An SCF Seminar presented by Chad Venters

The Origin and History

of Satan

Ruining Lifelong Friendships

Two amazing researchersNancy Whitten- Ancient DeitiesKristin Burford- Problem of Evil

Special Thanks

Have Fun and Glean What You

Can

Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”

Genesis 3:1-5, 14

The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”

Genesis 3:1-5, 14

The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!“For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:1-5

The LORD God said to the serpent,“Because you have done this,Cursed are you more than all cattle,And more than every beast of the field;On your belly you will go,And dust you will eatAll the days of your life;

Genesis 3:14-15

And I will put enmityBetween you and the woman,And between your seed and her seed;He shall bruise you on the head,And you shall bruise him on the heel.”

Genesis 3:14-15

Satan

Lucifer

The Devil

Azazel

Beelzebul

Miley Cyrus

Beelzebul

Satan in the Old Testament

• The word שטן means “adversary”, “accuser”

• Use of this word does not imply a supernatural being

What is in a word?

Make the man go back, that he may return to his place where you have assigned him, and do not let him go down to battle with us, or in the battle he may become an adversary to us.

1 Sam. 29:4

David then said, “What have I to do with you, O sons of Zeruiah, that you should this day be an adversary to me?”

2 Sam. 19:22

Supernatural Satan

Balaam

But God was angry because he was going, and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as an adversary against him. Now he was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him.

Num. 22:22-35

When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam was angry and struck the donkey with his stick.

Num. 22:22-35

And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”

Num. 22:22-35

Job

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. The LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.”

Job 1:6-12

The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.”Then Satan answered the LORD, “Does Job fear God for nothing?

Job 1:6-12

“Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.

Job 1:6-12

“But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.”Then the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.” So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD.

Job 1:6-12

Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the LORD. The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered the LORD and said,

Job 2:1-7

“From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.”The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man fearing God and turning away from evil.

Job 2:1-7

And he still holds fast his integrity, although you incited Me against him to ruin him without cause.”Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.

Job 2:1-7

“However, put forth Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse You to Your face.”So the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.”

Job 2:1-7

Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.

Job 2:1-7

• Sons of God in Job are angelic beings

• Satan is a translation of ha satan, which means “the adversary”

• This being is allowed into the presence of God and works with God’s permission

Notes

1 Chronicles/2 Samuel Passages

Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel.So David said to Joab and to the princes of the people, “Go, number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan, and bring me word that I may know their number.”

1 Chron. 21:1-3

Joab said, “May the LORD add to His people a hundred times as many as they are! But, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? Why does my lord seek this thing? Why should he be a cause of guilt to Israel?”

1 Chron. 21:1-3

Now again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and it incited David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”The king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him,

2 Sam. 24:1-3

“Go about now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and register the people, that I may know the number of the people.”

2 Sam. 24:1-3

Zechariah

Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.

Zech. 3:1-4

The LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, Satan! Indeed, the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?”

Zech. 3:1-4

Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel.He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying,

Zech. 3:1-4

“Remove the filthy garments from him.” Again he said to him, “See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes.”

Zech. 3:1-4

Two Important Ambiguous Passages

• Satan was once a perfect angel

• He was cast out of heaven for rebelling against God

• Is. 14 and Ez. 28 contribute to these beliefs

Common Beliefs

“How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn!You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations!

Isaiah 14:12-15

“But you said in your heart,‘I will ascend to heaven;I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assemblyIn the recesses of the north.

Isaiah 14:12-15

‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;I will make myself like the Most High.’

Isaiah 14:12-15

“Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the pit.

Isaiah 14:12-15

• This a is taunt to the king of Babylon

• The morning star is where Lucifer comes from

• The image is probably Canaanite mythology

Further Analysis

“Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD

Ez. 28:12-16

“You had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering…

Ez. 28:12-16

“You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.

Ez. 28:12-16

“You were blameless in your waysFrom the day you were createdUntil unrighteousness was found in you.

Ez. 28:12-16

“By the abundance of your tradeYou were internally filled with violence,And you sinned;

Ez. 28:12-16

Therefore I have cast you as profaneFrom the mountain of God.And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub,

Ez. 28:12-16

• Judgment of Tyre• Ammon, Moab,

Edom, Philistia, Sidon and Egypt all judged in passage

• Stronger possibility than Is. 14 in my opinion

Further Analysis

Between Two

Testaments

• Satan does not appear often in the OT

• Satan is far more present in the NT

• The curious case of Beelzebul

Observations

But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

Mt. 12:24-29

And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand.

Mt. 12:24-29

“If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand?

Mt. 12:24-29

“If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges.”

Mt. 12:24-29

• Likely a derivative of Baal- Zebub (2 Ki. 1:2)

• Baal was a Canaanite deity, name means “lord”

• Between OT and NT became demonic

Beelzebul

• OT documents finished by 300BC

• 1st NT document written in 50’s AD

• Lots of history between

Between OT & NT

1 Enoch

“He shall take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the doorway of the tent of meeting.

Azazel (Asael)

“Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat (עזאזל).Lev. 16:8

Azazel (Asael)

“And all the earth was made desolate by the deeds of the teaching of Asael, and over him write all the sins.” (1 Enoch 4:8)

Azazel (Asael)

“For whom are these chains being prepared?” And he said to me, “These are being prepared for the host of Azazel…

Azazel (Asael)

that they might take them and throw them into the abyss of complete judgment (1 Enoch 54:4-5)

Azazel (Asael)

Jubilees

And the prince Mastêmâ came and said before God, 'Behold, Abraham loves Isaac his son, and he delights in him above all things else; bid him offer him as a burnt-offering on the altar (17:16)

Jubilees

• In 586BC, Judah was deported to Babylon

• In 539BC Persia conquered Babylon

• Jews were exposed to new religions

What happened?

Tiamat

Angra Mainyu

• Satan becomes much more predominant in NT

• Some scholars see no Satan prior to exile

• Satan was borrowed from Zoroastriansim

Problem of Satan

• A very old text• Many argue Satan was

added into Job• No real need for this

Job

Take 5

The New Testament

Satan in the Gospels

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.

Matthew 4:1-11

And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

Matthew 4:1-11

But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’ ”

Matthew 4:1-11

Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and *said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down;

Matthew 4:1-11

for it is written,‘HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU’; and‘ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP,

Matthew 4:1-11

SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.’ ”Jesus said to him, “On the other hand, it is written,

Matthew 4:1-11

‘YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.’ ”Again, the devil *took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world

Matthew 4:1-11

and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him,

Matthew 4:1-11

“Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.’ ”

Matthew 4:1-11

• Satan tempts Jesus like Adam and Eve

• Jesus was known as a powerful exorcist

• His exorcisms were violent in nature

Demonic Activity

Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth?

Mark 1:23-26

Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!”

Mark 1:23-26

Throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him.

Mark 1:23-26

And there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double, and could not straighten up at all.

Luke 13:11-15

And He laid His hands on her; and immediately she was made erect again and began glorifying God…

Luke 13:11-15

“And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?”

Luke 13:11-15

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat;

Luke 22:31-32

but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”

Luke 22:31-32

but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”

Luke 22:31-32

And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve.

Luke 22:3

Satan in Paul

It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles,

1 Cor. 5:1-5

that someone has his father’s wife. I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh,

1 Cor. 5:1-5

so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

1 Cor. 5:1-5

For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.

2 Cor. 11:13-14

No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

2 Cor. 11:13-14

Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself,

2 Cor. 12:7

there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself!

2 Cor. 12:7

Satan in 1 Peter

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

1 Peter 5:8

Satan in Revelation

A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars;

Revelation 12

and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven:

Revelation 12

and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems.

Revelation 12

And his tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth.

Revelation 12

And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child.

Revelation 12

And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne…

Revelation 12

And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war,

Revelation 12

and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven.

Revelation 12

And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world;

Revelation 12

he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Revelation 12

The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”

Lost Authority

And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.  Behold, I have given you authority (Lk. 10:17)

Lost Authority

And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads,

Revelation 13

and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names.

Revelation 13

Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.

Revelation 20

 When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison,

Revelation 20

 and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth..

Revelation 20

  And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone,

Revelation 20

where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Revelation 20

Satan Through the

Centuries

Why is this?

“Since of old these evil demons, effecting apparitions of themselves, both defiled women and corrupted boys, and showed such fearful sights to men,

Justin Martyr

and being carried away by fear, and not knowing that these were demons, they called them gods.”

Justin Martyr

•Jewish movement became a Gentile movement•Gentile converts were polytheists•Reacted against the pantheon of gods

Period of Transition

•Satan is a construct of religious exposure and imagination to explain evil•Satan is a real enemy

Positions to Consider

Keyword: Subtlety