A Refiner's Fire

Zechariah 13:9, "I will put this third through the fire; I will refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say: They are My people, and they will say: Yahweh is our God.”

Psalm 66:10, "For You, God, tested us; You refined us as silver is refined."

Sometimes in scripture we hear the phrase refined as silver or gold, or tested through the fire (that was me paraphrasing). What exactly does that mean?

I was reading in Zechariah 13 when I came across that verse at the top. In my Bible there are also some devotionals to go along with some of the scriptures and that devotional in particular stood out to me. It talked about the refiner's fire. It said how scripture uses fire to describe the process of purification. Fire symbolizes the character of God because He is flawless and pure.

Hebrews 12:28-29, "Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us hold on to grace. By it, we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire."

When we come close to God we experience the heat of His glory and holiness.

Exodus 19:18, "Mount Sinai was completely enveloped in smoke because the Lord came down on it in fire. Its smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain shook violently."

I was looking up Bible verses and came across the one above. When the Lord came down He came down in fire. I just think that that's really cool.


Sometimes God brings us through the fire, to refine us as gold or silver is refined. An interesting fact about that is that only pure gold can last through the flames without being destroyed, fool's gold doesn't stand a chance.

James 1:2-3, "Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

Jeremiah 9:7, "Therefore, this is what the Lord of Hosts says: I am about to refine them and test them,"

Sometimes it takes a refining process to find out what we're made of.
The refining process of gold removes the impurities, just like how a refining process for us can show impurities and sin.

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Click here to listen to a really powerful song, it's called Psalm 46 (Lord of Hosts) by Shane and Shane. Some of the lyrics is this:

"Lord of Hosts You're with us,
with us in the fire.
With us as a Shelter,
with us in the storm."

Psalm 66:12, "we went through fire and water, but You brought us out to abundance."

God is with us, and when we go through the fire then He is with us. He's with us through it all.

Isaiah 48:10, "Look, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction."

Isaiah 41:10, "Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand."