ABADDON (Heb. אֲבַדּוֹן;
“place of destruction”). It is mentioned
in the Wisdom literature of the Bible (Job 26:6; 28:22; 31:12; Prov.
15:11; Ps.
88:12); and it occurs
also in the New
Testament (Rev.
9:11) where, however,
it is personified as the angel of the bottomless
pit, whose name in Greek is “Apollyon” (ʾΑπολλυων,
“destroyer”).
In the Talmud (Er. 19a) it is given as the second
of the seven names of Gehenna (Gehinnom
), the proof verse being Psalms
88:12,
while Midrash Konen makes it the actual second
department of Gehenna.