Absinthe
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( Hebrew la'anah .)
Wormwood, known for its repulsive bitterness ( Jeremiah 9:15 ; 23:15 ; Deuteronomy 29:18 ; Lamentations 3:19 ; Proverbs 5:4 ). Figuratively it stands for a curse or calamity ( Lamentations 3:15 ), or also for injustice ( Amos 5:7 ; 6:13 ). In Apocalypse 8:11 , the Greek equivalent ho apsinthos is given as a proper name to the star which fell into the waters and made them bitter. The Vulgate renders the Hebrew expression by absinithium , except in Deuteronomy 29:18 , where it translates it amaritudo . It seems that the biblical absinthe is identical with the Artemisia monosperma (Delile), or the Artemisia herba-alba (Asso); or, again, the Artemisia juidaica Linné . (See PLANTS IN BIBLE.)