Walking on Coals

Fire walking is the act of walking barefoot over a bed of hot coals or stones. It has been used as a rite of passage to test a person’s strength, courage, or faith. Some believe it requires supernatural power, but modern physics has debunked this idea. Can a person walk barefoot over hot coals and not burn their feet? It depends. Several factors are involved. First, the length of time the foot is in contact with coals is usually not enough to induce a burn.

Some try to run through the coals but are burned because the coals are pressed hard against their feet. Second, coals are not very good conductors of heat. If a person walked through hot coals and stepped on a piece of metal, his or her feet would burn. Another factor is that coals reach their flash point (hottest temperature) and then begin to cool down, so you must choose carefully when to walk through the fire.

But it’s not really a good idea to walk through a bed of hot coals. You will probably burn your feet! It is not a matter of supernatural power (though the devil can do lots of tricks). It is just not a smart thing to do. And that’s the point Solomon is making when he writes, “Can a man take fire to his bosom, and his clothes not be burned? Can one walk on hot coals, and his feet not be seared?” (Proverbs 6:27, 28). It’s a rhetorical question intended to get the answer, “Of course not!”

That is what the wise man teaches about the person who thinks adultery is something that is innocent and will not hurt you. “Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding; he who does so destroys his own soul” (v. 32). Will breaking the seventh commandment leave you unscathed? Of course not! Be wise and do not go down the senseless and destructive path of sexual sin. It is driven by a passion that will burn and destroy you forever.

Key Bible Texts

Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge. (Hebrews 13:4 KJV)