What is your views on Wormwood of Revelation?

Revealing Times

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The name of the star is Wormwood and is said to fall in the book of Revelation. What are your interpretations of it with scriptural and theological basis? Like what is it?
An Angel (Star) comes down and poisons the Waters. Its a Plague from God.
 
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MyGivenNameIsKeith

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Old Testament for reference
The Hebrew word Strong's 3939 laanah shows its usage as
From Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
hemlock, wormwood
From an unused root supposed to mean to curse; wormwood (regarded as poisonous, and therefore accursed) -- hemlock, wormwood.
Appears 8 times in the Old Testament
Deuteronomy 29:18
Proverbs 5:4
Jeremiah 9:15 Jeremiah 23:15
Lamentations 3:15 Lamentations 3:19
Amos 5:7 Amos 6:12

And also
Brown-Driver-Briggs
noun feminine wormwood (Late Hebrew id.; Arabic
bdb054203.gif
is curse (verb
bdb054204.gif
id.), so Nabataean לצנת (verb לען) compare CookGlossary);
— only figurative of bitter things:
— of perverted justice, Amos 5:7; Amos 6:12
("" ראֹשׁ; of result of idolatry, Deuteronomy 29:17 ("" id.);
of ׳יs chastisement Jeremiah 9:14 ("" מֵ֯ירֿאֹשׁ, Jeremiah 23:15 ("" id.), Lamentations 3:15 ("" מְרוֺרִים), Lamentations 3:19
("" ראֹשׁ); simile of bitter
(מָרָה) result of intercourse with strange woman Proverbs 5:4.
— On wormwood (Artemisia absinthium, etc., Greek ἀψίθιον) compare Löw80f. 401, 421 TristrNat, Hist. Bib. 493.

New Testament
Revelation 8:11 (twice)
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 894: ἄψινθος

ἄψινθος, ἀψινθου, ἡ, wormwood, Absinthe: Revelation 8:11; ἄψινθος ibid. is given as a proper name to the star which fell into the waters and made them bitter.

So since it is to afflict one third of the waters (the people) very specifically, who are these "bitter" people?
Next post will most likely include reference material for "bitterness"
 
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MyGivenNameIsKeith

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Did you know that in the Ukrainian bible the word “wormwood” is “Chernobyl”?
yes, fully aware. I have many theories on the whole of the topic. This one you bring up being the one concerning nuclear power as the bitterness, the two stars in Revelation 3, and Revelation 5 , as the two atom bombs dropped in WW2. And the fall of the USSR parallel. I have a list of dates and other facts associated with this particular concept and the whole of the prophecy that I may get to sooner or later.

Though, here, I'm attempting to decipher who the people are that this star is targeted to as I believe it is in Scriptures and I'm overlooking it. As I would like to have scriptural basis for my assumptions; because I have a few personal theories that wouldn't exactly be popular thought.
 
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tranquil

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It relates to Numbers 5
11And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12“Speak to the people of Israel, If any man’s wife goes astray and breaks faith with him, 13if a man lies with her sexually, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and she is undetected though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her, since she was not taken in the act, 14and if the spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife who has defiled herself, or if the spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife, though she has not defiled herself, 15then the man shall bring his wife to the priest and bring the offering required of her, a tenth of an ephahc of barley flour. He shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of remembrance, bringing iniquity to remembrance.

16“And the priest shall bring her near and set her before the Lord. 17And the priest shall take holy water in an earthenware vessel and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18And the priest shall set the woman before the Lord and unbind the hair of the woman’s head and place in her hands the grain offering of remembrance, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And in his hand the priest shall have the water of bitterness that brings the curse. 19Then the priest shall make her take an oath, saying, ‘If no man has lain with you, and if you have not turned aside to uncleanness while you were under your husband’s authority, be free from this water of bitterness that brings the curse. 20But if you have gone astray, though you are under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself, and some man other than your husband has lain with you, 21then’ (let the priest make the woman take the oath of the curse, and say to the woman) ‘the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your thigh fall away and your body swell. 22May this water that brings the curse pass into your bowels and make your womb swell and your thigh fall away.’ And the woman shall say, ‘Amen, Amen.’

23“Then the priest shall write these curses in a book and wash them off into the water of bitterness. 24And he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain. 25And the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy out of the woman’s hand and shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar. 26And the priest shall take a handful of the grain offering, as its memorial portion, and burn it on the altar, and afterward shall make the woman drink the water. 27And when he has made her drink the water, then, if she has defiled herself and has broken faith with her husband, the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain, and her womb shall swell, and her thigh shall fall away, and the woman shall become a curse among her people. 28But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, then she shall be free and shall conceive children.

29“This is the law in cases of jealousy, when a wife, though under her husband’s authority, goes astray and defiles herself, 30or when the spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife. Then he shall set the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall carry out for her all this law. 31The man shall be free from iniquity, but the woman shall bear her iniquity.”
Wormwood/ the 'bitter water' is an abortifacient. If the husband suspects the wife of adultery, the child gets aborted, and the husband is not cuckholded (the husband is 'jealous').

the idea of Wormwood in Revelation is that this is what causes the sterility of Ephraim (apostate Israel/ unfaithful wife) eg Hosea 9:11
 
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MyGivenNameIsKeith

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4751 mar or marah
bitter, bitterness
Genesis 27:34 Exodus 15:23 Numbers 5:18 Numbers 5:19 Numbers 5:23 Numbers 5:24 Numbers 5:27 Judges 18:25 1 Samuel 1:10 1 Samuel 15:32 1 Samuel 22:2 2 Samuel 2:26 2 Samuel 17:8 Esther 4:1 Job 3:20 Job 7:11 Job 10:1 Job 21:25 Psalms 64:3 Proverbs 5:4 Proverbs 14:10 Proverbs 27:7 Proverbs 31:6 Ecclesiastes 7:26 Isaiah 5:20 Isaiah 33:7 Isaiah 38:15 Isaiah 38:17 Jeremiah 2:19 Jeremiah 4:18 Lamentations 1:4 Ezekiel 3:14
Ezekiel 27:30 Ezekiel 27:31 Amos 8:10 Habakkuk 1:6 Zephaniah 1:14
 
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Original Happy Camper

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The name of the star is Wormwood and is said to fall in the book of Revelation. What are your interpretations of it with scriptural and theological basis? Like what is it?

Historical Hermeneutics

Rev 8:10-11 The Third Trumpet: The “great star” that fell “from heaven” is symbolic of a great leader. Revelation 1:20; 22:16; Genesis 37:9-10. Wormwood is a bitter medicinal plant, poisonous in large or concentrated doses. The leader that appeared as a sudden blazing star bringing such bitterness upon Rome was Attila, ruler of the Huns. Called “The Scourge of God,” Attila, with his hordes of barbarian horsemen, raped, murdered and turned city after city into smoldering ruins without mercy. Revelation correctly portrays this invasion as a most bitter judgment.

Revelation 8 Commentary
 
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Dave Watchman

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The name of the star is Wormwood and is said to fall in the book of Revelation. What are your interpretations of it with scriptural and theological basis? Like what is it?

Man O Man, after reading other messages, I can't believe how different my read on this thing is. Asking about wormwood to me is like asking about trumpet one, or two or four. These are the catalysts for the end of the world.

"“But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

Let me ask you a question. Would Jesus tell us to flee to the wilderness locations, and then incinerate those places with trumpet number one? No, I don't think so either. So even though it doesn't say so, these judgments are from God, so they will be directed by His Hand. Where they will hit we can only speculate. But there's nothing else, no financial collapse or world war, that could compare with or be the catalyst for, all the other crazy and unbelievable events of Revelation.

First trumpet number one will fall, a third of the earth is burnt up. Paul's "sudden destruction" finally falls and they do not escape. Who is "they"? The day after this when the damage is assessed, people notice something strange. The destruction seems to be intelligently directed. Most cities are devastated. But the capital cities from around the world are hit extra hard, leveled to the ground.

Seven days latter, something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. Wicked cities along the ocean coasts are destroyed by giant tsunamis. Mens hearts will begin to fail them for fear because of the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

Seven days latter and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. The name of the star is Wormwood. Another space rock falls and hits a continent and pollutes it's aquifers. Who wants to speculate on which continent this might be?, not me. But there's one that's already had a couple of shots across it's bow.

Seven days latter and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night. Smoke and debris from fires and volcanoes concentrate around the middle third of the earth. Around the equator, the breadbasket of our planet.

All within a day, the day of the first trumpet, the governments around the world are gone. These were the places that made the laws legalizing the transgressive behaviors which enabled the great falling away from the ways of God. The first four trumpets are the catalyst, the enabling events, that allow all of the wild and unfathomable situations of Revelation's narrative occur.

The world's survivors can clearly see that these are not random events. Even the NASA type scientists can see that these have been directed at specific places, and even specific people. For some, their lives were taken. Others were left alive. They will know that the God of the Bible has come back, and that He is not happy with our degenerate behavior.

Because these judgments are global, effecting the entire planet, what remains of the world's authorities will cobble themselves together with the aid of the world's religious leaders for the purpose of appeasing God. Their attitude will be that of, "if we don't do something God is going to kill us all. Religion and worship will become front page news and priority number one.

Their ill fated solution will be the forced worship system that we will recognize as the "mark of the beast". This unparalleled time of global emergency will enable Revelation 13's composite beast to finally rise up from many waters and peoples and tongues and at the same time become the ten global kingdoms that have power for one hour. And the time will have come when they will think that they're doing God a favor by killing us.

Checkout just the first minute of this video.

'And a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch:


Peaceful Sabbath.
 
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Biblewriter

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In a job I had for many years, a number of our engineers were Russians who had migrated to the USA. One day, shortly after the Chernobyl disaster, one of my Russian friends came running up to my desk and, with obvious delight, asked, "Do you know the translation of 'Chernobyl' into English?" I said, no, and suddenly rose up from my seat when he said the one word, "Wormwood." He had no idea why this news excited Christians so much, but he was greatly enjoying causing such excitement.
 
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JCFantasy23

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It's interesting that as an herb, Wormwood is considered one of the very top for removing parasitic or cancerous organisms. Kind of not funny if we think of it in regards to humanity with the end of days.
 
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Waterwerx

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If I recall correctly, I remember discussing this previously in another post.

Consider the text. There are no indications that the "great star" is to be taken symbolically. The only thing used is a simile where it compares it's burning to that of a lamp as it descends from heaven.
A lamp has fuel that is burned to produce light. Look up "lamps used in New Testament times".

Another thing to think about. What do we currently have today that is closely linked to water sources, is basically a nuclear reactor, and is capable of poisoning water that when someone drinks it, they would never really know it until its too late?

Pretty much ALL nuclear power plants, out of necessity, are located near large sources of water. If for some reason or other the systems used to control them had some catastrophic failure, its very easy for numerous water sources to become poisoned with radioactive particles and few would even realize the danger unless they had the proper equipment and knew how to use it.

In regards to the proper noun "Apsinthos"... Here's a question: In all of the OT prophecies about Jesus Christ, was He ever referred to by that exact name? I don't think so. There certainly were a number of metaphors used though. I don't see why the possibility should be ruled out here that this particular name is a metaphor and may or may not be a way of using Chernobyl as a metaphor for a similar disaster that will be much broader in scope.

We probably won't ever be able to know the full specifics beforehand, but we can be sure that what ever this "great star" is, it will be responsible for the lethal contamination of a third of the fresh water sources. Curiously, the great star(singular) falls without any mention of a conflagration, damage, etc., except for its effects on the water. The only other eschatological references that I recall having anything to do with "water" or water supplies are found in Jeremiah 51:32 where it mentions "agam" as one of the things the northern invader has burned with fire.
 
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MyGivenNameIsKeith

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While it is exciting to speculate end of the world scenarios in a particular fashion due to the overwhelming media outlet of Hollywood concerning special effects and spectacular literature to stimulate one's mind for destruction such as our fleshly hearts crave, may I propose a more spiritual connotation to a spiritual book that displays these events? In other words, might we stop looking at it in physical forms of God's judgment; and look at the underlying spiritual conditions to which we are directed to.

First let me start with a Geneva Bible Commentary concerning Romans 11:11 for the purpose of the why?

Romans 11:11 I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.

"[God appointed this casting off of the Jews, that it might be an occasion to call the Gentiles: and again might turn this calling of the Gentiles, to be an occasion to restore the Jews, that is, that they being inflamed and provoked by jealousy of the Gentiles, then might themselves at length embrace the Gospel. And by this we may learn that the severity of God serves for the setting forth of his glory as well as his mercy does, and also that God prepares himself a way to show mercy by his severity: so that we ought not rashly to despair of any man, nor proudly triumph over other men, but rather provoke them to a holy jealousy, that God may be glorified in them also.]"

That being quoted, So here we see that the Jewish people are made bitter with jealousy to urge them to repentance and salvation.

In Genesis 27:34 we see the first use of the Hebrew word, marah (4751). which is the same word used for the bitter water in Exodus 15:23, explaining that Wormwood Proverbs 5:4, is bitterness, or in this case jealousy. (Recall, the first will be last, and the last will be first, so here we use the first reference to the bitterness, as the last reference to it as well, that being in the form of the Star Wormwood) Notably in the Proverbs 5:4 , wormwood is also referred to as sharp as a two edged sword which is also a reference to the word of God (Hebrews 4:12), which is the true Spirit at work here. In Genesis 27:34, the bitterness is used of Esau, the firstborn son of the flesh, but not of the Spirit. He had no blessing remaining of his father, as this was taken by Jacob (later given the name "Israel" after Spirit, not after the flesh, he was Jacob according to the flesh). As the Lord God calls us to worship in truth and Spirit, the holy assembly of Israel is in truth, not after the flesh, but of the Spirit. This bitterness (Wormwood) descends as it is purposed by God to provoke those to jealousy to get them to repent and worship him. It follows the Word of God shown in Numbers 5:27 where drinking the bitter water is an abortion procedure of a child of the flesh which brings on a curse. Here we see Jesus truly start fulfill the law in a way that is not so nice, but it is just and righteous and in the form of his glory in the judgment seat.

1 Corinthians 12:3 Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.

Romans 9:6-8 Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.

The Bible advises us that we may be good at discerning the sky for weather, but somehow we are not discerning the signs of the times. Those times of course being spiritual and offer only the sign of Jonah. That being the call for repentance. If you see the instrument of your judgment coming, your heart would not be changed. It would be out of a sense of self-preservation that you would seek refuge that would not be there. This is why it is said, that TODAY IS THE DAY FOR SALVATION.
Your brother in Christ,
MygivennameisKeith.
 
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