Topical Bible: Runners

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In the biblical context, the concept of "runners" is often associated with messengers, athletes, and those who are swift in carrying out tasks or delivering messages. The imagery of running is used metaphorically throughout Scripture to convey spiritual truths, perseverance, and the urgency of God's message.

Messengers and Heralds

In the Old Testament, runners were often employed as messengers to convey important news. For example, in 2 Samuel 18:19-33, Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, and a Cushite are depicted as runners who bring news to King David about the outcome of the battle against Absalom. The role of these runners was crucial in delivering timely information, and their swiftness was a valued trait.

Athletic Imagery

The Apostle Paul frequently uses the metaphor of running to describe the Christian life. In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Paul writes, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way as to take the prize." Here, Paul encourages believers to live with discipline and purpose, likening the Christian journey to a race where the goal is to obtain an imperishable crown.

Similarly, in Hebrews 12:1, believers are exhorted to "run with endurance the race set out for us," emphasizing the need for perseverance and focus on Jesus, the "author and perfecter of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2).

Spiritual Readiness and Urgency

The imagery of running also conveys the urgency and readiness required in the spiritual life. In Habakkuk 2:2, the LORD instructs the prophet to "write down the vision and inscribe it clearly on tablets, so that a herald may run with it." This passage underscores the importance of making God's message clear and accessible, so it can be swiftly communicated to others.

Divine Strength and Renewal

Isaiah 40:31 provides a powerful image of divine strength for those who wait on the LORD: "But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint." This verse reassures believers that God provides the strength needed to endure life's challenges, enabling them to run the race of faith without faltering.

Moral and Ethical Implications

The concept of running is also used to describe moral and ethical behavior. Proverbs 6:18 lists "feet that run swiftly to evil" as one of the things the LORD hates, highlighting the importance of directing one's energy and actions toward righteousness rather than wickedness.

In summary, the biblical portrayal of runners encompasses a range of meanings, from literal messengers to metaphorical representations of spiritual perseverance and urgency. The imagery serves as a powerful reminder of the discipline, readiness, and divine strength required in the Christian life.

Greek

1408. dromos -- a course, race
... 1408 (related to , "run" and 5143 , "to race") -- properly, a (track), where
foot-runners competed in the ancient Greek games. Word ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1408.htm - 6k

5143. trecho -- to run
... 5143 () was used of "runners in a race, of swiftness or of effort to attain
an end (so Herodotus, Eur., etc.)" (). Word Origin a prim. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5143.htm - 8k

Strong's Hebrew

7323. ruts -- to run
... and fro (1), guard (6), guards (7), guards' (2), hurriedly brought (1), outran*
(1), quickly stretch (1), ran (25), run (34), runner (1), runners (1), running ...
/hebrew/7323.htm - 6k

Library

Waiting on the Lord
... The third stood looking anxiously at the king and at the two runners, murmuring
to himself, "I can make it yet, I can make it yet." The king gazed at the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/naylor/heart talks/talk twenty-two waiting on the.htm

Called to Reach a Higher Standard
... "Every man that striveth for the mastery," he declared, "is temperate in all things."
The runners put aside every indulgence that would tend to weaken the ...
/.../white/the acts of the apostles/lesson 30 called to reach.htm

First Evangelistic Efforts
... He took us to an inner apartment, a more private room, but was followed by
a large number of writers, runners, and other semi-officials. ...
/.../taylor/a retrospect/chapter x first evangelistic efforts.htm

The Procession of Amen
... path between them. Presently, scantily-clad runners were distinguished coming
in a slow trot between the multitudes. The lane widened ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the yoke/chapter iv the procession of.htm

Picture of a Pauline Church
... If it is near the time of the annual games, there are groups of boxers, runners,
charioteers and wrestlers, surrounded by their admirers and discussing their ...
/.../stalker/the life of st paul/chapter viii picture of a.htm

The Attack on the Scriptures
... train their young people! The lads of Greece are the strongest wrestlers
and the swiftest runners in the world!'. All this was quite ...
/.../duff/the bible in its making/chapter vi the attack on.htm

A Warning to Believers
... THERE is an allusion here to the prize which was offered to the runners in the Olympic
games, and at the outset it is well for us to remark how very frequently ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 61 1915/a warning to believers.htm

Works by the Same Author.
... Crown 8vo. Price 7s.6d. III. THE RACE FOR RICHES, AND SOME OF THE PITS INTO WHICH
THE RUNNERS FALL. Foolscap 8vo. Price 1s.6d. T. NELSON AND SONS. ...
/.../arnot/the parables of our lord/works by the same author.htm

The Big Road
... and heavily curtained, in which the wives of an official are transported to their
new abode; pedestrians, clad in sky-blue cotton, "yamen runners" yelling as ...
/.../cable/the fulfilment of a dream of pastor hsis/chapter ii the big road.htm

The Coming of the Pharaoh
... On the first day of February, runners, dusty, breathless and excited, passed the
sentries of the Memphian palace of Meneptah with the news that the Pharaoh was ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the yoke/chapter xiii the coming of.htm

Thesaurus

Runners (21 Occurrences)
...Runners (21 Occurrences). 1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that in the
foot-race the runners all run, but that only one gets the prize? ...
/r/runners.htm - 13k

Executioners (32 Occurrences)
... 2 Kings 11:4 And in the seventh year hath Jehoiada sent and taketh the heads of
the hundreds, of the executioners and of the runners, and bringeth them in unto ...
/e/executioners.htm - 16k

Post (26 Occurrences)
... "runners"). ... POST. post (ruts, "to run," ratsim, "runners"): The "runners" formed
the royal guard (1 Samuel 22:17 1 Kings 14:27 2 Kings 11:4, 13; see GUARD). ...
/p/post.htm - 19k

Finishing (17 Occurrences)
... 2 Kings 10:25 And it cometh to pass at his finishing to make the burnt-offering,
that Jehu saith to the runners, and to the captains, 'Go in, smite them, let ...
/f/finishing.htm - 12k

Dromedary (3 Occurrences)
... 8:10 And he writeth in the name of the king Ahasuerus, and sealeth with the signet
of the king, and sendeth letters by the hand of the runners with horses ...
/d/dromedary.htm - 8k

Sledge (3 Occurrences)
... 1. (n.) A strong vehicle with low runners or low wheels; or one without wheels or
runners, made of plank slightly turned up at one end, used for transporting ...
/s/sledge.htm - 7k

Guard (185 Occurrences)
... were known as "the footmen" (1 Samuel 22:17 the King James Version, the American
Revised Version, margin and the Revised Version, margin "runners") who acted ...
/g/guard.htm - 55k

Runner (5 Occurrences)

/r/runner.htm - 9k

Sitteth (74 Occurrences)
... 2 Kings 11:19 and taketh the heads of the hundreds, and the executioners, and the
runners, and all the people of the land, and they bring down the king from ...
/s/sitteth.htm - 29k

Philistines (224 Occurrences)
... Joash the temple-guards are called kari (2 Kings 11:4, 19, Carites), which the
Septuagint treats as either singular or plural, and ratsim or "runners" (see 1 ...
/p/philistines.htm - 75k

Resources

What did Paul mean when he said he had finished the race? | GotQuestions.org

What is the meaning of Hebrews 12:2? | GotQuestions.org

In what ways is the Christian life like the Olympics? | GotQuestions.org

Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus

Concordance

Runners (21 Occurrences)

1 Corinthians 9:24
Do you not know that in the foot-race the runners all run, but that only one gets the prize? You must run like him, in order to win with certainty.
(WEY RSV NIV)

1 Samuel 11:7
And he took two oxen and, cutting them up, sent them through all the land of Israel by the hand of runners, saying, If any man does not come out after Saul and Samuel, this will be done to his oxen. And the fear of the Lord came on the people and they came out like one man.
(BBE)

1 Samuel 21:7
Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, kept back before the Lord; his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the strongest of Saul's runners.
(BBE)

2 Samuel 15:1
Now after this, Absalom got for himself a carriage and horses, and fifty runners to go before him.
(BBE NAS)

1 Kings 1:5
Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, lifting himself up in pride, said, I will become king; and he made ready his carriages of war and his horsemen, with fifty runners to go before him.
(BBE)

1 Kings 14:27
And king Rehoboam maketh in their stead shields of brass, and hath made 'them' a charge on the hand of the heads of the runners, those keeping the opening of the house of the king,
(YLT)

1 Kings 14:28
and it cometh to pass, from the going in of the king to the house of Jehovah, the runners bear them, and have brought them back unto the chamber of the runners.
(YLT)

2 Kings 10:25
And it cometh to pass at his finishing to make the burnt-offering, that Jehu saith to the runners, and to the captains, 'Go in, smite them, let none come out;' and they smite them by the mouth of the sword, and the runners and the captains cast 'them' out; and they go unto the city, to the house of Baal,
(YLT)

2 Kings 11:4
And in the seventh year hath Jehoiada sent and taketh the heads of the hundreds, of the executioners and of the runners, and bringeth them in unto him, to the house of Jehovah, and maketh with them a covenant, and causeth them to swear in the house of Jehovah, and sheweth them the son of the king,
(YLT)

2 Kings 11:6
and the third 'is' at the gate of Sur, and the third at the gate behind the runners, and ye have kept the charge of the house pulled down;
(YLT)

2 Kings 11:11
And the runners stand, each with his weapons in his hand, from the right shoulder of the house unto the left shoulder of the house, by the altar and by the house, by the king round about;
(YLT)

2 Kings 11:13
And Athaliah heareth the voice of the runners 'and' of the people, and she cometh in unto the people, to the house of Jehovah,
(YLT)

2 Kings 11:19
and taketh the heads of the hundreds, and the executioners, and the runners, and all the people of the land, and they bring down the king from the house of Jehovah, and come by the way of the gate of the runners, to the house of the king, and he sitteth on the throne of the kings.
(YLT)

2 Chronicles 12:10
and king Rehoboam maketh in their stead shields of brass, and hath given 'them' a charge on the hand of the heads of the runners who are keeping the opening of the house of the king;
(YLT)

2 Chronicles 12:11
and it cometh to pass, from the time of the going in of the king to the house of Jehovah, the runners have come in and lifted them up, and brought them back unto the chamber of the runners.
(YLT)

2 Chronicles 30:6
So runners went with letters from the king and his chiefs through all Israel and Judah, by the order of the king, saying, O children of Israel, come back again to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, so that he may come again to that small band of you which has been kept safe out of the hands of the kings of Assyria.
(BBE YLT)

2 Chronicles 30:10
So the runners went from town to town through all the country of Ephraim and Manasseh as far as Zebulun: but they were laughed at and made sport of.
(BBE YLT)

Esther 3:13
And letters were sent by the runners into every division of the kingdom ordering the death and destruction of all Jews, young and old, little children and women, on the same day, even the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month Adar, and the taking of all their goods by force.
(BBE YLT)

Esther 3:15
The runners went out quickly by the king's order, and a public statement was made in Shushan: and the king and Haman took wine together: but the town of Shushan was troubled.
(BBE YLT)

Esther 8:10
And he writeth in the name of the king Ahasuerus, and sealeth with the signet of the king, and sendeth letters by the hand of the runners with horses, riders of the dromedary, the mules, the young mares,
(YLT)

Esther 8:14
The runners, riding on the dromedary, 'and' the mules, have gone out, hastened and pressed by the word of the king, and the law hath been given in Shushan the palace.
(YLT)

Subtopics

Runners

Related Terms

Runners (21 Occurrences)

Runneth (36 Occurrences)

Straitened (14 Occurrences)

Stumblest (1 Occurrence)

Goest (79 Occurrences)