Adder in the Bible Encyclopedia - ISBE
ad'-er (`akhshubh (Ps 140:3); pethen (Ps 58:4); tsiph`oni
(Prov 23:32); shephiphon (Gen 49:17); tsepha` (King James
Version margin; Isa 14:29)): This word is used for several
Hebrew originals. In each case a poisonous serpent is clearly
indicated by the context. It is impossible to tell in any case
just what species is meant, but it must be remembered that the
English word adder is used very ambiguously. It is from the
Anglo-Saxon noedre, a snake or serpent, and is the common
English name for Vipera berus, L, the common viper, which is
found throughout Europe and northern Asia, though not in Bible
lands; but the word "adder" is also used for various snakes,
both poisonous and non-poisonous, found in different parts of
the world. In America, for instance, both the poisonous
moccasin (Ancistrodon) and the harmless hog-nosed snakes
(Heterodon) are called adders.
See SERPENT.
Alfred Ely Day
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