Corpse Flower

Most ladies love to receive flowers. They smell so nice and have long been a sentiment used to express love or affection for someone. Sometimes flowers are given as an expression of congratulations when someone does a nice job. Flowers are also spoken of in the Bible. Two notable flowers mentioned are the rose of Sharon (Song of Songs 2:1) and the lily (Song of Songs 2:2 and Hosea 14:5). Interestingly flowers which come in a variety of colors, styles and sizes are generally always thought of as having a beautiful appearance, a lovely smell and certainly brighten up the atmosphere.

However there is one "flower" that seems to contradict the essence of traditional flowers. It is the Amorphophallus titanum. That is the official name of the corpse flower. It seems to be the complete opposite of the beautiful flowers that God made in the beginning. Here are some characteristics of the Corpse Flower as listed on https://www.livescience.com/51947-corpse-flower-facts-about-the-smelly-plant.html:

* The corpse flower is the largest (and smelliest) flowering structure in the world.

* The corpse flower (Amorphophallus titanum) also known as titan arum, reeks of rotting flesh and death when in bloom.

* Not only is the corpse flower one of the smelliest plants on Earth, but it also has the largest collection of inflorescence flowers in the world. Inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches.

* "The smell, color and even temperature of corpse flowers are meant to attract pollinators and help ensure the continuation of the species. Dung beetles, flesh flies and other carnivorous insects are the primary pollinators of this type of flower. These insects typically eat dead flesh. The smell and the dark burgundy color of the corpse flower are meant to imitate a dead animal to attract these insects.

I thought of some comparisons between our Heavenly Father and the Devil or demon spirits.

* Satan wanted so much to be like God (Isaiah 14:14). However, in his rebellion, he did grow but his growth was not one of something beautiful. Revelation 20:10 records how the devil that deceived ... was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone/sulfur (the stench is of rotten eggs; sulfur compounds called mercaptans give skunks their defensive odor.) The Bible even says that Satan came to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10)

* Even as the corpse flower attracts pollinators, so sin attracts so many persons. Even the apostle Paul stated that which he did not want to do, he did and what he wanted to do he did not do (Romans 7:15-19).

It is amazing that a flower could have such properties. One more characteristic that should be mentioned is that it is a parasite. A parasite is an organism living in, on, or with another organism in order to obtain nutrients, grow, or multiply often in a state that directly or indirectly harms the host. This is a very fitting analogy of how demonic spirits desire to live in mankind. See Mark 16:9 which references 7 demons that were cast out of Mary Magdalene.

So what can we say about this flower. The name says it all. Selah