Wormwood (star)
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Wormwood, αψινθιον (apsinthos) in Greek, is a star, or angel,[1] that appears in the Biblical New Testament Book of Revelation.
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[edit] Wormwood in the Bible
Although the word wormwood appears several times in the Old Testament, translated from the Hebrew term לענה (la'anah), e.g., Deuteronomy 29:18 and Jeremiah 9:15, its only clear reference as a named entity occurs in the New Testament book of Revelation: "And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter." (Revelation 8:10, 11 - KJV)
Certain commentators have held that this "great star" represents one of several important figures in political or ecclesiastical history,[2] while other Bible dictionaries and commentaries view the term as a reference to a celestial being.
A Dictionary of The Holy Bible states, "the star called Worm wood seems to denote a mighty prince, or power of the air, the instrument, in its fall, of sore judgments on large numbers of the wicked."[3] Scofield Reference Notes draws a link between the term in Revelation and Isaiah 14:12,[4] which reads, "How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations!" (NIV)
[edit] Interpretations of Revelation 8:11
[edit] Historist interpretations
Various religious groups and figures, including Seventh-day Adventists and the theologians Matthew Henry and John Gill,[5] regard the verses of Revelation 8 as symbolic references to past events in human history. In the case of Wormwood, some historist interpreters believe that this figure represents the army of the Huns as led by king Attila, pointing to chronological consistencies between the timeline of prophecy they have accepted and the history of the Huns' campaign in Europe.[6] Others point to Arius, the emperor Constantine, Origen or the ascetic monk Pelagius, who denied the doctrine of Original sin.[5]
[edit] Futurist interpretations
Commentators favoring a naturalistic interpretation of Revelation 8:10 relate it to the last days, seeing Wormwood as a meteor fated to strike the earth and cause environmental calamities.[7] Others, while not specifying a precise method, see in the verse a "personification of something God threatens to do to [His] people when they allow themselves to be deceived by false prophets."[8]
[edit] Alternative interpretations
A number of Bible scholars consider the term Wormwood to be a purely symbolic representation of the bitterness that will fill the earth during troubled times, noting that the plant for which Wormwood is named, Artemisia absinthium, is a known Biblical metaphor for things that are unpalatably bitter.[9][10]
[edit] References in literature
Wormwood is the name of a subordinate demon in the book The Screwtape Letters by Christian novelist C. S. Lewis. As a junior tempter under the guidance of his "affectionate uncle," the senior fiend Screwtape, Wormwood learns the ins and outs of corrupting souls. In 2003, author Bryan Miles wrote a sequel entitled The Wormwood Letters.[11]
In the Christ Clone Trilogy by James BeauSeigneur, Wormwood is an asteroid named after Miss Wormwood, from the Calvin and Hobbes comics. It is destroyed by nuclear missiles, but the arsenic contained inside its divided exterior fall into the Earth's oceans, poisoning the fresh water and killing almost, if not all, fish.
Several books bear the title Wormwood, including anthologies and novels by Poppy Z. Brite, Marie Corelli, and Graham Taylor.
In the Stephen King short story Home Delivery, an alien object enters Earth's orbit and causes the dead to rise as zombies and attack the living. The hellish object, a meteor-sized ball comprised of many writhing worms, is referred to as "Star Wormwood".
[edit] References in music
Two albums, one by the American band moe., and one by The Residents, are named Wormwood, as is a song by the gothic metal band Tristania.
[edit] See also
- Wormwood (disambiguation page)
- List of angels
- Book of Revelation
- Apocalypse
- Christian eschatology
[edit] References
- ^ Lewis, James R., Oliver, Evelyn Dorothy (1996), Angels A to Z, Entry: Wormwood, p. 417, Visible Ink Press
- ^ Henry, Matthew, Commentary on the Whole Bible Volume VI (Acts to Revelation): Revelation Chap. VIII, Public domain, Library of Congress call no: BS490.H4, at Christian Classics Ethereal Library
- ^ Rand, W. W. (1859), A Dictionary of the Holy Bible: for general use in the study of the scriptures; with engravings, maps, and tables, Entry: WORM WOOD at archive.org
- ^ Scofield, C.I. (1917), Scofield Reference Notes (1917 Edition), Revelation Chapter 8
- ^ a b Gill, John, Exposition of the Entire Bible, Revelation 8:10 at bible.crosswalk.com
- ^ Nichol, Francis D (1957), The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Volume 7, Revelation, p. 789, Review and Herald Publishing Association, Washington, D.C.
- ^ Robertson, A.T. (1932), "Commentary on Revelation 8:10," Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament, Broadman Press, at bible.crosswalk.com
- ^ Editors: Osborne, Grant R., Briscoe, D. Stuart, Robinson, Haddon (1997), "The First Four Trumpets," Commentaries for Revelation Chapter 8, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series, ISBN 0-8308-1800-6 at biblegateway.com
- ^ Johnson, B. W. (1891), The People's New Testament, The Revelation of John, Chapter VIII: The Seventh Seal Opened at the Christian Classics Etherial Library
- ^ Revelation in the Geneva Study Bible (1599) at bible.crosswalk.com
- ^ Editorial Review of The Wormwood Letters at amazon.com
