Who is Satan?
We all know the devil. He is probably red, male, has horns and a pointy tail, goat feet, and he carries a pitchfork.
Whether or not you were raised in church, this is the generic description. What might be surprising is that none of this is Biblical. In fact, in the Hebrew Bible, Satan is not even a proper name. It is the name of YHWH’s prosecutor or adversary in the Heavenly Council.
In the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), the word “Satan” appears 18 times. However, it’s important to note that in most of these instances, “Satan” functions as a title meaning “adversary” or “accuser,” rather than a proper name for a specific evil entity.
How is Satan depicted in the Hebrew Bible?
From Wikipedia, we learn that:
The first occurrence of the word “satan” in the Hebrew Bible in reference to a supernatural figure comes from Numbers 22:22 which describes the Angel of YHWH confronting Balaam on his donkey “Balaam’s departure aroused the wrath of Elohim and the Angel of Yahweh stood in the road as a satan against him. “In 2 Samuel 24, Yahweh sends the “Angel of Yahweh” to inflict a plague against Israel for three days, killing 70,000 people as punishment for David having taken a census without his approval. 1 Chronicles 21:1 repeats this story, but replaces the “Angel of Yahweh” with an entity referred to as “a satan.”
The character appears numerous times in the Hebrew Bible. Here is Gemini’s breakdown:
In the Hebrew Bible, the term “satan” primarily refers to an adversary or accuser, often acting as a celestial being within God’s council. It’s not always a proper name for a singular evil entity like the devil in later Christian theology. The Hebrew word śāṭān (שָׂטָן) can also refer to human adversaries.
Here’s a breakdown:
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Generic Adversary:
In many instances, “satan” (without the definite article “ha”) simply means an adversary or opponent, whether human or celestial.
Ha-satan (The Satan):In later texts like Job and Zechariah, “ha-satan” (the satan) appears as a specific figure, a heavenly accuser within God’s council.
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Job:
In the Book of Job, the satan tests Job’s faithfulness, suggesting a more active role in tempting or testing humans.
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Zechariah:
In Zechariah 3, the satan stands before the angel of the Lord to accuse Joshua the high priest.
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1 Chronicles :
In 1 Chronicles 21:1, satan incites David to number Israel.
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Not a Singular Devil:The Hebrew Bible does not present “Satan” as a fully formed, evil being with the same characteristics as the devil in later Christian tradition. The figure in the Hebrew Bible is a celestial being within God’s court, fulfilling a specific function of accusation or opposition.We can see that the word takes on different meanings in the Bible as circumstances forced the ancient Israelites to adapt their theology to the circumstances that formed and informed their history and beliefs. The satan is depicted as the adversary in YHWH’s Heavenly Council, as a test for Job, as an accuser of the High Priest, and as an influence to king David to disobey YHWH.
How is Satan depicted in the Christian Bible?
This is a complex subject about which a complete picture could not be drawn in a short article. It would take a book (or two).
I will attempt to show some of the salient points regarding the evolution of the character within Christian theology.
As we have seen, the character of Satan (ha-satan) is shown in the Hebrew Bible as a member of YHWH’s heavenly Council and as YHWH’s prosecutor.
In the New Testament, Satan is a deceiver, a tempter, and an enemy of YHWH. He is often seen as a “fallen angel” but this is tied to older traditions found in the Books of Enoch, which are a separate study.
In the New Testament, Satan is seen as one who opposes YHWH and tries to corrupt mankind (the source of evil and suffering?)
Satan actively tempts Jesus in the wilderness, but Jesus’s faith in YHWH is stronger.
In the end, in the Revelation of John, Satan is finally defeated by YHWH and is thrown into the “Lake of Fire.”
Will the real Satan please stand up?
We have seen that the satan (Ha-satan) in the Hebrew Bible and Satan in the New Testament are depicted very differently in the text.
In the Hebrew Bible, he is YHWH’s prosecutor and acts in YHWH’s behalf in the affairs of men. he is essentially on God’s payroll.
In the New Testament, he is an enemy of God, possibly a fallen “angel” or “Heavenly Creature,” who opposes YHWH and actively seeks to destroy YHWH’s order and his creation, the human race.
Why the change?
Over the centuries about which the Bible was written, Israel and Judah began to exist. As surrounding empires harassed attacked, and conquered YHWH’s people, their theology had to be “re-negotiated” numerous times over hundreds of years to meet the circumstances under which the people found themselves
Finally, the Christian Church Fathers in the first and second centuries needed to codify their theology and identify the source of evil and suffering. Satan filled the bill for them. Satan (the Devil) evolved over and over until we end up with the devil we all grew up with. He is now the owner and operator of Hell and he is trying to corrupt you and everyone else every day.
I am certain other people will have other ideas. I invite you to comment. All comments are welcome. As a student of Bible scholarship, I am interested in all opinions.
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