Editing Abaddon (section)

==Christianity==
The New Testament contains the first known depiction of ''Abaddon'' as an individual entity instead of a place.
{{blockquote|A king, the angel of the bottomless pit; whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek Apollyon; in Latin Exterminans.|Revelation 9:11, Douay–Rheims Bible}}

In the Old Testament, Abaddon and Death can be personified:
{{blockquote|Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’|Job 28:22, English Standard Version}} 
And,
{{blockquote|Sheol is naked before God, and Abaddon has no covering.|Job 26:6, English Standard Version}}
And,
{{blockquote|Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of man.|Proverbs 27:20, English Standard Version}} 
{{blockquote|Hell and destruction are not filled; so also are the eyes of men insatiable.|Proverbs 27:20, Brenton Septuagint Translation}}
And,
{{blockquote|But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.|Proverbs 6:32, King James Bible}}
{{blockquote|But the adulterer through want of sense procures destruction to his soul.|Proverbs 6:32, Brenton Septuagint Translation}}
The Hebrew text of Proverbs 6:32 does not contain the noun {{lang|he-Latn|abaddon}} ({{lang|he|אֲבַדּוֹן}}) but a participial form of the verb {{lang|he-Latn|shachath}} ({{lang|he|שָׁחַת}}).<ref name="biblehub_text_proverbs_6_32">{{cite web|url=https://biblehub.com/text/proverbs/6-32.htm|title=Proverbs 6:32 Hebrew Text Analysis |access-date=1 Aug 2023}}</ref>  But the Septuagint uses {{lang|grc-Latn|apoleian}} ({{lang|grc|ἀπώλειαν}}), the accusative case of the noun {{lang|grc-Latn|apoleia}} ({{lang|grc|ἀπώλεια}}) with which it also translates {{lang|he-Latn|abaddon}} in five of the six Hebrew verses that contain the word.  (Though an English interlinear of the Septuagint might read "destruction the soul of him obtains", the reader should understand that "adulterer" is the subject, "soul" is the indirect object, and "destruction" is the direct object.)<ref name="blueletterbible_lxx_proverbs_6_32">{{cite web|url=https://www.blueletterbible.org/lxx/pro/6/32/t_conc_634032|title=Παροιμίες (Proverbs) 6 (LXX) - ὁ δὲ μοιχὸς δι᾽ ἔνδειαν |access-date=1 Aug 2023}}</ref>

In [[Book of Revelation|Revelation]] 9:11, Abaddon is described as "Destroyer",<ref name="biblegateway">{{cite web|url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%209:11&version=NIV |title=Revelation 9:11 NIV – They had as king over them the angel of |publisher=Bible Gateway |access-date=5 April 2014}}</ref> the angel of the [[Abyss (religion)|Abyss]],<ref name="biblegateway"/> and as the king of a plague of locusts resembling horses with crowned human faces, women's hair, lions' teeth, wings, iron breast-plates, and a tail with a scorpion's stinger that torments for five months anyone who does not have the seal of God on their foreheads.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%209:7-10&version=NIV |title=Revelation 9:7–10 NIV – The locusts looked like horses prepared |publisher=Bible Gateway |access-date=3 April 2014}}</ref>

The symbolism of Revelation 9:11 leaves the identity of Abaddon open to interpretation. Protestant commentator [[Matthew Henry]] (1708) believed Abaddon to be the [[Antichrist]],<ref name="henry">{{cite web|url=http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID%3D4%26contentID%3D1868%26commInfo%3D5%26topic%3DRevelation|access-date=18 March 2013|title=Introduction by Andrew Murray }}</ref> whereas the [[Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary]] (1871) and [[Henry Hampton Halley]] (1922) identified the angel as [[Satan]].<ref name="jfb">{{cite web |url=http://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/jfb/Rev/Rev_009.cfm=Revelation |access-date=20 January 2014 |title=Archived copy |archive-date=2 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150102101859/http://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/jfb/Rev/Rev_009.cfm%3DRevelation |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="halley">Halley (1922) ''Halley's Bible Handbook with the New International Version'', p936.</ref>

Early in [[John Bunyan]]'s [[The Pilgrim's Progress]] the Christian pilgrim fights "over half a day" long with the demon Apollyon.  This book permeated Christianity in the English-speaking world for 300 years after its first publication in 1678.

In contrast, the [[Methodism|Methodist]] publication ''The Interpreter's Bible'' states, "Abaddon, however, is an angel not of Satan but of God, performing his work of destruction at God's bidding", citing the context at Revelation chapter 20, verses 1 through 3.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Keck|first1=Leander E.|title=The New Interpreter's Bible: Hebrews – Revelation (Volume 12)|date=1998|publisher=Abingdon Press|location=Nashville, Tenn.|isbn=0687278252|edition=[Nachdr.]}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=March 2016}} [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] also cite Revelation 20:1-3 where the angel having "the key of the abyss" is actually shown to be a representative of God, concluding that "Abaddon" is another name for Jesus after his resurrection.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200000308#h=1:0-3:401|title=Apollyon—Watchtower Online Library|publisher=Watch Tower Society|access-date=5 April 2014}}</ref>

=== In Medieval Christian Literature ===

In medieval Christian literature, the depiction of Abaddon often mirrors the religious and cultural contexts of the time. A notable illustration of this is found in the [[Song of Roland]], an 11th-century epic poem. This work associates Abaddon with figures such as Mahome ([[Mahound]]), Apollyon (Appolin), and [[Termagant]], which are presented as deities in the context of the poem's portrayal of Muslims. The inclusion of Apollyon, a name sometimes linked with Abaddon in Christian texts, highlights the interpretative approaches of the period towards Islamic practices.<ref name="faculty.sgsc.edu"/>

Such literary representations in medieval Christian literature are indicative of the broader context of interfaith understanding and relations during the Middle Ages. They reflect the complexities and nuances in the depiction of figures like Abaddon and their perceived associations with other faiths.<ref>{{cite web |last=Juferi |first=Mohd Elfie Nieshaem |title=The Christian Missionaries & Their Lies About Muhammad |url=https://bismikaallahuma.org/polemical-rebuttals/lies-about-muhammad/ |website=Bismika Allahuma |date=September 20, 2005 |access-date=November 14, 2023}}</ref>