Crown of thorns definition

crown of thorns

–noun

1.	a climbing spurge, Euphorbia milii splendens, of Madagascar, having stems covered with spines.

2.	crown of thorns starfish.

3.	a painful burden, as of suffering, guilt, anxiety, etc.: from the wreath of thorns placed on Jesus' head to mock Him before He was crucified. Matt. 27:29; Mark 15:17; John 19:2, 5.

Origin:
bef. 950; ME; OE

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Cite This Source

Sponsored Links ProDent Care
Modern Dentistry with Caring Touch. Family & Cosmetic Dentistry.
www.ProDentCare.com

Real Crown Of Thorns
Holy Land Thorns! Buy Now Gift Box and Certificate Included.
www.HolyLandImports.net

Crown of Thorns Authentic
Made in the Holy Land from the only species that grows in the region.
www.shopTheBible.com

crown of thorns
noun
1.	any affliction that causes great suffering; "that is his cross to bear"; "he bears his afflictions like a crown of thorns" [syn: cross]
2.	somewhat climbing bushy spurge of Madagascar having long woody spiny stems with few leaves and flowers with scarlet bracts
3.	a mock crown made of thorn branches that Roman soldiers placed on Jesus before the Crucifixion

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Cite This Source

crown of thorns

A mock crown, made from thorn branches, that Roman soldiers put on the head of Jesus before the Crucifixion. The soldiers also “bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’”

Note: In common usage, a “crown of thorns” may be anything that causes intense suffering: “The jailed political leader bears her afflictions like a crown of thorns.” Similar to the expression “cross to bear.” (See Crucifixion.)

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Crown of thorns

our Lord was crowned with a, in mockery by the Romans (Matt. 27:29). The object of Pilate's guard in doing this was probably to insult, and not specially to inflict pain. There is nothing to show that the shrub thus used was, as has been supposed, the spina Christi, which could have been easily woven into a wreath. It was probably the thorny nabk, which grew abundantly round about Jerusalem, and whose flexible, pliant, and round branches could easily be platted into the form of a crown. (See THORN ØT0003642, 3.)

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Cite This Source