I'm so incredibly dark and tragic!

From Nameless AngelFrom Nameless AngelTo Divine FoilTo Divine Foil

SatanSatan

Timeline of Early Israel● Moses and the Covenant (Before everything else)

● The Davidic Dynasty and the 1st Temple (900ish-600 BCE)

● Struggle for Identity

● Babylonian Exile (590-540 BCE)

● Repentance and Remembrance

● Return from Exile and the 2nd Temple (540 BCE-200 BCE)

● Reform

● Maccabean Uprising and Hasmonean Dynasty (200 BCE-60 BCE)

● a.k.a. Sir not appearing in this talk

● Roman Rule and Destruction of the Temple (60 BCE-70 CE)

● Messianic Expectation and Apocalyptic Writing

Okay, that was probably pretty boring.Let's talk about Satan now.

Does this pose make me look sexy?

No.

Let's Go Back. Way Back

● Genesis and the Garden

● Earliest chronological mention● (Presumably) first written

Okay it says serpent but... let's skip ahead to where it directly names the serpent as Satan in Genesis...

Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the animals that the LORD God had made. The serpent asked the woman, "Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?" ...

Genesis 3:1-2

“What's this knob do, Mr. Peabody?”

(this slide intentionally left blank)

Adversary● The term satan literally means “opponent”

● malakh (angel) means “messenger”

● Later interpretation and the supernatural

● b'nei elohim (sons of God)

“I have come as an adversary because this rash journey...”Numbers 22:32

“...He must not go down into battle with us, lest during the battle he become our enemy...”

1 Samuel 29:4

“Find a lying witness, an accuser to stand...”Psalm 109:6

The Court Prosecutor

● Ha-Satan (the Satan)● Title and position● Individual Identity

● B'nei elohim (sons of God)● Association with God

Let's talk about Job...

“He must break the barrel but not spill the wine.”Babylonian Talmud

The Court Prosecutorand Job

● Satan has access to God

● It is God who authorizes Job's torments

One day, when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, Satan also came among them.

Job 1:6

[Satan says,] “But now put forth your hand and touch anything that he has, and surely he will blaspheme you to your face.”

And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand upon his person.”

(this plan doesn't work)

[Satan says] “But now put forth your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and surely he will blaspheme you to your face.”

And the LORD said to Satan, “He is in your power; only spare his life. “

Abridged from Job 1:11-2:6

The Babylonian Exile

● Political Upheaval● Destruction of the Temple● Removal of autonomy● Jews taken into captivity, many intermarry

● Religious Upheaval● Global nature of YHWH

– Role of Babylon and later Persia– Role of other gods

Causes conflict later when cosmic good and evil become important in Jewish thought

Now I'm going to talk about Zoroastrianism for no reason

● Dualistic – cosmic good versus evil● Ahura Mazda

● Creator God● Source of all good

● Angra Mainyu (or Ahriman)● Source of all evil● (hopefully) Loses at end of time

The slide title is a lie:Jewish thought responds heavily to Zoroastrian philosophy.

Early Responses to Dualism

● Early Judaism not dualistic● Before the exile

● During or immediately after the exile:

[The Lord] "formed the light and created darkness," [He] "is the Maker of peace and the Creator of evil"

Isaiah 16:7

"Out of the mouth of the Most High cometh there not evil and good?"

Lamentations 3:38

You can probably guess what Lamentations is about.

Satan's Rise to Importance● Anti-dualistic sentiment doesn't hold

● God's promises to Israel● Reinterpretation of stories

● Census of David

● The Serpent in the Garden

The LORD’s anger against Israel flared again, and he incited David against them: “Go, take a census of Israel and Judah.”

2 Samuel 24

A satan rose up against Israel, and he incited David to take a census of Israel.

1 Chronicles 21

Now the snake was the most cunning of all wild animals...Genesis 3:1

But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world...Wisdom 2:24

The War in Heaven andThe Fall of Satan

Ow!

Well, this gag proved that I have an exceptional sense of humor.

The Fall

● Is this story in the Bible? No● Idea is widespread by 1st century CE

● Instead, let's look back at some older sources that give rise to this fallen angel hypothesis (cruel angel thesis?)● Nephilim● The King of Babylon

[Jesus] replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.Luke 10:18

Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.

Revelations 12:7-8

The Nephilim

● Appear only right here. And Never Again.

● Possible Interpretations● “sons of God” = Fallen Angels● “sons of God” = Kings

The sons of God saw how beautiful the daughters of human beings were, and so they took for their wives whomever they pleased...The Nephilim appeared on earth in those days, as well as later, after the sons of God had intercourse with the daughters of human beings, who bore them sons. They were the heroes of old, the men of renown.

Genesis 6:2-4

While not popular in contemporary Judaism, the fallen angels theory took hold of the popular imagination

Nephilim in Enoch

● Book of Enoch (200 BCE-100 CE)● Not canon for anyone except the Ethiopian

Orthodox Church● Allegedly written by (surprise!) Enoch

(Enoch is often associated with mystic traditions, in case you were curious...)

And the watchers, the children of the heaven, saw and lusted after the the women and with them begat children.The Lord said unto Michael: 'Go, bind Semyâzâ and his associates.' They shall be led off to the abyss of fire and be confined for ever.

Abridged Enoch 6, 9, 10

The King of Babylon

● Passage from Isaiah is very similar to the fall

● But this isn't Satan:

● Later (early CE) association with Lucifer/Satan

How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly.” But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit.

Isaiah 14:12-13, 15See also Ezekiel 28:1-19

That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased!

Isaiah 14:4

King of Babylon in Slavonic Enoch

● Same era, 200 BCE-100 CE● An unrelated text also ascribed to Enoch● The similarities to Isaiah and Ezekiel are striking:

Enoch is pretty important, apparently.

And from the rock I cut off a great fire, and from the fire I created the orders of angels. And one from out the order of angels, Sataniel, conceived an impossible thought, to place his throne higher than the clouds above the earth, that he might become equal in rank to my power. And I threw him out from the height with his angels, and he was flying in the air continuously above the bottomless.

Abridged from Slavonic Enoch 29

Recap

● Satan's Many Roles ● Generic Term● Divine Prosecutor● Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap● Cosmic Foil

● Everyone secretly wishes

that Enoch was in their copy

of the Bible

Technically this is “Lucifer” from Isaiah. Not that DC seems to care or notice.

(mine sadly only has footnotes to it)

President Caym of Helllooking quite dapper.

Buer heading for an afternoon stroll.

The End

Enjoy some miscellaneous devilsfrom Lesser Key of Solomon

You now know more about Satan than you ever thought was really necessary.

Demons

● Demons (se'irim and shedim) are● Spirits of nature, the wilderness● Demand (and received) sacrifices● Responsible for disease and other awful things● Se'irim are satyr-like in form

● Present in worldview, but not often discussedSome Examples:Azazel Leviticus 16:10Lilith Isaiah 34:14Asmodeus TobitAshmedai, Ornias, ... Testament of SolomonLilith Various oral tradition

This group will end up folded into Satan's followers of fallen angels

The Fall: The Qu'ran

● In later texts, angels have no free will● How can we get a fall?● Solution: Satan is not an angel, but an Ifrit

● Here, the fall of Satan (Iblis) is very different:Behold, thy lord said “I am to create man from clay” and he ordered the angels to prostrate themselves before man. And all of the angels did.

But Iblis would not. He said “You created him from clay but me from fire, and I am better.”

And God cursed Iblis, but the curse is off until Judgement Day while Iblis tempts men to follow him and not Allah.

Paraphrase from Sura 38 (Sad) 70-85

Literature in Later Periods

Expand on various points...● Dante's Inferno (1321)

● Images of Hell

● Keys of Solomon (15th century)● Summoning and binding, hierarchy of devils

● Faust (16th century)● Pacts with Devils,

● John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667)● The War in Heaven

Modern Perspectives

● Many different pictures of Satan...

● Where is He?● Trapped in Hell (Both Enochs, Isaiah)

● Roams Earth tempting people (Job, Qu'ran, demonic texts)

● Role?● Tortured in Hell (Both Enochs, Isaiah)

● Ruler over Hell, Tempter (Qu'ran, the Gospels, Revelations)

● Power Level?● Easily conquered by humans (the Gospels, the Qu'ran)

● Ruler over the Earth (Revelations, Family Radio)

● Appearance?● Human, beautiful

● Goat-hooved, bat-winged (Key of Solomon, the se'irim image)

Sources

● The Jewish Encylopedia ← Amazing resource● Genesis Rabbah● Sacred-Texts (for Apocrypha)● New American Bible● King James Bible (because it amuses me)● The Qu'ran● Google Image Search