Topical Encyclopedia
The grasshopper, a small, winged insect known for its ability to leap great distances, is mentioned several times in the Bible. It often serves as a symbol of insignificance or overwhelming numbers, depending on the context. The grasshopper's presence in Scripture provides insight into the natural world and its metaphorical use in illustrating spiritual truths.
Symbol of Insignificance and FrailtyIn the book of Numbers, the Israelites, upon spying out the Promised Land, describe themselves as grasshoppers in comparison to the inhabitants of the land. This imagery conveys a sense of smallness and vulnerability.
Numbers 13:33 states, "We even saw the Nephilim there—the descendants of Anak that come from the Nephilim! We seemed like grasshoppers in our own sight, and we must have seemed the same to them."
Similarly, in Isaiah, the grasshopper is used to depict the insignificance of humanity in comparison to the majesty and power of God.
Isaiah 40:22 declares, "He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in."
Symbol of Overwhelming NumbersThe book of Judges uses the imagery of grasshoppers to describe the vast numbers of the Midianite army.
Judges 6:5 notes, "For the Midianites came with their livestock and their tents like a swarm of locusts. They and their camels were too numerous to count, and they entered the land to lay waste to it." Here, the grasshopper represents an overwhelming force, emphasizing the dire situation faced by the Israelites.
Symbol of DestructionIn the prophetic literature, grasshoppers are often associated with destruction and judgment. The prophet Joel speaks of a locust plague that devastates the land, a calamity that includes grasshoppers as part of the swarm.
Joel 1:4 states, "What the devouring locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; what the swarming locust has left, the young locust has eaten; and what the young locust has left, the destroying locust has eaten." This passage highlights the destructive power of these insects, serving as a metaphor for divine judgment.
Symbol of TransienceThe grasshopper is also used to illustrate the fleeting nature of life. In Ecclesiastes, the grasshopper is mentioned in the context of old age and the brevity of human existence.
Ecclesiastes 12:5 says, "when men fear the heights and dangers of the road, when the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and the caper berry shrivels—for then man goes to his eternal home and mourners walk the streets." This imagery underscores the transient nature of life and the inevitability of death.
In summary, the grasshopper in Scripture serves as a multifaceted symbol, representing insignificance, overwhelming numbers, destruction, and the transience of life. Its presence in the biblical text provides a rich tapestry of meaning, reflecting both the natural world and deeper spiritual truths.
Nave's Topical Index
Numbers 13:33And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
Nave's Topical IndexEcclesiastes 12:5
Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goes to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:
Nave's Topical Index
Isaiah 40:22
It is he that sits on the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretches out the heavens as a curtain, and spreads them out as a tent to dwell in:
Nave's Topical Index
Nahum 3:17
Your crowned are as the locusts, and your captains as the great grasshoppers, which camp in the hedges in the cold day, but when the sun rises they flee away, and their place is not known where they are.
Nave's Topical Index
Library
On the Clause, and Shall Come in Glory to Judge the Quick and the...
... And thegrasshopper shall grow in substance (that... testimonies out of the divine
Scriptures,concerning the kingdom... time as the apostasy ingeneral, but looks...
Introduction
... We have been told, also, of ageneral decay of... They searched theScriptures not to
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The Care of the Soul Urged as the one Thing Needful
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The Second Theological Oration.
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than my ownScriptures"so mighty... 3459] It was a verygeneral belief in...
Tit. 2:06 Thoughts for Young Men
... muscular strength is so wasted, that agrasshopper seems a... Young men, lay to heart
theScriptures here quoted... third place, I wish to give somegeneral counsels....
Letter xxii. To Eustochium.
... Be like thegrasshopper and make night musical... meet together to sing psalms and read
theScriptures according to... not only gold and silver ingeneral, but earth...
The Resurrection of the Dead, and Eternal Judgment:
... are as far below us as agrasshopper is below... give an account of all things, ingeneral,
that they... be, it is evident from divers places of the holyScriptures:...
The Desire of the Righteous Granted;
... to the text, so as otherscriptures generally do... These, I say, aregeneral terms,
and comprehend not... prediction or prophecy, and that bothconcerning the wicked...
The Holy War,
... Being worsted in ageneral engagement, the doubters are... and all his spiritual supplies
from the sacredScriptures.... somewhat to say to youconcerning your King...
An Exposition on the First Ten Chapters of Genesis, and Part of...
... of long and earnest study of the holyscriptures.... to the church what she should believe
concerning this matter... Isaiah 6:8). To thesegeneral expressions might...
Resources
Is it wrong to kill spiders or step on bugs? | GotQuestions.orgGrasshopper: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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