Weather phenomena, from hail in Ancient Egypt to raging storms on the Lake Galilee, are present all thought Biblical scripture. The Bible talks of weather particularly in relation to God’s miracles on Earth, when the faith of the Israelites wanes or the Creator’s powers are questioned. In Job 5:10, God is said to be the one who “gives rain on the earth and sends water on the fields”. And Psalms 135:7 reads: “He causes the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; Who makes lightning for the rain, Who brings forth the wind from His treasuries.”
Dr Hugh Sansom, a meteorologist with the Royal Meteorological Society (RMetS) explored the concept of weather in the Bible in 2000, for the journal Weather.
The weather expert examined how freak events like violent thunderstorms, dry spells of summer drought and morning dew are represented and described.
He wrote: “The New Testament reminds us frequently of the power of prayer and Jesus Himself tells us that if we ask for anything in His name, God will hear and answer our prayers.
“What does this mean, if we are praying for a fine day – or indeed praying for rain after a long dry spell?
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Long range weather forecast: The Bible frequently talks about the weather (Image: GETTY/WXCHARTS)
“I believe that the weather, like all other ‘natural’ phenomena, is in the hands, and under the control of God – but that he generally allows nature to take its course and does not interfere.”
But what does all of this mean for the possibility of weather predictions based on scripture?
According to Dr Sansom, there are times when God may directly intervene to change the weather around us thanks to prayer.
But the weather expert said prayer is not a “magic formula” of sorts, which promises direct results from the get-go.
God can, in some remote cases, “overrule the prevailing weather pattern” in response to devout prayer.
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