Significance of Fire in the Burning Bush
The burning bush, as described in Exodus 3, is a pivotal moment in biblical narrative, where God appears to Moses. The fire in the bush holds significant symbolic weight, representing both divine presence and the nature of God's interaction with humanity [1, 2].
The appearance of the Angel of the Lord in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush is noted as a preternatural event, particularly because the bush was not consumed [1, 6]. John Gill identifies this "Angel of the Lord" not as a created angel, but as the pre-incarnate Son of God, or the "eternal Word," given that he is later called "Jehovah" and "the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob" [1]. This aligns with the understanding that God Himself was present under this symbol [2].
The unconsumed bush itself has been interpreted in various ways. While some allegorical interpretations have been deemed "too forced," such as making the bush the body of Christ because his majesty did not consume it, the event clearly signifies a divine manifestation [5]. Augustine of Hippo compares the flame in the bush to other corporeal forms that came into being to signify something and then pass away, such as the dove and the pillar of fire [8].
The fire also symbolizes God's glory and power. The "flame of fire" is a recurring motif in divine manifestations, appearing at the giving of the law at Sinai (Exodus 19:18) and prophesied to accompany Christ's advent (Daniel 7:9-10) [7]. This fire represents both God's bright glory and his "consuming vengeance against His foes" [7].
For Moses, the burning bush was the initial sign of his divine commission [3]. The wonder of the unconsumed bush prompted Moses to draw near, leading to his encounter with God [6]. This miracle was intended to confirm Moses's faith in his calling and later to confirm the faith of the Israelites in his divine mission [4]. The event marked the beginning of God's direct communication with Moses, setting the stage for the Exodus [3].
Sources
- Exodus (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Exodus 3:2: And the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him,.... Not a created angel, but the Angel of God's presence and covenant, the eternal Word and Son of God; since he is afterwards expressly called Jehovah, and calls himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, which a created angel would never do: the appearance was: in a flame of fire, out of the midst of a bush; not in a tall, lofty, spreading oak or cedar, but in a low thorny bramble bush, which it might have been thought would have been consumed in an instant of time: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with f”
- Exodus (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Exodus 3:2: the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire--It is common in Scripture to represent the elements and operations of nature, as winds, fires, earthquakes, pestilence, everything enlisted in executing the divine will, as the "angels" or messengers of God. But in such cases God Himself is considered as really, though invisibly, present. Here the preternatural fire may be primarily meant by the expression "angel of the Lord"; but it is clear that under this symbol, the Divine Being was present, whose name is given (Exo 3:4, Exo 3:6), and elsew”
- Sefaria (Jewish (Rationalist)) “Abraham Ibn Ezra on Exodus 3:3: AND SEE THIS GREAT SIGHT. This is the first sign recorded in the Torah that the Lord did via his prophet Moses. Scripture thus says, and this shall be the token (sign) unto thee that I have sent thee (v. 12). 38 I.E. interprets in this way: And this burning bush shall be the token that I have sent thee. See I.E.’s comment on verse 12. Yefet 39 A Karaite commentator on the Bible. See Vol. I, Foreword, pp. XIV-XV. says that the interpretation of the sign is as follows: the enemy 40 The Egyptians. A very similar explanation is given in Midrash Rabbah (Ex. 2:10). Th”
- Exodus (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Exodus 4:5: That they may believe,.... The elders and people of Israel; for this miracle was wrought not for the confirmation of Moses's faith; for, as Aben Ezra observes, the sign of the burning bush was given to him to confirm his faith, that it was God that appeared to him, and called him to this work; but this was wrought to confirm the faith of the Israelites in his divine mission: that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee; See Gill on Exo 3:6.”
- CCEL (Reformed) “Calvin, Harmony of the Law, Vol. 1, section 11.4: known in this character. Nor, indeed, had the saints ever any communication with God except through the promised Mediator. It is not then to be wondered at, if the Eternal Word of God, of one Godhead and essence with the Father, assumed the name of “the Angel” on the ground of his future mission. There is a great variety of opinions as to the vision. It is too forced an allegory to make, as some do, the body of Christ of the bush, because his heavenly majesty consumed it not when he chose to inhabit it. It is also improperly wrested by those wh”
- Acts (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Acts 7:31: When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight,.... To see a bush on fire was no extraordinary thing; but to see a bush on fire, and yet not consumed by it, which was the case here, was wonderful indeed: and that an angel of the Lord, or the Lord himself, should appear in it, made it still more amazing; though, as yet, this was not observed by Moses, only the former; and which struck him with wonder, and excited his curiosity: and as he drew near to behold it; to take a more exact view of it, and satisfy himself with the truth of it, and, if it was possible, to find out ”
- 2 Thessalonians (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 2 Thessalonians 1:8: In flaming fire--Greek, "In flame of fire"; or, as other oldest manuscripts read, "in fire of flame." This flame of fire accompanied His manifestation in the bush (Exo 3:2); also His giving of the law at Sinai (Exo 19:18). Also it shall accompany His revelation at His advent (Dan 7:9-10), symbolizing His own bright glory and His consuming vengeance against His foes (Heb 10:27; Heb 12:29; Pe2 3:7, Pe2 3:10). taking--literally, "giving" them, as their portion, "vengeance." know not God--the Gentiles primarily (Psa 79:6; Gal 4:8; Th1 4:5); not”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 3: Augustine — On the Holy Trinity — CHAP. 6.--THE CREATURE IS NOT SO TAKEN BY THE HOLY SPIRIT AS FLESH IS BY THE WORD. (part 3): in order simply so to signify. The dove and the fire, indeed, seem to me more like that flame which appeared to Moses in the bush,(3) or that pillar which the people followed in the wilderness,(4) or the thunders and lightnings which came when the Law was given in the mount.(5) For the corporeal form of these things came into being for the very purpose, that it might signify something, and then pass away.(6)”