Figures of Speech in the Bible

Vapor, Breath, Smoke, and Vanishing-Life Imagery in the Bible

Vapor and breath imagery pictures human life as brief, fragile, and quickly passing before God.

Simple Definition Technical Definition Scripture Examples JSON Data

Simple definition

Vapor and breath imagery pictures human life as brief, fragile, and quickly passing before God.

Technical nameVapor, breath, mist, smoke, vanity, and fleeting-life imagery
Alternate namesvapor imagery; breath imagery; smoke imagery; mist imagery; hebel imagery; transience imagery
Reader categoryMortality, brevity, vanity, frailty, judgment, and passing life / Vapor-breath imagery
Bullinger classSupplemental biblical imagery form
Source hintWave 45 final gap-sweep draft; distinguish mortality imagery from Holy Spirit breath/wind imagery and from ordinary weather language.
Examples on page10

Technical definition

A transience motif in which breath, vapor, mist, smoke, sigh, or vanity language portrays mortality, creaturely frailty, futile striving, or disappearing judgment-security.

Publication note: Examples are curated from the final Wave 46 source state. Some examples carry review notes where final Bible-text stream verification may still be prudent before public release.

Scripture examples

These examples show how Vapor, Breath, Smoke, and Vanishing-Life Imagery functions in biblical language, rhetoric, poetry, prophecy, narrative, or theological imagery.

Job 7:7
certain

my life is a breath

Breath imagery expresses the fragility and brevity of suffering life.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Ps. 39:5
certain

every man ... is vapor

Human life is reduced to a fleeting breath before God.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Ps. 62:9
certain

men ... are a breath

Social rank is relativized by breath-like transience.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Ps. 78:33
certain

their days vanish like a breath

Judgment shortens life into quickly passing breath.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Ps. 90:9
certain

years ... like a sigh

Moses portrays life under wrath as passing like a sigh.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Ps. 102:3
certain

my days pass away like smoke

Smoke imagery pictures wasting life under affliction.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Ps. 144:4
certain

man is like a breath

Human days are compared to a passing shadow.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Eccl. 1:2
certain

vanity of vanities

Hebel language portrays life's vapor-like futility under the sun.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
Hos. 13:3
certain

like the morning mist ... like smoke

Idolatrous Israel is compared to rapidly disappearing mist and smoke.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.
James 4:14
certain

you are a mist

Human planning is corrected by the vapor-like brevity of life.

Source: draft_normalized_scripture_example — Wave 45 final gap sweep rare forms/idioms/missing motif categories expansion
Review status: draft_normalized | Source/context check before final publication.

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