their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth;
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Revelation 9:8
What does Revelation 9:8 mean?
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Revelation 9:8
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What's striking here is how these terrifying creatures are described with contrasting details: "hair like women's hair" suggests a striking lack of barbarity or perhaps a deceptive appearance, while "teeth like lions' teeth" immediately signals their ferocious, destructive nature. This juxtaposition highlights their alienness and the profound terror they unleash by combining seemingly contradictory traits.
their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth;
English Standard Version (ESV)
John continues his terrifying vision of demonic locusts unleashed from the abyss by a fallen star. These creatures, described as having the power to torment people for five months, are now being given specific, fearsome physical characteristics. Their likeness to earthly locusts is blended with features that emphasize their unnatural ferocity and destructive potential.
Revelation's visions often push beyond our everyday experience. When John describes terrifying creatures, what does he mean by comparing their hair to a woman's and their teeth to a lion's?
These descriptions aren't just about creating a spooky image; they're about conveying a deeper truth.
Disturbing the Familiar
The comparison of their hair to 'women's hair' was striking because, in many ancient cultures, long hair on men wasn't the norm, especially for warriors. This detail, along with the lion-like teeth, deliberately makes these creatures unsettling. They blend familiar elements in a way that feels unnatural and alarming, hinting at something beyond ordinary understanding.
A Sign of Ferocity
The 'teeth like lions' teeth' directly speaks to their destructive power. Lions are apex predators, symbolizing raw strength and a voracious appetite. This comparison emphasizes that these locust-like beings possess a terrifying capacity to devour and destroy, far beyond what a natural insect could achieve.
Why would John use imagery of both natural creatures (locusts) and terrifying predators (lions) to describe this plague? What's he trying to teach us about God's judgment?
This verse, embedded within a larger vision of judgment, points to the complex nature of divine action.
More Than Just Insects
The locusts described here are not mere earthly insects. They are supernatural agents empowered to inflict torment. Their appearance, blending the familiar (locusts, long hair) with the fearsome (lion's teeth), signals that this is a judgment that operates on a spiritual level, designed to cause intense suffering and distress.
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A Warning of Devastation
The lion-like teeth emphasize the relentless and destructive power unleashed. This isn't a gentle correction; it's a full-scale assault aimed at those who have rejected God's authority. It underscores that God's judgment, when enacted, is thorough and devastating, leaving nothing untouched that is not protected by His seal.
The description of the locusts' hair and teeth draws on ancient prophetic warnings, cultural imagery from Persian and Arabic sources, and early Christian interpretations of symbolic threats, painting a terrifying picture of destructive forces unleashed upon the world.
c. 8th century BC
Prophetic Warnings Against Idolatry
Prophets like Joel warned of locust plagues as divine judgment, using vivid imagery of destruction and terror that John later echoes in Revelation.
c. 5th century BC
Persian Influence and Customs
Ancient Persian culture, known for its long hair among men, may have influenced the imagery, linking the appearance of these creatures to foreign and formidable forces.
c. 1st century AD
Early Christian Interpretations
Early church fathers began interpreting the locusts of Revelation as symbolic of various threats, including demonic forces, heretical teachings, and barbarian invasions.
c. 7th century AD— this verse
Rise of Islam
Some scholars connect these locust-like figures to the early Islamic conquests, seeing their rapid spread and devastating impact as fulfilling prophetic descriptions.
c. 7th-8th century AD
Arabian Locust Imagery
Arabic poetry sometimes compared the antennae of natural locusts to women's hair, a cultural reference that may have informed John's symbolic description.
This passage directly describes a devastating invasion with teeth like a lion, providing a clear Old Testament parallel to the ferocious imagery used for these locusts in Revelation.
Jeremiah 51:27This verse mentions 'rough caterpillars' that are understood by some commentators to be locusts, described as having bristling hair, which connects to the 'hair like women's hair' description.
1 Corinthians 11:14Paul discusses long hair being a disgrace for men, suggesting that describing these terrifying creatures as having 'hair like women's hair' would have been seen as a strange and perhaps emasculating characteristic.
Daniel 7:5The vision of a great bear, which represents a kingdom, is described as shaggy and having a 'man-like' aspect, which shares a thematic link with the mixed, unusual human-animalistic descriptions in Revelation.
clarkeRevelation 9:8: "And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions."
Hair as the hair of women - No razor passes upon their flesh. Their hair long, and their beards unshaven. Their teeth were as the teeth of lions - They are ferocious and cruel.
pulpitRevelation 9:8: "And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions."
Verse 8. - And they had hair as the hair of women. This (like the succeeding clause) seems merely the enumeration of an additional feature, in which these creatures resembled locusts, and which helped to establish their claim to the name. The antennae of the insect are probably referred to. Wordsworth sees here an allusion to the flowing hair of Mohammed and the Saracens. And their teeth were a…
What's striking here is how these terrifying creatures are described with contrasting details: "hair like women's hair" suggests a striking lack of barbarity or perhaps a deceptive appearance, while "teeth like lions' teeth" immediately signals their ferocious, destructive nature. This juxtaposition highlights their alienness and the profound terror they unleash by combining seemingly contradictory traits.
John continues his terrifying vision of demonic locusts unleashed from the abyss by a fallen star. These creatures, described as having the power to torment people for five months, are now being given specific, fearsome physical characteristics. Their likeness to earthly locusts is blended with features that emphasize their unnatural ferocity and destructive potential.
John continues his terrifying vision of demonic locusts unleashed from the abyss by a fallen star. These creatures, described as having the power to torment people for five months, are now being given specific, fearsome physical characteristics. Their likeness to earthly locusts is blended with features that emphasize their unnatural ferocity and destructive potential.
"their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth;" — What's striking here is how these terrifying creatures are described with contrasting details: "hair like women's hair" suggests a striking lack of barbarity or perhaps a deceptive appearance, while…
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Last reviewed October 2026