Original Word: תּוֹלָע
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: towla`
Pronunciation: toh-LAH
Phonetic Spelling: (to-law')
KJV: crimson, scarlet, worm
NASB: crimson, purple, worms
Word Origin: [from H3216 (יָלַע - To profit)]

1. a maggot (as voracious)
2. specifically (often with ellipsis of H8144) the crimson-grub, but used only (in this connection) of the color from it, and cloths dyed therewith

oppressor

And (feminine) towleoah {to-lay-aw'}; or towla ath {to-lah'-ath}; or tolaiath {to-lah'-ath}; from yala'; a maggot (as voracious); specifically (often with ellipsis of shaniy) the crimson-grub, but used only (in this connection) of the color from it, and cloths dyed therewith -- crimson, scarlet, worm.

see HEBREW yala'

see HEBREW shaniy

Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
worm, scarlet stuff
NASB Translation
crimson (1), purple (1), worms (1).

I. תּוֺלָע noun [masculine] worm, scarlet stuff (dyed with the coccus ilicis, see שָׁנִי Thatcher^{Hast. DB COLOURS}); —

1 worm, only plural תּוֺלָעִים in stale manna Exodus 16:20 (P).

2 scarlet stuff, absolute singular תּוֺלָ Isaiah 1:18 (in sim "" שָׁנִים; opposed to צֶמֶר); token of luxury Lamentations 4:5.

תּוֺלֵעָה, תּוֺלַ֫עַת₄₀

noun feminine worm; — absolute תּוֺלֵעָה Isaiah 14:11; Job 25:6; תּוֺלַעַת Isaiah 41:14 +, תּוֺלָ֑עַת Deuteronomy 28:39; Numbers 19:6; construct תּוֺלַ֫עַת Exodus 25:4 +; suffix תּוֺלַעְתָּם Isaiah 66:24; —

1 worm, grub, vine-weevil Jonah 4:7; Deuteronomy 28:39 (collective); devouring the dead Isaiah 14:11 (collective: "" רִמָּה), Isaiah 66:24 (collective) symbol of insignificance Isaiah 41:14; Job 25:6 ("" רִמָּה), Psalm 22:7.

2 elsewhere (P) specif + שָׁנִי (q. v.), of the coccus ilicis yielding scarlet colour: ׳שְׁנִי (הַ)תּ Leviticus 14:4,6,49,51,52; Numbers 19:6; of crimson stuff שָׁנִי ׳בֶּגֶד ת Numbers 4:8; usually תְּכֵלָת וְאַרְגָּמָן ׳(הַ)שָּׁנִי וגו ׳שְׁנִ Exodus 25:4; Exodus 26:1 24t. Exodus.

Overview

תּוֹלָע (tôlāʿ) embraces two related ideas in Scripture: (1) a tiny parasitic insect whose crushed body yields a vivid crimson dye, and (2) the crimson or scarlet thread, cloth, or color produced from that insect. Together these ideas bridge the gulf between humble creatureliness and costly beauty, providing a rich field for theological reflection on sin, atonement, royalty, and human frailty.

Physical Background

Ancient writers identify the insect with the Mediterranean crimson worm (coccus ilicis). Females attach themselves to tree bark, especially the kermes oak, and when crushed exude a bright red fluid that easily fixes to wool. Because the dye was color-fast, rare, and labor-intensive to obtain, scarlet fabric became a commodity of honor and expense.

Major Old Testament Settings

1. Tabernacle and priesthood
• Approximately half of the occurrences lie in Exodus 25–40, where scarlet yarn or fabric is woven with blue and purple for the curtains, veil, ephod, breastpiece, shoulder pieces, sash, and priestly garments (for example, Exodus 25:4; 26:1; 28:5; 36:8). Scarlet, derived from a creature that must die to give its color, is literally woven into the place where substitutionary sacrifices are offered and into the vesture of the mediating priesthood.

2. Purification rites
• In cleansing a healed leper or purifying a house (Leviticus 14:4, 6, 49–52) and in the red-heifer ritual (Numbers 19:6), scarlet wool is bound with cedar wood and hyssop, then dipped in sacrificial blood or burned. This threefold cord links cleansing, sacrifice, and covenant, echoing the Passover hyssop brush and foreshadowing the blood of Christ that “purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

3. Royal and luxurious apparel
• David praises the daughters of Israel, “who clothed you in scarlet with luxury” (2 Samuel 1:24). The worthy wife “is not afraid of snow, for all in her household are clothed in scarlet” (Proverbs 31:21). Even those once “brought up in scarlet now embrace ash heaps” during Jerusalem’s fall (Lamentations 4:5), showing the transient nature of earthly splendor.

4. Poetic description
• Solomon likens a bride’s lips to “a scarlet thread” (Song of Solomon 4:3; 6:7). Isaiah contrasts scarlet-stained sin with heaven-sent forgiveness: “Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isaiah 1:18). The visual punch of the color heightens the moral lesson.

5. Worm imagery of frailty
• When the noun points to the insect itself, the connotation is lowliness, decay, or divine instrumentality. Job feels reduced to skin “clothed with worms” (Job 7:5) and argues that man is a mere “worm” before God (Job 25:6). The Psalmist cries, “But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people” (Psalm 22:6), a text later echoed in Christ’s passion. The Lord appoints a worm that withers Jonah’s gourd (Jonah 4:7), underscoring divine sovereignty over both comfort and loss. In Isaiah 41:14 the Lord encourages His covenant people, “Do not fear, O worm Jacob… I Myself will help you,” turning insignificance into strength by His grace.

Theological Trajectories

Scarlet and atonement
• The color of lifeblood becomes a vivid thread through the sacrificial system, prefiguring the substitutionary death of the Messiah. The worm must be crushed to yield the dye; likewise, “He was crushed for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5). Scarlet cloth on the Tabernacle speaks of constant access to cleansing by shed blood.

Sin and cleansing
• Isaiah 1:18 sets scarlet-stained guilt against snow-white pardon, showing that the very color associated with sacrifice also reminds sinners of both their stain and God’s promise to remove it.

Humility and exaltation
• The contrast between royal scarlet garments and the worm’s humble origin mirrors the pattern of Christ, the royal Son who “emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant” (Philippians 2:7). Psalm 22:6 joins both images, underlining His voluntary humiliation.

Intertestamental and New Testament Links

While תּוֹלָע itself does not appear in the Greek New Testament, its concepts reverberate:
• The scarlet robe placed on Jesus in mockery (Matthew 27:28) ironically proclaims His true kingship.
• Hebrews 9 draws repeatedly on Tabernacle imagery that depended on scarlet yarn.
• Revelation uses scarlet to portray earthly pomp (Revelation 17:3–4), setting it against the Lamb’s eternal triumph.

Ministry Reflections

1. Worship design can borrow from the Tabernacle pattern: beauty that points to sacrifice.
2. Discipleship embraces humility; recognizing our “worm-like” dependence magnifies God’s helping grace.
3. Evangelism finds a ready metaphor: sins crimson as scarlet may become white through the blood of Christ.
4. Counseling may draw from Lamentations 4:5 to show how temporal luxury offers no ultimate security.

Selected References

Exodus 25:4; 26:1; 28:5; 35:23; 36:8; 38:18; 39:1

Leviticus 14:4, 6, 49–52

Numbers 19:6

Joshua 2:18

2 Samuel 1:24

2 Chronicles 2:7

Psalm 22:6

Job 7:5; 25:6

Proverbs 31:21

Song of Solomon 4:3; 6:7

Isaiah 1:18; 41:14

Lamentations 4:5

Jonah 4:7

בְּתוֹלַ֧עַת בתולעת הַתֹּלָֽעַת׃ הַתּוֹלַ֖עַת הַתּוֹלַ֗עַת הַתּוֹלָֽעַת׃ התולעת התולעת׃ התלעת׃ וְתֹלַ֣עַת וְתוֹלַ֣עַת וְתוֹלַ֥עַת וְתוֹלַ֧עַת וּבְתוֹלַ֥עַת ובתולעת ותולעת ותלעת כַתּוֹלָ֖ע כתולע תּוֹלֵעָֽה׃ תּוֹלַ֔עַת תּוֹלַ֣עַת תּוֹלַ֥עַת תּוֹלַ֧עַת תּוֹלָעִ֖ים תוֹלַ֖עַת תוֹלַ֣עַת תוֹלַעְתָּ֞ם תוֹלָ֑עַת תוֹלָ֔ע תולע תולעה׃ תולעים תולעת תולעתם bə·ṯō·w·la·‘aṯ betoLaat bəṯōwla‘aṯ chattoLa hat·tō·lā·‘aṯ hat·tō·w·la·‘aṯ hat·tō·w·lā·‘aṯ hattōlā‘aṯ hattoLaat hattōwla‘aṯ hattōwlā‘aṯ ḵat·tō·w·lā‘ ḵattōwlā‘ ṯō·w·lā‘ ṯō·w·la‘·tām tō·w·la·‘aṯ ṯō·w·la·‘aṯ ṯō·w·lā·‘aṯ tō·w·lā·‘îm tō·w·lê·‘āh toLa toLaat tolaIm tolaTam toleAh ṯōwlā‘ tōwla‘aṯ ṯōwla‘aṯ ṯōwlā‘aṯ tōwlā‘îm ṯōwla‘tām tōwlê‘āh ū·ḇə·ṯō·w·la·‘aṯ ūḇəṯōwla‘aṯ uvetoLaat vetoLaat wə·ṯō·la·‘aṯ wə·ṯō·w·la·‘aṯ wəṯōla‘aṯ wəṯōwla‘aṯInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts