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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadInternational Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Worm; Scarlet-Worm
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wuÌ‚rm, skar´let-wuÌ‚rm: (1) תּולע, toÌ„lā‛, תּולעה, toÌ„lē‛aÌ„h, תּולעת, toÌ„la‛ath, תּלעת, toÌ„lā‛ath, from root תּלע, taÌ„lā‛; compare Arabic tala, “to stretch the neckâ€; usually with ש×× ×™, shaÌ„nı̄, “bright†(of Arabic sanaÌ„, “a flash of lightningâ€), the term ש×× ×™ תּולעת, toÌ„la‛ath shaÌ„nı̄ being translated “scarlet†in English Versions of the Bible; also in the same sense the following: תּולעת ש×× ×™, shenı̄ toÌ„la‛ath (), תּולע, toÌ„lā‛ (, English Versions of the Bible “crimsonâ€), ש×× ×™×, shaÌ„nı̄m (; , English Versions of the Bible “scarletâ€), ש×× ×™, shaÌ„nı̄ (; ; ); also κοÌκκος, koÌkkos, and κοÌκκινος, koÌkkinos (; ; , ; , ). (2) רמּה, rimmaÌ„h, from root רמ×, raÌ„mam, “to putrefy†(); compare Arab ramm, “to become carious†(of bone). (3) סס, sÌ£aÌ„sÌ£ (only in ); compare Arabic suÌ‚s, “wormâ€; σηÌÏ‚, seÌ„Ìs, “moth†(). (4) זחלי×, zohÌ£ălı̄m (, the King James Version “worms,†the Revised Version (British and American) “crawling thingsâ€), from root זחל, zaÌ„hÌ£al, “to crawl.†(5) σκωÌληξ, skoÌ„ÌleÌ„x (), σκωληκοÌβÏωτος, skoÌ„leÌ„koÌbroÌ„tos, “eaten of worms†().
Besides the numerous passages, mostly in Ex, referring to the tabernacle, where tōla‛ath, with shānı̄, is translated “scarlet,†there are eight pasages in which it is translated “worm.†These denote worms which occur in decaying organic matter or in sores (; ; ); or which are destructive to plants (; ); or the word is used as a term of contempt or depreciation (; ; ). Rimmāh is used in the same senses. It occurs with tōla‛ath as a synonym in ; ; . In , English Versions of the Bible, rendering both tōla‛ath and rimmāh by “worm,†'ĕnōsh and 'ādhām by “man,†and introducing twice “that is a,†makes a painfully monotonous distich out of the concise and elegant original, in which not one word of the first part is repeated in the second. Ṣāṣ (), English Versions of the Bible “worm,†is the larva of the clothes-moth. See MOTH. In none of the cases here considered are worms, properly so called, denoted, but various insect larvae which are commonly called “worms,†e.g. “silkworm,†“apple-worm,†“meal-worm,†etc. These larvae are principally those of Diptera or flies, Coleoptera or beetles, and Lepidoptera or butterflies and moths.
Ṭōla‛ath shānı̄, “scarlet,†is the scarlet-worm, Cermes vermilio, a scale-insect which feeds upon the oak, and which is used for producing a red dye. It is called by the Arabs dudeh, “a worm,†a word also used for various insect larvae. It is also called ḳirmiz, whence†crimson†and the generic name Cermes. This scarlet-worm or scale-insect is one of the family Coccidae of the order Rhynchota or Hemiptera. The female is wingless and adheres to its favorite plant by its long, sucking beak, by which it extracts the sap on which it lives. After once attaching itself it remains motionless, and when dead its body shelters the eggs which have been deposited beneath it. The males, which are smaller than the females, pass through a complete metamorphosis and develop wings. The dye is made from the dried bodies of the females. Other species yielding red dyes are Porphyrophora polonica and Coccus cacti. The last named is the Mexican cochineal insect which feeds on the cactus and which largely supplanted the others after the discovery of America. Aniline dyes have in turn to a great extent superseded these natural organic colors, which, however, continue to be unsurpassed for some purposes. See COLORS.