Husks of wheat or other cereal. It was separated from the grain by threshing, whereupon it usually blew away, as it was lighter than the grain. Sometimes however, it was burned as fuel. The wicked are frequently likened to chaff in Scripture.
Grain was threshed on outdoor threshing-floors to separate the chaff
Daniel 2:31–35 See also Hosea 13:3
As you, O king, were watching, a great statue appeared. A great and dazzling statue stood before you, and its form was awesome. The head of the statue was pure gold, its chest and arms were silver, its belly and thighs were bronze, its legs were iron, and its feet were part iron and part clay. As you watched, a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay, and crushed them. Then the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold were shattered and became like chaff on the threshing floor in summer. The wind carried them away, and not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that had struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
Characteristics of chaff
It is blown by the wind
Would You frighten a windblown leaf? Would You chase after dry chaff?
It is light
No arrow can make him flee; slingstones become like chaff to him.
It is useless
You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble. Your breath is a fire that will consume you.
The wicked are compared to chaff
They will disappear as chaff is blown away
Psalm 1:1–6 See also Job 21:17–18; Psalm 35:4–6, Psalm 83:13–15; Isaiah 17:13, Isaiah 29:5, Isaiah 40:24–25; Jeremiah 13:24
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does. Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
Their punishment is compared to threshing
Isaiah 41:15–16 See also Isaiah 41:2
Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff. You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the LORD; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel.
Their end will be like chaff which is burned
Matthew 3:11–12 parallel Luke 3:16–17
I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me will come One more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.