Dew: Figurative
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In the Bible, dew is often used figuratively to convey spiritual truths and divine blessings. Its gentle and refreshing nature serves as a powerful symbol in various scriptural contexts.

1. Symbol of Divine Blessing and Favor: Dew is frequently associated with God's blessing and favor. In Hosea 14:5, God promises, "I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like the lily and take root like the cedars of Lebanon." Here, dew represents the life-giving and sustaining power of God's presence, which causes spiritual growth and flourishing.

2. Representation of God's Word and Teaching: Dew is also used to symbolize the refreshing and nourishing quality of God's Word. In Deuteronomy 32:2, Moses declares, "Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants." This imagery highlights the gentle yet profound impact of divine instruction on the hearts of believers.

3. Metaphor for Transience and Fleeting Nature: Dew can also illustrate the transient nature of human life and earthly pursuits. In Hosea 6:4, God laments, "Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears." This comparison underscores the fleeting and unreliable nature of Israel's devotion, contrasting it with the enduring faithfulness God desires.

4. Symbol of Unity and Harmony: Dew is used to depict unity and harmony among God's people. Psalm 133:3 states, "It is like the dew of Hermon falling on the mountains of Zion. For there the LORD has bestowed the blessing of life forevermore." The dew of Hermon, known for its abundance, symbolizes the refreshing and life-giving unity that God bestows upon His people.

5. Image of Resurrection and Renewal: Dew is sometimes seen as a metaphor for resurrection and renewal. Isaiah 26:19 proclaims, "Your dead will live; their bodies will rise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust! For your dew is like the dew of the morning, and the earth will bring forth her dead." Here, dew signifies the hope of resurrection and the renewal of life through God's power.

In these figurative uses, dew serves as a multifaceted symbol, illustrating various aspects of God's interaction with His creation and His people. Through its imagery, Scripture communicates themes of blessing, instruction, transience, unity, and renewal, inviting believers to reflect on the deeper spiritual realities it represents.
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Psalm 110:3
Your people shall be willing in the day of your power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: you have the dew of your youth.
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Isaiah 26:19
Your dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, you that dwell in dust: for your dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.
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Hosea 6:4
O Ephraim, what shall I do to you? O Judah, what shall I do to you? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goes away.
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Hosea 13:3
Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud and as the early dew that passes away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney.
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Hosea 14:5
I will be as the dew to Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.
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Library

Other Passages Out of the Prophets Applied to the Resurrection of ...
... fairly enough seem to have consoled their figurative despair with a figurative promise. ...
shall arise, and come forth from their graves; for the dew which cometh ...
/.../on the resurrection of the flesh/chapter xxxi other passages out of.htm

Christ's Millennial and Heavenly Glory in Company with his Saints.
... it would be tedious to state at length [3440] how the figurative [3441] interpretation
is ... in blessing his son Jacob, says, "God give thee of the dew of heaven ...
/.../the five books against marcion/chapter xxv christs millennial and heavenly.htm

Utterances of the Prophet Isaiah Regarding the Resurrection of the ...
... to them; "All who are in the earth shall rejoice: for the dew which is ... For, in the
manner of prophecy, figurative and literal expressions are mingled, so that ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 21 utterances of the prophet.htm

The Quotation in Matt. Ii. 6.
... But the figurative element in the representation goes still farther. ... 6 (7), (this
is the constant signification of the [Pg 521] image of the dew, compare Psalm ...
/.../hengstenberg/christology of the old testament/the quotation in matt ii.htm

Natural Science and Theological Science.
... made in God's image,"surveying this world, yet fresh with the dew of its ... the method
of speech is not such as to challenge a figurative interpretation, is not ...
/.../burgon/inspiration and interpretation/sermon ii natural science and.htm

Hymns, Festival and Occasional.
... with the more modern and less figurative". ... For the smile of the sunshine, again and
again, For the dew on the garden, the showers on the plain, For the year ...
/.../brown/the story of the hymns and tunes/chapter xiii hymns festival and.htm

The Book of Enoch
... The first similitude or figurative address (chaps ... of sinners from the abodes of the
just, the mysteries of thunder and lightning, winds, clouds, dew, hail, mist ...
//christianbookshelf.org/deane/pseudepigrapha/the book of enoch.htm

On the Words, the Only-Begotten Son of God, Begotten of the Father ...
... For they were figurative Christs, but He is the true Christ; not having risen by ...
[1259] Psalm 110:3. "From the womb of the morning thou hast the dew of thy ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture xi on the words.htm

Sin is Spiritual Slavery
... The term "spiritual" is too often taken to mean unreal, fanciful, figurative. ... and
impulses, which disappear like the morning cloud and the early dew, are most ...
/.../shedd/sermons to the natural man/sin is spiritual slavery.htm

And ii.
... have done much better, had they followed the Chaldee, in whom the correct view is
found; only that he, giving up the figurative representation, substitutes the ...
/.../hengstenberg/christology of the old testament/chap i and ii.htm

Resources
Summary of the Book of 1 Kings - Bible Survey | GotQuestions.org

Why did Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh want to live on the east of the Jordan? | GotQuestions.org

What are some of the symbols of the Holy Spirit in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

Dew: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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Subtopics

Dew

Dew in the Night

Dew: A Merciful Providence

Dew: Absence of

Dew: Called the Dew of Heaven

Dew: Figurative

Dew: Forms Imperceptibly

Dew: from the Clouds

Dew: Miraculous Profusion and Absence of

Related Terms

Fleece (6 Occurrences)

Drenched (11 Occurrences)

Frost (9 Occurrences)

Wet (25 Occurrences)

Drought (20 Occurrences)

Roots (31 Occurrences)

Drops (27 Occurrences)

Wool (34 Occurrences)

Mist (17 Occurrences)

Dropping (33 Occurrences)

Bathed (45 Occurrences)

Manna (19 Occurrences)

Drop (32 Occurrences)

Hermon (16 Occurrences)

Layer (4 Occurrences)

Willeth (14 Occurrences)

Fatness (17 Occurrences)

Ruleth (21 Occurrences)

Rissah (2 Occurrences)

Richness (4 Occurrences)

Earth's (9 Occurrences)

Disappears (4 Occurrences)

Dwellers (12 Occurrences)

Distil (5 Occurrences)

Descendeth (3 Occurrences)

Periods (8 Occurrences)

Bestows (7 Occurrences)

Corpses (16 Occurrences)

Causest (25 Occurrences)

Awaking (24 Occurrences)

Abital (2 Occurrences)

Shades (29 Occurrences)

Stump (7 Occurrences)

Showers (20 Occurrences)

Grass (92 Occurrences)

Descending (23 Occurrences)

Hoarfrost (3 Occurrences)

Realm (23 Occurrences)

Hamutal (3 Occurrences)

Quail (5 Occurrences)

Mankind (80 Occurrences)

Fat (150 Occurrences)

Dawn (70 Occurrences)

Wake (34 Occurrences)

Awake (83 Occurrences)

Dry (217 Occurrences)

Rain (118 Occurrences)

Diadem (9 Occurrences)

Crops (48 Occurrences)

Rephaim (32 Occurrences)

Tender (66 Occurrences)

Choice (113 Occurrences)

Floor (69 Occurrences)

Threshing-floor (36 Occurrences)

Covered (325 Occurrences)

Falls (79 Occurrences)

Triumph (52 Occurrences)

Descended (64 Occurrences)

Herbs (24 Occurrences)

Herb (46 Occurrences)

Corn (107 Occurrences)

Plants (70 Occurrences)

Lying (203 Occurrences)

Places (610 Occurrences)

Tents (284 Occurrences)

Threshing (57 Occurrences)

Kingdoms (65 Occurrences)

Root (54 Occurrences)

Shout (114 Occurrences)

Yield (78 Occurrences)

Ahab (85 Occurrences)

Quails (4 Occurrences)

Vegetation (18 Occurrences)

Volunteer (2 Occurrences)

Vilely (2 Occurrences)

Knocks (5 Occurrences)

Knocketh (4 Occurrences)

Knocking (9 Occurrences)

Dew: Called the Dew of Heaven
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