Tehom-at
Demonic History & The Rites of Exorcism
Chapter 3: Azazel
and Other Demons
ome time before the
creation of Adam there was a rebellion in the Kingdom of Heaven. One of the mightiest of angels, whom the
Bible calls Hel’el, became discontent with his role among the Divine
Host. Seeking to unlawfully increase
his standing amongst his brethren, he began to plot a coup against the Throne
of Yahweh, (Isaiah 14:13, 14) and when the angels who ultimately remained loyal
opposed him, he brought accusations against them. (Revelation 12:10) When the bounds of divine mercy had finally
been exceeded, Hel’el and those angels whose loyalty he managed to secure were
cast down to the earth. After mankind
was created this Adversary, this Satan, sought to use man in such a way as to
justify his rebellion.
Those humans who have fallen under his power are considered his “prisoners,” (Isaiah 14:17, 42:7) and the ones who fall entirely under his power, to the degree that he or one of his followers can directly control their words and actions, are declared “possessed.” (Mark 1:32)
In most cases, however, the influence that Lucifer exerts over his prisoners takes on a far more subtle form, and these may also be considered forms of possession; he “has” them. If we may recall, for a moment, the rites of demonic religion, the three levels of progress to be made among mankind were (and are):
1) To corrupt the members of humanity by diverting their loyalty from the Creator.
2) To establish a purely profane form of government that will spread over the entire world and institutionalize the disloyalty generated by idolatry and rebellion.
3) To ensure the preservation of this perverse society by ultimately creating immortal sinners. Having accomplished this, he would possess a living, spiritual “shield,” for Yahweh cannot be partial in His punishment of those who transgress His divine will.
By getting Adam and Eve to break their covenant with the Almighty, he created the potential for all these steps to be accomplished at the very dawn of human history. In order to prevent this Yahweh said, “Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the Tree of Life, and eat, and live for ever…” and He cast man out of the garden in Eden, out of reach of the Tree of Life. In addition, He placed Cherubim guardians at the entrance to the garden.
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These angels were there to accomplish two purposes; they prevented men from approaching the Tree, and consequently they prevented demons from taking the fruit to them directly. (Genesis 3:22-24)
His aim thwarted, Lucifer started over; but now humanity was easier to manipulate, having been corrupted. With the murderer Cain firmly under his shadow, the arch-demon guided the spiritual decline of his offspring, until they reached a point where they were so corrupt, and so seductive in their corruption, that they were able to turn even the righteous offspring of Seth away from the walk of faith. (Genesis 6:1-6)
Noah, the tenth from Adam, was found to be one of the last holding a pure faith in a broken society, and so Yahweh established a covenant with him, and preserved his family from the outpouring of His judgment.
Noah’s own offspring did not, after the Flood, prove to be of much greater moral fiber than those who were drowned, and soon – not only had Lucifer accomplished the first stage in his plan, he had largely succeeded in the second, to form a secular governmental system independent of Yahweh. Now, people often use the term “secular” to describe the form of leadership that Satan is attempting to produce in the world today. This has the connotation of meaning “irreligious,” and this is certainly his plan in these latter times. In the ancient days, however, the idea was subtly different, though the principle was the same.
Of the first kingdom to appear after the Flood, established among the children of Ham, we read, “And Cush [the son of Ham and grandson of Noah] begat Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before Yahweh, wherefore it is said, ‘Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before Yahweh.’ And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.” (Genesis 10:8-10)
Further, “And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, ‘Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly.’ And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. And they said, ‘Go to, let us build us a city and a Tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.’” (Genesis 11:1-4)
It was in this city, Babylon, and from this Tower, that the first institutionalized form of idolatry was born – at least, it was the first form after the Deluge. Idolatry is, after all, merely an external form of secularism. Whereas secularism makes man the “supreme being,” capable of charting his own progress, overt idolatry merely surrenders this locus of
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control to another entity. The principle is the same, as are the effects: the human beings no longer worship Yahweh.
Producing myths and legends in order to misapply the genuine record they had received from their ancestors, the Babylonians formed a religious system that, though false, was still somewhat recognizable in the light of its Semitic roots. Shem, the brother of Ham, remained faithful to the religion of his father, and it was through his line that Abraham, the “father of faith” would ultimately come. (Genesis 11:10-26) It is because of the faith of his offspring that we have a genuine tradition against which to compare these ancient beliefs.
Now, the fate of the Tower is recorded in the faithful transcript of Moses. “And Yahweh said, ‘Behold, the people are one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do, and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.’ So Yahweh scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel, [Hebrew: “confusion”] because Yahweh did there confound the language of all the earth, and from thence did Yahweh scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.” (Genesis 11:6-9)
This brings up an interesting point. We have already established that Yahweh does not generally intervene in human affairs in ways that will restrict their freedom. Yet thus far we have seen two rather dramatic exceptions to this principle: the Flood of Noah’s day, and the scattering of the individuals living in ancient Babylon.
The point at which Divine intervention becomes necessary appears, from the evidence of these and other scriptures, to be when Lucifer is close to accomplishing his second directive. Yahweh will not interfere with individual choices, even if it means that the entire world becomes overrun with apostasy. When they attempt to institutionalize this widespread corruption, this is when the “axe falls,” so to speak. The reason for the intervention at that point is simple: for the sake of humanity, Yahweh must preserve a “remnant” who teach His truth. (2Kings 19:30) If He did not do so, agents of the wicked government that would otherwise be formed would immediately employ its powers to eliminate all traces of godliness, and thus all hope of salvation, from the world.
In Babylon there was a “kingdom” of idolatry; hence the Almighty saw fit to scatter the members. (Genesis 10:10) In the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, which Yahweh destroyed, (Genesis 19:24) the very government had gone corrupt. We know this because Lot, Abraham’s nephew, was a man of distinction among the elders (i.e., rulers and counselors) of Sodom. We read that he “sat in the gate” of the city, (Genesis 19:1) which is a Hebrew idiom to describe his position as a respected citizen. [1] He was
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singled out for scorn and abuse by an unruly mob because he, by his righteous actions, “judged” their conduct; (verse 9) and this shows clearly the kind of leadership the populace was used to observing.
In addition to this, the king of Sodom was given the name “Bera,” and the ruler of Gomorrah was known as “Birsha.” These names mean “Son of evil,” (literally, “In wickedness”) and “In iniquity” respectively. Whether or not these were the names their parents gave them at birth, the fact that they did not see fit to alter these rather bleak titles, adopted them, or merited these descriptions from the inspired scribe, speaks volumes.
There are a great many examples of this principle in the Old Testament: that when the leadership of a people goes corrupt, the populace quickly follows and Yahweh intervenes. For the sake of brevity we will only examine one more instance.
When Northern Israel was finally sent into exile by the hand of the Assyrians, (2Kings 17:23) the reason given in the Scriptures is because, “the children of Israel walked in all the sins of [king] Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them.” (verse 22) Though Jeroboam was not the king at the time of the exile, he had set a most wicked example generations beforehand, (1Kings 12:26-33) and the people were swept away in the sin of their leader.
This concept is laid out plainly in the words of the prophet: “the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.” (Isaiah 9:16) As we will see later in this book, this concept, known as “corporate accountability” will become vital for understanding how to deal with demonic forces.
Interestingly enough, even the final judgment of the earth will follow this very pattern. The earth will have gone full circle, and the final system of religion and government that sets itself up in opposition to the Almighty will be called “Babylon,” (Revelation 18:1-3) for it is a worthy successor to Nimrod’s confused kingdom. If you look at the qualities attributed to this coming system, you find that it is a combination of a “harlot” and “the kings of the earth.” (Revelation 17:1-5, 18:3) This is significant symbolism.
A “harlot” is an unfaithful or unmarried woman of evil associations, and in the Scriptures a “woman” as used in parabolic narratives represents the collective people of God. (Jeremiah 6:2, 2Corinthians 11:2) The “kings of the earth” are an obvious reference to secular governmental systems, and we see this pointed out doubly when we realize that the “beast” being ridden by the harlot in Revelation 17 is also a parabolic reference to kings and/or kingdoms. (Daniel 7:17, 23) It is spelled out for us that the beast has power over the earth’s kingdoms. (Revelation 17:12, 13)
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It is only when the kingdoms of the earth (the beast) join with an apostate church system (the harlot) – completing Satan’s second rite of conquest over the entire planet – then the end will finally come. (Revelation 18:4-10) Thus, the pattern we have established is consistent from the first Book of the Bible to the very last, and reveals a part of the value of understanding the Araphelian (demonic) religion.
But going back to the record of the original Babylon, where the history of demonic forces in the post-Flood world begins in earnest, we see that those who were scattered spread out over all the world, taking fragments of their idolatrous religion with them.
Some of the Hamites traveled to Egypt. In the Bible, Egypt is translated from the Hebrew word “Mizraim,” which is the name of one of Ham’s sons. (Genesis 10:6) In a twist of cruel irony, the Egyptian apostates labeled their god of evil “Seth,” [2] an apparent insult to their more righteous ancestor, whether it was intended by the humans minds involved or not. A. Bernard Knapp writes, “Hyksos kings used the hieroglyphic script and worshipped Egyptian gods, especially Seth, whom they equated with the West Semitic deity Resheph.” [3]
This becomes entirely transparent in light of the scattering of Babel when we understand that the Hyksos were a race of Semitic (or partially Semitic) invaders who took over the Egyptian territory for a time, [4] and that their deity Resheph was a god of battle. [5] The name itself is derived from a word that appears in the Scriptures as “flame,” (1Chronicles 7:25) but may also mean “plague” in Classical Hebrew, the language of the Bible. This term therefore has a dual meaning, both of which are often used to describe the righteous judgments of the Most High. (Exodus 11:1, Isaiah 29:6) This is a fitting, if somewhat pejorative, description of the original Seth’s likely reaction to the growing wickedness of his day, [6] (Psalm 15:4) and the faithfulness preserved through the line of the Hamites’ uncle Shem from which the Hyksos came. (Genesis 9:26)
Although it is commonly believed that Resheph was not known in Egypt until the 18th dynasty, and indeed, most archaeologists believe that Egyptian culture and religion are far older than Semitic/Israelite, the history of these territories and times is quite muddled, and recent discoveries have shown that indeed the Semitic culture may have been established first. [7]
Here is another example of the way the Babylonian religion appears in an altered form, though still recognizable from its genuine roots.
“In India, the god Vishnu, ‘the Preserver,’ who is celebrated as having miraculously preserved one righteous family at the time when the world was drowned, not only has the story of Noah wrought up with his legend, but is called by his very name. Vishnu is just the Sanscrit form of the Chaldee [Babylonian] ‘Ish-nuh,’ ‘the man Noah,’ or the ‘Man of rest.’” [8]
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We see that there is enough “truth” in the legend to reveal its origins, but it has been perverted through the filter of the Araphelian system so that a creature (Noah, in this case) is worshipped as a god and loyalty is withdrawn from the true Creator. Not only is the word Vishnu drawn from an older, Mesopotamian source but also, contrary to the contentions of some, the Hebrew language and its publications may indeed be older than the “ancient” Sanscrit texts.
Professor Esther Abraham Solomon, head of the Sanscrit research department in Ahmedabad, India, said the following when asked if the old Hindu Vedas predated the Old Testament, “We cannot and should not make such absolute claims. Neither the ancient Indian texts nor those of the Old Testament can be dated exactly. Although we are inclining more and more to date the oldest parts of the Mahabharata to around 1500 B.C., it is a very cautious estimate and an assumption that refers to the oldest, central core of the epic.” [9]
It can easily be seen how the demons entrenched themselves deeply in these two pagan cultures. Certainly, examples of similar infiltration may be demonstrated from every culture and region in the world, from Asia to Mexico, but the examples here provided must serve for our purposes, as it would greatly exceed the scope of this study to do a full examination of the spread of idolatry in the ancient world.
The best source we have for information about demonic activity in the ancient days is, of course, the record of the Scriptures. This not only informs us of the Enemy’s work among Yahweh’s people, but offers us quite a bit of data concerning his influence among the heathen as well.
The most common of these mentioned in the Bible is the aforementioned Ba’al. Though originally a mere title meaning “Lord” or “Husband,” the Canaanites personified the concept and worshipped a local deity of this name. They weaved together the original record of the Creator with a worship of the seasons and natural processes, thus they generated a god for themselves more suitable to their natural inclinations. In the resulting legends, Ba’al had a female consort known as Ashera, or Ishtar, and these were jointly worshipped by even the Israelites in times of apostasy. The Scriptures record many incidents in which “they forsook Yahweh, and served Ba’al and Ashtaroth.” (Judges 2:13)
To the Biblical writers, Ba’al became a general title for any false deity, and thus infidels are recorded as worshipping “Ba’alim and the groves,” (Judges 3:7) where the im ending in Hebrew indicates the male, plural form of the noun. It should also be noted that where the word “groves” appears in translations like the King James Version, this is the word “Asheroth,” the feminine plural of Ashera.
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Since Ba’al itself was a general term, even (apparently) among the Hebrews’ heathen neighbors, it became necessary for the inhabitants of the various regions to specify which Ba’al they were currently honoring. Thus we find that there was a Ba’al-Peor (Lord of Opening) in Moab who received sacrifices for the dead. (Numbers 25:1, 2) According to some sources, this (or its shortened form, “Peor”) was an alternate name for the god “Chemosh,” [10] whose name means “Subduer,” and who is indeed named in the Scriptures as a Moabite deity. (1Kings 11:7)
There was a Ba’al-Berith, (Lord of the Covenant) a Philistine deity. (Judges 8:33) Not much else is known from Scripture about this object of worship.
Of course, there was the infamous Ba’al-Zebub, the “Lord of the Flies” who was worshipped in the region of Ekron, and had the ability – so his followers believed – to grant men the power to divine the future. (2Kings 1:1, 2) Of all the various Ba’alim, this name has proven to endure the longest, and even appears in the New Testament as the transliterated “Beelzebub.” (Matthew 10:25) The name is actually used by Christ to refer to Satan himself, (Luke 11:18) and the Pharisees agreed that indeed this title refers to “the prince of the devils.” (Matthew 12:24) There will be more to say of this matter in the next chapter.
Of the other heathen deities listed in the Bible, we know perhaps the most about Molech, or Moloch. (Leviticus 18:21, Amos 5:26) The Ammonites and Phoenicians revered this entity, of which the following, fearsome information is retained: “According to ancient tradition Molech was a god formed in the image of a bronze statue of a human form with the head of an ox […] The hollow figure was heated up and children were thrown into it as a sacrifice, to the sounds of drums and cymbals, which hid the cries of the victims.” [11]
Listed with Moloch in both verses wherein the name is spelled that way is another false god, Chiun. (Amos 5:26, Acts 7:43) Now, the verse in Acts is not an obvious connection to Amos, because it is spelled in quite a different way there. The verse in the older Book of Amos reads, “But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.” When the deacon Stephen quotes this passage in Acts 7, he renders it thus, “Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.”
The apparent discrepancy is cleared up when we read the Septuagint, the Greek translation with which Stephen was familiar. It renders the name of the god in Amos as Ræphan, just a step away phonetically from the deacon’s recorded words. But how do we go from Chiun to Ræphan?
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As Figure 3.1 shows, the characters in the Hebrew form of the word are very similar. The first letters (read from right to left), Chesh and Resh respectively, are easily confused if the document on which the word is written has worn away the base line. Thus the symbol for “C” would become the symbol for “R,” as has happened in other words, such as the name Nebuchadnezzar, rendered Nebuchadrezzar in other verses. (2Kings 24:1, Jeremiah 21:2) The “n” symbol in Hebrew also looks a lot like the “c” symbol.
Now, with the first syllable of the word in Amos thereafter pronounced “Re” instead of a hard “C” (like K), the Yod would become unnecessary, hence it would drop out and we would be left with “Rewan.” In Hebrew, the “Vav” letter (the middle symbol in the middle word) is pronounced as both a “w” and a “v,” and through local differences in pronunciation, becomes an “f” or “ph.” This explains the Septuagint’s rendering, and shows the connection between Chiun and Rephan.
While the word “Rephan” does not have any relevant meaning in Biblical Hebrew, the word “Chiun” does; it means “an image,” or “a pillar.” It also apparently had to do with the worship of heavenly bodies, because its image is called the “star” of the god. The idea of channeling human worship through images toward heavenly bodies is nothing new; but it is apparent from the Old Testament Scriptures that the word “stars” may be used to apply to angels. (Job 38:7) The very name “Lucifer,” obtained from the Hebrew Hel’el, is a proper designation for the “morning star,” which is actually the planet Venus.
Other foreign deities in the Scriptures include Rimmon of Syria, (2Kings 5:18) Adrammelech and Anammelech of Sepharvaim, Nibhaz and Tartak of the Avites, (2Kings 17:31) Nisroch of Assyria, (Isaiah 37:38) Milcom of the Ammonites, (1Kings 11:5) Succothbenoth of Babylon, Ashima of Hamath and Nergal of Cuth. (2Kings 17:30) While some of these were significant figures in their various mythologies, all we need to extract from this information provided for us is the common thread.
The common thread is distraction. While Yahweh declares Himself to be the God of salvation, (Isaiah 46:13, Psalm 35:3) the gods of the heathen were a vast and complex pantheon of lesser deities with supposed control over localized phenomena like weather, crops, or warfare. The real danger, of course, was that none of them were able to provide either an abundant and successful life in this world, or eternal life in the next. (Jeremiah 2:28)
Although Yahweh had interrupted Satan’s plan for a globally institutionalized form of idolatry by scattering the citizens of Babel, he allowed individual and localized paganism to continue. Those who directed their reverence toward “graven images,” animals, and other repositories for praise had their attention effectively shifted away from the Source of life, and allowed the apostasy to both continue and spread.
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Now, while neither Yahweh nor demons need worship, (Acts 17:25) they both gladly receive it. The Almighty is pleased with our worship of Him for our sakes, because it is written “the joy of Yahweh is your strength,” (Nehemiah 8:10) and more pointedly, “this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Yahshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3) By worship, we strengthen our connection with the One who is able to save, and we receive the benefit of being guided by a benevolent, all-powerful Creator.
On the other hand, the demons are pleased with our worship because those who turn aside after them are denied the precise blessings described above. The Scriptures tell us in various places that the praise rendered to the gods represented by images is received by demons. We read of idolaters that, “They sacrificed unto devils, not to Elohim; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.” (Deuteronomy 32:17)
Of those Israelites who surrendered their very children to idols like Moloch it is said, “They did not destroy the nations, concerning whom Yahweh commanded them, but were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works. And they served their idols, which were a snare unto them. Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils [Hebrew: shedim], and shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan; and the land was polluted with blood.” (Psalm 106:34-38)
It was a significant step in Satan’s plan that the Israelites specifically should be swept up in these practices. When they were drawn out of Egypt, the Almighty specifically warned them about such things, setting forth the very first two of His eternal commandments thus, “I am Yahweh thy Almighty One, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I Yahweh thy Elohim am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.” (Exodus 20:2-6)
As I mentioned in the introduction, and as I discuss in Appendix A, the commandments of Yahweh were given for the express purpose of keeping us pure in body, mind and spirit. If the Israelites had been faithful to this word, great misery would have been averted and a countless number of souls would have been saved from destruction.
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Yahweh declares Himself to be “jealous,” but not for His own sake. He explains further, “I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy.” (Zechariah 1:14) In other words, he carefully guards the integrity of His peoples’ spirituality, for their eternal destiny depends upon the purity of their faith. (Ephesians 2:8)
But here again we see the reason for Lucifer’s involvement in humanity clearly expressed. By the use of images, idols and myths, he turned the hearts of the people away from the Creator; (1Kings 18:21) and worse, he ensnared the hearts of the very people who were intended to restore the true religion after Babylon’s confusion! (Psalm 22:27, Isaiah 2:3, Zechariah 14:16) The apostasy in Israel was the result of the wavering faith of the people, yes, but also the result of a targeted attack by the shedim, the demons.
The people whom Yahweh claims to be His own are always the particular targets of Satan’s efforts, (1Peter 5:8, Esther 7:4, Psalm 14:4) for no one else is a danger to his religious rites. None other than those faithful to the Almighty are capable of disproving his claims about the Law and commandments of Heaven, and thus destroying his three-step plan for eternally preserving his sinful estate. It is important to remember at this point that due to his “tehomic” nature, Lucifer’s primary inclination is to cause confusion and chaos amongst the “waters” of humanity. (Revelation 17:15) He does not much care who or what his prisoners worship, as long as it is not Yahweh. Hindus who direct their homage toward Vishnu worship the reflected, deified image of Noah, after all – a fact that the faithful patriarch will lament in the resurrection.
As we have seen in the example of Genesis 6, it is often the least clearly understood passages that potentially reveal the most about the demons and their plans. This is not a coincidence. Should we become aware of his movements Lucifer’s greatest weapon, his subtlety, will be useless. (2Corinthians 11:3) For this reason, the infernal legions have been busy ensuring that those passages in particular which reveal the most damaging information about the demons’ activities among mankind have been obscured through tradition and misapplication.
Two more examples of this are provided here.
The first of these involves the next historical step after Babylon and Egypt. When the religious practices of the Israelites were being expounded under the ministry of Moses, we find these instructions written in the book of priestly rites regarding the Day of Atonement. The passage is somewhat long, but merits close investigation:
“Thus shall Aaron [the high priest] come into the holy place [of the Tabernacle]: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen
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breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired; these are holy garments, therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.
“And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. And he shall take the two goats, and present them before Yahweh at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats: one lot for Yahweh, and the other lot for Azazel.
“And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which Yahweh’s lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on which the lot fell to be Azazel, shall be presented alive before Yahweh, to make an atonement with Him, and to let him go for Azazel into the wilderness. And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself; and he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before Yahweh, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail.
“And he shall put the incense upon the fire before Yahweh, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not. And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.
“Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat; and he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins. And so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.
“And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel. And he shall go out unto the altar that is before Yahweh, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.
“And when he hath made an end of
reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the
altar, he shall bring the live goat. [48]
“And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall put off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there, and he shall wash his flesh with water in the holy place, and put on his garments, and come forth, and offer his burnt offering, and the burnt offering of the people, and make an atonement for himself, and for the people. And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar.
“And he that let go the goat for Azazel shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward come into the camp. And the bullock for the sin offering, and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall one carry forth without the camp; and they shall burn in the fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung. And he that burneth them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp.
“And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before Yahweh.” (Leviticus 16:3-30)
In the above passage, I have substituted in the un-translated word “Azazel” for what is rendered “the scapegoat” in some versions. The translators of the Hebrew Tanakh recognize that this title signifies a proper name, as did those of the NRSV and various others. There are a couple clues in the text itself that point this out. The first is that the word is not preceded by the definite article. It is merely “Azazel,” not “the azazel.” That in itself is not conclusive, since Hebrew is not always consistent with its articles; but secondly, the word for “goat” used in this passage is sa’iyr, not ’ez (a part of the word ‘ez-azel) which in any event refers primarily to a female goat. (Genesis 15:9)
By way of summarizing the above passage, the structure of events proceeds along these lines: Once a year, on the tenth day of the seventh month which is known in Judaism as Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement, a special cleansing for sins was ordained. The high priest would perform a ceremony that involved the sacrifice of animals including a bullock and two young goats.
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The bullock was the first animal to be sacrificed. The record explains that the priest takes this sacrifice “for himself,” to ensure that he is spiritually clean enough to complete the rest of the ceremony. Of the two goats, one is chosen to be “for Yahweh,” and the other is selected “for Azazel.” Not only is the second goat “for” Azazel, but verse 10 also seems to indicate that the animal actually represents this being.
The reason for this “cleansing” ceremony should be properly understood before looking at the next step of the Day of Atonement ritual. The tabernacle was a building set up for two primary purposes. First, it was the place in which Yahweh would represent Himself to the people, thus the visible “center” of religious worship. (Exodus 29:42, 43) Second, it was to act as a repository for the sins of Israel.
It is written, “Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a soul shall sin through ignorance against any of the commandments of Yahweh concerning things which ought not to be done, and shall do against any of them […] then let him bring for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto Yahweh for a sin offering. And he shall bring the bullock unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before Yahweh; and shall lay his hand upon the bullock's head, and kill the bullock before Yahweh.
“And the priest that is anointed shall take of the bullock's blood, and bring it to the tabernacle of the congregation; and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle of the blood seven times before Yahweh, before the vail of the Sanctuary. And the priest shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before Yahweh, which is in the Tabernacle of the congregation, and shall pour all the blood of the bullock at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the Tabernacle of the congregation.” (Leviticus 4:2-7)
Day by day, as sin offerings were brought to the priests for confession and repentance, the blood that represented the sins were cast upon the Tabernacle. Before the vail, and upon the altar, the stains stood as a monument to the forgiveness of the Almighty, and a testimony against the transgression of the people. But the essence of the transgression was not to remain among the people; the ceremony being described was to reveal the perfect antipathy between Yahweh and sin, and that even though sins were forgiven when the sacrifices were offered, there remained a final cleansing that needed to be performed to complete the atonement between God and man – hence the Day of Atonement.
Having ceremonially purified himself by offering the bullock, the priest next took the goat for Yahweh, and sacrificed it as well. This death was an atonement “for the people,” and its blood was to serve a very specific purpose. As the verses indicate, the blood was used to cleanse the sins from the tabernacle and the altar, and to transfer them unto the priest himself.
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(verses 15-19) Having accomplished this, the high priest would transmit the sins from himself to the other, living goat – the Azazel goat. (verses 20, 21) Finally, the goat was sent away into the wilderness, removing forever the sins from the people. (verses 21, 22)
Understanding this ceremony, the meaning for a Christian should be perfectly clear. The goat for Yahweh, slain for the reconciliation of the people, is a symbol of Christ, a “second witness” to the Passover lamb. (Matthew 18:16, 1Corinthians 5:7) He bore the penalty for our sins, since “the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) In doing so, He also took on the role of the High Priest, as the Book of Hebrews indicates, fulfilling the dual role of intercessor and sacrifice. (Hebrews 8:1, 2; 9:12)
But if the wages of sin is “death,” and death has no permanent power over Christ, there must indeed be a “scapegoat” for the sins of humanity. That the final punishment for human sin should fall upon Satan follows a very well established Biblical principle – since he initiated the process of human sin, he will reap its final reward. “Whose hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness shall be shewed before the whole congregation. Whoso diggeth a pit [i.e., to trap others] shall fall therein; and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upon him.” (Proverbs 26:26, 27) “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)
All those who confess their sins and are converted to the way of life will have Christ bear their sins away from them, pronouncing them clean. In the last judgment, however, neither Christ nor the redeemed suffer the “everlasting death” that results from transgression. No, that penalty falls upon the demons, and those who did not participate in the way of salvation. “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, and whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”(Revelation 20:10a, 15)
Azazel thus perfectly represents the devil, Satan who will find an ultimate end amidst the flames of judgment. One author writes, “People have usually seen in [Azazel] a ‘desert demon’ who is satisfied by the sending of a he-goat and thus rendered harmless. The juxtaposition of Yahweh and Azazel in verse 8 would seem to justify this assumption.” [12]
There are two things to be gained from this quotation. First, note that Azazel is a “desert demon,” or as the Scriptures themselves state, a sacrifice destined for “a land not inhabited.” (Leviticus 16:22) A “land not inhabited” is devoid of life; it is, in Hebrew, bohu, the very word “void” set in apposition to the tehom of Genesis 1:2. Azazel is yet another face of the creature of chaos: Tiamat. He is both of the emptiness, and destined for it.
Now, there are some who object to this characterization of Azazel as Lucifer. Their arguments generally run along two lines. First, that Christ
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and not Satan is said to be the “Sin bearer,” (2Corinthians 5:21) and second, that when the Savior said “it is finished” on the Cross, (John 19:30) this was the final end of sin, which needs no further cleansing.
Those who criticize the groups who hold the above-described doctrine, claiming that they believe Lucifer, and not Christ is the true “sin bearer,” badly mischaracterize this teaching. The Son of Yahweh is indeed the sin-bearer, for He bears the sin away from humanity. The manner in which Lucifer reaps the results of sin is merely a matter of cause-and-effect. There is no “Salvation” brought to men because Satan is made the final scapegoat; indeed, the Salvation was accomplished when Christ took the sins from mankind.
But the critics will say that since Christ represents both the high priest and the sin offering in Leviticus 16, it is reasonable to assume that He represents the Azazel-goat as well. While it is true that Yahshua fulfils the dual role of High Priest and Sacrifice, these offices are spelled out as His in the symbols of the ceremony, and the writings of the New Testament. This analogy fails entirely if we attempt to make Him the “scapegoat” as well.
Consider that Christ performs the role of High Priest; (Hebrews 9:11) therefore that analogy is sound. Consider that He did die to pay the penalty for human sin, (1Peter 3:18) so the parallel between the Messiah and the “goat for Yahweh” is also sound. But we see in the Levitical ceremony that after the first goat is slain, the second bears the sin away from the people and into a “desert place” to die. This cannot by any means represent Christ, for after His death and resurrection he went, not to a wilderness, but to the Kingdom of Heaven itself to officiate for humanity thereafter. (Hebrews 12:2, 7:25) If any wish to claim that the grave to which He went before His resurrection represents the “desert,” this does as much violence to the Scriptures.
After the Yahweh goat was slain, then the high priest made intercession for the people and put the sins unto the Azazel goat. If Christ’s tomb, or the state of death, represents the “land not inhabited,” this severely interrupts the pattern laid out, because He became the High Priest after ascending to Heaven, that is, after the grave. (John 20:17, Hebrews 8:3) The Messiah became High Priest after the order (nature) of Melchizedek (Hebrews 6:20) but He officiates in the manner (pattern) of the Levites, in a Tabernacle on which the earthly was patterned, (Exodus 25:9, Hebrews 9:24, Revelation 15:5) and according to the Scriptures laid out in the Books of Moses. (John 5:29, Luke 16:31)
Regarding the second objection, that Christ’s statement “it is finished” signifies an end of all sin, and no further need of cleansing, the Scriptures have much to say. While the Messiah’s work as a Sacrifice was “finished” on the cross, His work as Mediator (High Priest) was just beginning! (1Timothy 2:5) The Book of Hebrews goes into great detail about the fact
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that there is a current, ongoing ministry on behalf of human beings in Heaven. The Son of Yahweh is not idly seated beside the Father, but “He ever liveth to make intercession” for mankind, as a previous verse (Hebrews 7:25) points out.
Furthermore, the Apostles noted that the “times of refreshing” when the “sins may be blotted out” occurs after the sinner confesses, and not before. (Acts 3:19) Christ’s work was “finished” in that He established “a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh.” (Hebrews 10:20) But this establishment of the way did not mean His work was concluded on behalf of humanity; no, His earthly mission was over (and even that, not entirely! – Acts 1:3) but the new and living way requires an Intercessor in the Heavenly Courts, and a final cleansing of sin, for the sins remain on the Books by which men will be judged in the Last Day. (Revelation 20:12)
Before moving on to the second example of a difficult but revealing text, it is a good idea to further explain here what I meant when I said earlier: “…while neither Yahweh nor demons need worship, (Acts 17:25) they both gladly receive it.” The reason presented at that point was that Yahweh seeks to strengthen a relationship between humanity and Himself, and the shedim seek to destroy that relationship. But the relevant question may be asked, why did sacrifices strengthen this relationship? Why is it written, “almost all things are by the Law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission?” (Hebrews 9:22)
The Almighty makes it clear that the sacrifices in themselves do not “please” Him. He says, “Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?” (Psalm 50:13) Further, the prophet declares, “Wherewith shall I come before Yahweh, and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? Will Yahweh be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth Yahweh require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (Micah 6:6-8)
This is a beautiful explanation of the purpose behind the sacrifices. Of themselves, they have no value. If the heart of the one offering the sacrifice is not pure, and the soul not humble, “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me?” saith Yahweh. “I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats.” (Isaiah 1:11) We are told, “the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins.” (Psalm 7:9) It is the heart that offers the sacrifice; therein lies the value. The blood did have purpose, of course: to show that indeed, the wages of sin is death.
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The death of innocent animals for guilty humans showed clearly that transgression was the destruction of life, and furthermore pointed forward to the day when One truly innocent would pay the penalty for the guilty. (Matthew 27:3, 4; Isaiah 53:5)
But what do the demons gain by this transaction? Yes, they deprive the worshipper of this opportunity to demonstrate faith, and they pervert the purpose of the sacrifice in the minds of the people, but there is more to it than even that. Demons have, through the rituals of blood sacrifices in almost every human culture, portrayed the gods as beings who are actually appeased by violence and death. This is close to the outward appearance of Yahweh’s plan, for the result of sin is indeed death, and He wants His people to know this – but the demonic perversions of the rites of sacrifice entirely warp the human view of all divine beings, including the Creator.
Furthermore, if divinities may be “appeased,” it means that human beings have some measure of control over their actions – and it is this idea, this very thing, that forms the root of all occult philosophy and witchcraft. The true exorcist must learn this lesson very well: demons are perfectly willing to represent themselves as foolish, weak, servile, gullible, pliable or acquiescent, if only the human will ultimately end up doing what the demon wants.
This principle will be entitled the Illusion of Control (or I.O.C. for short) in the remainder of this book, and it will come up often.
Before it is more thoroughly explained in the next chapter, let us examine an example of the I.O.C. at work. This is the second of those key Scriptural passages that tell us a great deal about demonic activity if they are rightly understood.
We read, “Now Samuel [the prophet] was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land. And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Shunem: and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they pitched in Gilboa. And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart greatly trembled. And when Saul enquired of Yahweh, Yahweh answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim [a priestly method], nor by prophets.
“Then said Saul unto his servants, ‘Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her.’ And his servants said to him, ‘Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.’
“And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, ‘I
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pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee.’
“And the woman said unto him, ‘Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land; wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die?’
“And Saul sware to her by Yahweh, saying, ‘As Yahweh liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing.’
“Then said the woman, ‘Whom shall I bring up unto thee?’ And he said, ‘Bring me up Samuel.’
“And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice, and the woman spake to Saul, saying, ‘Why hast thou deceived me? For thou art Saul.’ And the king said unto her, ‘Be not afraid, for what sawest thou?’ And the woman said unto Saul, ‘I saw gods ascending out of the earth.’
“And he said unto her, ‘What form is he of?’ And she said, ‘An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a mantle.’ And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself.
“And Samuel said to Saul, ‘Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up?’ And Saul answered, ‘I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and Elohim is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams, therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do.’
“Then said Samuel, ‘Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing Yahweh is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy? And Yahweh hath done to him, as He spake by me, for Yahweh hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy neighbour, even to David: because thou obeyedst not the voice of Yahweh, nor executedst His fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath Yahweh done this thing unto thee this day.’
“‘Moreover Yahweh will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines, and to morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: Yahweh also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.’
“Then Saul fell straightway all along on the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel; and there was no strength in him, for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all the night.” (1Samuel 28:3-20)
The relevant sequel reads, “Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa. And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua,
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Saul's sons. And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers hit him, and he was sore wounded of the archers.
“Then said Saul unto his armourbearer, ‘Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me.’ But his armourbearer would not, for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it. And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him.” (1Samuel 31:1-5)
A surface reading would seem to indicate that indeed this woman of Endor had raised a prophet of Yahweh from the dead, and that he took away all hope from Saul, resulting ultimately in his death. While the text in isolation does indeed appear to state this, other Scriptures clarify what actually occurred in that séance.
Starting with the passage provided, however, we see that a) the woman of Endor did not know what she had raised, (1Sam 28:13) and b) Saul never actually saw the entity, but “perceived” that it was Samuel based on the medium’s description. (verse 14) Note that it was not until she described him as “an old man […] covered with a mantle” that Saul ascribed the title to him. The mantle, of course, was a distinctive dress of a prophet, (2Kings 2:8) and Saul had plenty of reason to recognize the attire, having torn this very item of Samuel’s the last time they had spoken. (1Samuel 15:27, 35)
Now it is true, the Scriptures do call the apparition “Samuel.” The reason for this is because the narrative is written from the human point of view and, to all intents and purposes, it was indeed Samuel speaking. Many commentators have realized the problems that attend this view, however. Not only would it attribute the power over dead saints’ souls to witches and their demonic consorts, but it would also be a contradiction of the statement that Yahweh would not speak to Saul any more by means of “prophets,” (1Sam 28:6) for He would have there allowed a prophet to speak to the rejected king.
While scholars are divided over just what this verse means, the Scriptures have the answers for those who submit to letting the Bible be its own interpreter. When we read the “second witness,” the parallel account in the Book of Chronicles, we find the matter perfectly explained. “So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against Yahweh, even against the word of Yahweh, which he kept not; and also for asking [counsel] of [one that had] a familiar spirit, to enquire [of it], and enquired not of Yahweh; therefore He slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.” (1Chronicles 10:13, 14)
The reader will notice that some of the words in that verse are in [brackets] to indicate that they were added by translators, and were not a part of the original text. The Biblical record notes that Saul transgressed in “asking of
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a familiar spirit, to enquire.” Notice that it also stresses he did not enquire of Yahweh, therefore any revelation coming through Samuel, if indeed it was Samuel, would not be a true prophecy.
But the Bible tells us, from an external and thus more objective point of view, that the being that spoke with Samuel was a “familiar spirit.” Its appearance was certainly more than the woman who raised it was expecting, (1Samuel 28:12) but we must remember that the term she used to describe it, “elohim,” (gods ascending out of the earth) also refers to false gods. (Genesis 35:2) The argument becomes conclusive when we find that the word owb translated as “familiar spirit” does indeed refer to a spiritual being, and not a “woman” who controls the spirit. If the author wished to specify the woman who had the spirit, it would have been recorded (as in verse 7) thus: Behalath-owb.
Saul’s sin was not primarily in speaking to the woman, but to the divining spirit, a congress expressly forbidden by the Law of Moses. (Deuteronomy 18:14) This could not possibly have been the true spirit of Samuel, and Saul himself asked that the “spirit” of the prophet be raised by means of the familiar spirit. (1Samuel 28:8) This entirely rules out the actions of the Most High. One commentator on this passage reveals much that is significant. “The Greek translators rendered the word Ob by the term ‘python,’ which means dragon, serpent or evil spirit. Behalath-owb, then, signifies either ‘mistress of a python,’ Domina Pythonis – that is to say, “having a python in her possession” – or, again, ‘wedded to a python,’ and consequently, ‘under the power of a python;’ and this interpretation is very consistent with the spirit of the Hebrew language.” [13]
As two 17th century pastors noted, “Howbeit, ignorance in the Hebrewe toong, hath caused manie of the old fathers verie fowlie to erre, and to decline from the true sence of the Scriptures.” [14] We certainly find many who fall into that trap regarding the incident in 1 Samuel 28.
This is, as stated, a perfect example of the I.O.C. in action. Through transgression, Saul fell under the “illusion” that he could summon forth the spirit of a departed prophet, though Yahweh had already made it clear there would be no such conversation forthcoming. The woman of Endor, of course, had been under this illusion herself for some time.
By using this principle, the demons were able to discourage Saul and convince him that there was no further hope of life. It is true, the kingdom was rent from Saul’s rule, but it was never stated (by Yahweh) that the stubborn king would need to lose his life as well as his sovereignty. The being calling itself Samuel indeed wanted Saul where it was, (1 Samuel 28:19) in hopeless despair. If we wish to avoid being deceived by evil spirits, and to help others break free of their control, we must not only learn to recognize their handiwork as pointed out clearly in Scripture, but also their more subtle activities among the children of men in these latter days.
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References:
1 – The Pentateuch, Volume 1: Genesis, 2nd Edition, Samson Raphael Hirsch, translated by Isaac Levy, Judaica Press Ltd., Gateshead, 1989, p. 329
2 – The Mummy, A History of The Extraordinary Practices of Ancient Egypt, E. A. Wallis Budge, Outlet Book Company, Inc., 1989, p. 276
3 – The History and Culture of Ancient Western Asia and Egypt, A. Bernard Knapp, © 1988, The Dorsey Press, p. 170
4 – ibid. p. 169
5 – Dictionary of Deities and Demons in The Bible, Karel van der Toom, Pieter W.van der Horst, Bob Becking, W.B. Eerdman's Pub. Co., 1999, entry: Resheph
6 – The Two Babylons, Alexander Hislop, Crown Rights Book Company, 1969, pp. 63 - 67
7 – “Egypt or Israel? The Firm Foundation of Biblical Chronology,” David Downs, Special Webcast, 23rd January, 2001, Answers In Genesis Website, http://www.answersingenesis.org
8 – Hislop [6], p. 135
9 – Gods From Outer Space, Erich von Däniken, translated by Michael Heron, Bantam Books Inc., 1972, p. 131 [Author’s note: I consider the premise of this book in particular to be entirely “off base,” but I found von Däniken’s interview with Dr. Solomon both interesting and relevant.]
10 – Pandæmoneum, Richard Bovet, © 1975, E.P. Publishing Limited
11 – Dictionary of Demons, Fred Gettings, © Fred Gettings, Trafalgar Square Publishing, 1988, entry: Molech
12 – Leviticus, A Commentary, Revised Edition, Martin Noth, The Westminster Press, 1977, Comments on Leviticus Chapter 16
13 – Witchcraft, Magic and Alchemy, Grillot De Givry, translated by J. Courtnay Locke, 1971, Dover Publications, Inc., New York, p. 153
14 – Dialogicall Discourses of Spirits and Divels, John Deacon and John Walker, Walter J. Johnson, Inc., 1976, first published in London, 1601, p. 59
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