Bible Dictionary
Dictionary
SCOR'PION, noun [Latin scorpio; Gr. probably altered from the Oriental.]
1. In zoology, an insect of the genus Scorpio, or rather the genus itself, containing several species, natives of southern or warm climates. This animal has eight feet, two claws in front, eight eyes, three on each side of the thorax and two on the back, and a long jointed tail ending in a pointed weapon or sting. It is found in the south of Europe, where it seldom exceeds four inches in length. In tropical climates, it grows to a foot in length, and resembles a lobster. The sting of this animal is sometimes fatal to life.
2. In Scripture, a painful scourge; a kind of whip armed with points like a scorpion's tail. 1 Kings 12:11.
Malicious and crafty men, who delight in injuring others, are compared to scorpions. Ezekiel 2:6.
3. In astronomy, the eighth sign of the zodiac, which the sun enters, Oct. 23.
4. A sea fish. [Latin scorpius.]
Water scorpion an aquatic insect of the genus Nepa.