Searching for the Real Devil
The devil. This time of year he seems to be everywhere. People appear to know a lot about him without really knowing a lot about him, and I’m thinking that can be a dangerous thing. Nobody I know really wants to invite him to dinner to start asking questions, though, so how do we figure out who this enemy is? I have begun by collecting a little bit of literary history. By the end, maybe we can ask, “Will the real devil please stand up?’
The logical place for a Christian to start is the Bible. There are certainly some beliefs substantiated there.
The name we use, Satan, in Hebrew and Greek, means adversary:
Hebrew: שָׂטָן —transliteration: satan —meaning: adversary, also the name of the superhuman adversary of God and all mankind —occurrences: 27
Greek: ἀντίδικος —transliteration:antidikos —meaning: adversary (a technical legal term used in antiquity of an adversary in a courtroom—someone bringing a lawsuit seeking official damages) —occurrences: 5 times in Scripture (source: https://christiananswers.net/dictionary/adversary.html).
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
The Devil in Ezekiel
In the Old Testament, the prophet Ezekiel speaks to the king of Tyre, and then makes this analogy–
“Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘You were the seal of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden,
the garden of God;
every precious stone adorned you:
carnelian, chrysolite and emerald,
topaz, onyx and jasper,
lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl.
Your settings and mountings were made of gold;
on the day you were created they were prepared.
You were anointed as a guardian cherub,
for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God;
you walked among the fiery stones.
You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created
till wickedness was found in you.
Through your widespread trade
you were filled with violence,
and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God,
and I expelled you, guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
Your heart became proud
on account of your beauty,
and you corrupted your wisdom
because of your splendor.
So I threw you to the earth;
I made a spectacle of you before kings.
By your many sins and dishonest trade
you have desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I made a fire come out from you,
and it consumed you,
and I reduced you to ashes on the ground
in the sight of all who were watching.
All the nations who knew you
are appalled at you;
you have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.’”
From Ezekiel 28
The New Testament Devil
We are also informed in the scriptures that pride was the devil’s downfall (1 Timothy 3:6), that after Adam and Eve fell he became the prince of this world (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11), that he attempted to fool Jesus Christ with cunning words and his own knowledge of scripture, but that Jesus knew better (Matthew 4), that he is a liar (John 8:44, 2 Corinthians 11:3), that he can appear as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:3), and that he has his own crowd of spiritual children (John 8:44, Matthew 13:36-40, Acts 13:10, 1 John 3:10).
Christianity is not, however, the only religion that recognizes the devil.
The Devil in Judaism
In Judaism, the devil “is not a physical being ruling the underworld; rather, in the Torah, the word Satan indicates ‘accuser,’ ‘hinderer’ or ‘tempter.’ Satan is, therefore, more an illusory obstacle in one’s way – such as temptation and evil doings – keeping one from completing the responsibilities of tikkun olam (fixing the world). Satan is the evil inclination to veer off the path of righteousness and faithfulness in God. In the Talmud and Midrash, Satan appears as the force in the world, responsible for all sins. Some Midrashim claim that the sounding of the Shofar on Rosh Hashanah is utilized to keep Satan away as Jews begin to atone for their sins. Even the morning after Yom Kippur, many Jews attend services to guarantee Satan does not make one last effort to instigate Jews to commit sins” (https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/satan).
The Devil in the Apocrypha
According to the Apocryphal Book of Enoch (written around 300-200 BC), the rebellious angels were not necessarily cast out of heaven. Instead, according to their own will and design, they came to earth with the desire to take human wives and have children with them. “Enoch refers to angels as the ‘Watchers,’ the Aramaic translation of angels. This narrative of the fallen angels or Watchers takes some very interesting turns, delivering a radically different interpretation of what transpired in the spiritual and earthly realm involving Satan and other fallen angels. Here we see several dark angels led by Satan (who in Enoch is referred to as Samyaza).” By Chapter Six, the people of earth have produced many children, including particularly beautiful daughters. The dark angels lusted for them, and Samyaza devised a plan for the angels under his authority. He told them: “Come, let us choose wives from among the children of men and beget us children” (Enoch 6.2). He admitted that his plan would not be acceptable to God, and that he was prepared to “accept the ultimate penalty of this great sin.” According to the story, two hundred angels made the decision to fall from heaven and participate in Samyaza‟s plan.
Because of their unnatural actions, human women became pregnant and gave birth to giants. The giants grew to become the rulers and leaders of the Philistines and other groups who challenged God‟s people. The Watchers instructed humans in demonic practices such as charms, enchantments, and sorcery. Their leader, Azazel, educated mankind in the making of “every species of iniquity,” including the means for making weapons and armor for war (Enoch 8.1-9). When all this became known in heaven, God called His archangels to rid the earth of the Watchers. Those the archangels did not annihilate were supposed to be destroyed in the great flood, but, even after the flood, the evil ones were able to return (https://scholarship.rollins.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1027&context=mls).
The Devil in Inferno
In 1317, Dante Alighieri and the dead poet Vergil took readers on a “tour” of Inferno, or hell. The devil became visible in Canto 34 in the final round of the last circle of Cocytus, the lowest circle of Hell.
Dante offered some horrifying descriptions of people and punishments he saw as he walked through Inferno. In the final level, souls were completely encased in ice in many strange positions. As Dante and Virgil passed the punished sinners and approached Satan, the temperature grew colder due to the wind being created by the “batting” of Satan’s wings over the ice. Dante walked behind Virgil to shield himself from the freezing wind, and then was stunned to find himself face to face with the devil.
Dante described the devil, Satan, as bound in ice and having three faces. In each one of his mouths he eternally chewed on a sinner. Virgil explained to Dante that those sinners were Judas Iscariot who betrayed Christ, and Brutus and Cassius who betrayed Caesar.
Dante and Vergil continued on their journey and passed the midpoint of the Earth, where they were able to see Satan’s legs with his body frozen in the ice.
Although the devil does not really display a personality in Inferno, he is described as hideous and is the instrument of punishment for the “worst” of all who have betrayed. He is also punished eternally.
The Devil in Medieval Drama
In the 15th and 16th centuries, morality plays were performed publicly. These plays dealt with personified virtues and vices, and the devil became a favorite character of the audience. He was portrayed as a prankster and the butt of jokes. The character was often dressed in red and carried a club or a pitch fork. At times he came down from the stage to startle or frighten children who were wandering about. As a part of the play, he would drag wicked characters off to “hell.”
The Devil in Paradise Lost
In the mid-1600s, John Milton introduced the devil in a new light in his classic Paradise Lost. Though this devil sets out to undermine the work of God on earth, Milton makes him a more sympathetic character who is “charismatic and engaging in his passion for leading the fallen angels.”
In Paradise Lost, Satan is powerful on many levels, but most of all, in his cunning and deceit. He leads the rebellion against God, and then the more subtle attack against Eve.
The sad thing is that he really does understand that he is doing wrong, and it sways the sympathies readers his way:
Which way I fly is Hell; myself am Hell;
And, in the lowest deep, a lower deep
Still threatening to devour me opens wide,
To which the Hell I suffer seems a Heaven.
O, then, at last relent: Is there no place
Left for repentance, none for pardon left?
Satan may regret his actions, but he is too full of, here we are again, pride to repent.
(https://aleteia.org/2017/10/17/why-is-satan-depicted-with-horns-red-tights-and-a-pitchfork/).
The Devil in Faust
“Separated from Milton by more than a century, the poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe took the archetype of Satan in a radically different direction. His poem, The Tragedy of Faust, tells the story of a world-weary professor who — in one last effort to experience true happiness in life — sells his soul to the devil through a demon named Mephistopheles.
“Although, technically speaking, Mephistopheles is an agent of the devil rather than the devil himself, the two have the same intent and purpose–to possess the soul of a man, and to damn him to eternal hell. Actually, readers can infer as much simply by taking a closer look at the demon’s name, which consists of the Greek particle for negation (“me”) and the Greek word for love (“philos”).”
https://bigthink.com/high-culture/satan-devil-literature-representation/
Just to mention it, the parallel plot shows up again in 1955 in the musical drama Damn Yankees.
The Devil in Cartoons
Since it is Halloween, I can hardly fail to mention the devil costumes that come out, even on small children. The red horns and tails and evil smiles come right out of children’s cartoons. Take a moment to look at Donna Dickens’ 7 Most Traumatizing Times Satan Appears in Cartoons. I remember nightmares from Fantasia. The wearing of red tights may have spun out of those Medieval morality play characters, but it was highly influenced by animation.
The Devil in The Screwtape Letters
C.S. Lewis discussed the comic looking devil in The Screwtape Letters. The “Father Below” is pleased with “The fact that ‘devils’ are predominately comic figures in the modern imagination will help you. If any faint suspicion of your existence begins to arise in his mind, suggest to him a picture of something in red tights, and persuade him that since he cannot believe in that (it is an old textbook method of confusing them) he therefore cannot believe in you.” Lewis suggests that a comedic devil has contributed to the belief that the devil does not exist.
The Devil in a Few of His Films
Movies depicting the devil don’t stop at cartoons. “Robert De Niro and Al Pacino both deliver captivating performances as Satan in Angel Heart and The Devil’s Advocate, respectively. De Niro’s portrayal is brooding and menacing, while Pacino’s is delightfully deranged and full of charm. The actors showcase their different approaches and methods, with De Niro’s performance being clinically precise and Pacino’s being emotionally instinctive and unpredictable” (https://collider.com/robert-de-niro-and-al-pacino-satan/).
Will the Real Devil Please Stand Up!
So, who is he, this enemy we have heard so much about for centuries? Is he the embodiment of the accuser, or the regretful manipulator? Is he the fool in red tights and tail, or the horror frozen in ice? Is he calculating and cunning, or a master prankster? Will the real devil please stand up!
Think about it. Most of the descriptions we are aware of come from the mind of man. There is one, and only one, opinion that I trust, and that is the opinion of the One who knew him face-to-face from his beginning, and He refers to him as adversary, liar, and accuser. Right before He was arrested, Jesus Christ prayed with us–me– on His mind. He prayed, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one” (John 17:15).
Will the real devil please stand up … and get on out of here! I really don’t want to know you any better.
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