esh · fire

What it means

esh (אֵשׁ) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “fire”.

In the Bible it often goes with the presence of God (the bush, Sinai).

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. Fire that burns or cooks.
2. God's fire, a sign of his presence or anger.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

Fire. BDB defines it as fire, literal or figurative.

• The fire of the sacrifice Genesis 22:61 Kings 18:38
• Fire that goes with the presence of YHWH: the bush, the pillar Exodus 3:2Exodus 13:21
• “Strange fire”: fire not commanded Leviticus 10:1
• “A consuming fire”, said of YHWH Deuteronomy 4:24

Historical and cultural background

The law commanded that fire burn continually on the altar, never going out (Leviticus 6:13).

How we translate it

“Fire” 376 times, practically without variation. אֵשׁ זָרָה is translated literally, “strange fire” (Leviticus 10:1).

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• fire ×376
• they will make fires ×2

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Genesis×4
• Exodus×19
• Leviticus×32
• Numbers×21
• Deuteronomy×29
• Joshua×8
• Judges×15
• 1 Samuel×3
• 2 Samuel×6
• 1 Kings×10
• 2 Kings×17
• 1 Chronicles×2
• 2 Chronicles×6
• Nehemiah×6
• Job×8
• Psalms×28
• Proverbs×5
• Song of Songs×1
• Isaiah×33
• Jeremiah×39
• Lamentations×4
• Ezekiel×47
• Daniel×1
• Hosea×2
• Joel×5
• Amos×9
• Obadiah×1
• Micah×2
• Nahum×4
• Habakkuk×1
• Zephaniah×2
• Zechariah×7
• Malachi×1

• Genesis 15:17

  When the sun had gone down and it was dark, look, a smoking oven and a torch of fire that passed between these pieces.

• Genesis 19:24

  Then YHWH rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from YHWH out of the heavens.

• Genesis 22:6

  Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. And the two of them went together.

• Genesis 22:7

  Isaac said to Abraham his father, and he said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”

• Exodus 3:2

  The angel of YHWH appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of the bush. He looked, and look, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed.

• Exodus 9:23

  Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, and YHWH sent thunder and hail, and fire went down to the earth; and YHWH rained hail on the land of Egypt.

• Exodus 9:24

  There was hail, and fire flashing in the midst of the hail, very heavy, such as had never been like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.

• Exodus 12:8

  They shall eat the meat that night, roasted in fire, and unleavened bread; with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

• Exodus 12:9

  Do not eat any of it raw or boiled at all in water, but roasted in fire, its head with its legs and with its inner parts.

• Exodus 12:10

  You shall not leave any of it until morning; and what is left of it until morning you shall burn in the fire.

• Exodus 13:21

  YHWH went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give light to them, so that they could travel by day and by night.

• Exodus 13:22

  The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

• Exodus 14:24

  In the morning watch, YHWH looked down on the camp of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and cloud, and threw into confusion the camp of the Egyptians.

• Exodus 19:18

  Mount Sinai was smoking, all of it, because YHWH had come down upon it in fire; and its smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently.

• Exodus 22:6

  When fire breaks out and catches thorns, so that stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, the one who kindled the fire shall surely repay.

• Exodus 24:17

  The appearance of the glory of YHWH was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the sons of Israel.

• Exodus 29:14

  But the flesh of the bull and its skin and its dung you shall burn with fire outside the camp; it is a sin offering.

• Exodus 29:34

  If any of the flesh of ordination or of the bread remains until the morning, you shall burn what remains with fire; it shall not be eaten, for it is holy.

• Exodus 32:20

  And he took the calf that they had made and burned it in the fire, and ground it until it was fine dust, and scattered it on the surface of the water and made the sons of Israel drink it.

• Exodus 32:24

  So I said to them, ‘Whoever has gold, tear it off!’ And they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf.”

• Exodus 35:3

  You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day.”

• Exodus 40:38

  For the cloud of YHWH was on the dwelling by day, and fire was in it by night, before the eyes of all the house of Israel, in all their journeys.

• Leviticus 1:7

  The sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire.

• Leviticus 1:8

  The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall arrange the pieces, the head and the suet, on the wood that is on the fire that is on the altar.

• Leviticus 1:12

  He shall cut it into its pieces, with its head and its suet, and the priest shall arrange them on the wood that is on the fire that is on the altar.

• Leviticus 1:17

  He shall tear it open by its wings —he shall not divide it— and the priest shall offer up in smoke it on the altar, on the wood that is on the fire; it is a burnt offering, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 2:14

  If you present a grain offering of first-ripe fruits to YHWH, you shall present as the grain offering of your first-ripe fruits fresh ears roasted in the fire, crushed new grain.

• Leviticus 3:5

  The sons of Aaron shall offer up in smoke it on the altar on top of the burnt offering that is on the wood that is on the fire, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 4:12

  all the bull, he shall bring out to outside the camp, to a clean place, to the ash heap, and burn it on wood with fire; on the ash heap it shall be burned.

• Leviticus 6:9

  “Command Aaron and his sons, saying: This is the instruction for the burnt offering: the burnt offering itself shall be on the hearth on the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it.

• Leviticus 6:10

  The priest shall put on his linen garment, and he shall put on linen undergarments on his flesh; and he shall take up the ashes left when the fire has consumed the burnt offering on the altar, and put them beside the altar.

• Leviticus 6:12

  The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not go out. The priest shall burn wood on it every morning, arrange the burnt offering on it, and offer up in smoke on it the fat of the peace offerings.

• Leviticus 6:13

  Fire shall be kept burning continually on the altar; it shall not go out.

• Leviticus 6:30

  But no sin offering of which some of its blood is brought into the tent of meeting to make expiation in the Holy Place shall be eaten; it shall be burned with fire.

• Leviticus 7:17

  What is left of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burned with fire.

• Leviticus 7:19

  The flesh that touches anything unclean shall not be eaten; it shall be burned with fire. As for the other flesh, everyone who is clean may eat flesh.

• Leviticus 8:17

  But the bull, its skin, its flesh, and its dung, he burned with fire outside the camp, as YHWH had commanded Moses.

• Leviticus 8:32

  What is left of the flesh and of the bread you shall burn with fire.

• Leviticus 9:11

  The flesh and the skin he burned with fire outside the camp.

• Leviticus 9:24

  Fire came out from before YHWH and consumed on the altar the burnt offering and the fat portions; and all the people saw it, and they shouted for joy and fell on their faces.

And 338 more times.