APL, the passages I posted above describe a very literal lake of fire in which resurrected sinners will suffer in duration and intensity according to their sinfulness. There is nothing symbolic about the fire described in those passages.

NOW - FOLLOW THE FLOW

1) God had bidden them to go up and take the land - but they refused
2) THEY determined to seize the land - after they had refused
3) God had appointed a time for them to enter the land.
4) By their wilful refusal, the permission to enter was withdrawn.
5) They distrusted God (unbelief) the power of God to work with them in gaining possession of the land
6) The people said, "we will go up and fight".
7) They were terribly blinded by their transgression!
8) The LORD, NEVER commanded them to "go up and fight". He said, go up and take the land, not fight!
9) Is was NOT His purpose that they should gain the land by warfare.

Things never got much better, and in fact the people went backwards not forwards.

Jeremiah 7:17-34
17 See you not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
18 The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.
19 Do they provoke me to anger? said the LORD: do they not provoke themselves to the confusion of their own faces?
20 Therefore thus said the Lord GOD; Behold, my anger and my fury shall be poured out on this place, on man, and on beast, and on the trees of the field, and on the fruit of the ground; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.
21 Thus said the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Put your burnt offerings to your sacrifices, and eat flesh.
22 For I spoke not to your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices:
23 But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people: and walk you in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well to you.
24 But they listened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.
25 Since the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt to this day I have even sent to you all my servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them:
26 Yet they listened not to me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck: they did worse than their fathers.
27 Therefore you shall speak all these words to them; but they will not listen to you: you shall also call to them; but they will not answer you.
28 But you shall say to them, This is a nation that obeys not the voice of the LORD their God, nor receives correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.
29 Cut off your hair, O Jerusalem, and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on high places; for the LORD has rejected and forsaken the generation of his wrath.
30 For the children of Judah have done evil in my sight, said the LORD: they have set their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to pollute it.
31 And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my heart.
32 Therefore, behold, the days come, said the LORD, that it shall no more be called Tophet, nor the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter: for they shall bury in Tophet, till there be no place.
33 And the carcasses of this people shall be meat for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the earth; and none shall fray them away.
34 Then will I cause to cease from the cities of Judah, and from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride: for the land shall be desolate.

"Go up and possess" (Strong's 3423) means to seize by force. I proved that to you in the post above.

Strongs 3423 has more meaning that seize by force. And do the words of EGW mean less to you than Strong's? I'll take EGW comments over Strong.

- Original: ירשׁ ירשׁ
- Transliteration: Yarash
- Phonetic: yaw-rash'
- Definition:
1. to seize, dispossess, take possession off, inherit, disinherit, occupy, impoverish, be an heir
a. (Qal)
1. to take possession of
2. to inherit
3. to impoverish, come to poverty, be poor
b. (Niphal) to be dispossessed, be impoverished, come to poverty
c. (Piel) to devour
d. (Hiphil)
1. to cause to possess or inherit
2. to cause others to possess or inherit
3. to impoverish
4. to dispossess
5. to destroy, bring to ruin, disinherit
- Origin: a primitive root
- TWOT entry: 920
- Part(s) of speech: Verb

- Strong's: A primitive root; to occupy (be driving out previous tenants and possessing in their place); by implication to seize to rob to inherit; also to expel to impoverish to ruin: - cast out consume destroy disinherit dispossess drive (-ing) out enjoy expel X without fail (give to leave for) inherit (-ance -or) + magistrate be (make) poor come to poverty (give to make to) possess get (have) in (take) possession seize upon succeed X utterly.
Total KJV Occurrences: 231
• consume, 1
Deu_28:42

• destroy, 1
Exo_15:9

• disinherit, 1
Num_14:12

• dispossess, 2
Num_33:53; Deu_7:17

• dispossessed, 2
Num_32:39; Jdg_11:23

• drive, 1
Jos_23:5

• drove, 1
Jos_15:14

• enjoy, 2
Num_36:8; Jos_1:15

• expelled, 2
Jos_13:13; Jdg_1:20

• have, 1
Jdg_14:15

• heir, 9
Gen_15:3; Gen_15:4(2); Gen_21:10; 2Sa_14:7; Pro_30:23; Jer_49:1; Jer_49:2; Mic_1:15

• heirs, 1
Jer_49:2

• inherit, 20
Gen_15:7; Gen_15:8; Gen_28:4; Lev_20:24; Lev_25:46; Deu_2:31; Deu_16:20; 2Ch_20:11; Psa_25:13; Psa_37:9; Psa_37:11; Psa_37:22; Psa_37:29; Psa_37:34; Isa_54:3; Isa_57:13; Isa_60:21; Isa_65:9; Jer_8:10; Jer_49:1

• inheritance, 1
Ezr_9:12

• inherited, 2
Psa_105:44; Eze_33:24

• inheritor, 1
Isa_65:9

• magistrate, 1
Jdg_18:7

• out, 49
Exo_34:24; Num_21:32; Num_32:21; Num_33:52; Num_33:55; Deu_4:38; Deu_9:3; Deu_9:4; Deu_9:5; Deu_11:23; Deu_18:12; Jos_3:10(2); Jos_13:6; Jos_13:12; Jos_14:12; Jos_15:63; Jos_16:10; Jos_17:12; Jos_17:13(2); Jos_17:18; Jos_23:9; Jos_23:13; Jdg_1:19(2); Jdg_1:21; Jdg_1:27; Jdg_1:28(2); Jdg_1:29; Jdg_1:30; Jdg_1:31; Jdg_1:32; Jdg_1:33; Jdg_2:21; Jdg_2:23; Jdg_11:24; 1Ki_14:24; 1Ki_21:26; 2Ki_16:3; 2Ki_17:8; 2Ki_21:2; 2Ch_20:7; 2Ch_28:3; 2Ch_33:2; Job_20:15; Psa_44:2; Zec_9:4

• poor, 2
1Sa_2:7; Pro_30:9

• possess, 95
Gen_22:17; Gen_24:60; Lev_20:24; Num_13:30; Num_14:24; Num_27:11; Num_33:53; Deu_1:8; Deu_1:21; Deu_1:39; Deu_2:24; Deu_2:31; Deu_3:18; Deu_3:20; Deu_4:1; Deu_4:5; Deu_4:14; Deu_4:22; Deu_4:26; Deu_5:31; Deu_5:33; Deu_6:1; Deu_6:18; Deu_7:1; Deu_8:1; Deu_9:1; Deu_9:4; Deu_9:5; Deu_9:6; Deu_9:23; Deu_10:11; Deu_11:8(2); Deu_11:10; Deu_11:11; Deu_11:23; Deu_11:29; Deu_11:31(2); Deu_12:1; Deu_12:2; Deu_12:29; Deu_15:4; Deu_17:14; Deu_18:14; Deu_19:2; Deu_19:14; Deu_21:1; Deu_23:20; Deu_25:19; Deu_28:21; Deu_28:63; Deu_30:5; Deu_30:16; Deu_30:18; Deu_31:3; Deu_31:13; Deu_32:47; Deu_33:23; Jos_1:11(2); Jos_18:3; Jos_23:5; Jos_24:4; Jos_24:8; Jdg_2:6; Jdg_11:23; Jdg_11:24(3); Jdg_18:9; 1Ki_21:18; 1Ch_28:8; Ezr_9:11; Neh_9:15; Neh_9:23; Job_13:26; Isa_14:21; Isa_34:11; Isa_34:17; Isa_61:7; Jer_30:3; Eze_7:24; Eze_33:25; Eze_33:26; Eze_35:10; Eze_36:12; Hos_9:6; Amo_2:10; Amo_9:12; Oba_1:17; Oba_1:19(2); Oba_1:20; Hab_1:6

• possessed, 19
Num_21:24; Num_21:35; Deu_3:12; Deu_4:47; Deu_30:5; Jos_1:15; Jos_12:1; Jos_13:1; Jos_19:47; Jos_21:43; Jdg_3:13; Jdg_11:21; Jdg_11:22; 2Ki_17:24; Neh_9:22; Neh_9:24; Neh_9:25; Isa_63:18; Jer_32:23

• possessest, 1
Deu_26:1

• possesseth, 1
Num_36:8

• possession, 5
1Ki_21:15; 1Ki_21:16; 1Ki_21:19; Psa_44:3; Psa_69:35

• poverty, 3
Gen_45:11; Pro_20:13; Pro_23:21

• succeeded, 3
Deu_2:12; Deu_2:21; Deu_2:22

• succeedest, 2
Deu_12:29; Deu_19:1

• take, 1
Psa_83:12

• upon, 1
Jos_8:7
"""

Did I not answer your question - plainly?

And remember God also gave rules for divorce and polygamy, both of which God hated.

APL, Jesus commanded Moses to "go up and take" the Promised Land. "God had bidden ["required"] them go up and take the land". The commands "Go up and possess" and "Go up and take" mean "take by force". From Strong's #3423:


"Possess" [#3423] means "to occupy (by driving out previous tenants, and possessing in their place); by implication to seize, to rob, to inherit; also to expel, to impoverish, to ruin". Here's how #3423 is used elsewhere:


How did Jesus "cast out [3423]" the Canaanites? He commanded Moses, Joshua, and the Judges to "go up and possess [3423]" the land. Same word. You have already agreed Jesus commanded Moses, Joshua, and the Judges to "go up and possess [3423]" the land with the edge of the sword. You have admitted this several times in no uncertain words. So, why are you now trying to prove the command "go up and possess [3423]" doesn't mean cast out, consume, destroy with the edge of the sword? If not this command, where in the Bible did Jesus command Moses, Joshua, and the Judges to take the land with the edge of the sword? You believe He said it, so post it.


How did Jesus "cast out [3423]" the Canaanites? He commanded Moses, Joshua, and the Judges to "go up and possess [3423]" the land. Again, same word. You argue the promise to "cast out [3423]" originally meant Jesus would send hornets to kill the Canaanites. But the inspired record proves otherwise. He commanded Moses, Joshua, and the Judges to do it. How did they do it? They deployed the Hebrew military. You have said so yourself. I agree.


Once again "destroy [3423]" obviously means to kill with the edge of the sword. Do you agree?


Obviously "consume [3423]" means to physically destroy. Do you agree?

GC 544 is not an alternate description. It is identical to GC 672, 673. The fire described in GC 672, 673 and EW 294 are without a doubt literal. You claim the fire therein portrayed is both literal and symbolic.