Worm

This is sometimes figuratively used. The Lord Jesus calls himself a worm and no man, (Ps. xx2: 6.) to intimate the unparalleled humility of his person. Hence, JEHOVAH speaking to Christ, under the character of Jacob, saith, Fear not, thou worm Jacob! (Isa. xli. 14.) Sometimes the word is also used by way of figure, to represent the torments of the damned. "Their worm, (said Jesus, ) dieth not, and the fire is not quenched, " Mark ix. 44. - 48. Some of the old writers have contended, however, that this worm, here spoken of by Christ, is not in figure, but in reality. Of this opinion was Austin.

the general name in Scripture for little creeping insects. Several kinds are spoken of:

1. Those that breed in putrefied bodies, רסה , Exo 16:20; Exo 16:24; Job 7:5; Job 17:14; Job 21:26; Job 24:20; Job 25:6; Isa 14:11; ακωληξ, Sir 7:17; Sir 10:11; 1Ma 2:62; 2Ma 9:9; Jdt 16:17; Mar 9:44; Mar 9:46; Mar 9:48; Act 12:23.

2. That which eats woollen garments, סס , Isa 51:8; σης, Mat 6:19-20; Luk 12:33.

3. That which, perforating the leaves and bark of trees, causes the little excrescences called kermes, whence is made a crimson dye, תולע , Deu 28:39; Job 25:6; Psa 22:6; Isa 14:11; Isa 41:14; Isa 66:24; Exo 16:20; Jon 4:7.

4. The worm destructive of the vines, referred to in Deu 28:39; which was the pyralis vitanae, or pyralis fasciana, of Forskal, the vine weevil, a small insect extremely hurtful to the vines.

Worm. The representative in the Authorized Version of several Hebrew words.

Sas, which occurs in Isa 51:18 probably denotes some particular species of moth, whose larva is injurious to wool.

Rimmah, Exo 16:20, points evidently to various kinds of maggots and the larvae of insects which feed on putrefying animal matter, rather than to earthworms.

Toleah is applied in Deu 28:39 to some kinds of larvae destructive to the vines.

In Job 19:26; Job_ 21:26; Job 24:20, there is an allusion to worms (insect larvae) feeding on the dead bodies of the buried. There is the same allusion in Isa 66:24 which words are applied by our Lord, Mar 9:44; Mar 9:46; Mar 9:48, metaphorically to the torments of the guilty in the world of departed spirits.

The valley of Hinnom near Jerusalem, where the filth of the city was cast, was alive with worms. The death of Herod Agrippa I, was caused by worms. Act 12:23.

Not the earth worm (Lumbricus terrestris). Isa 51:8; "the moth (’ash) shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm (sas) shall eat them like wool." The sas is a species of (See MOTH . Rimmah synonymous with toleah; applied to the worm bred in the manna when kept more than a day (Exo 16:26), tolaim, answering to rimmah (Exo 16:24); so in Job 25:6; maggots and larvae of insects which feed on putrefying matter (Job 21:26; Job 24:20; Job 7:5; Job 17:4); maggots were bred in Job’s sores produced by elephantiasis. "Herod was eaten of worms" (Act 12:23). Josephus tells the same of Herod the Great (Act 19:8), and 2Ma 9:9 of Antiochus Epiphanes.

In Job 19:26; Hebrew "though after my skin (is destroyed) this (body) is destroyed," Job omits "body" because it was so wasted as not to deserve the name. The tolath was to eat the grapes of apostate Israel (Deu 28:39); also Jonah’s gourd (Jon 4:7). Hell is associated with the "worm that dieth not," an image from maggots preying on putrid carcass (Isa 66:24). (See HELL.) Mar 9:44; Mar 9:46; Mar 9:48, "THEIR worm" is the gnawing self reproach of conscience, ever continuing and unavailing remorse. The Lord Jesus represents here both the worm and those on whom it preys as never dying. Symbolizing at once decay and loathsome humiliation, and this everlasting.

WORM.—See Animals in vol. i. p. 67^a.

By: Emil G. Hirsch, I. M. Casanowicz

"Rimmah" and "tole’ah" are the terms most frequently employed in the Bible to connote not only the earthworm, but any elongated crawling creature, such as the maggot, caterpillar, larvaof an insect, and the like. Thus, in the account of the "worms" which appeared in the manna (Ex. xvi. 20, 24) the terms evidently refer to caterpillars which feed on putrefying matter, while the "worms" described as destroying vineyards and the gourd (Deut. xxviii. 39; Jonah iv. 7) were some variety of beetle or insect larva, and the "worms" in Isa. xiv. 11, Job xvii. 14, xxi. 26, and similar passages were maggots or larvæ which feed on dead bodies. For the meaning of "zoḥale ereẓ" (Mic. vii. 17) see Serpent.

Metaphorically, the worm symbolizes lowliness and helplessness (Isa. xli. 14; Ps. xxii. 7 [A. V. 6]; Job xxv. 6), but in Isa. lxvi. 24 the worm and fire together connote eternal pain.

There are several species of earthworm (Lumbricus) in Palestine, and Myriapoda abound.

In the Talmud also "rimmah" and "tole’ah" are found as general terms for "worm," while the generic denomination for all crawlers is "sheḳaẓim u-remasim" (see Reptiles). Several species are mentioned under special names, such as , a kind of water-worm (Nais tulifex; Zeb. 22a); , rainworm (Ḥul. 67b); , the worm which lives in the tracheæ of sheep and causes them to cough (Strongulus filaria; ib. 49a); and , worms found in the intestines of fishes (Lingula cingulum; ib. 67b). Since the raven is heartless toward its young, Providence, according to B. B. 8a, takes care of them by causing maggots to arise from their excrement, thus furnishing them with food (comp. Rashi on ’Er. 22a). With the worms which arose from rotten bran Noah fed the chameleon in the ark (Sanh. 108b). A host of worms infest the human body, both living and dead (Tem. 31a; Ab. iii. 1). There are worms in the liver (; Shab. 109b) and in the belly (), a remedy for the latter being the milk of an ass mixed with the leaves of the bay, or bread and salt taken with fresh water before breakfast (Giṭ. 69b; B. M. 107b). Garlic is a cure for worms in the great intestine (Bek. 82b), while the tapeworm is driven out by the raw meal of barley or by hyssop (Ber. 36a; Shab. 109b). is the name of a worm which finds lodgment between the prepuce and glans penis and is removed by circumcision, so that even Gentiles submitted to the operation (’Ab. Zarah 26b). From the mouths of the false spies whom Moses sent to Canaan came forth worms (Soṭah 35a), and Yer. Yoma 39a records similar phenomena proceeding from the nose of a heretic (comp. also Yoma 19b; B. M. 84b).

Bibliography:

Tristram, Natural History of the Bible, p. 300;

Lewysohn, Zoologie des Talmuds, p. 334.

WORM.—1. sâs, Isa 51:6 (cf. Arab [Note: Arabic.] , sûs, a moth or a worm), the larva of a clothes-moth. See Moth. 2. rimmâh (Exo 16:24, Job 25:6, Isa 14:11). 3. tôlâ‘, tôlç‘âh’ or tôla‘ath (Exo 16:20, Job 25:6, Isa 14:11; Isa 66:24, Jon 4:7 etc.). Both 2 and 3 are used to describe the same kind of worms (cf. Exo 16:20; Exo 16:24), and most references are to maggots and other insect larvæ which breed on putrid organic matter. These are very common in Palestine, occurring even on neglected sores and, of course, on dead bodies (Job 19:26; Job 21:26; Job 24:20). Jonah’s worm (tôlç‘âh) was probably some larva which attacks the roots, or perhaps a centipede. The ‘worms’ of Deu 28:39 were probably caterpillars. 4. râqâb (Hos 5:12 AVm [Note: Authorized Version margin.] ). In Pro 12:4 where the same word is also tr. [Note: translate or translation.] ‘rottenness,’ it is rendered in LXX [Note: Septuagint.] skôlçx, ‘wood-worm,’ which seems appropriate to the context. 5. zôchălç‘ârets, ‘worms of the earth’ (Mic 7:17), may possibly refer to true earthworms (which are comparatively rare in Palestine), but more probably to serpents. See Serpent (10). 6. skôlçx, Mar 9:44 etc. The expression ‘eaten of worms,’ used (Act 12:23) in describing the death of Herod Agrippa i., would seem to refer to a death accompanied by violent abdominal pains, such symptoms being commonly ascribed in the Holy Land to-day to abdominal worms (Lumbricoides)—a belief often revived by the evacuation of such worms near the time of death (cf. p. 600^a).

E. W. G. Masterman.

Psa 22:6 (a) This type represents the utter degradation and worthlessness of human beings in GOD’s sight. When JESUS took the sinner’s place, He called Himself a worm because the one for whom He died was considered by GOD as a worm. (See also Isa 41:14).

Isa 66:24, (b) No doubt this is an emblem of the gnawing pains of conscience which must be endured constantly and forever by those who are lost, and are in the lake of fire. (See also Mar 9:43)).

Worm. Worms have no backbone, legs, or eyes, although their bodies are sensitive to light and temperature. But they do play a useful role. They improve the soil by working decaying vegetation into the earth and aerating it with their tunnels.

The Bible speaks both literally and figuratively of worms. The word worm also refers to a worm-like creature, such as insect larva. For instance, the palmerworm, cankerworm, and caterpillar of (Joe 1:4) are all caterpillars, which is the larval stage of various moths. (The NKJV, however, translates these as various kinds of locusts.) Grub is another word used for worm in various translations (Isa 51:8), (NEB, NASB). (Job 7:5) and other passages, which refer to infestation of worms, probably mean maggots, the larvae of flies. Decaying matter often teems with tiny worm-like maggots.

Some worms, such as tapeworms and pinworms, are parasites which invade the human body. Thus Herod could be described as "eaten by worms" (Act 12:23).

The common earthworm also appears in the Bible. (Mic 7:17) refers to worms (snakes, NKJV) coming out of their holes. Perhaps it was an earthworm also that God appointed to strike at the root of Jonah’s shade (Jon 4:7). The psalmist lamented: "I am a worm... and despised" (Psa 22:6). Job claimed kinship with the lowly worm (Job 17:14). (Isa 41:14) uses "you worm Jacob" as a metaphor of weakness. The Jews associated worms and fire with the place reserved for the ungodly dead Isa 66:24; Mar 9:44; Mar 9:48.

A worm is a small, soft-bodied creature. In the Bible, the word usually means insect larvae, often maggots (the young of flies).

Maggots are mentioned in stories where they feed on:

• spoiled manna (Exodus 16:19–20),

• corpses (Job 21:26; Isaiah 14:11), or

• open wounds (Job 7:5).

Mark 9:48 refers to a maggot that eats dead flesh. In Acts 12:23, King Herod suffers a fatal disease caused by worms. Sometimes “worm” means the young of other insects (Isaiah 51:8).

In Deuteronomy 28:39 and Jonah 4:7 the vine weevil (Cochylis ambiguella) is likely meant. This pest damages vines by boring into their stems.

Calling a person a “worm” is a way of showing extreme humility or shame (Job 25:6; Psalm 22:6).

See also Animals.

Aquifer Open Bible Dictionary © 2026 Mission Mutual, an adaptation of the Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.