Hornet

The hornet bears a general resemblance to the common wasp, only it is larger. It is exceedingly fierce and voracious, especially in hot climates and its sting is frequently dangerous. In Scripture the hornet is referred to only by the means which Jehovah employed for the extirpation of the Canaanites. (Exodus 23:28; 7:20; Joshua 24:12) Wisd. 12:8. (It is said that the Phaselitae, a Phoenician people, were driven from their locality by hornets; and other examples are given in Paxton's "Illustrations of Scripture," 1:303.--ED.)

Hornet

A well-known insect, which has a powerful sting. The Lord drove out many of the Canaanites before Israel by means of this insect, Exodus 23:28 De 7:20 Joshua 24:12. The Israelites, being in the sandy wilderness, would escape it. Compare FLY.

Hebrews tsir'ah, "stinging", (Exodus 23:28; Deuteronomy 7:20; Joshua 24:12). The word is used in these passages as referring to some means by which the Canaanites were to be driven out from before the Israelites. Some have supposed that the word is used in a metaphorical sense as the symbol of some panic which would seize the people as a "terror of God" (Genesis 35:5), the consternation with which God would inspire the Canaanites. In Palestine there are four species of hornets, differing from our hornets, being larger in size, and they are very abundant. They "attack human beings in a very furious manner." "The furious attack of a swarm of hornets drives cattle and horses to madness, and has even caused the death of the animals." (n.) A large, strong wasp. The European species (Vespa crabro) is of a dark brown and yellow color. It is very pugnacious, and its sting is very severe. Its nest is constructed of a paperlike material, and the layers of comb are hung together by columns. The American white-faced hornet (V. maculata) is larger and has similar habits.HORNET

hor'-net (tsir`ah; compare tsor`ah, "Zorah" (Judges 13:2, etc.); also compare tsara`ath, "leprosy" (Leviticus 13:2, etc.); from tsara`, "to smite"; Septuagint sphekia, literally, "wasp's nest"): Hornets are mentioned only in Exodus 23:28 Deuteronomy 7:20 Joshua 24:12. All three references are to the miraculous interposition of God in driving out before the Israelites the original inhabitants of the promised land. There has been much speculation as to whether hornets are literally meant. The following seems to throw some light on this question (Exodus 23:20, 27, 28): "Behold, I send an angel before thee, to keep thee by the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.. I will send my terror before thee, and will discomfit all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. And I will send the hornet before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee." The "terror" of Exodus 23:27 may well be considered to be typified by the "hornet" of 23:28, the care for the Israelites (23:20) being thrown into marked contrast with the confusion of their enemies. Compare Isaiah 7:18, where the fly and the bee symbolize the military forces of Egypt and Assyria: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that Yahweh will hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria."

Hornets and wasps belong to the family Vespidae of the order Hymenoptera. Both belong to the genus Vespa, the hornets being distinguished by their large size. Both hornets and wasps are abundant in Palestine (compare Zorah, which may mean "town of hornets"). a large kind is called in Arabic debbur, which recalls the Hebrew debhorah, "bee." They sting fiercely, but not unless molested.

Alfred Ely Day

6880. tsirah -- hornets
... tsirah. 6881 . hornets. Transliteration: tsirah Phonetic Spelling: (tsir-aw')
Short Definition: hornet. ... hornet. From tsara'; a wasp (as stinging) -- hornet. ...
/hebrew/6880.htm - 6k

Hell.
... law, bigger and sharper and more venomous and poisonous to the soul, than if it
could be committed without them; and this is the sting of the hornet, the great ...
//christianbookshelf.org/bunyan/the riches of bunyan/xxviii hell.htm

The Vanguard and Rereward of the Church
... They came into the country of the mighty ones, the sons of Anak, men that were of
the race of giants; but Jehovah had gone before them; the hornet was sent and ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 5 1859/the vanguard and rereward of.htm

The Decalogue: ii. --Man and Man
... Find a man who yields to his desires after his neighbour's goods, and you find a
man who will break all commandments like a hornet in a spider's web. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture k/the decalogue ii man and man.htm

Heaven's Nurse Children
... The Lord had also sent the hornet before them"some terrible and deadly insect which
had distressed and driven out the Canaanites, and, in addition to these ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 17 1871/heavens nurse children.htm

A Treatise of the Fear of God;
... Now this fear is also, as you here see, called anguish, and in another place, an
hornet; for it, and the soul that it falls upon, do greet each other, as boys ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a treatise of the fear.htm

"As Thy Days, So Shall Thy Strength Be"
... upon Sodom and Gomorrah? Who chased out the Canaanite with the hornet,
and made a way of escape for his people Israel? Who was it ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 4 1858/as thy days so shall.htm

The Obedience of Faith
... good men would be grieved, the cause would be weakened, and we ourselves should
get into a world of trouble, and put our hands into a hornet's nest." There is ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 37 1891/the obedience of faith.htm

Israel and Britain. A Note of Warning
... or the deity of Christ?". I know I shall stir a hornet's nest by these honest
rebukes but I cannot help it. I am burdened and distressed ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 31 1885/israel and britain a note.htm

Monos
... by the natives to a fish which they call 'The Siren,' or 'Musico.' At first, he
says, he thought it was produced by a fly, or hornet of extraordinary size; but ...
//christianbookshelf.org/kingsley/at last/chapter vi monos.htm

The Greatness of the Soul,
The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3. <. ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the greatness of the soul.htm

Hornet (3 Occurrences)
... The American white-faced hornet (V. maculata) is larger and has similar
habits. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. HORNET. ...
/h/hornet.htm - 11k

Insects (17 Occurrences)
... to them: ant, bald locust, bee, beetle, cankerworm, caterpillar, creeping thing,
cricket, crimson, flea, fly, gnat, grasshopper, honey, hornet, locust, louse ...
/i/insects.htm - 14k

Hornets (2 Occurrences)
... Deuteronomy 7:20 Moreover the LORD thy God will send the hornet among them, until
they that are left, and they that hide themselves, perish from before thee. ...
/h/hornets.htm - 6k

Ahead (98 Occurrences)
... (See NAS NIV). Exodus 23:28 I will send the hornet before you, which will drive
out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before you. (See NAS NIV). ...
/a/ahead.htm - 33k

Zoology
... Sand Lizard (sv LIZARD) Amphibians: Frog Fishes: Fish (in general) Mollusks: Snail,
Murex (Purple) Insects: HYMENOPTERA: Ant, Bee, Hornet LEPIDOPTERA: Clothes ...
/z/zoology.htm - 18k

Drave (13 Occurrences)
... Joshua 24:12 And I sent the hornet before you, which drave them out from before
you, even the two kings of the Amorites; but not with thy sword, nor with thy ...
/d/drave.htm - 10k

Casteth (54 Occurrences)
... Joshua 24:12 And I send before you the hornet, and it casteth them out from your
presence -- two kings of the Amorite -- not by thy sword, nor by thy bow. ...
/c/casteth.htm - 22k

Survivors (49 Occurrences)
... (See NIV). Deuteronomy 7:20 Moreover Yahweh your God will send the hornet among
them, until those who are left, and hide themselves, perish from before you. ...
/s/survivors.htm - 21k

Hittite (45 Occurrences)
... Exodus 23:28 I will send the hornet before you, which will drive out the
Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before you. ...
/h/hittite.htm - 22k

Hivite (25 Occurrences)
... Exodus 23:28 I will send the hornet before you, which will drive out the
Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before you. ...
/h/hivite.htm - 17k

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