified rapid growth and expansion, driven by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:41 records, "Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day." The swift spread of the Gospel highlights the dynamic and transformative work of God in the world.
ConclusionThe theme of rapidity in the Bible serves to emphasize the urgency of God's actions, the certainty of His promises, and the necessity for human readiness and response. Whether through divine intervention, prophetic fulfillment, or the call to repentance, the swift unfolding of events in Scripture calls believers to live with a sense of urgency and anticipation of God's work in their lives and the world.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
(
adv.) In a rapid manner.
Greek
1998. episuntrecho -- to run together again... Word Origin from epi and suntrecho Definition to run together again NASB
Word Usage
rapidly gathering (1). come running together.
...5143. trecho -- to run
... Word Origin a prim. verb Definition to run NASB Word Usage ran (7), run (7),
running (3), runs (1), rushing (1), spreadrapidly (1). run....
5032. tachion -- more swiftly
... Neuter singular of the comparative of tachus (as adverb); more swiftly, ie (in manner)
morerapidly, or (in time) more speedily -- out (run), quickly, shortly...
5030. tacheos -- quickly, hastily
... hastily, quickly, shortly. Adverb from tachus; briefly, ie (in time) speedily, or
(in manner)rapidly -- hastily, quickly, shortly, soon, suddenly....
Strong's Hebrew
1858. dar -- perhaps pearl or mother-of-pearl... Apparently from the same as drowr; properly, a pearl (from its sheen as
rapidly turned); by analogy, pearl-stone, ie Mother-of-pearl or alabaster -- X white.
...1711. dagah -- to multiply, increase
... grow. A primitive root; to moverapidly; used only as a denominative from dag; to
spawn, ie Become numerous -- grow. see HEBREW dag. 1710, 1711. dagah. 1712...
7431. remes -- creeping things, moving things
... that creeps, creeping moving thing. From ramas; a reptile or any otherrapidly moving
animal -- that creepeth, creeping (moving) thing. see HEBREW ramas....
4116. mahar -- to hasten
... 1), impetuous (1), impulsive (1), made haste (1), make haste (1), make speed (1),
prepare (1), quickly (16), quickly thwarted (1),rapidly (1), soon (2), swift...
1675. daah -- to fly swiftly, dart through the air
... 1), swoop (1), swoops down (1). fly. A primitive root; to dart, ie Flyrapidly --
fly. 1674, 1675. daah. 1676 . Strong's Numbers.
7415. rimmah -- a worm
... worm. From ramam in the sense of breading (compare ruwm); a maggot (asrapidly bred),
literally or figuratively -- worm. see HEBREW ramam. see HEBREW ruwm....
5518. ciyr -- a pot
... ciyrah {see-raw'}; or cirah (Jeremiah 52:18) {see-raw'}; from a primitive root meaning
to boil up; a pot; also a thorn (as springing uprapidly); by implication...
1865. deror -- a flowing, free run, liberty
... liberty, pure. From an unused root (meaning to moverapidly); freedom; hence,
spontaneity of outflow, and so clear -- liberty, pure. 1864, 1865. deror. 1866...
1468. guz -- to pass over or away
... bring, cut off. A primitive root (compare gazaz); properly, to shear off; but used
only in the (figuratively) sense of passingrapidly -- bring, cut off....
Library
Petilianus Said: "But to PassRapidly through These Minor Points.....
... Book II. Chapter 29. " 66. Petilianus said: "But to passrapidly through
these minor points? "66. Petilianus said: "But to...
The Shaking of the Heavens and the Earth.
... Our notions of the physical universe arerapidly altering, with the new discoveries
of science; and our notions of ethics and theology are altering asrapidly....
Introduction
... It comes late in the volume, but those who are writing it and those who are reading
it realize"as never before"that the Sunday school israpidly coming to...
Praying Saints of the Old Testaments
... A prolonged battle was on between the Israelites and their enemies, and when night
wasrapidly coming on, and it was discovered that a few more hours of...
Introductory.
... The country increasedrapidly in strength and in material prosperity; its growth
was uninterrupted; its resources continued to develop; its political...
The King.
... the cities of Judah?" (2 Samuel 2:1). He will do nothing in this crisis of his fortunes,
when all which had been so long a hope seemed to berapidly becoming a...
The Shaking of the Heavens and the Earth (Preached at the Chapel...
... Our notions of the physical universe arerapidly altering with the new discoveries
of science; and our notions of Ethics and Theology are altering asrapidly....
Chapter twenty-one
... The Auditorium attendant was shouting out the numbers of different carriages and
the carriage doors were slamming as the horses were drivenrapidly up to the...
He Shall not Keep Silent.
...Rapidly the day is nearing when the Lord Jesus Christ will be completely
rejected.... The day of vengeance israpidly approaching....
Letter xxxvi. --On Life and Death.
... Although I am always in perfect health I feel that the years, sorapidly passing,
will soon bring me to that eternal goal to which we are all hastening. True!...
Thesaurus
Rapidly (7 Occurrences)... Noah Webster's Dictionary (adv.) In a rapid manner. Multi-Version Concordance
Rapidly (7 Occurrences). Mark 9:25 When Jesus saw that
...River (189 Occurrences)
... After little more than an hour's rain, the water rose sorapidly in the previously
dry wady that I had to run for my life, and with great difficulty succeeded...
Run (147 Occurrences)
... 25. (v.) To be popularly known; to be generally received. 26. (v.) To have
growth or development; as, boys and girls run uprapidly. 27....
Shoot (51 Occurrences)
... down which timber, coal, etc., are caused to slide; also, a narrow passage, either
natural or artificial, in a stream, where the water rushesrapidly; esp., a...
Whirl (5 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (vt) To turn roundrapidly; to cause to rotate
with velocity; to make to revolve. 2. (vt) To remove...
Fly (33 Occurrences)
... bird. 2. (vi) To move through the air or before the wind; esp., to pass
or be drivenrapidly through the air by any impulse. 3. (vi...
Rapid (1 Occurrence)
... of Judea, to the house of the great God, which is built with great stones, and timber
is laid in the walls, and this work proceedethrapidly, and prospereth in...
Dash (30 Occurrences)
... 5. (vt) To form or sketchrapidly or carelessly; to executerapidly, or with careless
haste; -- with off; as, to dash off a review or sermon....
Dart (9 Occurrences)
... 6. (vt) To throw suddenly orrapidly; to send forth; to emit; to shoot; as, the
sun darts forth his beams. 7. (vi) To fly or pass swiftly, as a dart....
Dictionaries
... With the immense increase in literary material there was arapidly growing appreciation
of the advantage of alphabetical arrangement, over the chronological or...
Resources
Who was the real historical Jesus? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does the Bible say about uniformitarianism vs. catastrophism? | GotQuestions.orgWhat is Mithraism? | GotQuestions.orgRapidly: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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