Topical Bible: Horror

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Topical Encyclopedia

Definition and Context:
Horror, in the biblical sense, often refers to a profound sense of fear, dread, or awe, typically in response to the presence or judgment of God, or the realization of sin and its consequences. It can also describe the reaction to witnessing or contemplating acts of evil and the resulting divine retribution.

Biblical Instances and Themes:

1. Divine Judgment:
Horror is frequently associated with the judgment of God upon nations and individuals who have turned away from His commandments. In the prophetic books, horror is depicted as a response to the impending wrath of God. For example, in Ezekiel 7:18 , the prophet describes the reaction of the people to God's judgment: "They will put on sackcloth, and horror will cover them. Shame will be on all faces and baldness on all their heads."

2. Sin and Its Consequences:
The Bible often portrays horror as a natural response to the recognition of sin and its devastating effects. In Psalm 119:53 , the psalmist expresses horror at the wickedness of those who forsake God's law: "Rage has taken hold of me because of the wicked who reject Your law."

3. Visions and Revelations:
Prophets and seers in the Bible sometimes experience horror as part of their visions or revelations from God. Daniel, for instance, is deeply troubled by the visions he receives, which reveal future events and divine judgments. In Daniel 7:15 , he states, "I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit, and the visions in my mind alarmed me."

4. Moral and Spiritual Decay:
Horror is also used to describe the reaction to moral and spiritual decay within a society. The prophets often lament the state of Israel and Judah, expressing horror at their idolatry and unfaithfulness. Jeremiah 2:12 captures this sentiment: "Be appalled at this, O heavens; be shocked and utterly desolate, declares the LORD."

5. Fear of the Lord:
While horror can be a response to sin and judgment, it is also related to the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). This fear is not merely terror but a profound respect and awe for God's holiness and power. The recognition of God's majesty and righteousness can evoke a sense of horror at one's own unworthiness and the gravity of sin.

Theological Implications:

Horror, as depicted in the Bible, serves as a powerful reminder of the seriousness of sin and the reality of divine judgment. It underscores the need for repentance and the pursuit of righteousness. The biblical portrayal of horror calls believers to a deeper awareness of God's holiness and the consequences of turning away from His commandments. It also highlights the importance of maintaining a reverent fear of the Lord, which leads to wisdom and spiritual growth.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (n.) A bristling up; a rising into roughness; tumultuous movement.

2. (n.) A shaking, shivering, or shuddering, as in the cold fit which precedes a fever; in old medical writings, a chill of less severity than a rigor, and more marked than an algor.

3. (n.) A painful emotion of fear, dread, and abhorrence; a shuddering with terror and detestation; the feeling inspired by something frightful and shocking.

4. (n.) That which excites horror or dread, or is horrible; gloom; dreariness.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

HORROR

hor'-er ('emah, pallatsuth): In Genesis 15:12 'emah (often rendered "terror") is translated "horror," "a horror of great darkness"; pallatsuth, "trembling," "horror" (Psalm 55:5 Ezekiel 7:18); zal`aphah, "glow," "heat" (Psalm 119:53, the Revised Version (British and American) "hot indignation," margin "horror"); compare Psalm 11:6 Lamentations 5:10. For "trembling" (Job 21:6) and for "fearfulness" (Isaiah 21:4) the Revised Version (British and American) has "horror." "Horror" does not occur in the New Testament, but in 2 Maccabees 3:17 we have "The man was so compassed with horror" (phrikasmos), the Revised Version (British and American) "shuddering."

Strong's Hebrew

8078. shimmamon -- horror
... 8077, 8078. shimmamon. 8079 . horror. Transliteration: shimmamon Phonetic
Spelling: (shim-maw-mone') Short Definition: horror. Word ...
/hebrew/8078.htm - 6k

8047. shammah -- waste, horror
... 8046b, 8047. shammah. 8048 . waste, horror. Transliteration: shammah
Phonetic Spelling: (sham-maw') Short Definition: desolation. ...
/hebrew/8047.htm - 6k

8178a. saar -- horror
... horror. Transliteration: saar Short Definition: horribly. Word Origin from the same
as sear Definition horror NASB Word Usage horribly (2), horror (1). ...
/hebrew/8178a.htm - 5k

4923. meshammah -- devastation, waste, horror
... 4922, 4923. meshammah. 4924 . devastation, waste, horror. Transliteration:
meshammah Phonetic Spelling: (mesh-am-maw') Short Definition: waste. ...
/hebrew/4923.htm - 6k

8186a. shaarurah -- a horror, horrible thing
... 8186, 8186a. shaarurah. 8186b . a horror, horrible thing. Transliteration:
shaarurah Short Definition: thing. Word Origin from the ...
/hebrew/8186a.htm - 5k

8175c. saar -- to bristle (with horror)
... 8175b, 8175c. saar. 8176 . to bristle (with horror). Transliteration:
saar Short Definition: afraid. Word Origin denominative verb ...
/hebrew/8175c.htm - 5k

8606. tiphletseth -- a shuddering, horror
... 8605, 8606. tiphletseth. 8607 . a shuddering, horror. Transliteration: tiphletseth
Phonetic Spelling: (tif-leh'-tseth) Short Definition: terror. ...
/hebrew/8606.htm - 6k

8186b. shaaruriyyah -- a horror, horrible thing
... 8186a, 8186b. shaaruriyyah. 8187 . a horror, horrible thing.
Transliteration: shaaruriyyah Short Definition: thing. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/8186b.htm - 5k

8178. sa'ar -- horror
sa'ar. 8177, 8178. sa'ar. 8178a . horror. Transliteration: sa'ar Phonetic Spelling:
(sah'-ar) Short Definition: affrighted. affrighted, horribly, sore, storm ...
/hebrew/8178.htm - 5k

8186. sha'aruwrah -- a horror, horrible thing
... sha'aruwrah. 8186a . a horror, horrible thing. Transliteration: sha'aruwrah Phonetic
Spelling: (shah-ar-oo-raw') Short Definition: thing. horrible thing ...
/hebrew/8186.htm - 5k

Library

Abram's Horror of Great Darkness.
... SERMON V. Abram's Horror of great Darkness. ... "And when the sun was going down, a deep
sleep fell upon Abram; and lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.". ...
/.../lee/sermons on various important subjects/sermon v abrams horror of.htm

What Moody Saw in the Chamber of Horror.
... What Moody Saw in the Chamber of Horror. When I was in London I went into a
wax work there"Tassands"and I went into the chamber of Horror. ...
/.../moody/moodys anecdotes and illustrations/what moody saw in the.htm

This is what we Look Upon with Horror in Your Party...
... Book III. Chapter 28. " 33. This is what we look upon with horror in
your party? "33. This is what we look upon with horror ...
/.../writings in connection with the donatist controversy /chapter 28 33 this.htm

Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences
... This fear and horror is sufficient of itself alone (to say nothing of other things)
to constitute the penalty of purgatory, since it is very near to the horror ...
/.../luther/martin luthers 95 theses/disputation of doctor martin luther.htm

The True Spirit of Missions.
... gleam. Whichever way the eye turned, there was darkness"horror"despair. ... vain.
Effort and means have given place to horror and despair. ...
/.../dibble/thoughts on missions/chapter i the true spirit.htm

Dr. Martin Luther Concerning Penitence and Indulgences.
... 15. This fear and horror is sufficient by itself, to say nothing of other things,
to constitute the pains of purgatory, since it is very near to the horror of ...
/.../luther/first principles of the reformation/disputation of dr martin luther.htm

On Reading.
... for you, because they will not fall under your hands, and even when they would you
could not open one of them without flinging it away with horror;"in this ...
/.../sainte-foi/serious hours of a young lady/chapter xxi on reading.htm

The Fourth Word
... The simplest and most obvious meaning of these words is that, whatever be the
physiological meaning and necessity of human death, its peculiar horror and dread ...
//christianbookshelf.org/beibitz/gloria crucis/v the fourth word.htm

Letter xxi. --Things Painful to Nature.
... your eyes to the festering sores which were gradually consuming you, in order that
the sight of the matter which ran from them would inspire you with horror. ...
/.../abandonment to divine providence/letter xxi things painful to nature.htm

Gethsemane
... It partly arose from the horror of his soul when fully comprehending the
meaning of sin. Brethren, when you were first convinced ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 9 1863/gethsemane.htm

Thesaurus

Horror (51 Occurrences)
... 4. (n.) That which excites horror or dread, or is horrible; gloom;
dreariness. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. HORROR. ...
/h/horror.htm - 23k

Abhor (23 Occurrences)
... 1. (vt) To shrink back with shuddering from; to regard with horror or detestation;
to feel excessive repugnance toward; to detest to extremity; to loathe. ...
/a/abhor.htm - 14k

Horrify (1 Occurrence)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (vt) To cause to feel horror; to strike or impress with
horror; as, the sight horrified the beholders. Multi-Version Concordance ...
/h/horrify.htm - 6k

Astonishment (51 Occurrences)
... the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be tossed back and
forth among all the kingdoms of the earth, to be an object of horror, and an ...
/a/astonishment.htm - 24k

Imprecation (2 Occurrences)
... forth on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall my wrath be poured forth on you,
when you shall enter into Egypt; and you shall be an object of horror, and an ...
/i/imprecation.htm - 7k

Shuddering (2 Occurrences)
... & vb. n.) of Shudder. Multi-Version Concordance Shuddering (2 Occurrences). Job
21:6 When I remember, I am troubled. Horror takes hold of my flesh. (See RSV). ...
/s/shuddering.htm - 7k

Seizes (16 Occurrences)
... Job 21:6 When I remember, I am troubled. Horror takes hold of my flesh. ... (See RSV).
Psalms 119:53 Horror hath seized me, Because of the wicked forsaking Thy law. ...
/s/seizes.htm - 10k

Shrink (10 Occurrences)
... 2. (vi) To withdraw or retire, as from danger; to decline action from fear;
to recoil, as in fear, horror, or distress. 3. (vi) To ...
/s/shrink.htm - 10k

Horrible (12 Occurrences)
... (a.) Exciting, or tending to excite, horror or fear; dreadful; terrible; shocking;
hideous; as, a horrible sight; a horrible story; a horrible murder. Int. ...
/h/horrible.htm - 11k

Overwhelmed (33 Occurrences)
...Horror has overwhelmed me. ... Isaiah 21:4 My heart fluttereth, horror hath affrighted
me; the twilight that I desired hath been turned into trembling unto me. ...
/o/overwhelmed.htm - 15k

Resources

Should a Christian watch scary movies/horror movies? | GotQuestions.org

What does the Bible say about zombies? | GotQuestions.org

What does the Bible say about cannibalism? Is there cannibalism in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

Horror: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus

Concordance

Horror (51 Occurrences)

Romans 12:9
Let your love be perfectly sincere. Regard with horror what is evil; cling to what is right.
(WEY)

Genesis 15:12
And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.
(KJV ASV DBY WBS)

Deuteronomy 28:25
Jehovah will cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies; thou shalt go out one way against them, and shalt flee seven ways before them: and thou shalt be tossed to and from among all the kingdoms of the earth.
(See JPS RSV NIV)

Deuteronomy 28:37
You shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples where Yahweh shall lead you away.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

2 Chronicles 29:8
Wherefore the wrath of Jehovah was upon Judah and Jerusalem, and he hath delivered them to be tossed to and fro, to be an astonishment, and a hissing, as ye see with your eyes.
(See JPS NAS RSV NIV)

2 Chronicles 30:7
Don't be like your fathers, and like your brothers, who trespassed against Yahweh, the God of their fathers, so that he gave them up to desolation, as you see.
(See NAS NIV)

Job 18:20
Those who come after shall be astonished at his day, as those who went before were frightened.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Job 21:6
When I remember, I am troubled. Horror takes hold of my flesh.
(WEB JPS ASV NAS)

Psalms 31:11
Because of all my adversaries I have become utterly contemptible to my neighbors, A fear to my acquaintances. Those who saw me on the street fled from me.
(See RSV)

Psalms 55:5
Fearfulness and trembling have come on me. Horror has overwhelmed me.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Psalms 88:8
You have taken my friends from me. You have made me an abomination to them. I am confined, and I can't escape.
(See RSV)

Psalms 119:53
Horror hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law.
(KJV WBS YLT)

Isaiah 7:16
For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land whose two kings thou abhorrest shall be forsaken.
(See JPS)

Isaiah 21:4
My heart flutters. Horror has frightened me. The twilight that I desired has been turned into trembling for me.
(WEB ASV DBY NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 2:12
Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye exceeding amazed, saith the LORD.
(See NIV)

Jeremiah 8:21
For the destruction of the daughter of my people I am broken: I am dressed in the clothing of grief; fear has taken me in its grip.
(See NIV)

Jeremiah 15:4
And I will cause them to be tossed to and fro among all the kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.
(See JPS NAS RSV)

Jeremiah 18:16
to make their land an astonishment, and a perpetual hissing; everyone who passes thereby shall be astonished, and shake his head.
(See RSV)

Jeremiah 19:8
I will make this city an astonishment, and a hissing; everyone who passes thereby shall be astonished and hiss because of all its plagues.
(See RSV)

Jeremiah 24:9
I will even give them up to be tossed to and fro among all the kingdoms of the earth for evil; to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them.
(See JPS RSV)

Jeremiah 25:9
behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, says Yahweh, and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against its inhabitants, and against all these nations around; and I will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and a hissing, and perpetual desolations.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 25:11
This whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
(See NAS)

Jeremiah 25:18
to wit, Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and its kings, and its princes, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, a hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;
(See NAS NIV)

Jeremiah 25:38
He has left his covert, as the lion; for their land is become an astonishment because of the fierceness of the oppressing sword, and because of his fierce anger.
(See NAS)

Jeremiah 29:18
I will pursue after them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth, to be an object of horror, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations where I have driven them;
(WEB JPS NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 34:17
Therefore thus saith Jehovah: ye have not hearkened unto me, to proclaim liberty, every man to his brother, and every man to his neighbor: behold, I proclaim unto you a liberty, saith Jehovah, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be tossed to and fro among all the kingdoms of the earth.
(See JPS RSV)

Jeremiah 42:18
For thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: As my anger and my wrath has been poured forth on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall my wrath be poured forth on you, when you shall enter into Egypt; and you shall be an object of horror, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach; and you shall see this place no more.
(WEB NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 44:12
I will take the remnant of Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and they shall all be consumed; in the land of Egypt shall they fall; they shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine; they shall die, from the least even to the greatest, by the sword and by the famine; and they shall be an object of horror, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach.
(WEB NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 44:22
so that Yahweh could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which you have committed; therefore your land has become a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without inhabitant, as it is this day.
(See NAS)

Jeremiah 48:39
How is it broken down! how do they wail! how has Moab turned the back with shame! so shall Moab become a derision and a terror to all who are around him.
(See RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 49:13
For I have sworn by myself, says Yahweh, that Bozrah shall become an astonishment, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all its cities shall be perpetual wastes.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 49:16
As for your terror, the pride of your heart has deceived you, O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, who hold the height of the hill: though you should make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there, says Yahweh.
(See RSV)

Jeremiah 49:17
Edom shall become an astonishment: everyone who passes by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss at all its plagues.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 50:3
For out of the north there comes up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they are fled, they are gone, both man and animal.
(See NAS)

Jeremiah 50:23
How is the hammer of the whole earth cut apart and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!
(See NAS RSV)

Jeremiah 50:38
A drought is upon her waters, and they shall be dried up; for it is a land of graven images, and they are mad over idols.
(See JPS)

Jeremiah 51:37
Babylon shall become heaps, a dwelling place for jackals, an astonishment, and a hissing, without inhabitant.
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 51:41
How is Sheshach taken! and the praise of the whole earth seized! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Jeremiah 51:43
Her cities are become a desolation, a dry land, and a desert, a land in which no man dwells, neither does any son of man pass thereby.
(See NAS RSV)

Ezekiel 4:16
Moreover he said to me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with fearfulness; and they shall drink water by measure, and in dismay:
(See NAS)

Ezekiel 5:15
So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment, to the nations that are around you, when I shall execute judgments on you in anger and in wrath, and in wrathful rebukes; (I, Yahweh, have spoken it;)
(See NAS RSV NIV)

Ezekiel 7:18
They shall also gird themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be on all faces, and baldness on all their heads.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS RSV)

Ezekiel 7:25
Destruction cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none.
(See JPS)

Ezekiel 7:27
The king shall mourn, and the prince shall be clothed with desolation, and the hands of the people of the land shall be troubled: I will do to them after their way, and according to their own judgments will I judge them; and they shall know that I am Yahweh.
(See NAS)

Ezekiel 12:19
and tell the people of the land, Thus says the Lord Yahweh concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the land of Israel: They shall eat their bread with fearfulness, and drink their water in dismay, that her land may be desolate, and despoiled of all that is therein, because of the violence of all those who dwell therein.
(See NAS)

Ezekiel 20:26
and I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that opens the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am Yahweh.
(See NIV)

Ezekiel 23:33
You shall be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and desolation, with the cup of your sister Samaria.
(See NAS RSV)

Ezekiel 23:46
For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I will bring up a company against them, and will give them to be tossed to and fro and robbed.
(See JPS)

Ezekiel 27:35
All the inhabitants of the isles are appalled at thee, and their kings are horribly afraid, they are troubled in their countenance;
(See NIV)

Ezekiel 32:10
Yea, I will make many peoples appalled at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish My sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall.
(See NIV)

Daniel 8:13
Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who spoke, How long shall be the vision concerning the continual burnt offering, and the disobedience that makes desolate, to give both the sanctuary and the army to be trodden under foot?
(See NAS)

Subtopics

Horror

Horror Movies

Related Terms

Abhor (23 Occurrences)

Horrify (1 Occurrence)

Astonishment (51 Occurrences)

Imprecation (2 Occurrences)

Shuddering (2 Occurrences)

Seizes (16 Occurrences)

Shrink (10 Occurrences)

Horrible (12 Occurrences)