The meaning of Ja 3^^ is clear : a tree is known by its fruits ; a fig-tree cannot bring forth olives, neither can an olive-tree bring forth figs ; a man's 'works' are, in short, an inl'allible index to his ; faith' (Ja 2^^). In Rev 6'3 fios form part of the imagery in the vision of the Opening of the First Six Seals. The Seer beholds the stars of heaven falling to the earth ' as a fig-tree casteth her un- ripe fi"s, when she is shaken of a great gale. ' In the ordinary way these winter figs [SKwdoi.) did not ripen, so here the judgment predicted is not about
to cut off prematurely those who if spared would develop into matured and useful fruit, but those who are ' without hope and without God in the world' — in short, the ' cumberers of the ground.'
The fig-tree is native to Palestine and is found either cultivated or wild all over the country. Those which are wild are usually barren or at all events bear no edible fruit, and they are known as ' male ' fig-trees. There are many varieties of fig-trees cultivated, some of which yield a sharp, bitter fruit, and others a sweet, mellow one. It is noticeable that in the description of the Pro- mised Land (Dt 8^) fig-trees are mentioned as one of its leading natural characteristics. They are of moderate size, though sometimes attaining a height of 25 ft., while the stem is sometimes over 3 ft. in diameter. The bark is smooth, and the size and thickness of the leaves readily explain the point of the Jewish proverb — ' to sit under one's own vine and one's own tig- tree' (1 K 4^5, Mic 4*, Zee S^"). As a matter of fact, its foliage affords better shade and protection than any other tree in Palestine. It is one of the earliest trees to shoot, and its first fruit-buds appear before its leaves (cf. Mt 24^^, Mk 13^, Lk 2129- 30). The fruit is an enlarged suc- culent hollow receptacle, containing the imperfect flowers in its interior ; consequently the flowers are invisible till the receptacle has been opened. The figs are eaten both fresh and dried, ana they are often compressed into a cake (cf. 1 S 25^^ 30^^, 1 Ch 12^°). The time the tree comes into leaf and fruiting varies according to the situation, and is later in the hUl-country than in the plains. On the hills, the branches which have remained bare and naked all through the winter put forth their early leaf-buds about the end of March, and at the same time diminutive figs begin to appear where the young leaves join the branches. These tiny figs continue to grow with the leaves until they reach about the size of a cherry, then the majority of tliem fall to the ground or are blown down by the wind. These are the SXwdoi of Rev 6^* (see above).
Literature. — H. B. TnstTa.m, Natural History of the Bible^O, 1911, p. 350 f. ; H. B. Swete, Apocalvpse of St. John^, 1907, p. 93 ; W. M. Thomson, The Land and the Book, 1910 ed., p. 333 ; J. C. Geikie, The Holy Land and the Bible, 1903 ed., pp. 66, 74. Cf. also SDB, p. 262 f. ; HDB li. 5, 6 ; EBi ii. 1519- 1622. P. S. P. HANDCOCK.
FINISHER.— See Authoe and Finisher,
FIRE. — The term ' fire ' is used literally to denote the familiar process of combustion, with its ac- companiments of light and heat. In nearly all the passages in which it occurs from Acts to Revela- tion, it is used in a figurative sense. (1) A few of these have affinity with passages in the OT in which tire, as one of the most impressive of natural phenomena, is a form of the Divine manifestation. In some of the theophanies, in which tire is a prominent feature, it seems to express the concep- tion of God as He is in Himself and in His nature (e.g. Ezk 1^' -'') ; in others it is a manifestation of Him in His character as Avenger or Judge (Ex 1916- 18, Ps 188 5f/, Is 30^). The NT furnishes some analogous cases in which the theophanic fire is simply a manifestation of the Divine presence or attributes (Ac 2^, Rev 1'"- 4^), and others in which it is an accompaniment of the Divine judgment (2 Th 18, 2 P 31"-^-). (2) The use of fire as a testing and purifying agent has led to its figurative appli- cation as a criterion for distinguishing between what possesses genuine moral worth and what does not, and as a means of purifying human character (iCo 312'-, 1 P V). (3) One of the most patent characteristics of fire is its destructiveness, ■with the inevitable effect of suffering in the case of all forms of oiganic being. The vivid and forcible
appeal ■which it makes to the imagination is due to the acute sensations it produces in the physical organism by the combination of intense brightness with intense heat. Fire is thus fitted to serve as an appropriate symbol of the Divine judgment upon sin. The OT frequently applies imagery borrowed from this source to denote the punitive aspects of God's nature, or punitive instruments employed by Him, and thus lays the basis for the use of similar imagery in the NT.