Full Ps 22:6. Hebrew tola'at (תּוֹלַעַת) is not the generic word for worm — it is specifically Coccus ilicis (now Kermes vermilio), the crimson-dye worm. When giving birth, the female worm affixes herself to a tree, dies, and stains the tree scarlet; the scarlet pigment yields the crimson dye (tola'at shani) used in Tabernacle textiles. Ps 22 is the Messianic lament; v. 1 is quoted by Christ on the cross (Matt 27:46). Entomological note: source-cited (cf. Bullinger, Companion Bible Appendix 41; Driver, A Treatise on the Use of the Tenses in Hebrew) — not AI-generated.
The Crimson Worm of Psalm 22
Hebrew **tola'at shani** — the specific crimson-dye worm the Messiah calls himself.
Primary passage:Psalm 22:6 →
Commentary
Featured voice
John Calvin
Commentaries
1. My God! The first verse contains two remarkable sentences, which, although apparently contrary to each other, are yet ever entering into the minds of the godly together. When the Psalmist speaks of being forsaken and cast off by God, it seems to be the complaint of a man in…
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