Satan

Satan (?????? Standard Hebrew Satan, Latin Sátanas, Tiberian Hebrew ????n; Aramaic ???????? ?i?nâ: both words mean "Adversary; accuser") is an angel, demon, or minor god in many religions. Satan plays various roles in the Hebrew Bible, the Apocrypha and the New Testament. In the Hebrew Bible, Satan is an angel that God uses to test man for various reasons usually dealing with his level of piety (i.e. the test in the Book of Job). In the Apocrypha and New Testament, Satan is portrayed as an evil, rebellious demon who is the enemy of God and mankind. These two ideals are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

In the Hebrew Bible

In the Hebrew Bible, Satan is to be better understood as a "accuser" or "adversary" than as an embodiment of "evil." The term is applied both to divine and human beings.

Related Topics:
Accuser - Adversary

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Different uses of the word "Satan" in the Bible

The Hebrew word "Satan" is used in the Hebrew Bible with the general connotation of "adversary," being applied to:

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• An enemy in war and peace (1 Kings 5:4; 11:14, 23, 25)
• An accuser before the judgment-seat (Ps. 109:6)
• An antagonist who puts obstacles in the way, as in Num. 22:22, where the angel of God is described as opposing Balaam as an adversary.
• As an angel who works to find fault with God, and acts as a prosecuting attorney against mankind (the Book of Job).

The Strong's concordance number for the Hebrew word "Satan" is 07854. This can be used to research the Biblical usage of this word. For instance, this page on the 'Blue Letter Bible' website specifies the Hebrew verses it appears in: Blue Letter Bible Lexicon Results for "Satan"

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Biblical Description of Satan

The following passage is taken by Christians to describe Satan, although in the Hebrew Bible it is said to be adressed to the King of Tyre:

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Ezekiel 28:12?19

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"...You were the perfection of wisdom and beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God. Your clothing was adorned with every precious stone ? red carnelian, chrysolite, white moonstone, beryl, onyx, jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald ? all beautifully crafted for you and set in the finest gold. They were given to you on the day you were created. I ordained and anointed you as the mighty angelic guardian. You had access to the holy mountain of God and walked among the stones of fire. "You were blameless in all you did from the day you were created until the day evil was found in you. Your great wealth filled you with violence, and you sinned. So I banished you from the mountain of God. I expelled you, O mighty guardian, from your place among the stones of fire. Your heart was filled with pride because of all your beauty. You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth and exposed you to the curious gaze of kings. You defiled your sanctuaries with your many sins and your dishonest trade. So I brought fire from within you, and it consumed you. I let it burn you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. All who knew you are appalled at your fate. You have come to a terrible end, and you are no more."

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Satan as an accuser

Where Satan does appear as an angel, he is clearly a member of God's court and plays the role of the Accuser, much like a prosecuting attorney for God. Such a view is found in the prologue to the Book of Job, where Satan appears, together with other celestial beings, before God, replying to the inquiry of God as to whence he had come, with the words: "From going to and fro on the earth and from walking in it" (Job 1:7). Both question and answer, as well as the dialogue which follows, characterize Satan as that member of the divine council who watches over human activity with the purpose of searching out men's sins and appearing as their accuser. He is, therefore, the celestial prosecutor (a type of lawyer), who sees only iniquity. For example, in Job 2:3-5, after Job passes Satan's first test, Satan requests that Job be tested even further.

Related Topics:
Sin - Lawyer

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It is evident from the prologue in Job that Satan has no power of independent action, but requires the permission of God, which he may not transgress. Satan works in opposition to God, though not entirely able to take action without consent. This view is also retained in Zech. 3:1-2, where Satan is described as the adversary of the high priest Joshua, and of the people of God whose representative the hierarch is; and he there opposes the "angel of the Lord," who bids him be silent in the name of God. In both of these passages Satan is a mere accuser who acts only according to the permission of the Lord.

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In 1 Chron. 21:1 Satan appears as one who is able to provoke David to number (or take a census of) Israel. The Chronicler (third century B.C.) regards Satan here as a more independent agent, a view which is at first glance striking since it would seem the source where he drew his account (2 Sam. 24:1) speaks of God Himself as the one who moved David to take the census. But after a more careful survey is taken of the situation, it is apparent that the circumstances were similar to that of Job: Satan is free to issue temptation with God's consent. Although the older conception refers all events, whether good or bad, to God alone (1 Sam. 16:14; 1 Kings 22:22; Isa. 45:7; etc.), it is unlikely that the Chronicler, and perhaps even Zechariah, were influenced by Zoroastrianism, since Jewish monism strongly opposed Iranian dualism, especially in the case of the prophet.

Related Topics:
David - Israel - Zechariah - Zoroastrianism - Monism - Iran - Dualism

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