Today, both religious and mythological characters have merged into a single whole. Although initially the difference between them was huge. In fact, these were antipodes - representatives of opposing heavenly forces.
Due to circumstances or by the special providence of God, an amazing metamorphosis took place, transforming the highest forces of good into the lowest in terms of the level of fall - the forces of evil.
How could this happen
To answer this question, you need to understand:
- Lucifer and Satan are the same or not;
- is there a difference between them;
- which of them is more important;
- What is the difference between a proper name and a common noun?
It is important to know that in various sources various properties are attributed to these negative images of celestial beings.
Searching for absolute truth in a sea of conflicting information is pointless. But it’s still worth dotting the i’s. Let's take the texts of Holy Scripture as a basis.
Satan
What we have before us is not an individual person, but a general concept of the forces of hell, the army going against God. Translated from ancient languages - accuser, enemy, adversary, person causing slander.
It is interesting that Satan (it is more correct to write with a small letter, since this is a common noun) often serves as the executor of the will of the Almighty, without wanting to do so. Acting as an examiner, subjecting people who have strayed from the true path to severe tests. It is he who accuses sinners in the heavenly court. Here the edge of his sting is aimed at the benefit of the Lord.
In other cases, this most powerful demon of hell, taking on a cunning guise, becomes:
- the tempting serpent who seduced Adam and Eve to taste the forbidden fruit, which opens their eyes to the knowledge of good and evil. For which the first sinners paid with expulsion from paradise;
- Leviathan - a giant sea monster or a fire-breathing flying dragon;
- an angel testing the righteous man for the strength of his faith;
- an apocalyptic monster with “seven heads and ten horns.”
statue of Satan (Oklahoma, USA)
The difference between the Devil and Satan
The name Satan began to be confused with the devil much later. Thus, in early Christianity this character did not have such an overtly negative connotation - it was sometimes used as a title for Jesus in early prayers and hymns.
Devil comes from the word Devi, which has the same root as devil and deity. This is an ancient dichotomous tradition: Zoroastrians called their good gods asuras and their evil beings devas. In the Vedas, the Ashuras were the gods of the demons in the east (Jealous Gods), and their gods (of the west) were Davis. Thus, in ancient languages there are naming similarities; different ancient peoples looked at other gods by their names as evil, but perceived their own as good.
Devil
The demons of hell are numerous. The chief among them is the devil. The leader of the fallen angels, inciting people to unbelief by committing sinful acts. It is he who tempts Christ, the son of God, with the promise of unlimited earthly power.
In the Bible, such an entity is explained by the words “liar”, “deceiver”, “distorter of the truth”. Every person has a devilish essence when he commits unrighteous deeds, guided by base motives. Blind pride leads people away from the truth, leading them to lies.
To lure into his network, the supreme liar introduces himself:
- in the form of reptiles of the earth: snake, dragon, lizard;
- in the form of animals: a dog, a pig, a goat, a monkey;
- sometimes with a bat.
Lucifer
The most beautiful angel, the first among the host of cherubim, awarded the high honor of constant contemplation of the eternal glory of God. An angel who fell away from the Lord and was cast into the underworld.
What was the reason for the transformation of the highly revered Dennitsa, the bringer of light, into the devil? How did the best of angels become a follower of Satan? There are different answers to this question.
- The first reason is jealousy. It is because of her that Lucifer rebels against the Creator, believing that he gives much more love to Adam and Eve (according to another version - to Jesus Christ) than to perfect creations - angels. How he saw this difference remains a mystery.
Rebellious Lucifer has risen. As a result, together with his followers, demons, he ended up in hell.
- The second reason is sensual passion, which captivated the celestials into the arms of earthly women. The fruits of their love were evil giants called the Nephilim.
- The third reason is pride, craving absolute power. Lucifer decided to become higher than God in order to rule the Universe himself. It didn't work out. Together with his followers, having lost the decisive battle to the heavenly army under the command of Archangel Michael, the rebel fell into the abyss.
However, he did not remain idle and has since ruled on Earth according to the will of the Lord. His sacred duty is to check us, identifying all the atrocities committed by people.
Persons of evil or other names of the Evil One
There are no limits to the cunning and cunning of the damn army. It’s not for nothing that their leader goes by many names, nicknames, and epithets.
- Samael is the spirit of evil, the angel of death, who is in constant enmity with Michael the Archangel. The leader of the demons must be defeated by the prophet Elijah. From this moment on, the very concept of sin will disappear!
- Beelzebub, also known as the “Lord of the Flies” and the Lord of Demons in the New Testament.
- Antichrist is an opponent of Jesus, falsely declaring himself the Messiah, having a satanic essence.
- Dragon of all kinds and colors.
- Serpent. Tempter. It's clear where this nickname came from.
- An evil, deceitful spirit.
- Cruel angel.
- Prince of demons. Prince of This World.
- Sly.
- A murderer from the start.
It is impossible to list all the relationships, degrees, connections of the forces of darkness.
Riddles of Satan: What is his name, where did he get his horns and what connects him with the Antichrist
Satan has become an incredibly popular figure in modern religion and popular culture, but there is little detail about him in religious texts, which is confusing to many. Because of this, many questions arise about Satan and not all of them can be answered.
Is Satan the same Serpent who gave the apple to Eve?
The figure of the Serpent-tempter, who persuaded Eve to try the forbidden fruit in the form of an apple, after which Eve and Adam were expelled from the Garden of Eden, is firmly associated with Satan. But in fact, the Bible says nothing about this connection (Paranormal News - paranormal-news.ru).
Moreover, in the first book of Genesis the snake is described as “the smartest of the beasts in the field.” Only in the Revelation of John the Theologian does the first comparison of Satan with a snake appear: “And the great dragon was cast out, the ancient serpent, called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world, he was cast out to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”
According to Bible scholars, when Genesis was written, no one associated the tempting serpent with Satan. However, if this Serpent is not Satan, then who is he? Just a talking snake? If so, it is the only such animal in the Bible.
He has no name
The familiar word Satan is actually translated from Hebrew as “adversary” or “slanderer” and it is never used in the Old Testament as a name, but is often used in relation to people, for example, King Reason from Syria is called Satan (adversary) King Solomon.
There is also an angel under the same nickname “Satan”, who acts as a tester of the faith of the righteous. For example, God wants to test a person and sends the angel Satan, who sends various troubles to the person to see if that person will still believe when he loses everything.
The word "devil" also simply means "accuser" and is simply a translation of the word "Satan" into Greek. And of course, Satan is not called Lucifer (“Morning Star”), in the Bible this name is used only once and then only in the book of the prophet Isaiah, when he writes about the Babylonian king. Later, churchmen associated this with Satan, which became the source of the myth of the fallen angel.
It is curious that in the New Testament Jesus Christ is called the morning star: “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the root and descendant of David, the bright and morning star.”
Did he rule in Hell?
Everyone knows that Satan is the ruler of Hell, where he delights in torturing sinners. Everyone knows, with the exception of the sources themselves in all Abrahamic religions. Nowhere in the Bible is Satan associated with Hell in the sense that it is his kingdom.
So where did this idea come from? This is actually a big mystery, but according to the most common version, Satan simply at some point ended up mixed with the Greco-Roman gods of the underworld, namely Hades and Pluto.
Another version points to a source in Zoroastrianism, in which there is an evil spirit, Angra Mainyu, who torments the souls of evil people who end up in his underworld after death.
What powers does he have on earth?
Pop culture gives Satan enormous power, but the biblical Satan seems to have many limitations on Earth. In the Old Testament, he could instantly destroy a life, but only after permission from God. In the New Testament, he is only capable of tempting Jesus, inciting him to use his enormous power. For example, when Jesus is hungry, Satan invites him to turn stones into bread, but does not do it himself.
On the other hand, Mark and Luke tell how Jesus cast out demons from people, implying that Satan and demons have the power to inhabit human bodies. Satan also at one point offers Jesus "all the kingdoms of the world", but it is unclear whether he is actually capable of doing this.
Most Christian groups are confident that the real power of Satan on earth is temptation and this is exactly what one should fear.
Where did he get his horns and red skin?
These days, the classic image of the devil-Satan includes red skin, horns, hooves and a tail. And in his hands he holds a pitchfork. This image has been replicated millions of times and appears everywhere from films and cartoons to comics and caricatures.
However, none of this is described in the Bible; these traits first appeared in the image of Satan only in the late Middle Ages. Where did they come from? Also unknown.
According to the most common version, Satan could have gotten horns and hooves from the Greek god Pan, who was a wild and rather unpleasant creature. The pitchfork probably came from Poseidon, and the color may come from the red dragon described in the book of Revelation.
What connects him with the Antichrist?
The New Testament describes the coming appearance of a false messiah under the name Antichrist (among other names). The First Epistle to the Thessalonians and the Revelation of John the Theologian connect this name with Satan, but at the same time make it clear that these are different persons. So what is the connection between Satan and Antichrist? And does it exist at all?
In the Middle Ages, it was believed that the Antichrist would be the opposite of Jesus in everything, so if Jesus was born of God through a virgin, then the Antichrist would likely be the son of Satan, born of a prostitute. However, this rather seems like a too literal interpretation of the word Antichrist; nevertheless, such an interpretation quickly became popular, and in our time is considered almost canonical due to films like “The Sign”.
At the same time, mainstream Christianity rejects the idea of the Antichrist as the son of Satan, and in fact the connection between these two persons is another insoluble religious mystery.
“Satan rules the roost there”
Answering the question posed, what is the difference between Lucifer and Satan, we can say without a shadow of a doubt that there is none. This is one and the same essence, which during the course of historical development has absorbed everything negative that rebels against the Heavenly Creator.
Which one is the most important? Let us consider Satan as the sole source of the flaw in the Universe. Lucifer is just a fallen angel caught in his arms.
It is interesting to note that in his attempts the Evil One seeks to recreate the trinity of the Christian faith: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Trying to endow Satan, the devil and Lucifer with similar properties. But nothing works. It comes out somehow crooked. To use the slang of modern youth, it turns out to be a joint.
This is understandable. The Unclean One cannot have straight paths, as well as righteous deeds!
Who is the devil and where did he really come from?
Answer:
You may be surprised, but the Bible does not tell us where the devil came from. Despite this, by examining various passages from the Bible, we can come to our own conclusion about who the devil is and where he came from.
Everything that God created was good (Genesis 1:31). There is only one reason why the devil is in this world - the presence of free will in people, which people used to rebel against their Creator. People used their freedom to sin, which ultimately allowed evil to enter this world.
I believe (and many conservative scientists agree with me) that Satan is a fallen angel. He, like humans, had free will and used his gift to rebel against God. It is possible that he is an archangel who rebelled against God. In the Bible we can find various passages that support this idea (Revelations 12, Job 1, etc.). I will say that I do not have clear evidence for this, but this is the most reasonable conclusion.
God is the Creator of everything. God created me and you. God is holy, just, loving, omnipotent and omniscient. His most important trait is love. God wanted to love us, and He wanted us to love each other. It is for this reason that we exist in this world. God is love, but God is also just. God hates sin.
No, the devil does not have the power to make us sin. We have free will and choice. Neither God nor Satan forces us to do anything. God has this authority, but He chose not to do it. But Satan doesn't even have that kind of power. There is not a single piece of evidence in the Bible that Satan can control people who have not given him such consent. There is much evidence for this idea in the Bible, but let me share just one passage from James:
No one who is tempted should say: “This temptation was sent by God,” for God has nothing to do with evil and does not tempt anyone. But everyone is tempted by his own desires, which lure him and hold him captive. Desire is like a woman who conceived sin and gave birth to it, but sin, when established, gives birth to death. (James 1:13-15)
Can Satan tempt us? Yes. Can Satan, or the devil, force us to do something? No.
