Do you believe in the Devil?

So, LittleAngel, you have no original opinions and just want to agree with what everyone else has posted? I can understand that. I don't understand why anyone would care whether the devil exists, since the evidence to support his existence is exactly zero.
 
No, I don't believe in the devil. Nor do I believe in god, at least not in terms of an orthodox religious perspective. God/Devil, Good/Evil are measures of absolutes and those absolutes are usually based on political incentives (and nope, I'm not JUST talking about modern American foreign policy). That's why the bible can be interpreted in any way by a person who wishes to utilise it as a moral back-up.

Unless I'm wrong... in which case GOD ROCKS!
 
Adamant said:
So, LittleAngel, you have no original opinions and just want to agree with what everyone else has posted? I can understand that. I don't understand why anyone would care whether the devil exists, since the evidence to support his existence is exactly zero.
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You ever read Huyman's book, La Bas, out of curiousity?


Supposedly he was present at black masses where the devil actually appeared. It was what made him eventually become a monk and devoutly Christian, because he figured it the devil were real, then so was god.
 
No, I do not believe in the "Devil." The idea is absurd from a logical standpoint.

"Everything that's evil in this world is a result of Satan's influence." Oh, please...come on.
 
Yes i do belive in the devil, These is mainly because i belive in God and Jesus also. So i think it would be kindof weird if I didnt belive in the devil also LOL
 
yeah i believe that there is a devil, i believe in God so yeah,...... but what he would look like and stuff i can't imagine. i dpnt picture him with physical form though, just sort of....an evil presence. (if that makes any sence at all lol)
 
Personally, I do not believe that there is a devil. From simple observation (and experience), one realizes that when he or she commits an 'evil' act, he or she wants to blame it on something else besides themselves. The Devil could very well be the most common entity that we could blame our own actions on, depending on the seriousness of the action. Because of this well-accepted entity of evil, people can claim that if you are evil, you are in league with The Devil.

Now, for those who have played Tales of Phantasia, you may recognize the quote I am about to put down. However, whether it's from a video game or not, I do believe in this quote;

Edward D. Morrison said:
Truly, if there is evil in this world, it lies within the heart of mankind.
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Evil does not reside in any devil, but it is man who creates this evil. At least that's my opinion.
 
Sin was more of a punishment that the people bought onto themselves.
But yeah, in ways, I suppose so, because all this evil in the world is gonna cause bad things to happen.
 
Just as I don't believe God exists, I don't believe Satan exists, except for in folklore and legend.
 
I dont think the Devil is as Evil as the media portrays him. Who said he;s bad? The bible? The bible also states that Moses parted the sea (as if).

God, and the Devil were created for balance. God (good guy), the Devil (evil dude). It was instilled that if you done something bad in your life then you would be getting a 1 way ticket to hell. and vice versa if you were good. Hence people being good to go to heaven when they die. I think that regardless of what you do in life you all end up in the same place.
 
So i take it you dont belive in god or the devil..or do you?? your post kinda states that you do and you dont belive...srry for the miss understanding
 
BustaMo said:
Actually that's not true either.

EZEKIEL 28:12
"Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "'You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared.

14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones.

15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you.

16 Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones.

17 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings.

18 By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries
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The book of Isaiah:

14:11) Brought down to the nether-world were your pride and the tumult of your stringed instruments; maggots are spread out under you, and worms are your covers.

14:12) How have you fallen from the heavens, O glowing morning star; been cut down to the ground O conqueror of nations?

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Only mentioned in Revelations? Come on, even you are not as superficial to believe that a huge war between God and Satan is only mentioned in terms of the future occurances. Why would something be so widely accepted if the past was not displayed somewhere in the Bible as well. More sources? Sure thing!

He's given numerous names which refer to his beauty, secular influence, and his darkness:

*"the prince of this world" - John 12:31, 14:30
*"the god of this world" - 2 Corinthians 4:4
*"the prince of the power of the air" and "the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" - Ephesians 2:2
"the ruler of the demons" - Matthew 12:24

*1st TIMOTHY 3:6: Not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil.

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As Lucifer, he was the most beautiful angel in all of Heaven. He was a more supreme angel than any other in Heaven but pride, and envious and greedy ambition took over him as he wished to exceed even the powers of God and have himself Ruler of all; superior to even God. God saw this is Lucifer and threw him to the Underworld and put him in free reign of everything under the heavens.

In the Garden of Eden in Genesis he comes disguised as a serpent to deceive, not force, Adam and Eve into eating a forbidden fruit. Was the fruit really that bad? No. It was just to see if Adam and Eve would obey the one and only rule that God set out for them. They didn't eat an apple that was bad for them; they disobeyed God's command.

In the book of Job it talks about Satan challenging God to see if someone would really still wirship him if he was put through "Hell on Earth", so-to-say. Satan had control to plague Job's body, kill of his family and friends, and make him lose almost everything he had ever owned or loved. Satan brought all of this upon Job, but still Job praised God for the blessings he had in life. job cursed himself before he would ever curse God. Test carried out; Satan was proved wrong.

I believe the devil exists, and I believe that God is bigger, better, and more powerful. He wins in the end, handsdown. Sure it can be considered a spoiler, but this is one ending, I'm definitely wanting to know about before it ends.;)
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It's unfortunate that you are unfamiliar with Hebrew, Koine Greek, and even Persian. What you are quoting are actually translations of translations, and not at all accurate.

This brief quote should familiarize you with one brief aspect of the linguistic concept of Satan:

Satan is to be better understood as an "accuser" or "adversary". The term is applied both to supernatural entities and human beings. The term Satan in Hebrew is derived from the root meaning "to oppose", "to be an adversary" or "to act as an adversary".
Different uses of the word “Satan” in the Tanakh
The Hebrew “Satan” is used in the Hebrew Bible with the general connotation “adversary”, or those who act as adversaries, as with:
An enemy in war and peace[5]
An accuser before the judgment-seat[6]
An antagonist who puts obstacles in the way, as in Numbers 22:22, where the angel of God is described as opposing Balaam as an adversary.[7]
In the Book of Job, ha-satan("the adversary") is a prosecuting attorney against mankind in the heavenly court of God. Other angels are not mentioned by name. He is known as the accuser and is the angel which questions mankind's loyalty to God. He argues that man is only loyal because God gives them prosperity. He is the one who actually delivers all the ills upon Job to test his faith on Gods command.
In 1 Chronicles 21:1, Satan incites David to commit the sin of taking a census of Israel. Five hundred years earlier, this same story portrayed Yahweh as the one who incited David to take the census (2 Samuel 24:1). The later story was written after the Hebrews had been in exile in Babylon and had been exposed to Zoroastrianism.
The Strong's Concordance number for the Hebrew word "Satan" is 07853 and 07854.[8]
"7853 satan saw-tan' a primitive root; to attack, (figuratively) accuse:-- (be an) adversary, resist."
"7854 satan saw-tawn' from 7853; an opponent; especially (with the article prefixed) Satan, the arch-enemy of good:--adversary, Satan, withstand."
This can be used to research the Biblical usage of this word.
Satan as an accuser
Where Satan does appear in the Bible as a member of God's court, he plays the role of the Accuser, much like a prosecuting attorney for God. The following information has been taken directly from the article on 'Satan' in the Jewish Encyclopaedia:
"Such a view is found, however, in the prologue to the Book of Job, where Satan appears, together with other celestial beings or "sons of God," before the Deity, replying to the inquiry of God as to whence he had come, with the words: "From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it."[9] 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, but with the evil purpose of searching out men's sins and appearing as their accuser. He is, therefore, the celestial prosecutor, lawyer who sees only iniquity; for he persists in his evil opinion of Job even after the man of Uz has passed successfully through his first trial by surrendering to the will of God, whereupon Satan demands another test through physical suffering.[10]

"Yet it is also evident from the prologue that Satan has no power of independent action, but requires the permission of God, which he may not transgress. He cannot be regarded, therefore, as an opponent of the Deity; and the doctrine of monotheism is disturbed by his existence no more than by the presence of other beings before the face of God. 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 Deity; but in I Chron. 21:1 he appears as one who is able to provoke David to destroy Israel. The Chronicler (third century B.C.) regards Satan as an independent agent, a view which is the more striking since the source whence he drew his account[11] speaks of God Himself as the one who moved David against the children of Israel. Since the older conception refers all events, whether good or bad, to God alone,[12] it is possible that the Chronicler, and perhaps even Zechariah, were influenced by Zoroastrianism, even though in the case of the prophet Jewish monism strongly opposed Iranian dualism.[13] An immediate influence of the Babylonian concept of the "accuser, persecutor, and oppressor"[14] is impossible, since traces of such an influence, if it had existed, would have appeared in the earlier portions of the Bible."[15]
With regard to the 1 Chronicles 21:1 passage, it is known that, at times, Yahweh gives Satan the authority to carry out wicked deeds, as in the book of Job. It has similarly been argued that Satan entered Judas so that the Son of Man could be delivered over to the officials. (Luke 22:3)


Even this isn't very good source data, as it doesn't really examine the subtleties of the various languages, and the usages in different translations.

For a better look at that, I would suggest the book Satan: A Biography written by Biblical scholar Henry Ansgar Kelly. His position also asserts that there only one reference to Satan's fall in the entire Bible, in Revelations alone.

Here's an excellent exert so you can get a taste for his writing, but if you seek truth, you should read the entire book in the near future.

Satan: A Biography

Enjoy, and get back to me after reading the book. It's only several hundred pages, shouldn't take you too long, but even so, I've got plenty of time on my hands.

Or even better, write to him, I happen to have his address and email handy.

Henry Ansgar (Andy) Kelly
Emerit Distinguished Professor
Department of English
University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California 90095-1530
kelly@humnet.ucla.edu

Tell him I sent you.
 
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