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The New Testament uses a number of athletic metaphors in discussing Christianity, especially in the Pauline epistles and the Epistle to the Hebrews.Such metaphors also appear in the writings of contemporary philosophers, such as Epictetus and Philo, [2] drawing on the tradition of the Olympic Games, [3] and this may have influenced New Testament use of the imagery.
The image of a soldier is also used in 2 Timothy 2:3–4 [4] as a metaphor for courage, loyalty and dedication; [5] this is followed by the metaphor of an athlete, emphasising hard work. In 1 Corinthians 9:7, [ 6 ] this image is used in a discussion of church workers receiving payment, with a metaphorical reference to a soldier's rations and ...
Personification, the attribution of human form and characteristics to abstract concepts such as nations, emotions and natural forces like seasons and the weather, is a literary device found in many ancient texts, including the Hebrew Bible and Christian New Testament. Personification is often part of allegory, parable and metaphor in the Bible. [1]
Wolves were regarded as greedy and malevolent predators who were a threat to the innocent, and such wolf metaphors are also found in several other parts of the Bible. Schweizer feels this metaphor may be linked to the traditional description of the prophets being clad in skins. [4] It is an open question who, if anyone, this verse is directed ...
A snake is the form of the tempter in Genesis, and other negative snake metaphors appear in the New Testament. This metaphor is thus somewhat stronger than the previous one. In Luke there is a third metaphor of a scorpion and an egg, which does not continue the pattern of similar appearances. This metaphor does not appear in Matthew.
A number of Bible scholars consider the term Worm ' to be a purely symbolic representation of the bitterness that will fill the earth during troubled times, noting that the plant for which Wormwood is named, Artemisia absinthium, or Mugwort, Artemisia vulgaris, is a known biblical metaphor for things that are unpalatably bitter. [13] [14] [15] [16]
The image of the grain of wheat dying in the earth in order to grow and bear a harvest can be seen also as a metaphor of Jesus' own death and burial in the tomb and his resurrection. [2] The Rev. William D. Oldland in his sermon "Unless a Grain of Wheat Falls into the Earth and Dies" said: This parable is used by Jesus to teach them three things.
As a biblical reference, the metaphor may refer to physical armour worn by God in metaphorical battles, or it may refer to vigilant righteousness in general as bestowed by the grace of God (Romans 13:12, King James Version): "The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the ...