Fire from heaven in Job 1:16?

[Hall7]

When God allowed Satan to destroy Job's life, in verse 16 it says that fire of God fell from the heavens and burned Job's sheep and servants. My question is since God send Satan to destroy Job's belongings, wasn't it fire that came from Satan and not from God, and the ones who saw this fire come down thought it was from God since it came from heaven? Also what kind of fire do you think it was, lightning... lazer beams?

12 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”

Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

13 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, 15 and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

[Tinky]

I think it was simply lightning, which has often been described as God's "fire." And the "heaven" aspect being the first heaven, or the earth's atmosphere. The man was simply describing what he had seen in his own words. 

 

Satan can use the weather for his purposes. After all, he is the "prince and power of the air."

[Guest shiloh357]

The word used for "fire" in the Hebrew is "aysh" and is the word for fire.  "Lightning" is used elsewhere in Job and is a different Hebrew word.   The text doesn't tell us that the fire came from God.   The text is simply recording the messenger's words.  The messenger interpreted the fire as the "fire of God" since it fell from above.  The messenger is unaware the fire came from Satan.  Satan is able to make fire come down from the natural heavens.   The Bible itself is not claiming the fire is from God; rather, it is inerrantly recording the words of the messenger and how he interpreted the event.

[wingnut-]

I agree, I think the tragedies visited on Job clearly came from Satan, and what we see in that verse is a human perspective of the events, absent the knowledge of what was transpiring in heaven.

[Hall7]

Thank you. Now I need to search how many times fire from heaven is described in the Bible to see who it came from.

[Guest]

When God allowed Satan to destroy Job's life,

 

in verse 16 it says that fire of God fell from the heavens and burned Job's sheep and servants.

Job 1:16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” (NIV)

 

 

At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship

 

and said:“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,and naked I will depart.

 

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;

 

may the name of the Lord be praised.”

 

 

In all this, Job did not sin

 

by charging God with

 

wrongdoing. Job 1:20-22 (NIV)

[xpaddingtonx]

God allowed satan to do those things. 

[Ezra]

16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”

Please note that these were the words of the messenger, who had absolutely no idea about what was taking place in the heavenlies (that God had given Satan limited permission to destroy Job). 

 

We need not speculate about the nature of this fire, since we read in Scripture of supernatural fire coming down from heaven many times.  This was definitely not a natural phenomenon, but a Satanic counterfeit of God's fire from heaven (the atmospheric heaven).  That Satan can make this happen is clear from Rev 13:13:  "And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men...".

[Kan]

The ancient term for lightning had the meaning of fire from heaven. Which is part of nature which God has created and uses, so it is called the fire of God out of heaven, and as said by previous posters, Satan has learned how to manipulate nature to some extent and is responsible for many natural disasters such a tornadoes and lightning.

[Hall7]

The ancient term for lightning had the meaning of fire from heaven. Which is part of nature which God has created and uses, so it is called the fire of God out of heaven, and as said by previous posters, Satan has learned how to manipulate nature to some extent and is responsible for many natural disasters such a tornadoes and lightning.

I believe in this case it was fire and not lightning as Shiloh mentioned: "The word used for "fire" in the Hebrew is "aysh" and is the word for fire.  "Lightning" is used elsewhere in Job and is a different Hebrew word."