A blazing star falls from the sky… the waters turn bitter… and people die. Is Wormwood a literal event, a spiritual warning, or something we still haven’t seen yet? #WormwoodProphecy#RevelationQuestions#EndTimesSymbolism#christianforums#crosswalkforums#forums#crosswalk#faithcommunity#faithforums
In Revelation 8:10–11, a mysterious figure appears in John’s apocalyptic vision: a great star called Wormwood. It falls from heaven, poisoning a third of the rivers and springs. Many die. And just like that, a single word—Wormwood—gets embedded in centuries of prophecy debates, survival speculation, and theological mystery.
But what exactly are we supposed to make of it?
Some believe Wormwood is a literal asteroid or comet yet to hit Earth. Others tie it to nuclear fallout, Chernobyl, or metaphors for moral decay. It’s been linked to everything from contaminated drinking water to global judgment—and even used in modern pop culture to fuel fear and fascination.
Is Wormwood a symbol or a sign?
Has it already happened, or is it still to come?
And what do we do with prophetic imagery that feels terrifying… but isn’t easy to interpret?
“For many, Wormwood is one of the most unsettling elements in Revelation—not just for what it is, but for how little we actually understand it.”
@Dlove782, when the rest of the Bible is silent about a reference in a verse, we have nothing to go on to understand. John’s original audience probably knew, but they aren’t telling us either.
@Dlove782.
Wormwood is a biblical term that literally means “bitterness”. Not bitterness like an unpleasant taste, like bad coffee, but bitter meaning “unable to stomach”, repulsive, disgusting. It is always used in a figurative, metaphorical sense in the scriptures. Jeremiah uses the word methphorically several times, which he often pairs with “gall” which implies toxicity, or something life-threatening. (See Jeremiah 9:15, & 23 15. See also Lamentations 3:19). Amos uses the word as a kind of bitterness that opposes justice and righteousness (which he sees as “sweet”) (See Amos 5:7 & 6:12)
In The Revelation, John is told a burning star’s name is “wormwood” because it fell into a third of the waters and made them bitter (not potable), i.e. toxic; many men died from “the metaphorical water”. We can understand, from Jeremiah and Amos that a third of the earth are driven by a fallen entity to become “unable to be stomached”, noxious, toxic as-it-were by their unrighteous deeds (murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, etc.) and rampant injustice. The result of this bitterness over a third-of-the-earth will be the death of many. Note: the enemy of life (Jesus) is death. When this third trumpet sounds, Jesus removes the restraint from “the death star”, and a full third of the world’s population become bitter (noxious), and many die.
The point of the passage is not to try to decipher what exactly the wormwood star is but that The Resurrected Jesus is having seven trumpets sound in the earth to announce His extreme righteous judgement against the evil of mankind. The first four trumpets announce judgement on the earth that is profoundly horrible, but they are light compared to the remaining three. The bitterness of “wormwood” is less awful than the last three judgements, which will be so horrendous that an angel exclaims: “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!” (Revelation 8:13). The trumpets of judgement were dire warnings and opportunities for mankind to repent of his rebellion, but alas, “…they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts. (Revelation 2:21, 9:20-21, 16:9 & 11).
Hope this helps a little. Don’t worry that we don’t know exactly what the wormwood star is, but rejoice that your name is written in the book of life. There is still time for man to repent, but that time is dwindling.
