Context No. 2614 of 4322 · 2 Maccabees

2 Maccabees 1:30-36: in context

30Then the priests sang the hymns. 31As soon as the sacrifice was consumed, then Nehemiah commanded that the rest of the liquid be poured on large stones. 32When this was done, a flame was kindled; but when the light from the altar shone back, it went out. 33When the matter became known, and king of the Persians was told that in the place where the priests who were led away had hid the fire, the liquid appeared which Nehemiah and those who were with him purified the sacrifice, 34then the king enclosed the place and made it sacred after he had investigated the matter. 35When the king would show favor to any, he would exchange many presents and give them some of this liquid. 36Nehemiah and those who were with him called this thing “Nephthar”, which is by interpretation, “Cleansing”; but most men call it Nephthai.

Second Maccabees preserves a curious old story. When the priests were carried into exile, they hid the sacred fire of the altar in a dry pit, and over the years it became a thick liquid. Generations later, when the people returned, the liquid was found, poured on the sacrifice, and at the sun's touch it kindled into flame. They named it Nephthar, meaning Cleansing, the fire that had not gone out but had only been hidden away and kept.

Whatever its history, the image is worth holding. The holy fire was not extinguished by exile; it was hidden, preserved through the long dark years, and rekindled at the right time. There are things we assume the exile has killed, a devotion that has cooled, a calling that seems dead, a faith that feels like ashes. This story suggests another possibility: that what looks extinguished, God may only have hidden and kept, ready to be relit when the season turns. The fire on the altar of a life is not always as dead as it appears. Sometimes it is only buried, waiting for the light to touch it again.

Is there a fire of faith or calling I assume has gone out, when God may have only hidden and preserved it, ready to be rekindled?

Sources

2 Maccabees 1:31: As soon as the sacrifice was consumed, then Nehemiah commanded that the rest of the liquid be poured on large stones.
2 Maccabees 1:32: When this was done, a flame was kindled.
2 Maccabees 1:36: Nehemiah and those who were with him called this thing Nephthar, which is by interpretation, Cleansing.