Biblical sea turns blood red sparking fears of the apocalypse as people warn of 'bad omen'

Local Israelis and people online have felt terrified after the Sea of Galilee turned blood-red.

Stunned visitors watched on as the nation's largest freshwater lake had unusual red patches on the surface, sparking religious concerns.

In the Old Testament, God turned the Nile River to blood as a warning to Egypt, because Pharaoh refused to free the Israelites from slavery when they were there.

The water became undrinkable, fish died, and the event signified a lot of judgment against Egypt’s gods.

Observers, especially in religious communities, generally see the colour change as a symbolic or prophetic echo of this plague.

"Thus says the Lord: By this you shall know that I am the Lord. Behold, with the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water that is in the Nile, and it shall turn into blood," Exodus 7:17-21 reads.

But when it comes to the New Testament, it's said to be the lake where Jesus taught and did miracles, so unusual changes here feel important to believers.

Some of the more well known miracles such as walking on water and calming the storm happened at the Sea of Galilee.

Also, whenever something unusual happens to this lake it can signify the end of the world, like in the Book of Revelation, where waters turn to blood to symbolise divine judgment during the apocalypse.

According to science though, the red spots actually come from green algae, called Botryococcus braunii.

Israel’s Water Authority explained that 'the red coloration is due to the accumulation of a natural pigment secreted by the algae in response to strong sun exposure.'

They said in a statement to the public on Monday (4 August) that the 'pigment is not toxic' and that the lake poses no issue.

Test results by the Kinneret Research Laboratory also suggested that there was no possible health risks.

“No allergic reactions have been reported in areas where the algae has previously appeared,” they explained.

So, as you can imagine, some people were getting a little worried on social media, as one person tweeted: "So did the sea of Galilee actually turned red or is that fake, coz if it's real people better get right with Jesus before he returns."

"Damn the Sea of Galilee is red I wonder what that means," another penned.

"The Sea of Galilee in Israel turned red this is straight out of the bible," someone else added.