Meaning literally, “place of destruction,” Abaddon refers to the realm of the dead in the Hebrew Bible. Occurring mainly in wisdom literature, Abaddon is synonymous with Sheol (Job 26.6.; Prov. 15.11; 27.20), with Death personified (Job 28.22), and with the grave (Ps. 88.10–12). Occasionally the imagery suggests punishment; more often it indicates the inevitability and finality of death. In the New Testament, Abaddon is mentioned once (Rev. 9.11), not as the place of the dead but rather as the name of the angel of the abyss who leads a demonic horde of monstrous locusts against most of humanity. Rabbinic literature later describes Abaddon as part of Gehenna.

See also Hell


Steven Friesen