* There are a number of works on Comparative Religion in which the beliefs in demons and the like are incidentally dealt with ; but a detailed list of these would be inappropriate here.
t ' It is singular that the OT is so free from demonology, hardly containing more than one or two examples thereof (F. C. Conybeare, toe. cit. above).
DEMON, DEMONIACS
DEMON, DEMONIACS
439
how lirmly embedded in popular imagination was this belief in evil powers of tlie solitude.* T( is true that Babylonian influence during and after the Exile was responsible for much of this ; t but that the Israelites from the earliest times, like every other race, peopled the world with innumer- able unseen powers, cannot admit of doubt. Ac- cording to OT conceptions, the evil spirits are not the subjects of some supreme ruler ; in the earlier books they are represented as fulfilling the com- mands of Jehovah in doing harm to men, but later on they seem to enjoy complete independence, though even here the conceptions are not con- sistent (cf. Job !*•'-). When we come to the Apocrypha, we find that an immense development has taken place ; see, e.g. , To S"- ^ 6'- " S^'-, Bar 4'- "^, Wis 2^, Sir 21-' ; ef. as regards other late literature the Book of Enoch 15. 16. 19. 53. The more im- portant literature bearing on this branch of the subject is as follows : —
W. R. Smith, iJS2, p. 120ff. ; Wellhausen, Reste Arab. Seident.^ p. 148 ff. ; Doughty, Arabia Deserta, ii. p. 188 ff. ; Curtiss, Primitive Semitic Seligion Tii-day, pp. 68, 184, etc. ; Nowack, Heb. Arch. ii. p. 186 ff. ; Sayce, Uibbert Lectures, 1887, p. 146, ttc. ; Hastings' DB, the Encpc. Bibl., and the Jewish Encyc. under artt. ' Demons,' * Lilith,* 'Azazel'; Ham- burger's Real.-Encijc., Riehm's HtTB^, Herzog's PRE^ under artt. ' Geister," ' Feldgeister," ' D.amonen,' etc. Other works tliat should be consulted are : Baudissin, Studien zur Seni. Volksrelig. ; Lagrange, Etudes siir les rel. Semit.^; Frazer, Golden Boiigh^, ii.
3. Later Judai.sm.J— The following are the Talraudic words for demons : miiin "px^i?, nSin 'isS?, ninn (jrveiy/iaTo), nx;;iQ nn {TveOfia dKaSapTov), xjn m (Trve!jiJ.a iropi]p6f), -\a nn (Tr^fP/ia oaifionoi). See further below. Wliile it is abundantly clear that e.xternal influences have left their marks on Jewish deraon- ology, it is certain that much of the latter was of indigenous growth ; the whole system, so immense, .so intricate, and in niany respects so puerile, is stamped too plainly with the Judaic genius for this to be questioned. Only a very brief summary of the main points can be here indicated. §
(«) Origin of demons. — As has not infrequently been found to be the case with Jewish tradition, there are varying accounts ; in this case two dis- tinct traditions exist. According to the one, it is said that the demons were created |1 by God before the world was made ; Satan,ir who is identical with the serpent, is the chief of tlie demons. They were of both sexes, and their species was propagated through cohabitation with Adam and Eve during a period of 130 years after the Creation. The other tradition is based on Gn 6'"* (cf. 2 P 2^- ^) ; two angels, Assael and Shemachsai, loved the daughters of men, and, forsaking their allegiance to God, descended from heaven to earth ; one of these angels returned to heaven and did not sin, but the other accomplished his desire, and his off- spring became demons.
(6) The nature of demons. — The general name for all demons is nmzzikin (pp'tD), and this indicates their nature, P'l? = ' one who does harm. ' * * The head of
* Cf. Whitehouse in Hastings' DB i. 691-'.
Mb.
t By this is meant the period during which the Talmud was in process of formation ; it was not completed until about A.D. 600, but the traditions concerning demons and the general teaching on the subject (even in the latest portions) embody conceptions of much earlier date. <
§Tne details here given have been gathered from a large number of sources which cannot be individually specified; see the Literature at the end of this article.
II It is their supposed creation on a Frida if which makes this day one of ill-omen.
IF Satan, according to another account, was created at the same time as Eve ; Cain was their offspring (cf. On 41 where the Heb. nji; is not the usual word tor begetting). • Baal-zebul ' is also regarded, in the Talmud, as a prince among demons, and is looked upon as the most evil of all evil spirits.
- This is illustrated in Jn s:'---"! ^^ ' Ye seek to kill me . . . ye do the works of your fatlier . . . ve are of vour father the devil,'
them is Satan (iBL!'n = ' the adversary ') ; it is his aim to mislead men into evil, and then to accuse them befon^ (Jiid, hence the further name nJCpo (\aTi). 7opos)=-actniser' (cf. Zee 3'). He is at liberty to enter the Divine presence at all times (cf. Job 1") and accuse men before God ; only on tlie Day of Atonement is he refused admittance. As the angel of death, he is identical with Sammael, who is known also as 'the head of all the Satans.' The kingdom of Satan (cf. Mk 3=^") consists of himself, as head, and an innumerable horde of angels or messengers (casj^D) who do his will ;* this is the exact antithesis of the kingdom of God t Igee^ ^<!ffthefr Satan). These constitute the first grade of demons, those who were created before the world was made ; these were originally in the service of God, but rebelled against Him (cf. Lk 10'").