Issued: 5/4/24

“What the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God. And I do not want you to be fellow partakers with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot partake in the table of the Lord and the table of demons too.”

1Corinthians 10:20-21

   PLEASE NOTE:  Because Bible versions sometimes differ from each other in crucial ways, the version quoted here will be the one that best clarifies the point being made.  For a quick comparison between versions, please go to: http://www.biblehub.com.

   All bracketed material may be authorial comments, attempts at proper syntax, or minimal rewordings of Scripture for the sake of clarity and continuity.  These emendations will not be italicized.

   The “/” will be used to signify “and/or.”  The symbol “↔” is used to connect verses corroborating each other and so establishing doctrinal truths (Matthew 18:16↔2Corinthians 13:1).

   In differentiating between Yahweh Son [Jesus] and Yahweh Father [the Most High God], lower case letters have been used when discussing the former; upper case letters are reserved for the Only and Most High God.  Since Jesus was at pains to differentiate himself from Father, we have followed his lead here.

   The term neo-Christians will be used to differentiate between false Christians and Jesus’ true followers.

   In this essay, we are going to talk about a subject that to non-believers and ‘enlightened’ minds make Christians sound bonkers. Rejoice in the insults: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:11-12). Since the Holy Spirit is the proverbial ‘ghost-writer’ of Scripture (2Peter 1:20-21), and He relays to us—through Jesus—Father‘s “hidden wisdom” (John 15:26, 16:13; 1Corinthians 2:7,10-16↔Deuteronomy 29:29; Jeremiah 33:3; Mark 4:11-12; 2Corinthians 4:4; James 1:5-7; 1John 2:27), we must accept His testimony regarding the existence of demonic entities and endure the ridicule of others—as did Jesus for us (Hebrews 12:2-3, 13:12-14). He is worthy of that honor; and anyway, unbelievers are not equipped to make heads or tails of spiritual matters (1Corinthians 1:20-21, 2:14↔Isaiah 29:10-14; Mark 4:11-12; 2Thessalonians 2:11-12).

   On a more pragmatic note, we must do so because our salvation hangs in the balance: “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels” (Mark 8:38). Thus if being validated by men instead of by Father and Jesus is more important to anyone [↔John 15:18-19; Galatians 1:10; 1Peter 2:20-21; 1John 4:5-6], let that be your consolation; because when push comes to shove, there will be some price to pay. Like 1Samuel 2:30, Ezra 8:22, and Proverbs 8:17 say, Father repays in kind and His “his great anger is against all who forsake Him.” Remember Esau’s fate (Hebrews 12:15-17); as well as Paul’s advice to “let God be true though and every man a liar…so that you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged” (Romans 3:4).

The limited powers of demons

   So what is a “demon”? The ancient Greek word, daimōn (δαίμων), denoted intermediary spirits/divine powers which were beneficial; but Christianity replaced that concept with evil beings striving for corruption; and in occult traditions were/are believed to be capable of being conjured up and controlled. Certainly this is the notion that Hollywood movies propagandize. Though the term is also used in reference to inner psychological processes [i.e., inner demons, personal demons], demons in the Bible are Satan and his fallen angels—not lost souls or ghosts of dead human beings whose existence the Scriptures disprove via death/resurrection dynamics (Genesis 25:8,17, 35:18↔Matthew 27:50; Luke 23:46; John 19:30; Psalms 6:5 / Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, 12:7↔Hebrews 9:27; Isaiah 26:19; Ezekiel 37:1-14; Daniel 12:2; John 5:28-29; Acts 24:15; 1Corinthians 15:51-52; 1Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 20:5-6). So that when Deuteronomy 18:11 speaks of not “consulting the dead” [↔Leviticus 19:31, 20:27), it is not referring to the souls of the departed, but to demons slated for destruction at Armageddon posing as people whose lives demons were privy of.¹

   One of Satan’s most successful propaganda ploys is that he is well-nigh impossible to resist. James 4:7, which is to say the Holy Spirit through him, disproves that: “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Certainly this is what Jesus did during his temptation in the desert (Luke 4:13); but Satan kept at it until thanks to Judas’ betrayal, Satan was able to get back at Jesus (Luke 22:3; John 13:2). It only took Judas’ disposition to betray Jesus for Satan to take control over Judas (Mark 14:10-11)—which teaches us that for Satan to act, he must do so through human beings in sync with his designs (John 8:44).

   Related teachings give us a roadmap to ‘possession’: The hearts of men are predisposed to do evil (Genesis 6:5; Ecclesiastes 7:29, 9:3); but men can temper that inclination by converting to Jesus [↔Ephesians 2:2]. However, this is a one-time opportunity that if rejected dooms any person; which does not mean ‘one-strike-you-are-out,’ for there is no man or woman ever totally free from sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20), but the willful, conscious choice of having once accepted the Gospel, then turning one’s back on Father and Jesus to go back to the old ways (Hebrews 6:4-6, 10:38). And this—in terms of demonic ‘re-possession’—is the gist of Matthew 12:43-45 and 2Peter 2:19-22. The operant notion here is one’s free will—for whatever reason—to embrace worldly concerns [↔James 4:4; 2Peter 2:12-15]. In 1Timothy 1:20 and 2Timothy 4:14-15, Paul mentions two of these individuals by name. Satan may push towards the proverbial pit but the rush to fall into it lies squarely with human beings.

   When Satan is spoken of in the Bible, he is always under Father‘s and Jesus’ thumbs. We see this with respect to Father in Ezekiel 21:1-27, where Satan is depicted as “the slayer” despising the Son‘s scepter (v. 21:11,13-15), the unnamed King of Babylon (Isaiah 14:4-6,10-17,20↔Revelation 2:13, 18:2), who in time will be stripped of all his powers over Judeo-Christians and the world at large (Ezekiel 21:25-27; Luke 4:5-6; John 14:30↔Ephesians 2:2; 2Corinthians 4:4↔2Timothy 2:25-26). And Satan wields that “homicidal sword” only when Father sees fit for Satan to do so (Ezekiel 21:3; Revelation 6:8). Even in the process of freeing his imprisoned angel/demons to wreak havoc at end-times amongst evildoers who in life served him, Satan must be given the key to unlock them (2Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6; Revelation 9:1-11). Likewise, Satan’s desire to make mincemeat out of Peter had to be permitted by a higher power—not Jesus (Luke 22:31; John 21:18-19), as was indeed Jesus’ own case (John 18:11, 19:11). Satan is never in full control of anything.

   Ditto with respect to Jesus, who in the Old Testament shared the Father‘s name (Exodus 23:20-21); an approach which intentionally or unfortunately has created the impression that Yahweh was/is a vindictive demiurge, even if Father and Son independently of each other were meant by that name (Isaiah 44:6). For it was the pre-existent Jesus, ruling as Father‘s proxy God, who restrained Satan’s homicidal tendencies during the killing of Egyptian firstborns (Exodus 12:13,23) and during the plague unleashed over Jerusalem in 2 Samuel 24:15-16 and 1Chronicles 21:14-15 [↔Revelation 6:8]. Not to sound like an apologist—because Father could not care less what men think about Him, but such punishments resulted from transgressions which had been forewarned would carry dire consequences (Exodus 11:4-8; 2Samuel 24:1,3-4,10,12-14↔Deuteronomy 8:17-18). Be it said in passing that David’s sin of pride later led Nebuchadnezzar to his punishment (Daniel 4:29-33). And who instigated David to take his ill-fated census? Satan (1Chronicles 21:1).

   Yahweh Son‘s control over Satan is stated clearly in Job 1 and 2: Despite all the sadism Satan unleashed upon Job, none of it could have taken place, while safeguarding Job’s life, unless Yahweh Son had not allowed Satan to act (Job 1:12, 2:6). What rankles many to this day is the fact that by Yahweh Son‘s own admission, Job was “blameless and upright,” a man who feared Father [note how the speaking Yahweh Son refers to Yahweh Father as God]; shunned evil (Job 1:8); and followed rules to protect his sons and daughters (Job 1:5). So besides the obvious point that Yahweh Son could be swayed by Satan’s arguments—never possible with Father (James 1:13)—to permit Job’s torment, what is the real and unpalatable lesson the Book of Job teaches all of us? That Father does as He will throughout His creation; and that no one has the bargaining power to expect anything from Him (Job 40:2, 41:11↔Daniel 4:35)—except rewards given for faith and in accordance to His will (Hebrews 11:6; 1John 5:14).

   In the Old Testament there are other cases of demonic intervention, as in 1Samuel 16:14-15, 18:10-11 and 1Kings 22:20-22, though Satan personally is not identified by name. It is possible that the 1Samuel demon(s?) may have been someone other than Satan; but the 1Kings ‘deceiver’ was most probably him, given Yahweh Son‘s comment that he would be successful in misleading Ahab’s prophets [↔John 8:44]. Also the Job 1 & 2, 1Kings and Zechariah 3:1-2 verses speak of the time when Satan took part in heavenly meetings, before the Archangel Michael booted him and his demons out of Heaven (Revelation 12:7-9).

   The Revelation quote is highly significant, since it took place while Jesus witnessed Satan’s fall during his earthly ministry (Luke 10:18); which tells us that the ‘Yahweh’ in Zechariah 3:1-2 was the Archangel Michael—not Yahweh Son—who dressed Moses with priestly vestments (Zechariah 4:3-5)—as indeed the Holy Spirit confirmed through the Apostle Jude (Jude 1:9). For some unexplained reason Michael was called ‘Yahweh’ on this occasion, though Daniel had made clear that Yahweh Son and Michael were two different beings waging wars against Satan’s earthly rulers (Daniel 10:20-21). While we would like to suggest explanations, we will refrain from doing so, since we could not back them up with the written evidence available.

   Possession continues in the New Testament, but mostly in the form of contributing diseases (Luke 13:10-16; Acts 5:16, 10:38, 19:12) and handicaps (Mark 9:17-26). An interesting case is the slave girl possessed by a spirit of divination which Paul exorcised (Acts 16:16-18). Please note that this demon not only recognized Paul and his companions as Father‘s servants, but was compelled to do as they commanded; which was not the case with the demon possessing an unnamed man in Acts 19:13-16, who jumped on and thrashed the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish high priest, for attempting to duplicate Paul’s feat. This particular demon had no order from on high to do as he was commanded; since that power comes directly from Jesus (Matthew 10:1) and not because one is an ordained minister in any one Christian denomination. So much for the Hollywood propaganda that the Roman Catholic Church has a monopoly on exorcism; and the pathetic perception that crucifixes and holy water have any power over the forces of evil. Evil can only be combatted with faith and ‘spiritual gear’ (Ephesians 6:12-17), not by reciting Our Fathers, Hail Marys, or codified, man-made incantations.

   Which brings us to Legion, apparently a consortium of demons living inside a single man (Mark 5:1-20). Here again we see demons recognizing Jesus as Father‘s Son; and fearful that Jesus had come before their appointed destruction at Armageddon (Revelation 20:14). Jesus then gave permission to the demons to leave the man and enter a herd of 2,000 pigs nearby; which then rushed down into the lake and drowned. Must we assume that there were 2,000 demons inside this man? Food for thought; but the important thing about the number is that the human soul in their midst could not prevail against them, so that conflicting, demonic wills compelled the possessed man to engage in crazy acts and self-harm.

   This type of scenario is what one finds in Hollywood movies about demonic possessions: The unfortunate man or woman who is compelled to act against his/her will; and engages in grotesqueries like spewing out torrents of vomit, turning heads around, or exhibiting gashes/writing on the skin. These Hollywood demons make a mockery of Jesus’ total control over them, all the while disparaging zealous exorcists hurling ‘sacred’ words at them and spraying holy water which demons could probably gargle with. Through these movies, Satan feeds the perception that men invested by their denominations but not necessarily empowered by Jesus can prevail over demons in Jesus’ name [↔Matthew 7:22-23]; so that the grotesque spectacles depicted in these movies have nothing to do with the Scriptural evidence that any person with the right leverage from on high can command demons to leave the possessed and within a nanosecond they must do so. When Jesus is truly running the show, the battle is heavily tilted in favor of his warriors; and neither Satan with all his powers nor demons assisted by him can prevail against the wielders of Jesus’ “sword” (Matthew 10:36, 16:18↔Zechariah 4:6; Ephesians 6:17; Hebrews 4:12).

   Now, Jesus did mention that some demons could only be exorcised through fast or prayer (Matthew 17:21; Mark 9:29); but why this is so, or what sort of demon requires this handling, we can neither say nor care to speculate. Jesus did not elaborate and we will not go there. Personal opinions are taboo in Scripture (Proverbs 30:6; Ecclesiastes 3:14; Matthew 5:19; Revelation 22:18-19). Only what can be corroborated by the written evidence settles all truth (Deuteronomy 19:15; Isaiah 8:20; Matthew 18:16; 2Corinthians 13:1).

What do demons look like?

   Despite Hollywood’s horrifying special effects, there is no evidence in Scripture that demons devolved into monstrous shapes. Satan himself was the seal of beauty and perfection (Ezekiel 28:12), and precisely because of those attributes (Ezekiel 28:17), he thought he could upstage Yahweh Son as Father‘s proxy God; and indeed led a putsch towards that objective (Isaiah 14:13-14; Ezekiel 28:16,18). This is why Job 4:18 states that Father noted foolishness amongst angels having given in to Satan’s seductive change-of-regime plans (Ezekiel 28:16)—the modus operandi, by the way, preferred by Satan’s “prince” [i.e., high priest↔Acts 23:5] pretending to be God (Ezekiel 28:2-3; Daniel 8:23-25). We have discussed elsewhere that this high priest resides in seven-hilled Babylon the Great, the church which is Satan’s headquarters (Revelation 2:13, 17:9, 18:2).

   In point of fact, if we could see Satan, he would knock us down for a loop; perhaps the reason why, like himself, humans place a premium on physical beauty—and perhaps why the human Jesus lacked it (Isaiah 53:2↔1John 3:2). All that talk about Satan being a snake/dragon (Isaiah 30:6; Genesis 3:1↔Revelation 20:2; Ezekiel 29:3↔Job 41:1,33-34; Psalms 104:26) is just poetic license rather than morphology; and we should interpret Revelation 9:1-11 in the same vein. Those horned, reptilian creatures we see in medieval art were Roman Catholic propaganda to control people through fear; for ‘demonization’ is a strategy which always work with human beings no matter their generation—as we saw in Nazi Germany with the Jews. Hollywood has followed suit because it is more scary—and profitable—to depict monstrous figures rather than beautiful angels compelling the possessed to do unspeakable things.

Respecting demonic forces

   While Martin Luther was waxing triumphant in his beef against Rome, he crossed lines by talking about Satan in disparaging ways. We will not quote his vulgarities here, given Paul’s recommendation we should not speak/repeat profanities (Ephesians 4:29). Certainly neither Jesus nor the Apostles resorted to name-calling or disparaging remarks when dealing with demons—which teaches us indirectly that those who do amongst politicians we lionize have ‘lost’ their Christians bearings [↔Matthew 5:22; Luke 6:45; James 3:9-12]. Peter pointedly differentiated between pious and unrighteous people to be punished on Judgment Day, those “bold and arrogant…not afraid to heap abuse on celestial beings; though angels [more powerful than them]…do not dare to accuse them before the Lord” (2Peter 2:9-11). Even while Michael was contending with Satan over Moses’ body, he limited himself to let Yahweh rebuke Satan (Zechariah 3:2↔Jude 1:9).

   This does not mean we should revere or cower in fear before Satan and his demons, but that unlike them and their human minions, we should respect everyone/everything empowered by Father no matter how corrupt they become [↔Romans 13:2]. David had reason enough to kill Saul, but what was his response do those who could have done so? “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Yahweh’s anointed and be guiltless?” (1Samuel 26:9). And when the man who did slay Saul by his own request told David of that fact, what was David’s response? “Why were you not afraid to lift your hand to destroy Yahweh’s anointed?” Then David summoned someone else to execute him for his temerity (2Samuel 1:5:16).

   This notion that nothing Father does or allows to happen can be messed with is an onus placed on Judeo-Christians to obey His will regardless of costly consequences (Psalms 50:5-7; Isaiah 51:22-23↔1Peter 2:20-21, 5:6). Let us remember that what gives Him that ‘right’ [for lack of a better word] is the fact that men have no bargaining chips (Job 41:11); and by sinning against Him in one way or another (Psalms 53:1-3; Ecclesiastes 7:20), everyone is liable for punishment (Jeremiah 46:28). Unlike parents who in Father‘s opinion ‘hate’ their children for refusing to discipline them (Proverbs 13:24), He does not spare His own in order to make them as holy as He is (Hebrews 12:5-10). This is implicit in Psalms 51:4 and Micah 7:9.

   Not very comforting news, to be truthful about it, as is the realization that Lucifer and angels to become demons were Yahweh Son‘s creatures, as wielding Father‘s power, he created all things on heaven and earth (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2). This is one of the most terrible and overlooked Scriptural truths: The fact that beings who torment us were created by Beings who love us. And though there is a reason for this, which we may address in a future essay, the sad reality is that we are caught between the proverbial Rock and a hard case; and have no choice but to grin and bear it until Father achieves His objectives (Ephesians 1:9-10, 4:3-6). As was Jesus’ case, because he had to endure Father‘s discipline in order to earn the right to discipline us (John 18:11; Hebrews 2:10). There is no nepotism with Father (Romans 2:11).

Giving us the winning edge

   Jesus was very clear on the fact we could do nothing without his help (John 15:5); and in their own experiences, the Apostles drew strength from Jesus to endure their ordeals (Luke 22:31-32; John 21:18-19; Philippians 4:13). Father is committed to do the same: “God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it” (1Corinthians 10:13); whether running away from temptation as Joseph did (Genesis 39:6-12) or surviving amongst the flames (Daniel 3:14-28). Still there are some who must die for the greater good, whose martyred blood plays the same role as that of sacrificial animals under Mosaic Law (Daniel 11:33; Matthew 10:22, 24:9; Romans 6:11; Hebrews 9:19-22; Revelation 14:13). Unless chosen for that purpose, who or why is singled out for that fate cannot be known (John 21:21-23; 2Timothy 4:6; 2Peter 1:14).

   Whatever the ordeal, we are assured of success if we patiently bear it (Luke 21:19); another inconvenient Scriptural truth, especially for gazillions of Christians who think that ‘personal relationships with the Lord’ shield them and their loved ones from what Paul called Satan’s “fiery darts” (Ephesians 6:16); to which we must add “doctrines of demons” taught us by false religious leaders (1Timothy 4:1-3). Nothing doing. Sunday worship makes us transgressors in Father‘s eyes, since that is not the day He established as the everlasting sign between Himself and the nation He sanctifies (Exodus 31:13). Who really can boast of loving Father above and beyond sons and relatives as Jesus commanded (Matthew 22:37; Luke 6:32), while at the same time warning that prioritizing loved ones over either of them disqualified people from his protection (Matthew 10:37-40; Luke 14:26-27)? Something as seemingly innocuous as burning a candle before any sort of effigy is a form of idolatrous reverence, as well as a form of consorting with demons [↔Deuteronomy 29:26, 31:30; 2Kings 22:17; Jeremiah 22:9; Ezekiel 5:11-13],² which will doom practitioners (Revelation 21:8↔Exodus 20:4-5; James 1:10, 4:17).

   Though the afflictions of the righteous be many, Father assures us of assistance at the opportune time (Psalms 34:19; Hebrews 4:16). Though legions of angelic and human evildoers conspire against us, “nothing can ever separate us from God’s love; either death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell…No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

   For even if hell itself opened its maw to devour us, we have Jesus’ assurance—and his total control over its forces both demonic and human (Matthew 28:18; Revelation 1:18), that his Church will prevail over all (Matthew 16:18).

¹ The exception (?) is the puzzling affair at Endor (1Samuel 28), which we tried to explain as best we could in the essay “Biblical Puzzlers.”

² Please refer to Deuteronomy 31:29: “For I know that after my death you will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn away from the way which I have commanded you [↔John 13:15]; and evil will happen to you in the latter days, because you will do that which is evil in Yahweh’s [Father‘s] sight, to provoke Him to anger through the work of your hands.” In the sense that Moses was Jesus’ stand-in in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 18:15; Zechariah 3:1↔Hebrews 5:5-6, 8:1-2; Jude 1:9), it was Jesus, through Moses in Deuteronomy 31:29, who warned future Judeo-Christians about their apostasy and ordeals at end-times.