Topical Encyclopedia
In biblical literature, "stubble" is often used metaphorically to represent that which is insubstantial, fleeting, or destined for destruction. The term appears in various contexts throughout the Bible, symbolizing the fragility and impermanence of human endeavors and the ultimate judgment of God.
Old Testament ReferencesStubble is frequently mentioned in the Old Testament, particularly in the context of divine judgment and the futility of opposing God's will. In
Exodus 5:12, the Israelites, under the harsh rule of Pharaoh, are forced to gather stubble for brick-making, highlighting their oppression and the burdens placed upon them: "So the people scattered all over the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw."
The prophets often use stubble as a metaphor for the fate of the wicked. In
Isaiah 5:24, the prophet declares, "Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes the stubble and as dry grass sinks in the flames, so their root will decay, and their blossom will blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the LORD of Hosts and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel." Here, stubble represents the ease with which God's judgment will consume those who reject His commandments.
Similarly, in
Malachi 4:1, the imagery of stubble is used to describe the day of the Lord: "For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the day that is coming will set them ablaze, says the LORD of Hosts, not leaving them root or branch." This passage underscores the totality of divine judgment and the complete eradication of evil.
New Testament ReferencesWhile the New Testament does not frequently use the term "stubble," the concept is echoed in the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. In
1 Corinthians 3:12-13, Paul speaks of the quality of each person's work being tested by fire: "If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or stubble, his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man's work." Here, stubble symbolizes works that lack eternal value and will not withstand the scrutiny of God's judgment.
Theological ImplicationsThe use of stubble in Scripture serves as a powerful reminder of the transient nature of earthly pursuits and the certainty of divine judgment. It calls believers to focus on building their lives on the solid foundation of Christ and His teachings, rather than on the fleeting and insubstantial things of this world. The imagery of stubble being consumed by fire is a sobering illustration of the fate awaiting those who reject God's truth and a call to repentance and faithfulness.
In summary, stubble in the Bible is a vivid symbol of impermanence and judgment, urging believers to live lives of substance and eternal significance in accordance with God's will.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
(
n.) The stumps of wheat, rye, barley, oats, or buckwheat, left in the ground; the part of the stalk left by the scythe or sickle.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
STRAW; STUBBLEstro, stub'-'-l: The cognates of Hebrew tebhen, "straw" and qash, "stubble," have been retained in the modern Arabic terms tibn and qashsh. Tibn applies to the straw which has been cut up into short pieces and more or less split by the threshing operations. It is commonly used throughout the East as a coarse fodder or roughage for domestic herbivorous animals (compareGenesis 24:25, 32Judges 19:191 Kings 4:28;Isaiah 11:7;Isaiah 65:25). Hay and similar cured crops are practically unknown. Barley, peas and other grain, when fed to animals, are mixed with the tibn. The animals will frequently reject the tibn unless there is grain in it. They often nose about the tibn until the grain settles to the bottom so that they can eat the latter without the straw. Straw left in the manger is thrown out in the stall to form part of the bedding (compareIsaiah 25:10).
Tibn is mixed with clay for plastering walls or for making sun-dried bricks. It is also mixed with lime and sand for plastering. The children of Israel had their task of brickmaking made more arduous by being required to gather stubble and prepare it by chopping it up instead of being given the already prepared straw of the threshing-floors (Exodus 5:7).
Qashsh (literally, "dried up") refers to the stalks left standing in the wheat fields or to any dried-up stalks or stems such as are gathered for burning. Camels and other flocks sometimes supplement their regular meals by grazing on the stubble, otherwise it has no use. In the Bible stubble is used to typify worthless inflammable material (Exodus 15:7Job 13:25;Job 41:28, 29Psalm 83:13Isaiah 5:24, etc.;1 Corinthians 3:12, kalame).
mathben, is translated "straw" inIsaiah 25:10.
James A. Patch
STUBBLE
stub'-'-l (qash (Exodus 5:12, etc.); kalame (The Wisdom of Solomon 3:7;1 Corinthians 3:12)): These Hebrew and Greek forms are used of the stalks of wheat, etc., left knee-high in the field by the reapers. tebhen (Job 21:18), is a mixture of chopped straw and chaff produced in threshing, which is winnowed out by the fan (compareJeremiah 23:28Isaiah 5:24Matthew 3:12). When tebhen was withheld from them the Israelites had to utilize qash for the manufacture of their bricks (Exodus 5:12).
Greek
2562. kalame --stubble...stubble. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: kalame Phonetic Spelling:
(kal-am'-ay) Short Definition:
stubble Definition:
stubble, straw, the stalk.
...Strong's Hebrew
7179. qash --stubble, chaff... 7178, 7179. qash. 7180 .
stubble, chaff. Transliteration: qash Phonetic
Spelling: (kash) Short Definition:
stubble. Word Origin
...7197. qashash -- to gatherstubble
... 7196, 7197. qashash. 7197a . to gatherstubble. Transliteration: qashash Phonetic
Spelling: (kaw-shash') Short Definition:stubble. gather selves together...
7197a. qashash -- to gatherstubble
... 7197, 7197a. qashash. 7197b . to gatherstubble. Transliteration: qashash
Short Definition: gathering. Word Origin denominative...
8402. Tibni -- a rival of Omri
... chaff, straw,stubble. From teben; strawy; Tibni, an Israelite -- Tibni. see
HEBREW teben. 8401, 8402. Tibni. 8403 . Strong's Numbers.
8401. teben -- straw
... Probably from banah; properly, material, ie (specifically) refuse haum or stalks
of grain (as chopped in threshing and used for fodder) -- chaff, straw,stubble...
Library
Whether Venial Sins are Suitably Designated as "Wood, Hay, and...
... OF VENIAL SIN IN ITSELF (SIX ARTICLES) Whether venial sins are suitably
designated as "wood, hay, andstubble"? Objection 1: It...
As God Made Man by a Word
... 7. And just as, whereasstubble is naturally destructible by fire, supposing (firstly)
a man keeps fire away from thestubble, though it is not burned, yet the...
The True Sense of the Passage (I Cor. Iii. 11-15) About those who...
... be false, that obscure saying about those who build upon the foundation, Christ,
not gold, silver, and precious stones, but wood, hay, andstubble (for it is...
But as it is in Mockery that Celsus Says we Speak of "God Coming...
... And we assert that they are wickedness, and the works which result from it, and
which, being figuratively called "wood, hay,stubble," [3731] God consumes as a...
Faith and Works
... one obscure saying about those who build on "the foundation, which is Christ, not
gold, silver, and precious stones, but wood, hay, andstubble" [148] "for...
What it is to have Christ for a Foundation, and who they are to...
... and they have not fallen away from union with Him, no matter how depraved a life
they have built on this foundation, as wood, hay,stubble; and accordingly the...
The Examination and Rewarding of the Believer's Works.
... Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay,
stubble; every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day will declare...
Refutation of the Gentiles
...Stubble is a substance naturally destructible by fire; and it still remainsstubble,
fearing the menace of fire which has the natural property of consuming it...
'Stout Words,' and their Confutation
... IV.1. For, behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud,
yea, and all that do wickedly, shall bestubble: and the day that cometh shall...
On Earthly Things
... Thestubble is the ones who are dry and empty of faith; in the apostle: bind the
haystubble, and in the prophet: today I am made as if I were bound together...
Thesaurus
Stubble (18 Occurrences)... STRAW;
STUBBLE. stro, stub'-'-l: The cognates of Hebrew tebhen, "straw" and qash,
"
stubble," have been retained in the modern Arabic terms tibn and qashsh.
...Straw (21 Occurrences)
... STRAW;STUBBLE. stro, stub'-'-l: The cognates of Hebrew tebhen, "straw" and qash,
"stubble," have been retained in the modern Arabic terms tibn and qashsh....
Chaff (24 Occurrences)
... You send forth your wrath. It consumes them asstubble. (See NAS). Job 13:25 Will
you harass a driven leaf? Will you pursue the drystubble? (See NAS RSV NIV)....
Consumes (21 Occurrences)
... It consumes them asstubble. (WEB NAS RSV).... (See NIV). Isaiah 33:11 Ye conceive chaff,
ye shall bring forthstubble; your breath is a fire that shall devour you....
Devoureth (27 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 5:24 Therefore as the fire devoureth thestubble, and the flame consumeth
the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up...
Entangle (7 Occurrences)
... the King James Version "while they be folden together as thorns"), damp, closely
packed and intertwined, "they are consumed utterly as drystubble" (the King...
Consumeth (37 Occurrences)
... 15:7 And in the greatness of thine excellency thou overthrowest them that rise up
against thee: Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them asstubble....
Devours (26 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 5:24 Therefore as the tongue of fire devours thestubble, and as the dry
grass sinks down in the flame, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their...
Hay (5 Occurrences)
... 1 Corinthians 3:12 But if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, costly
stones, wood, hay, orstubble; (WEB KJV WEY ASV WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)....
Burns (34 Occurrences)
... Isaiah 47:14 Behold, they shall be asstubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall
not deliver themselves from the power of the flame; it shall not be a coal...
Resources
What does the Bible say about when God will judge us? | GotQuestions.orgWhat is Judgment Day? | GotQuestions.orgWhat are all the different judgments in the Bible? | GotQuestions.orgStubble: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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