satyrs

Iron and Myth Podcast: Azazel, Lilith, and other Demonic Creatures in the Bible

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One of the mysteries of the Bible is why there are no accounts of priests or prophets casting out demons. Why is that?

This is odd because the pagan neighbors of the Israelites knew about demons and had an entire library of rituals and spells for casting them out. 

And in the early 1st century, Jesus and the apostles had their hands full casting demons out of people all over Judea and the Mediterranean world.

Joining us to explore the presence of demonic entities in the Old Testament and their connection to ancient pagan deities is our monthly Iron and Myth crew: Doug Van Dorn (www.douglasvandorn.com), author of Giants: Sons of the Gods, Dr. Judd Burton (www.BurtonBeyond.net), director of The Institute of Biblical Anthropology, and Brian Godawa (www.Godawa.com), best-selling author of Chronicles of the Nephilim, Chronicles of the Watchers, and the theological thriller Cruel Logic.

We discuss various passages and linguistic connections that suggest the existence of demons in the Hebrew Bible. We also delve into the significance of the desert as a place associated with chaos and demonic activity.

The conversation touches on the rituals and practices related to demons, including the naming and mocking of these entities.

We conclude with an examination of Azazel and the connection between the demonic realm and the wilderness.

The conversation explores the presence of supernatural entities in ancient texts and their connection to demonic activity.

Listen or watch here

Of Myth and the Bible – Part 6: Satyrs and Centaurs and Demons, Oh My!

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satyrs

In my novels, Joshua Valiant and Caleb Vigilant, I write about a tribe called the Seirim people of Banias at Mount Hermon. They live in caves at the foot of the mountains and are led by satyrs, chimeric beings with the lower body of a goat and the upper body of a human. But this mythopoeic imagery is not a mere assimilation of ancient Greek myths about Pan, the satyr deity of nature and shepherding. The notion of satyrs or goat deities predates Greek myth and finds a place in Canaanite lore, and therefore, the Bible as well.

Take a look at these prophecies of Isaiah referencing the destruction of Babylon and Edom.

Isaiah 34:11–15 (The destruction of Edom)
11But the hawk and the porcupine shall possess it, the owl and the raven shall dwell in it… 13Thorns shall grow over its strongholds, nettles and thistles in its fortresses. It shall be the haunt of jackals, an abode for ostriches. 14And wild animals shall meet with hyenas; the wild goat (seirim) shall cry to his fellow; indeed, there the night bird settles and finds for herself a resting place. 15There the owl nests and lays and hatches and gathers her young in her shadow; indeed, there the hawks are gathered, each one with her mate.

Isaiah 13:21–22 (The destruction of Babylon)
21But wild animals will lie down there, and their houses will be full of howling creatures; there ostriches will dwell, and there wild goats (seirim) will dance. 22Hyenas will cry in its towers, and jackals in the pleasant palaces; its time is close at hand and its days will not be prolonged.

The passages above speak of God’s judgment upon the nations of Babylon and Edom (symbols of all that is against Israel and Yahweh). A cursory reading of the texts seem to indicate a common word picture of Yahweh destroying these nations so thoroughly that they end up a desert wasteland with wild animals and birds inhabiting them because the evil people will be no more.

Nothing about mythical monsters like satyrs there, right?

Wrong. Because the English translations of the Hebrew word seirim as “wild goats,” obscure the full ancient meaning. If we look closer into the original Hebrew, we find a more expanded mythopoeic reference to pagan deities.

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