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Psalm 11:6
On the wicked he will rain blazing coals; fire, sulfur, and scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
4The LORD is in his holy temple. The LORD is on his throne in heaven. His eyes observe. His eyes examine the children of men.
5The LORD examines the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and him who loves violence.
6On the wicked he will rain blazing coals; fire, sulfur, and scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7For the LORD is righteous. He loves righteousness. The upright shall see his face.
Notice
Blazing coals and a cup of scorching wind make God's judgment on the wicked hard to soften, especially after the preceding verse names his hatred of violence.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What response do you have to judgment pictured as a cup filled with fire and scorching wind?
Write on thisHow does God's hatred of violence in verse 5 shape your reading of the fire in verse 6?
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Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Psalm 75:8For in the LORD’s hand there is a cup, full of foaming wine mixed with spices. He pours it out. Indeed the wicked of the earth drink and drink it to its very …Both psalms picture judgment as a cup whose contents the wicked must receive.
Ezekiel 38:22I will enter into judgment with him with pestilence and with blood. I will rain on him, on his hordes, and on the many peoples who are with him, torrential …Both passages describe God raining fire and sulfur upon those under his judgment.
Genesis 19:24Then the LORD rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of the sky.The fire and sulfur rained on Sodom and Gomorrah share the destructive imagery of Psalm 11's judgment on the wicked.
Ezekiel 13:13“‘Therefore the Lord GOD says: “I will even tear it with a stormy wind in my wrath. There will be an overflowing shower in my anger, and great hailstones in …Both passages use destructive wind and rain to describe judgment brought by God.
Luke 17:29but in the day that Lot went out from Sodom, it rained fire and sulfur from the sky and destroyed them all.Luke recounts fire and sulfur raining upon Sodom, the same elements Psalm 11 names in judgment on the wicked.
Psalm 140:10Let burning coals fall on them. Let them be thrown into the fire, into miry pits, from where they never rise.Psalm 140 asks for burning coals and fire to fall upon enemies; Psalm 11 declares that God will rain blazing coals.
Job 18:15There will dwell in his tent that which is none of his. Sulfur will be scattered on his habitation.Both verses name sulfur as part of a destructive fate, though Job's line concerns a person's dwelling.
Job 20:23When he is about to fill his belly, God will cast the fierceness of his wrath on him. It will rain on him while he is eating.Both passages portray judgment coming from God as rain falling upon its recipient.
Revelation 14:10he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger. He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the …Both passages join the image of a cup with fire and sulfur in their descriptions of divine judgment.
Jeremiah 4:11–12At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A hot wind blows from the bare heights in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not …Both passages describe a hot or scorching wind; Jeremiah specifies that this wind serves neither winnowing nor cleansing.
Jeremiah 25:15–17For the LORD, the God of Israel, says to me: “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from my hand, and cause all the nations to whom I send you to drink it.Both passages use a cup to portray judgment that God assigns its recipients to drink.
Habakkuk 2:16You are filled with shame, and not glory. You will also drink and be exposed! The cup of the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and disgrace will cover …Both passages describe an allotted cup of judgment, with Habakkuk naming shame and disgrace where Psalm 11 names fire.
Where this verse fits
Injustice and anger. sermon or Bible study notes.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
The judgment described here belongs to God; it gives no warrant for personal revenge. The surrounding lines name the judge as righteous and opposed to violence.
Now put it in your words.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).