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Human beings have long been drawn to the unique luster of silver.
Since ancient times, silver jewelry and tableware – not to mention silver coins – have been a joy to see and touch.
But the task of digging silver out of the earth during Bible times was ghastly.
Silver mines were dirty and dangerous places. Countless human lives ended prematurely because of risk-taking efforts to bring silver ore up into the light.
But that was only the beginning of the process.
Raw silver is geologically mingled with various impurities – including lead and copper – which are collectively known as “dross.”
During ancient and medieval times, the refining process was known as cupellation. Separating the dross from the silver involved crushing, amalgamating, and smelting.
Silver doesn’t melt until it reaches 960.5 degrees Celsius, which is seriously hotter than the front seat of your car on a summer day. Only at its melting point can silver’s impurities begin to be drawn away, literally skimmed off the surface of the molten mixture.
The Bible’s authors likened this process to God’s slow transformation of human beings.
Malachi 3:2-3 describes God as “a refiner and purifier of silver… Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or launderer’s soap.”
God uses heat.
He uses injustices, insults, and wounds inflicted by others as a blast furnace. He uses our failures, our disappointments, our losses, and our tears to melt away the impurities that taint our inner worlds.
God knows how much heat we can stand. He knows what it will take to remove the dross from our character.
An ancient refiner knew when it was time to withdraw the heat. It was when he looked into the cauldron of shining silver, as it cooled, and could see his own face.
If the silver was still muddy and flecked with dross, there was more work to do. But when the refiner could see his own face, his task was completed.
There is nothing easy or painless about being refined.
But as the Divine Silversmith increasingly sees his own image in our hearts, our prayers can even include these courageous words:
“Thank-you, God, for the heat.”