Frogs in the Bible: Pictures, Meaning, and Other Facts

In this article we will explore the world of frogs in the Bible. Even though this amphibian is only mentioned a few times throughout scripture. There is a lot we can get out of Biblical meaning of frogs. So, grab your Bible and let’s dig in…

The Bible is filled with all kinds of animals and creatures. And we tend to focus our studies on the more well known or popular ones. For example lions and horses are mentioned throughout scripture and have rich meaning behind them.

Now the little frog can sometimes be bypassed since it’s only mentioned a handful of times. But there is a lot we can learn and understand from the stories we read about them.

To get started you can use this handy little table of content to skip to the section you want to read about. Or as I would recommend go through each section so you can gain a full understanding of frogs in the Bible.

Frogs in the Bible

We find the word frog mentioned 14 times in the KJV of the Bible. And interesting to point out that the first reference tells the story of the plague of frogs in Egypt. The two following references are a reminder to the Israelites of this historical event. The last reference is found in the book of Revelation. And here is where we see very spiritual side to what frogs mean.

In Hebrew the word frog is “tsephardea“; in Arabic “dafda“. In the Greek it is “batrachos“.

BIBLE REFERENCE	STORY
Exodus 8:2-7	The Plague of Frogs In Egypt
Psalm 78:45	Historical Psalm – Reminding How God Rescued the Israelites from Egypt
Psalm 105:30	Historial Psalm – Reminding of how the plague of frogs even reached the
Revelation 16:13	Unclean Spirits Like Frogs

Facts on Frogs from the Bible

I thought it would be fun to look at some clear bullet-point facts about frogs from the Bible. These will be specifically Biblical or taken from a historical (ancient history) and not the little guys hopping around your backyard. For those, you would have an endless list of facts. Like did you know there are frogs big enough to eat snakes and birds, but also small enough to hide behind a grain of rice? (source)

• The most common species of frogs in the Palestine and Syria area are Rana Esculenta, or more commonly known as edible green frogs, and Hyla Arborea (tree frog).
  
• “According to Mr. Michael J. Nicoll, assistant director of the Zoological Gardens at Gizah, near Cairo, the commonest Egyptian species are Rana mascariensis and Bufo regularis. Rana esculenta, Bufo viridis and Bufo vittatus are also found, but are much less common.”- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
  
• According to Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, frogs were considered unclean. Meaning that the Israelites were not permitted to eat them. Big pass on those fried frog legs.
  
• Ancient Egyptians worshipped the goddess Heqet or Heket. She was known to have the form of a frog or frog head. She was known for her abilities of fertility, renewal, and water. They associated her with the flooding of the Nile that happened every year.
  
  This flooding would aid in crops and bring abundance to the Egyptians. Even ancient pregnant women would wear amulets of the goddess Heqet in the hope they would aid them in delivery.
  
• God showed off His power by bringing a plague of frogs to Egypt. Yet Heqet, the frog goddess, was not able to stop it. Showing that Jehova was the One True God and Heqet was nothing more than a false god. Or as I like to look at it an evil spirit.
  
• Frogs smell. They have an odor when alive, but oh man, when they die, it’s bad. Exodus 8:14 also mentions the smell of them when they died.
  
  “They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them.” A once sacred animal, revered and probably worshipped because of their false deity, has now become a stench in their home.
  
• Even the Roman-Greek Mythologies had gods and goddesses that took on the form of a frog.
  

Pictures of Frogs from the Bible Times and Area

What Do Frogs Mean In the Bible

Let’s get to the fun stuff. So, what do frogs mean in the Bible? From what we can gather in scripture and historically in Biblical times we see that frogs represent unclean spirits, and/or sexual sin or perversion.

In the natural frogs are considered one of the most promiscuous creatures. They carry diseases such as salmonella and parasites like tapeworms. They croak and make loud noises, much like an unclean spirit drawing attention.

These natural attributes are usually a shadow of what they mean spiritually. Also, historically in Egyptian and other ancient cultures, they looked at the frog as a sign of fertility. This is again related back to frogs’ sexual behavior.

For more on the symbolic meaning on frogs, visit: Dreams About Frogs: The Biblical Meaning of Frog Dreams

Bible Verses about Frogs

If you would like to read the 4 Bible references about frogs. You can do this right here!

Exodus 8:2-12 NIV – 2 If you refuse to let them go, I will send a plague of frogs on your whole country. 3 The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up into your palace and your bedroom and onto your bed, into the houses of your officials and on your people, and into your ovens and kneading troughs. 4 The frogs will come up on you and your people and all your officials.'”

5 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the streams and canals and ponds, and make frogs come up on the land of Egypt.’ ” 6 So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land.

7 But the magicians did the same things by their secret arts; they also made frogs come up on the land of Egypt. 8 Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let your people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”

9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “I leave to you the honor of setting the time for me to pray for you and your officials and your people that you and your houses may be rid of the frogs, except for those that remain in the Nile.”

10 “Tomorrow,” Pharaoh said. Moses replied, “It will be as you say, so that you may know there is no one like the Lord our God. ¹¹ The frogs will leave you and your houses, your officials and your people; they will remain only in the Nile.”

¹² After Moses and Aaron left Pharaoh, Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs he had brought on Pharaoh. ¹³ And the Lord did what Moses asked. The frogs died in the houses, in the courtyards and in the fields. ¹⁴ They were piled into heaps, and the land reeked of them. ¹⁵ But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the Lord had said.

Psalm 78:45 NIV – 45 He sent swarms of flies that devoured them, and frogs that devastated them.

Psalm 105:30 NIV – 30 Their land teemed with frogs, which went up into the bedrooms of their rulers.

Revelation 16:13 NIV – 13 Then I saw three impure spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet.

Dreams About Frogs

Throughout scripture, we see the Lord speaks in dreams. And they are usually rich in symbolism and meaning. The source of how we can interpret these dreams is by knowing the Word of God and through the help of the Holy Spirit.

I mentioned this earlier, but I have a post dedicated to Frog Dreams. This will go even more in-depth on the symbolic meaning and what some specific frog dreams can mean. Please check it out if you have had a dream and feel like the Lord is speaking to you about it.

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I hope you have enjoyed learning about frogs in the Bible. They are only mentioned four times, but we can see God used these creatures to prove a point. He is the One True God! Hallelujah!!

Feel free to leave a comment below if you want to share your thoughts or questions with me! I also would love to hear about what God is teaching you. So, please share below!