The interpretation of "Wormwood" in Revelation 8:10-11 as a nuclear-triggered asteroid or radiation event leading to the poisoning of Earth's waters is a specific eschatological interpretation, not a universally accepted scientific or theological one. However, if we proceed with this premise and the given quantification of 1/3 of humanity perishing, we can calculate the scale of destruction.
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As of today, 2025-08-04, the global population is estimated to be approximately 8.19 billion people [1]. If 1/3 of humanity were to perish, this would equate to:
$ \text{Deaths} = \frac{1}{3} \times \text{Global Population} $ $ \text{Deaths} = \frac{1}{3} \times 8,190,000,000 $ $ \text{Deaths} \approx 2,730,000,000 people $
This figure represents a catastrophic loss of life, indeed eclipsing all historical wars and pandemics. For context, the deadliest pandemic in recorded history, the Black Death, is estimated to have killed 75-200 million people [2]. World War II, the deadliest conflict, resulted in an estimated 70-85 million deaths [3].
Modern scientific understanding does indeed underscore the potential for mass fatalities from large-scale events such as a significant asteroid impact or a nuclear winter scenario. A large asteroid impact could cause widespread devastation through immediate impact effects, tsunamis, and atmospheric changes leading to a "impact winter" [4]. Similarly, a nuclear winter, resulting from widespread fires ignited by nuclear detonations, would inject vast amounts of soot and dust into the atmosphere, blocking sunlight, causing global cooling, and leading to widespread crop failures and famine [5] [6]. The "On the Consequences of Nuclear War" study from 1983, often referred to as the TTAPS study, was a seminal work that first detailed the potential for nuclear winter [7]. Subsequent research has continued to refine these models, consistently demonstrating the severe global consequences of even a limited nuclear exchange [8]. NASA's Near-Earth Object (NEO) Program actively tracks asteroids and comets that could pose a threat to Earth, highlighting the scientific recognition of this risk [9].
Authoritative Sources
- World Population Clock. [Worldometer]↩
- The Black Death. [Britannica]↩
- World War II. [Britannica]↩
- Asteroid Impact: The Effects of a Large Asteroid Impact on Earth. [NASA Science]↩
- Robock, A., et al. (2007). Nuclear winter revisited with a modern climate model and current nuclear arsenals: Still catastrophic consequences. [Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres]↩
- Helfand, I. (2013). Nuclear Famine: Two Billion People at Risk? [International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW)]↩
- Turco, R. P., Toon, O. B., Ackerman, T. P., Pollack, J. B., & Sagan, C. (1983). Nuclear Winter: Global Consequences of Multiple Nuclear Explosions. [Science]↩
- Xia, L., et al. (2022). Global food insecurity and famine from reduced photosynthesis in a nuclear winter. [Nature Food]↩
- Near-Earth Object (NEO) Program. [NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory]↩
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