What is the Jewish view of Satan? Christians view him as a fallen angel bent on revenge and therefore does horrible things to other people. In Sunday school we discussed John 13, and John talks about Satan entering Judas. A member of the class went on a little 'lecture' about the evils of the Devil in our lives. I spoke up saying that if Jesus and his followers were, in fact, Jewish, they wouldn't have viewed Satan as evil. Is this true? What is the view of the Devil in Jewish faith?
2007-01-07 05:36:52 · 9 answers · asked by The Pope 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I'll not read Job, thank you very much. That is an example, similar to a story.
2007-01-07 05:41:27 · update #1
We aren't looking at the Devil as a God of the Underworld. We are looking at him as a power. Before there was the Devil there was God. So God is more POWERFUL. I didn't ask what's wrong with the Jewish beliefs. I asked WHAT ARE THEY!!!!
2007-01-07 05:42:38 · update #2
it is my understanding that satan is anything that is an adversary. they call him "the" satan, also. not just one being. in job it appears that the satan was an agent of god's who tempted and tested god's important people to make sure they were still on the right track. he only wanted them to fail because that would weed out the bad and the faithless. if the satan were evil, how could he just walk up to god in heaven and have a delightful conversation? also, all of that fallen angel stuff came much later. lucifer, for example, is not even a name but was invented in the 4th century from a translation. Light Bearer is what it means. and that's what it should say, but instead it became a proper noun. that passage [Isaiah 14:12] refers to a king on earth. a babylonian king. just some contextual clues and it's obvious. so yes, even when jesus gets "tempted" by satan it is god's testing jesus. if you believe jesus IS god then that makes no sense, but if you read that passage with a broader view then you start to see that the satan there was doing the same thing as in job. only without the death and destruction.
2007-01-07 05:47:04 · answer #1 · answered by Shawn M 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
For Jews, anything that even remotely conflicts with the idea that God is One and Indivisible will be rejected because it precludes true, pure, monotheism. The idea that there is a God in heaven above who fights against a god of the underworld, or hell, is not monotheism, however, it is the same duality found in other pagan faiths. The Bible speaks of a character known as The Satan, who acts like a prosecuting attorney, or a district attorney, in God's court. However, The Satan has no power or authority in and of himself, rather he must get permission from the Judge, God, to do anything.
2007-01-07 05:41:15 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
Satan is a word that means an "opposer" or "enemy". Many references in the bible to a "satan" use this. Otherwise, it refers to a powerful angel who was created to try men's hearts. The Devil is a creation of Christianity. In Judaism, Satan works FOR God and not against him.
2007-01-07 05:38:55 · answer #3 · answered by Wisdom Lies in the Heart 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Like the others said. The Satan (pronouced "SAH-tun") carries out God's sting operations, so to speak. It's the angel in charge of testing people's faith, and is an agent of God as much as any other angel. In this capacity, it is also referred to as the "yetzer hara" (evil inclination).
The Satan also works as the chief prosecutor in the heavenly court. I can't tell you exactly what that means, since I don't study Kabala.
2007-01-07 12:50:09 · answer #4 · answered by Melanie Mue 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Judaism does not actually have a devil, because we believe that nobody can make us sin. Only we can do that, to ourselves. Instead of satan, we have two things. One is the "yetzer tov" (the good impulse) which makes us want to do good things, and the other is the "yetzer ra" (you guessed it, the bad impulse) which makes us want to do bad things. The "satan" "devil" and "serpent" in the OT are metaphors for the yetzer ra which is making us want to sin. With this belief there is nobody to blame for our sins but ourselves. That's part of what Judaism is. You are responsible for yourself and the life you are living now.
2007-01-07 05:42:56 · answer #5 · answered by Mozes 2 · 4⤊ 0⤋
MERLIN: don't be disheartened by technique of the different responses right here. you're actually not any fool. i can't have self assurance the people right here telling me approximately my own faith (Judaism) interior the main erroneous words. What you assert approximately our view of the devil is actual, apart from the final little bit of 'balances the traditional scale of sturdy and evil'. The devil is had to help us improve, to grant us unfastened will. that is an agent of God designed to grant us unfastened will. We use the time era 'devil' loosely to talk with the brokers pulling us faraway from His choose, for that reason becoming unfastened will. occasion: you be attentive to to not smoke. yet you detect it extremely confusing to cease - your physique purely seems to prefer to proceed smoking. a huge conflict exists - of the mind vs your instinct desires. it is how unfastened-will is created - you have the liberty to decide on. This freedom became purely created by technique of the 'devil' offering you with the choose to smoke. devil would not reason calamity. It components for us unfastened will - the choice to decide directly to take heed to our mind (and what all of us be attentive to is sturdy) or to our animal instincts.
2016-12-15 18:03:07 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Jewish religion does not have a devil.
2007-01-07 05:39:04 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Read JOB.
Jewish believe in Satan too like christians.
Unfortunately for them.
2007-01-07 05:40:21 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Ask Don H..
2007-01-07 05:39:14 · answer #9 · answered by Cyber 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋