Mosquito

A small flying insect that feeds on blood and can spread diseases like malaria and dengue fever.

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Gnat, mosquito, louse

About Mosquito

A very small flying insect. The word, used in Matthew 23:24, is a general word for a small fly.

The third plague in Egypt before the exodus consisted of gnats (Exodus 8:16–18; Psalm 105:31). The King James Version translates the Hebrew word as "lice." But, Exodus 8 describes the breeding pattern as insects rising from the dust. This more likely describes gnats rather than lice.

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Habits, distribution, and how translators render the term across languages.

Key References

Exodus 8:12

After Moses and Aaron had left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the LORD for help with the frogs that He had brought against Pharaoh.

Isaiah 51:6

Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth below; for the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and its people will die like gnats. But My salvation will last forever, and My righteousness will never fail.

Matthew 23:24

You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

All Scripture References (7)

Exodus (3)
Exodus 8:12

After Moses and Aaron had left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the LORD for help with the frogs that He had brought against Pharaoh.

Exodus 8:13

And the LORD did as Moses requested, and the frogs in the houses, the courtyards, and the fields died.

Exodus 8:14

They were piled into countless heaps, and there was a terrible stench in the land.

Psalms (1)
Psalm 105:31

He spoke, and insects swarmed—gnats throughout their country.

Isaiah (1)
Isaiah 51:6

Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth below; for the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and its people will die like gnats. But My salvation will last forever, and My righteousness will never fail.

Matthew (1)
Matthew 23:24

You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

Mark (1)
Mark 16:18

they will pick up snakes with their hands, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be made well.”