The Satan: How God's Executioner Became the Enemy

by Ryan E. Stokes, John J. Collins (Foreword by)

Overview

Many people today think of Satan as a little red demon with a pointy tail and a pitchfork—but this vision of the devil developed over many centuries and would be foreign to the writers of the Old Testament, where this figure makes his first appearances. The earliest texts that mention the Satan—it is always “the Satan” in the Old Testament—portray him as an agent of Yahweh, serving as an executioner of evildoers. But over the course of time, the Satan came to be regarded more as God’s enemy than God’s agent and was blamed for a host of problems.

Biblical scholar Ryan E. Stokes explains the development of the Satan tradition in the Hebrew scriptures and the writings of early Judaism, describing the interpretive and creative processes that transformed an agent of Yahweh into the archenemy of good. He explores how the idea of a heavenly Satan figure factored into the problem of evil and received the blame for all that is wrong in the world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467457149
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	07/09/2019
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	610,946
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Ryan Stokes is associate professor of biblical studies and director of the Master of Arts in Applied Theology program at Carson-Newman University. He has published widely on biblical and related literature and enjoys teaching students in the classroom, speaking at churches, and giving lectures to various audiences who are interested in learning about the Bible.

Table of Contents

Foreword John J. Collins ix

Preface xiii

Abbreviations xxi

1 The Origin of the Satan 1

The Satan Tradition in the Hebrew Scriptures 3

What Is a Satan? 6

The Angel of Yahweh as a Satan in Numbers 22 10

The Satan Rebuked by the Angel of Yahweh in Zechariah 3 12

The Satan Who Stands against Israel in 1 Chronicles 21 17

What Kind of Satan Stands against Israel? 18

Reading the Census Story in Light of the Balaam Narrative 21

Early Notions of God's Executioner 26

2 The Satan and the Innocent Job 29

The Composition of the Job Story 30

The Satan as Attacker/Executioner 40

The Satan Attacks an Innocent Person 43

Is the Satan an "Accuser" in Job? 45

The Contributions of Job to the Satan Tradition 46

3 Demons, Evil Spirits, Fallen Angels, and Human Sin 48

Taxonomies and Terminology for Harmful Superhuman Beings 48

Demons, Evil Spirits, and the Sons of God in the Hebrew Scriptures 50

Sedim, "Demons" 51

Evil Spirits 52

Sons of God 59

Demons, Evil Spirits, and the Sons of Heaven in the Book of the Watchers 61

The Watchers and Forbidden Knowledge 62

The Origin and Activity of Evil Spirits 63

Demons, Evil Spirits, Fallen Angels, and the Worship of False Gods 69

Superhuman Beings and Human Sin 73

4 The Prince of Mastema and his Deceptive Spirits 75

Interpreting Jubilees 75

Taxonomy, Terminology, and Titles for Harmful Superhuman Beings 79

Satanic Titles and Terminology 81

Designations for Demons and Evil Spirits 87

The Prince of Mastema, Deceptive Spirits, and the Nations 88

The Danger of Deceptive Spirits 88

The Prince of Mastema, Chief of the Deceptive Spirits 90

Evil Spirits and the Election of Israel 94

The Satan and the Deception of the Nations 98

5 The Prince of Mastema, Enemy of God's People 100

The Prince of Mastema Attempts to Harm God's People 100

The Prince of Mastema Causes a Famine 101

The Prince of Mastema Tests Abraham 101

The Prince of Mastema Assists the Egyptians 105

Two Perspectives on the Prince of Mastema 109

The Prince of Mastema as "Accuser" 111

Jubilees on the Origin of Evil 115

Unity and Diversity in the Portrayal of the Satan in Jubilees 118

6 Demons, Evil Spirits, the Satan, and Human Responsibility for Sin 120

Human Responsibility for Sin according to the Wisdom of Ben Sira 121

Demons, Evil Spirits, and Human Responsibility for Sin in the Epistle of Enoch 126

Lawlessness Was Not Sent upon the Earth 128

Demons and Evil Spirits as Mere Objects of Worship 134

"Evil Inclination" instead of the Satan in Barkhi Nafshi? 138

The Satan and Human Responsibility for Sin in the Epistle of James 139

Superhuman Beings and Human Responsibility for Sin in Early Jewish Literature 141

7 Belial, Sin, and Sectarianism 142

The Corpus of the Dead Sea Scrolls 142

Taxonomies, Terminology, and Titles for Harmful Superhuman Beings 143

Demons 144

Spirits 145

Satans 146

Other Harmful Superhuman Beings 148

Melchiresha in the Visions of Amram 149

Belial in the Damascus Document 152

Are Belial and the Prince/Angel of Mastema the Same Person? 160

Belial in the Rule of the Community 163

The Dead Sea Scrolls, the Satan, and Sin 165

8 Belial and the Powers of Darkness 167

The Angel of Darkness in the Treatise on the Two Spirits 167

The Two Spirits 168

The Angel of Darkness 173

Belial, the Enemy, in the War Rule 181

Belial, Sin, and Punishment 183

Belial and the Sons of Darkness versus Israel 185

Belial versus God 189

Etiologies of Maleficent Superhuman Beings 190

The Question of Zoroastrian Influence 191

The Satan as Leader of the Forces of Darkness 194

9 The Satan in the New Testament 195

Taxonomies, Terminology, and Titles for Harmful Superhuman Beings 196

Ho satanas, "(the) Satan" 198

Ho diabolos, "the Adversary" 201

The Activity of the Satan 202

The Satan and Sin 204

The Satan as Attacker 205

The Satan as God's Agent and as God's Enemy 208

The Accuser of the Comrades 210

Excursus: Satans in the Book of Parables 214

The Ancient Serpent 216

10 Conclusion 221

Bibliography 227

Index of Authors 255

Index of Subjects 260

Index of Ancient Sources 264

Editorial Reviews

The Journal of Theological Studies
“The book may well induce a paradigm shift on the function of the Satan in early Jewish literature.”

Society for Old Testament Study Book List
“[Stokes] has produced a valuable study that is both informative and highly readable.”

Calvin Theological Journal
“The Satan is an excellent, authoritative guide for those studying the historical development of Satan, and a must for pastors and professors teaching on the biblical texts that mention the Satan in the Old and New Testaments.”

Review of Biblical Literature
“The book is extremely valuable for the study of Satan, and the contents highlight and bring together helpful insights from a wide range of Jewish texts.”

Interpretation
“This is an excellent monograph, and an important update to earlier works, especially in looking at the origins of the Satan character in the pre-Christian context.”

“Stokes has written the most thorough treatment of Satan in ancient Jewish literature to date. Beginning in the Hebrew Bible, continuing with the Dead Sea Scrolls and other Second Temple period literature, and concluding with the New Testament, Stokes masterfully chronicles the development of the figure of Satan from God’s executioner to God’s enemy. The definitive handbook for years to come!”
—Sidnie White Crawford, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
 
“People today are fascinated with the devil, also known as ‘the Satan.’ But there is a lot that they don’t know and a lot that they think they know that is simply not correct. Ryan Stokes has set the record straight in a fascinating and very readable study of the origin of Satan, from the earliest traditions in the Bible to the later and very diverse traditions we find inside and outside the Bible. Stokes provides readers with a reliable guide that will educate and fascinate.”
—Craig A. Evans, Houston Christian University 
 
“Ryan Stokes provides an exceptionally careful, thorough, and exegetically perceptive reconsideration of all the significant texts that refer to the śātān and related figures in biblical and Second Temple literature. This is an essential item for the bookshelf of any serious student of the symbolism of evil in biblical and early Jewish literature. I will be studying it carefully and consulting it often.”
—Carol A. Newsom, Emory University
 
“Ryan Stokes offers a thorough analysis of the ways in which satan/Satan and other evil beings function in the wider biblical tradition. He deserves strong commendation for the careful, balanced, and enlightening way in which he has handled a large topic that touches directly upon basic issues such as the origin and nature of evil.”
—James C. VanderKam, University of Notre Dame
 
“Satan the deceiver and tempter, enemy of both God and humanity—most people are familiar with these traditional traits assigned to the devil. In this fascinating study, though, Ryan Stokes shows that these familiar roles represent a rather late development in Jewish and Christian thought. With meticulous research and a mastery of ancient literature, Stokes expertly widens the portfolio of a spiritual figure we thought we knew. And to top it all off, he writes in an engaging style that will make his book appealing not only to scholars but also to a general readership. A splendid achievement.”
—Daniel C. Harlow, Calvin University
 
“In this timely and very readable book, Ryan Stokes takes us on a journey that highlights how evil in Second Temple Judaism, from the Hebrew Bible through to the New Testament, could become understood as an active force in the world that undermines the well-being of God’s people. This treatment of ‘Satan’ is anything but one-sided: discourse about a prominent inimical power-wielding being is balanced by examination of texts that underscore human responsibility, sometimes in ways that complement rather than cancel each other out. Readers will find here much to ponder, and they will learn why this topic is so important for Judaeo-Christian perceptions of divine activity in the face of overwhelming corruption, irreparable consequences of wrongdoing, and inexplicable suffering.”
—Loren Stuckenbruck, University of Munich

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