Reference: Devil
American
A fallen angel; and particularly the chief of them, the devil, or Satan. He is the great principle of evil in the world; and it is his grand object to counteract the good that God desires to do. He exerts himself, especially with his angels, to draw away the souls of men from embracing salvation through Jesus Christ.
His name signifies the calumniator, or false accuser; as the Hebrew Satan means the adversary. But the Scriptures give him various other appellations descriptive of his character. He is called, "The prince of this world," Joh 12:31; "The prince of the power of the air," Eph 2:2; "The god of this world," 2Co 4:4; "The dragon, that old serpent, the devil," Re 20:2; "That wicked one," 1Jo 5:18; "A roaring lion," 1Pe 5:8; "A murderer," "a liar," Joh 8:44; "Beelzebub," Mt 12:24; "Belial," 2Co 6:15; "The accuser of the brethren," Re 12:10. He is everywhere shown to be full of malignity, cruelty, and deceit, hating God and man. He is ceaselessly active in his efforts to destroy souls, and uses innumerable devices and wiles to adapt his temptations to the varying characters and conditions of men, enticing wicked men, and even good men at times, as well as his own angels, to aid in his work. Almost the whole world has been under his sway. But he is a doomed foe. Christ shall bruise the serpent's head; shall dispossess him for the world, as he has done from individuals, and at length confine him for ever in the place prepared for him and his angels, Mt 25:41.
The word "devils" occurs frequently in the gospels; but it is the translation of a different Greek word from that used to denote the devil, and might be rendered "demons." The Bible applies the other word only to Satan-"the devil, and his angels, who are like their leader in nature and in actions. There are many examples in the New Testament of persons possessed by demons. These are often called demoniacs. Some have argued that these were afflicted by natural diseases, such as epilepsy, insanity, etc., and were not possessed by evil spirits. But our Savior speaks to and commands the demons who actuated the possessed, which demons answered and obeyed, and gave proofs of their presence by tormenting those whom they were obliged to quit. Christ alleges, as proof of his mission, that the demons are cast out; he promises his apostles the same power that he himself exercised against those wicked spirits. Campbell says, "When I find mention made of the number of demons in particular possessions, their actions so particularly distinguished from the actions of the man possessed, conversations held by the former in regard to the disposal of them after their expulsion, and accounts given how they were actually disposed of-when I find desires and passions ascribed particularly to them, and similitudes taken from the conduct which they usually observe, it is impossible for me to deny their existence."
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The Pharisees heard it and said, "This man only expels demons by the power of Baal-zebul, the Prince of demons."
"Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
Now is a judgement of this world: now will the Prince of this world be driven out.
in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds so as to shut out the sunshine of the Good News of the glory of the Christ, who is the image of God.
Where can harmony between Christ and Belial be found? Or what participation has a believer with an unbeliever?
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.
Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour.
We know that no one who is a child of God lives in sin, but He who is God's Child keeps him, and the Evil one cannot touch him.
Then I heard a loud voice speaking in Heaven. It said, "The salvation and the power and the Kingdom of our God have now come, and the sovereignty of His Christ; for the accuser of our brethren has been hurled down--he who, day after day and night after night, was wont to accuse them in the presence of God.
He laid hold of the Dragon--the ancient serpent--who is the Devil and the Adversary, and bound him for a thousand years, and hurled him into the bottomless pit.
Easton
(Gr. diabolos), a slanderer, the arch-enemy of man's spiritual interest (Job 1:6; Re 2:10; Zec 3:1). He is called also "the accuser of the brethen" (Re 12:10).
In Le 17:7 the word "devil" is the translation of the Hebrew sair, meaning a "goat" or "satyr" (Isa 13:21; 34:14), alluding to the wood-daemons, the objects of idolatrous worship among the heathen.
In Deut. 32:17 and Ps 106:37 it is the translation of Hebrew shed, meaning lord, and idol, regarded by the Jews as a "demon," as the word is rendered in the Revised Version.
In the narratives of the Gospels regarding the "casting out of devils" a different Greek word (daimon) is used. In the time of our Lord there were frequent cases of demoniacal possession (Mt 12:25-30; Mr 5:1-20; Lu 4:35; 10:18, etc.).
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Knowing their thoughts He said to them, "Every kingdom in which civil war has raged suffers desolation; and every city or house in which there is internal strife will be brought low. And if Satan is expelling Satan, he has begun to make war on himself: how therefore shall his kingdom last? read more. And if it is by Baal-zebul's power that I expel the demons, by whose power do your disciples expel them? They therefore shall be your judges. But if it is by the power of the Spirit of God that I expel the demons, it is evident that the Kingdom of God has come upon you. Again, how can any one enter the house of a strong man and carry off his goods, unless first of all he masters and secures the strong man: then he will ransack his house. "The man who is not with me is against me, and he who is not gathering with me is scattering abroad.
So they arrived at the opposite shore of the Lake, in the country of the Gerasenes. At once, on His landing, there came from the tombs to meet Him a man possessed by a foul spirit. read more. This man lived among the tombs, nor could any one now secure him even with a chain; for many a time he had been left securely bound in fetters and chains, but afterwards the chains lay torn link from link, and the fetters in fragments, and there was no one strong enough to master him. And constantly, day and night, he remained among the tombs or on the hills, shrieking, and mangling himself with sharp stones. And when he saw Jesus in the distance, he ran and threw himself at His feet, crying out in a loud voice, "What hast Thou to do with me, Jesus, Son of God Most High? In God's name I implore Thee not to torment me." For He had said to him, "Foul spirit, come out of the man." Jesus also questioned him. "What is your name?" He said. "Legion," he replied, "for there are a host of us." And he earnestly entreated Him not to send them away out of the country. Feeding there, on the mountain slope, was a great herd of swine. So they besought Jesus. "Send us to the swine," they said, "so that we may enter into them." He gave them leave; and the foul spirits came out and entered into the swine, and the herd--about 2,000 in number--rushed headlong down the cliff into the Lake and were drowned in the Lake. The swineherds fled, and spread the news in town and country. So the people came to see what it was that had happened; and when they came to Jesus, they beheld the demoniac quietly seated, clothed and of sane mind--the man who had had the legion; and they were awe-stricken. And those who had seen it told them the particulars of what had happened to the demoniac, and all about the swine. Then they began entreating Him to depart from their district. As He was embarking, the man who had been possessed asked permission to accompany Him. But He would not allow it. "Go home to your family," He said, "and report to them all that the Lord has done for you, and the mercy He has shown you." So the man departed, and related publicly everywhere in the Ten Towns all that Jesus had done for him; and all were astonished.
But Jesus rebuked the demon. "Silence!" He exclaimed; "come out of him." Upon this, the demon hurled the man into the midst of them, and came out of him without doing him any harm.
"I saw Satan fall like a lightning-flash out of Heaven," He replied.
Dismiss your fears concerning all that you are about to suffer. I tell you that the Devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be put to the test, and for ten days you will have to endure persecution. Be faithful to the End, even if you have to die, and then I will give you the victor's Wreath of Life.
Then I heard a loud voice speaking in Heaven. It said, "The salvation and the power and the Kingdom of our God have now come, and the sovereignty of His Christ; for the accuser of our brethren has been hurled down--he who, day after day and night after night, was wont to accuse them in the presence of God.
Fausets
(Greek) "the accuser" or "the slanderer" (Job 1:6-11; 2:1-7; Re 12:10). In Hebrew Satan means "adversary." The two-fold designation marks the two-fold objects of his malice - the Gentiles and the Jews. There is one one Devil, many "demons" as KJV ought to translate the plural. Devil is also used as an adjective. 1Ti 3:11, "slanderers"; 2Ti 3:3, "false accusers." Peter when tempting Jesus to shun the cross did Satan's work, and therefore received Satan's name (Mt 16:23); so Judas is called a "devil" when acting the Devil's part (Joh 6:70). Satan's characteristic sins are lying (Joh 8:44; Ge 3:4-5); malice and murder (1Jo 3:12; Genesis 4); pride, "the condemnation of the Devil," by which he "lost his first estate" (1Ti 3:6; Job 38:15; Isa 14:12-15; Joh 12:31; 16:11; 2Pe 2:4; Jg 1:6).
He slanders God to man, and man to God (Genesis 3; Zechariah 3). His misrepresentation of God as one arbitrary, selfish, and envious of His creature's happiness, a God to be slavishly-feared lest He should hurt, rather than filially loved, runs through all pagan idolatries. This calumny is refuted by God's not sparing His only begotten Son to save us. His slander of good men, as if serving God only for self's sake, is refuted by the case of "those who lose (in will or deed) their life for Christ's sake." Demons, "knowing ones," from a root daemi, to know, are spirits who tremble before, but love not, God (Jas 2:19), incite men to rebellion against Him (Re 16:14). "Evil spirits" (Ac 19:13,15) recognize Christ the Son of God (Mt 8:29; Lu 4:41) as absolute Lord over them, and their future Judge; and even flee before exorcism in His name (Mr 9:38).
As "unclean" they can tempt man with unclean thoughts. They and their master Satan are at times allowed by God to afflict with bodily disease (Lu 13:16): "Satan hath bound this woman these eighteen years" with "a spirit of infirmity," so that she was "bowed together." Scripture teaches that in idolatry the demons are the real workers behind the idol, which is a mere "nothing." Compare 1Co 10:19-21; 1Ti 4:1; Re 9:20. Compare De 32:17, Hebrew sheedim, "lords" (1Co 8:5); Ac 16:16, "a spirit of divination" (Greek of Python, an idol); Ac 17:18, "a setter forth of strange gods" (Greek: demons); 2Ch 11:15; Ps 106:37; Le 17:7. Idolatry is part of the prince of this world's engines for holding dominion.
Our word "panic," from the idol Pan, represented as Satan is, with horns and cloven hoofs, shows the close connection there is between the idolater's slavish terror and Satan his master. The mixture of some elements of primitive truth in paganism accords with Satan's practice of foiling the kingdom of light by transforming himself at times into an "angel of light." Error would not succeed if there were not some elements of truth mixed with it to recommend it. Corrupting the truth more effectually mars it than opposing it. Satan as Beelzebub (Mt 12:24-30) is at the head of an organized kingdom of darkness, with its "principalities and powers" to be "wrestled" against by the children of light. For any subordinate agent of this kingdom, man or demon, to oppose another agent would be, reasons Christ, a division of Satan against Satan (involving the fall of his kingdom), which division Satan would never sanction (Eph 6:12-13).
Demons are "his angels" (Mt 25:41; Re 12:7,9). Natural science can give no light when we come to the boundary line which divides mind from matter. The Bible-asserted existence of evil among angels affords no greater difficulty than its manifest existence among men. As surely as Scripture is true, personality is as much attributed to them as it is to men or to God. Possession with or by a demon or demons is distinctly asserted by Luke (Lu 6:17-18), who as a "physician" was able to distinguish between the phenomena of disease and those of demoniac possession. The Spirit of God in the evangelists would never have sanctioned such distinction, or left people under a superstitious error, not merely connived at but endorsed, if the belief were really false. There is nothing wrong in our using the word "lunacy" for madness; but if we described its cure as the moon's ceasing to afflict, or if the doctor addressed the moon commanding it to leave the patient alone, it would be a lie (Trench, Miracles, 153).
In Mt 4:24, "those possessed with demons" are distinguished from "those lunatic" (probably the epileptic, but even this caused by a demon: Mr 9:14, etc.). Demons spoke with superhuman knowledge (Ac 16:16); recognized Jesus, not merely as son of David (which they would have done had their voice been merely that of the existing Jewish superstition), but as "Son of God" (Mt 8:29). Our Lord speaks of the disciples' casting out of demons as an installment or earnest of the final "fall" of Satan before the kingdom of Christ (Lu 10:18). People might imagine the existence of demons; but swine could only be acted on by an external real personal agent; the entrance of the demons into the swine of Gadara, and their consequent drowning, prove demons to be objective realities.
Seeing that physical disease itself is connected with the introduction of evil into the world, the tracing of insanity to physical disorganization only partially explains the phenomena; mental disease often betrays symptoms of a hostile spiritual power at work. At our Lord's advent as Prince of Light, Satan as prince of darkness, whose ordinary operation is on men's minds by invisible temptation, rushed into open conflict with His kingdom and took possession of men's bodies also. The possessed man lost the power of individual will and reason, his personal consciousness becoming strangely confused with that of the demon in him, so as to produce a twofold will, such as we have in some dreams. Sensual habits predisposed to demoniac possession. In pagan countries instances occur wherein Satan seemingly exercises a more direct influence than in Christian lands. Demoniac possession gradually died away as Christ's kingdom progressed in the first centuries of the church. There are four gradations in Satan's ever-deepening fall.
(1) He is deprived of his heavenly excellency, though still having access to heaven as man's accuser (Job 1-2), up to Christ's ascension. All we know of his original state as an archangel of light is that he lost it through pride and restless ambition, and that he had some special connection, possibly as God's vicegerent over this earth and the animal kingdom; thereby we can understand his connection and that of his subordinate fallen angels with this earth throughout Scripture, commencing with his temptation of man to his characteristic sin, ambition to be "as gods knowing good and evil;" only his ambition seems to have been that of power, man's that of knowledge. His assuming an animal form, that of a serpent, and the fact of death existing in the pre-Adamite world, imply that evil probably was introduced by him in some way unknown to us, affecting the lower creation before man's creation. As before Christ's ascension heaven was not yet fully open to man (Joh 3:13), so it was not yet shut against Satan. The old dispensation could not overcome him (compare Zechariah 3).
(2) From Christ to the millennium he is judicially cast out as "accuser" of the elect; for Christ appearing before God as our Advocate (Heb 9:24), Satan the accusing adversary could no longer appear against us (Ro 8:33-34). He and his angels range through the air and the earth during this period (Eph 2:2; 6:12). "Knowing that he hath but a short time" (Revelation 12), in "great wrath" he concentrates his power on the earth, especially toward the end, when he is to lose his standing against Israel and expulsion shall be executed on him and his by Michael (Re 12:7-9; Da 12:1; Zechariah 3, where Joshua the high priest represents "Jerusalem," whose "choice" by the Lord is the ground of the Lord's rebuke to Satan).
(3) He is bound at the eve of the millennium (Re 20:1-3). Having failed to defeat God's purpose of making this earth the kingdom of Christ and His transfigured saints, by means of the beast, the harlot, and finally Antichrist, who is destroyed instantly by Christ's manifestation in glory, S
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Thus His fame spread through all Syria; and they brought all the sick to Him, the people who were suffering from various diseases and pains--demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He cured them.
Thus His fame spread through all Syria; and they brought all the sick to Him, the people who were suffering from various diseases and pains--demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He cured them.
They cried aloud, "What hast Thou to do with us, Thou Son of God? Hast Thou come here to torment us before the time?"
They cried aloud, "What hast Thou to do with us, Thou Son of God? Hast Thou come here to torment us before the time?"
They cried aloud, "What hast Thou to do with us, Thou Son of God? Hast Thou come here to torment us before the time?"
They cried aloud, "What hast Thou to do with us, Thou Son of God? Hast Thou come here to torment us before the time?"
The Pharisees heard it and said, "This man only expels demons by the power of Baal-zebul, the Prince of demons."
The Pharisees heard it and said, "This man only expels demons by the power of Baal-zebul, the Prince of demons." Knowing their thoughts He said to them, "Every kingdom in which civil war has raged suffers desolation; and every city or house in which there is internal strife will be brought low.
Knowing their thoughts He said to them, "Every kingdom in which civil war has raged suffers desolation; and every city or house in which there is internal strife will be brought low. And if Satan is expelling Satan, he has begun to make war on himself: how therefore shall his kingdom last?
And if Satan is expelling Satan, he has begun to make war on himself: how therefore shall his kingdom last? And if it is by Baal-zebul's power that I expel the demons, by whose power do your disciples expel them? They therefore shall be your judges.
And if it is by Baal-zebul's power that I expel the demons, by whose power do your disciples expel them? They therefore shall be your judges. But if it is by the power of the Spirit of God that I expel the demons, it is evident that the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
But if it is by the power of the Spirit of God that I expel the demons, it is evident that the Kingdom of God has come upon you. Again, how can any one enter the house of a strong man and carry off his goods, unless first of all he masters and secures the strong man: then he will ransack his house.
Again, how can any one enter the house of a strong man and carry off his goods, unless first of all he masters and secures the strong man: then he will ransack his house. "The man who is not with me is against me, and he who is not gathering with me is scattering abroad.
"The man who is not with me is against me, and he who is not gathering with me is scattering abroad.
But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Adversary; you are a hindrance to me, because your thoughts are not God's thoughts, but men's."
But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Adversary; you are a hindrance to me, because your thoughts are not God's thoughts, but men's."
"Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels.
"Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels.
As they came to rejoin the disciples, they saw an immense crowd surrounding them and a party of Scribes disputing with them.
As they came to rejoin the disciples, they saw an immense crowd surrounding them and a party of Scribes disputing with them.
"Rabbi," said John to Him, "we saw a man making use of your name to expel demons, and we tried to hinder him, on the ground that he did not follow us."
"Rabbi," said John to Him, "we saw a man making use of your name to expel demons, and we tried to hinder him, on the ground that he did not follow us."
Demons also came out of many, loudly calling out, "You are the Son of God." But He rebuked them and forbad them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ.
Demons also came out of many, loudly calling out, "You are the Son of God." But He rebuked them and forbad them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ.
With these He came down till He reached a level place, where there was a great crowd of His disciples, and a multitude of people from every part of Judaea, from Jerusalem, and from the sea-side district of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and to be cured of their diseases;
With these He came down till He reached a level place, where there was a great crowd of His disciples, and a multitude of people from every part of Judaea, from Jerusalem, and from the sea-side district of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and to be cured of their diseases; and those who were tormented by foul spirits were cured.
and those who were tormented by foul spirits were cured.
"I saw Satan fall like a lightning-flash out of Heaven," He replied.
"I saw Satan fall like a lightning-flash out of Heaven," He replied.
And this woman, daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan had bound for no less than eighteen years, was she not to be loosed from this chain because it is the Sabbath day?"
And this woman, daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan had bound for no less than eighteen years, was she not to be loosed from this chain because it is the Sabbath day?"
There is no one who has gone up to Heaven, but there is One who has come down from Heaven, namely the Son of Man whose home is in Heaven.
There is no one who has gone up to Heaven, but there is One who has come down from Heaven, namely the Son of Man whose home is in Heaven.
"Did not I choose you--the Twelve?" said Jesus, "and even of you one is a devil."
"Did not I choose you--the Twelve?" said Jesus, "and even of you one is a devil."
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
Now is a judgement of this world: now will the Prince of this world be driven out.
Now is a judgement of this world: now will the Prince of this world be driven out.
of judgement, because the Prince of this world is under sentence.
of judgement, because the Prince of this world is under sentence.
One day, as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who claimed to be inspired and was accustomed to bring her owners large profits by telling fortunes.
One day, as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who claimed to be inspired and was accustomed to bring her owners large profits by telling fortunes.
One day, as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who claimed to be inspired and was accustomed to bring her owners large profits by telling fortunes.
One day, as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who claimed to be inspired and was accustomed to bring her owners large profits by telling fortunes.
A few of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also encountered him. Some of them asked, "What has this beggarly babbler to say?" "His business," said others, "seems to be to cry up some foreign gods." This was because he had been telling the Good News of Jesus and the Resurrection.
A few of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also encountered him. Some of them asked, "What has this beggarly babbler to say?" "His business," said others, "seems to be to cry up some foreign gods." This was because he had been telling the Good News of Jesus and the Resurrection.
But there were also some wandering Jewish exorcists who undertook to invoke the name of Jesus over those who had the evil spirits, saying, "I command you by that Jesus whom Paul preaches."
But there were also some wandering Jewish exorcists who undertook to invoke the name of Jesus over those who had the evil spirits, saying, "I command you by that Jesus whom Paul preaches."
"Jesus I know," the evil spirit answered, "and Paul I have heard of, but who are you?"
"Jesus I know," the evil spirit answered, "and Paul I have heard of, but who are you?"
Who shall impeach those whom God has chosen? God declares them free from guilt.
Who shall impeach those whom God has chosen? God declares them free from guilt. Who is there to condemn them? Christ Jesus died, or rather has risen to life again. He is also at the right hand of God, and is interceding for us.
Who is there to condemn them? Christ Jesus died, or rather has risen to life again. He is also at the right hand of God, and is interceding for us.
For if so-called gods do exist, either in Heaven or on earth--and in fact there are many such gods and many such lords--
For if so-called gods do exist, either in Heaven or on earth--and in fact there are many such gods and many such lords--
Do I mean that a thing sacrificed to an idol is what it claims to be, or that an idol is a real thing?
Do I mean that a thing sacrificed to an idol is what it claims to be, or that an idol is a real thing? No, but that which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, not to God; and I would not have you have fellowship with one another through the demons.
No, but that which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, not to God; and I would not have you have fellowship with one another through the demons. You cannot drink the Lord's cup and the cup of demons: you cannot be joint-partakers both in the table of the Lord and in the table of demons.
You cannot drink the Lord's cup and the cup of demons: you cannot be joint-partakers both in the table of the Lord and in the table of demons.
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.
For ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world--the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in the heavenly warfare.
For ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world--the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in the heavenly warfare.
For ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world--the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in the heavenly warfare.
For ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world--the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in the heavenly warfare. Therefore put on the complete armour of God, so that you may be able to stand your ground on the day of battle, and, having fought to the end, to remain victors on the field.
Therefore put on the complete armour of God, so that you may be able to stand your ground on the day of battle, and, having fought to the end, to remain victors on the field.
He ought not to be a new convert, for fear he should be blinded with pride and come under the same condemnation as the Devil.
He ought not to be a new convert, for fear he should be blinded with pride and come under the same condemnation as the Devil.
Deaconesses, in the same way, must be sober-minded women, not slanderers, but in every way temperate and trustworthy.
Deaconesses, in the same way, must be sober-minded women, not slanderers, but in every way temperate and trustworthy.
destitute of natural affection, unforgiving, slanderers. They will have no self-control, but will be brutal, opposed to goodness,
destitute of natural affection, unforgiving, slanderers. They will have no self-control, but will be brutal, opposed to goodness,
For not into a Holy place built by men's hands--a mere copy of the reality--did Christ enter, but He entered Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.
For not into a Holy place built by men's hands--a mere copy of the reality--did Christ enter, but He entered Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.
You believe that God is one, and you are quite right: evil spirits also believe this, and shudder."
You believe that God is one, and you are quite right: evil spirits also believe this, and shudder."
Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour.
Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour.
For God did not spare angels when they had sinned, but hurling them down to Tartarus consigned them to caves of darkness, keeping them in readiness for judgement.
For God did not spare angels when they had sinned, but hurling them down to Tartarus consigned them to caves of darkness, keeping them in readiness for judgement.
We are not to resemble Cain, who was a child of the Evil one and killed his own brother. And why did he kill him? Because his own actions were wicked and his brother's actions righteous.
We are not to resemble Cain, who was a child of the Evil one and killed his own brother. And why did he kill him? Because his own actions were wicked and his brother's actions righteous.
But the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues, did not even then repent and leave the things they had made, so as to cease worshipping the demons, and the idols of gold and silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear, nor move.
But the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues, did not even then repent and leave the things they had made, so as to cease worshipping the demons, and the idols of gold and silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear, nor move.
And war broke out in Heaven, Michael and his angels engaging in battle with the Dragon.
And war broke out in Heaven, Michael and his angels engaging in battle with the Dragon.
And war broke out in Heaven, Michael and his angels engaging in battle with the Dragon.
And war broke out in Heaven, Michael and his angels engaging in battle with the Dragon. The Dragon fought and so did his angels; but they were defeated, and there was no longer any room found for them in Heaven.
The Dragon fought and so did his angels; but they were defeated, and there was no longer any room found for them in Heaven. The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him.
The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him.
The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him.
The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him. Then I heard a loud voice speaking in Heaven. It said, "The salvation and the power and the Kingdom of our God have now come, and the sovereignty of His Christ; for the accuser of our brethren has been hurled down--he who, day after day and night after night, was wont to accuse them in the presence of God.
Then I heard a loud voice speaking in Heaven. It said, "The salvation and the power and the Kingdom of our God have now come, and the sovereignty of His Christ; for the accuser of our brethren has been hurled down--he who, day after day and night after night, was wont to accuse them in the presence of God.
For they are the spirits of demons working marvels--spirits that go out to control the kings of the whole earth, to assemble them for the battle which is to take place on the great day of God, the Ruler of all.
For they are the spirits of demons working marvels--spirits that go out to control the kings of the whole earth, to assemble them for the battle which is to take place on the great day of God, the Ruler of all.
Then I saw an angel coming down from Heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit, and upon his arm he carried a great chain.
Then I saw an angel coming down from Heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit, and upon his arm he carried a great chain. He laid hold of the Dragon--the ancient serpent--who is the Devil and the Adversary, and bound him for a thousand years, and hurled him into the bottomless pit.
He laid hold of the Dragon--the ancient serpent--who is the Devil and the Adversary, and bound him for a thousand years, and hurled him into the bottomless pit. He closed the entrance and put a seal upon him in order that he might be unable to lead the nations astray any more until the thousand years were at an end. Afterwards he is to be set at liberty for a short time.
He closed the entrance and put a seal upon him in order that he might be unable to lead the nations astray any more until the thousand years were at an end. Afterwards he is to be set at liberty for a short time.
But when the thousand years are at an end, the Adversary will be released from his imprisonment,
But when the thousand years are at an end, the Adversary will be released from his imprisonment, and will go out to lead astray the nations in all the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, and assemble them for war, and they are like the sands on the seashore in number.
and will go out to lead astray the nations in all the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, and assemble them for war, and they are like the sands on the seashore in number. And they went up over the whole breadth of the earth and surrounded the encampment of God's people and the beloved city. But fire came down from Heaven and consumed them;
And they went up over the whole breadth of the earth and surrounded the encampment of God's people and the beloved city. But fire came down from Heaven and consumed them; and the Devil, who had been leading them astray, was thrown into the Lake of fire and sulphur where the Wild Beast and the false Prophet were, and day and night they will suffer torture until the Ages of the Ages.
and the Devil, who had been leading them astray, was thrown into the Lake of fire and sulphur where the Wild Beast and the false Prophet were, and day and night they will suffer torture until the Ages of the Ages.
Hastings
The word came into English from Greek either directly or through its Latin transliteration. Used with the definite article, its original meaning was that of the accuser or traducer of men (see Satan), whence it soon came to denote the supreme spirit of evil, the personal tempter of man and enemy of God. With the indefinite article it stands for a malignant being of superhuman nature and powers, and represents the conception expressed by the Greeks in the original of our term 'demon.' At first the idea of malignancy was not necessarily associated with these beings, some being regarded as harmless and others as wielding even benign influence; but gradually they were considered as operating exclusively in the sphere of mischief, and as needing to be guarded against by magic rites or religious observances.
1. Earlier conceptions.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
At that time Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the Desert in order to be tempted by the Devil.
So the Tempter came and said, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to turn into loaves."
and bring us not into temptation, but rescue us from the Evil one.'
On His arrival at the other side, in the country of the Gadarenes, there met Him two men possessed by demons, coming from among the tombs: they were so dangerously fierce that no one was able to pass that way.
"Go," He replied. Then they came out from the men and went into the swine, whereupon the entire herd instantly rushed down the cliff into the Lake and perished in the water.
But the Pharisees maintained, "It is by the power of the Prince of the demons that he drives out the demons."
The Pharisees heard it and said, "This man only expels demons by the power of Baal-zebul, the Prince of demons." Knowing their thoughts He said to them, "Every kingdom in which civil war has raged suffers desolation; and every city or house in which there is internal strife will be brought low. read more. And if Satan is expelling Satan, he has begun to make war on himself: how therefore shall his kingdom last? And if it is by Baal-zebul's power that I expel the demons, by whose power do your disciples expel them? They therefore shall be your judges.
"To you then I will explain the parable of the Sower. When a man hears the Message concerning the Kingdom and does not understand it, the Evil one comes and catches away what has been sown in his heart. This is he who has received the seed by the road-side.
The enemy who sows the darnel is *the Devil*; the harvest is the Close of the Age; the reapers are the angels.
The enemy who sows the darnel is *the Devil*; the harvest is the Close of the Age; the reapers are the angels.
But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Adversary; you are a hindrance to me, because your thoughts are not God's thoughts, but men's."
Then Jesus reprimanded the demon, and it came out and left him; and the boy was cured from that moment.
"Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels.
The Scribes, too, who had come down from Jerusalem said, "He has Baal-zebul in him; and it is by the power of the Prince of the demons that he expels the demons."
"I solemnly tell you," replied Jesus, "that to-day--this night--before the cock crows twice, you yourself will three times disown me."
tempted all the while by the Devil. During those days He ate nothing, and at the close of them He suffered from hunger.
Those by the way-side are those who have heard, and then the Devil comes and carries away the Message from their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
"What is your name?" Jesus asked him. "Legion," he replied--because a great number of demons had entered into him;
"I saw Satan fall like a lightning-flash out of Heaven," He replied. "I have given you power to tread serpents and scorpions underfoot, and to trample on all the power of the Enemy; and in no case shall anything do you harm.
On once occasion He was expelling a dumb demon; and when the demon was gone out the dumb man could speak, and the people were astonished.
but as soon as another stronger than he attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away that complete armour of his in which he trusted, and distributes the plunder he has collected.
So he cried aloud, and said, "'Father Abraham, take pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.'
But *I* have prayed for *you* that your faith may not fail, and you, when at last you have come back to your true self, must strengthen your brethren."
"Did not I choose you--the Twelve?" said Jesus, "and even of you one is a devil."
"You are possessed by a demon," replied the crowd; "no one wants to kill you."
But, in fact, you are longing to kill me, a man who has spoken to you the truth which I have heard from God. Abraham did not do that.
"If God were your Father," said Jesus, "you would love me; for it is from God that I came and I am now here. I have not come of myself, but *He* sent me.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
I give them the Life of the Ages, and they shall never, never perish, nor shall any one wrest them from my hand.
Now is a judgement of this world: now will the Prince of this world be driven out.
While supper was proceeding, the Devil having by this time suggested to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, the thought of betraying Him, Jesus,
While supper was proceeding, the Devil having by this time suggested to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, the thought of betraying Him, Jesus,
Then, after Judas had received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. "Lose no time about it," said Jesus to him.
of judgement, because the Prince of this world is under sentence.
I do not ask that Thou wilt remove them out of the world, but that Thou wilt protect them from the Evil one.
"My kingdom," replied Jesus, "does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my subjects would have resolutely fought to save me from being delivered up to the Jews. But, as a matter of fact, my kingdom has not this origin."
It tells how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, so that He went about everywhere doing acts of kindness, and curing all who were being continually oppressed by the Devil--for God was with Jesus.
said, "You who are full of every kind of craftiness and unscrupulous cunning--you son of the Devil and foe to all that is right--will you never cease to misrepresent the straight paths of the Lord?
What follows? This comparison. Through one man sin entered into the world, and through sin death, and so death passed to all mankind in turn, in that all sinned.
And before long, God the giver of peace will crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you!
And before long, God the giver of peace will crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you!
Do not refuse one another, unless perhaps it is just for a time and by mutual consent, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer and may then associate again; lest the Adversary begin to tempt you because of your deficiency in self-control.
No, but that which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, not to God; and I would not have you have fellowship with one another through the demons.
The last enemy that is to be overthrown is Death;
in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds so as to shut out the sunshine of the Good News of the glory of the Christ, who is the image of God.
in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds so as to shut out the sunshine of the Good News of the glory of the Christ, who is the image of God.
Where can harmony between Christ and Belial be found? Or what participation has a believer with an unbeliever?
But I am afraid that, as the serpent in his craftiness deceived Eve, so your minds may be led astray from their single-heartedness and their fidelity to Christ.
high above all other government and authority and power and dominion, and every title of sovereignty used either in this Age or in the Age to come.
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.
and do not leave room for the Devil.
and do not leave room for the Devil.
Put on the complete armour of God, so as to be able to stand firm against all the stratagems of the Devil. For ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world--the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in the heavenly warfare.
And besides all these take the great shield of faith, on which you will be able to quench all the flaming darts of the Wicked one;
It is God who has delivered us out of the dominion of darkness, and has transferred us into the Kingdom of His dearly-loved Son,
The appearing of the Lawless one will be attended by various miracles and tokens and delusive marvels--for so Satan works--
He ought not to be a new convert, for fear he should be blinded with pride and come under the same condemnation as the Devil. It is needful also that he bear a good character with people outside the Church, lest he fall into reproach or a snare of the Devil.
Now the Spirit expressly declares that in later times some will fall away from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and the teachings of demons;
Since then the children referred to are all alike sharers in perishable human nature, He Himself also, in the same way, took on Him a share of it, in order that through death He might render powerless him who had authority over death, that is, the Devil,
Since then the children referred to are all alike sharers in perishable human nature, He Himself also, in the same way, took on Him a share of it, in order that through death He might render powerless him who had authority over death, that is, the Devil,
Since then the children referred to are all alike sharers in perishable human nature, He Himself also, in the same way, took on Him a share of it, in order that through death He might render powerless him who had authority over death, that is, the Devil,
You believe that God is one, and you are quite right: evil spirits also believe this, and shudder."
Submit therefore to God: resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.
Submit therefore to God: resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.
Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour.
For God did not spare angels when they had sinned, but hurling them down to Tartarus consigned them to caves of darkness, keeping them in readiness for judgement.
He who is habitually guilty of sin is a child of the Devil, because the Devil has been a sinner from the very beginning. The Son of God appeared for the purpose of undoing the work of the Devil.
He who is habitually guilty of sin is a child of the Devil, because the Devil has been a sinner from the very beginning. The Son of God appeared for the purpose of undoing the work of the Devil.
By this we can distinguish God's children and the Devil's children: no one who fails to act righteously is a child of God, nor he who does not love his brother man.
By this we can distinguish God's children and the Devil's children: no one who fails to act righteously is a child of God, nor he who does not love his brother man.
We are not to resemble Cain, who was a child of the Evil one and killed his own brother. And why did he kill him? Because his own actions were wicked and his brother's actions righteous.
We know that no one who is a child of God lives in sin, but He who is God's Child keeps him, and the Evil one cannot touch him.
And angels--those who did not keep the position originally assigned to them, but deserted their own proper abode--He reserves in everlasting bonds, in darkness, in preparation for the judgement of the great day.
But Michael the Archangel, when contending with the Devil and arguing with him about the body of Moses, did not dare to pronounce judgement on him in abusive terms, but simply said, "The Lord rebuke you."
"To the minister of the Church at Thyateira write as follows: "'This is what the Son of God says--He who has eyes like a flame of fire, and feet resembling silver-bronze.
The locusts had a king over them--the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is 'Abaddon,' while in the Greek he is called 'Apollyon.'
But the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues, did not even then repent and leave the things they had made, so as to cease worshipping the demons, and the idols of gold and silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear, nor move.
The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him.
The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him. Then I heard a loud voice speaking in Heaven. It said, "The salvation and the power and the Kingdom of our God have now come, and the sovereignty of His Christ; for the accuser of our brethren has been hurled down--he who, day after day and night after night, was wont to accuse them in the presence of God.
For this reason be glad, O Heaven, and you who live in Heaven! Alas for the earth and the sea! For the Devil has come down to you; full of fierce anger, because he knows that his appointed time is short."
For they are the spirits of demons working marvels--spirits that go out to control the kings of the whole earth, to assemble them for the battle which is to take place on the great day of God, the Ruler of all.
and with a mighty voice he cried out, saying, "Great Babylon has fallen, has fallen, and has become a home for demons and a stronghold for every kind of foul spirit and for every kind of foul and hateful bird.
But when the thousand years are at an end, the Adversary will be released from his imprisonment,
and the Devil, who had been leading them astray, was thrown into the Lake of fire and sulphur where the Wild Beast and the false Prophet were, and day and night they will suffer torture until the Ages of the Ages.
Smith
(slanderer). The name describes Satan as slandering God to man and man to God. The former work is of course, a part of his great work of temptation to evil and is not only exemplified but illustrated as to its general nature and tendency by the narrative of Gen. 3. The other work, the slandering or accusing men before God, is the imputation of selfish motives,
and its refutation is placed in the self-sacrifice of those "who loved not their own lives unto death." [SATAN; DEMON]
See Satan
See Demon
Watsons
DEVIL, Diabolus, an evil angel. The word is formed from the French diable, of the Latin diabolus, which comes from the Greek ????????, which, in its ordinary acceptation, signifies calumniator, traducer, or false accuser, from the verb ??????????, to calumniate, &c; or from the ancient British diafol. Dr. Campbell observes, that, though the word is sometimes, both in the Old Testament and the New, applied to men and women, as traducers, it is, by way of eminence, employed to denote that apostate angel, who is exhibited to us, particularly in the New Testament, as the great enemy of God and man. In the two first chapters of Job, it is the word in the Septuagint by which the Hebrew ???, Satan, or adversary, is translated. Indeed, the Hebrew word in this application, as well as the Greek, has been naturalized in most modern languages. Thus we say, indifferently, the devil, or Satan; only the latter has more the appearance of a proper name, as it is not attended with the article. There is, however, this difference between the import of such terms, as occurring in their native tongues, and as modernized in translations. In the former, they always retain somewhat of their primitive meaning, and, beside indicating a particular being, or class of beings, they are of the nature of appellatives, and make a special character or note of distinction in such beings. Whereas, when thus Latinized or Englished, they answer solely the first of these uses, as they come nearer the nature of proper names. ???????? is sometimes applied to human beings; but nothing is more easy than to distinguish this application from the more frequent application to the arch-
apostate. One mark of distinction is, that, in this last use of the term, it is never found in the plural. When the plural is used, the context always shows that it refers to human beings, and not to fallen angels. It occurs in the plural only thrice, and that only in the epistles of St. Paul, 1Ti 3:11; 2Ti 3:3; Tit 2:3. Another criterion whereby the application of this word to the prince of darkness may be discovered, is its being attended with the article. The term almost invariably is ? ????????. The excepted instances occur in the address of Paul to Elymas the sorcerer, Ac 13:10; and that of our Lord to the Pharisees, Joh 8:44. The more doubtful cases are those in 1Pe 5:8, and Re 20:2. These are all the examples in which the word, though used indefinitely or without the article, evidently denotes our spiritual and ancient enemy; and the examples in which it occurs in this sense with the article, are too numerous to be recited.
2. That there are angels and spirits, good and bad, says an eminent writer; that at the head of these last, there is one more considerable and malignant than the rest, who, in the form, or under the name, of a serpent, was deeply, concerned in the fall of man, and whose head, in the language of prophecy, the Son of Man was one day to bruise; that this evil spirit, though that prophecy be in part fulfilled, has not yet received his death's wound, but is still permitted, for ends to us unsearchable, and in ways which we cannot particularly explain, to have a certain degree of power in this world hostile to its virtue and happiness,
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.
Now is a judgement of this world: now will the Prince of this world be driven out.
said, "You who are full of every kind of craftiness and unscrupulous cunning--you son of the Devil and foe to all that is right--will you never cease to misrepresent the straight paths of the Lord?
in whom the god of this present age has blinded their unbelieving minds so as to shut out the sunshine of the Good News of the glory of the Christ, who is the image of God.
For men of this stamp are sham apostles, dishonest workmen, assuming the garb of Apostles of Christ. And no wonder. Satan, their master, can disguise himself as an angel of light.
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.
which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life. Among them all of us also formerly passed our lives, governed by the inclinations of our lower natures, indulging the cravings of those natures and of our own thoughts, and were in our original state deserving of anger like all others.
It is God who has delivered us out of the dominion of darkness, and has transferred us into the Kingdom of His dearly-loved Son,
Deaconesses, in the same way, must be sober-minded women, not slanderers, but in every way temperate and trustworthy.
In the same way exhort aged women to let their conduct be such as becomes consecrated persons. They must not be slanderers nor enslaved to wine-drinking. They must be teachers of what is right.
For there was a time when we also were deficient in understanding, obstinate, deluded, the slaves of various cravings and pleasures, spending our lives in malice and envy, hateful ourselves and hating one another.
But you are a chosen race, a priesthood of kingly lineage, a holy nation, a people belonging specially to God, that you may make known the perfections of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.
Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour.
Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour.
We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the Evil one.
And angels--those who did not keep the position originally assigned to them, but deserted their own proper abode--He reserves in everlasting bonds, in darkness, in preparation for the judgement of the great day.
He laid hold of the Dragon--the ancient serpent--who is the Devil and the Adversary, and bound him for a thousand years, and hurled him into the bottomless pit.
He laid hold of the Dragon--the ancient serpent--who is the Devil and the Adversary, and bound him for a thousand years, and hurled him into the bottomless pit.