# Famine

A “famine” is when many people throughout a country or region do not have enough food. A famine is usually caused when a place does not get enough rain. It can also be caused by insects eating crops or by enemies destroying crops. In the Bible, God often caused famine to punish nations when they sinned against him (see: 2 Samuel 21:1; Isaiah 14:30; 51:19; Jeremiah 11:22).

The word “famine” is also used as a metaphor. It is used to talk about a time when God punished his people by not speaking to them (see: Amos 8:11).

See: [Punish (Punishment)](../articles/punish.md); [Sin](../articles/sin.md); [Metaphor](../articles/metaphor.md)