Can satan and other demons take on a human form and live among us?

[Starise]

21 hours ago, other one said:

Angels on the other hand can have physical bodies and need not to possess something.   We are told that we should be kind to strangers for we do not know if they are angels.....    so one can't tell by looking at them...   Demons usually interact with us after interning some living body.   Be that human or animal but I believe they can speak to us mentally.  However that just comes from some personal experiences from many years ago when I was researching them.

Definitely appears to be a difference there between angels which have bodies although much different from ours and better in many ways, and demons. I picked up on the "speak to us mentally part" because It reminded me of several things. One was the cases of people who are hearing voices. In many cases of this I believe it's probably demons. On a more physical level, there is a device out there developed by a government or governments that can transmit audio directly into the brain using something like microwaves. There's enough info about it to know it's there because a few have come forward and talked. A few were victims of it and initially couldn't figure out what was going on. As much heat as the "tin foil hat" people take being called nutters, there was a valid reason people were doing it. I don't know if it's still happening or not. It seems a very cruel thing to do to someone, basically driving them crazy  with sounds in their head they can't turn off. 

I also believe that demons can speak to some people mentally, especially if they are possessed. The Christian hopefully has a protective "hedge" that would prevent as much of it. 

Sorry I got slightly OT there.

1 hour ago, Marathoner said:

We know that angels are spiritual, capable of manifesting tangibly as the scriptures testify. As I have learned there are three "divisions" of angels: those who serve the Lord (our fellow servants), those who left their first estate in pursuit of lust (the Watchers), and those who rallied to the accuser (the principalities). There are references to each in the canon of scripture.  

As for the origin of demons/devils/evil spirits/unclean spirits, there is no clear reference in the canon of scripture. I shared a verse from the Gospel of Matthew which alludes to something more: "And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?" (Matthew 8:29)

God knows all things and nothing is hidden from His sight. Is it therefore important for us to know of their substance and from whence they came? No, because if it were then the Lord would make it known to all. These evil spirits are not the rulers of this present darkness which the apostle identifies in Ephesians 6.

Notice the pattern: the Watchers are bound in everlasting chains awaiting judgment and so they're not identified as enemies we must face. On the contrary, we will judge them (we will judge angels). 

Our accuser is the ruler of this world and so we must resist the devil. Satan is an enemy we face daily. Satan has been judged (the ruler of this world has been judged).

Those angels of the devil, the principalities which weaken the nations of men, are an enemy we must face. These have been judged with Satan (the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels). 

 

Just as an FYI , I think sometimes the terminology in referring to these beings can get muddled. Let me explain. In one study I read about the elohim. I hope I spelled it correctly. In instances of scripture where God comes to the earth and uses the term let "us" do this or that this is the master Yahweh in the presence of His divine council or elohim. Does He need a council? No. Yet He chooses to use a heavenly council. The council is mentioned several times in scripture. This is yet another strata in heaven we don't often hear or read about. A sort of "behind the scenes" body of entities that had "godlike" qualities. Not God. Only Yahweh is the true God. 

I believe some people call these beings angels when they are more accurately above the angels since the angels are often the messengers of God. Certain of these elohim could also be what you are calling Watchers. There seems to be a difference between the two. 

Certain of the elohim  turned rogue and apparently were often the so called "gods" of  ancient pagan cultures. Yahweh was not unaware of this and much the same way as He gives men up to their own foolish sinful  ways, He also gave these beings up to their own devices until they are judged. The fact that they were powerful beings made them excellent quasi gods to pagans. According to my studies they had territories. There was probably at least one in Egypt, One in Babylon, One in central Asia and so forth. Could have been many more in each place but they had territories. Contrary to many beliefs, I am convinced this was a far more real happening than simply a large stone statue people bowed down to. These being were REAL and were acting like gods.

Some scholars might be combining the elohim and angels as one. I tend to think they were distinct with demons maybe yet another class.Three classes with possible sub classes. 

[BeauJangles]

Can satan and other demons take on a human form and live among us?

On 9/12/2020 at 7:36 AM, Ervin P said:

The following from the Bible seems as it might indicate that the satan and the demons can maybe take on a human form and live among us:

Genesis 6:1:4

1 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, 

2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. 

3 Then the LORD said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal ; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” 

4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.

I would like to remain on the topic of the opster on this question, as it's not only relevant, but he is asking specifics here. Let me attempt to answer in the respect of what dispensationalist theologians have to comment concerning the subject. 

In answer to the question of the heading of title? No, not in in this present age of time. These scriptures of Nephilim and the what occurred are with fallen angelic beings that did at that time have the ability to appear in humanlike form. 

God's Heavenly angels have and still do have this capability. However, in this present age since the time past when these fallen angels did at one time have these means no longer do. They came upon the Earth at that time and did procreate with resulting in the Nephilim. 

That time has passed and this race of the majority were destroyed in the Flood of Noah's time and that age of wickedness. So much was going on with the satanic realm at that time period, the Lord decided to destroy these creatures including the evils of mankind.  

Noah and his family were the only ones deemed righteous.  

The majority of the Nephilim and humans were drowned in the Flood, but some of them theoretically found high ground surviving it. Perhaps. There were still giants that existed when the Israelites came into the promise land of Milk and Honey. The spies on that land reported them.

We know Goliath of Gath was in all probability a Nephilim. They were of the satanic offspring, but not exactly demonic humanoids. This would be somewhat of a misnomer of understanding as to what they were exactly. The time of Nephilim existence is over. 

It's a hot topic of debate and I can understand the differing points of view to what degree these Nephilim were. Do I know it all? No, not really. Does anyone? Probably not. To surmise we fully comprehend a time when we didn't exist and/or experience this would be folly. 

Ervin-P, I hope this in some way gives you a more specific answer. 

Edited October 14, 2020 by BeauJangles

[Marathoner]

It's good that you reference the divine council, @Starise. @Justin Adams has written about this subject here on the forum. Scenes from the divine council are revealed to us in different locations in the scriptures, the book of Job, 1 Kings 22, and 2 Chronicles 18 standing out in this regard. According to the knowledge given to me, the council is assembled in the "northern reaches" of the second heaven upon the mount of assembly, or what is to known to us today as the cosmos (outer space). Consider these verses from the book of Isaiah.

“How you have fallen from heaven,
O star of the morning, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the earth,
You who have weakened the nations!
“But you said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne above the stars of God,
And I will sit on the mount of assembly
In the recesses of the north.
‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
(Isaiah 14:12-14 NASB)

Satan sought to usurp the Lord's authority and preside over the divine council (the stars of God), thereby making himself god above all.

I'm in agreement that "angel" is a vague term which can be used to describe those whom God created as spiritual, not subject to death as we are in this world. "Angel" can mean different things depending upon the context where the word appears. That some measure of confusion on our part exists is given seeing as how knowledge and understanding of spiritual matters (and ancient Hebrew euphemism) has been lost to us in this world of the falling away. Lost, but not irrevocably lost. Why?

God's Spirit is our Teacher. He illuminates our heart with Truth and makes the way straight.  

An example: when I refer to the stars of heaven (or of God) I am referencing the elohim you refer to in your post above. These are the morning stars who sang in Job 38:7; the sons of God present themselves before the Lord upon the mount of assembly. The stars of heaven may also be referred to as principalities (princes); the book of Revelation reveals that the seven churches of Asia were each assigned a star/prince, identified as an angel. Michael is revealed as the prince of Israel in the book of Daniel. 

Considering how Jew and Gentile alike are members of God's holy nation which the Lord calls Israel (we are all Jews inwardly), Michael is therefore the prince of His heavenly nation which Israel of old was a type. Who is the brightest of God's stars in heaven? Michael, whom I have likened to the star which heralded the birth of the Son of Man. Michael is the prince of our nation, a servant of the Most High God like we are. We worship God alone and no other. 

Therefore those stars of heaven who rallied to the dragon (Satan) during the war in heaven are mighty as the sons of God are demonstrated to be. Evil spirits (demons) can be cast out, but the devil and his angels must be resisted.

[Speks]

7 minutes ago, BeauJangles said:

...but some of them theoretically found high ground surviving it.

How can this be when every living creature perished?

"The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth... ...every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground..."; ...And all flesh died that moved on the earth... He blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground... They were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ark... "the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done" (from Genesis 6-8).
 

[BeauJangles]

47 minutes ago, Speks said:

How can this be when every living creature perished?

Yes, that's a good case in point. I was also under this assumption, but no longer. Theoretically speaking, all the Nephilim should have been destroyed in the Flood. Did they, though? If they did, who do you consider these giant creatures to be? Post-Flood Nephilim?

I'm not a theologian by any means and don't claim to have all the answers as I've stated. So, I'm to take it you feel some satanic entities were still able to procreate? I would have to politely disagree with you if this is what you believe. And that is if you are saying so.

That age ended prior to the Flood and ended there.

Yes, it's my opinion and doctrinal belief as a dispensationalist. What is your belief on this particular discussion concerning it? That demonic humanoids exist or not? So far, you've given no specifics on the subject as the majority of us have.

What you are doing is termed as, "Cherry Picking Doctrine". All creatures? Birds and aquatic creatures and marine life all survived the Flood. This is very  common among fundamentalists. You can pick and choose if you wish to, but it's spotty doctrinally speaking.  

Edited October 14, 2020 by BeauJangles

[BeauJangles]

. I guess that's my point. 

It's also an "Oops!" edit post/delete. 

 

Edited October 14, 2020 by BeauJangles

[Starise]

1 hour ago, Marathoner said:

It's good that you reference the divine council, @Starise. @Justin Adams has written about this subject here on the forum. Scenes from the divine council are revealed to us in different locations in the scriptures, the book of Job, 1 Kings 22, and 2 Chronicles 18 standing out in this regard. According to the knowledge given to me, the council is assembled in the "northern reaches" of the second heaven upon the mount of assembly, or what is to known to us today as the cosmos (outer space). Consider these verses from the book of Isaiah.

“How you have fallen from heaven,
O star of the morning, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the earth,
You who have weakened the nations!
“But you said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;
I will raise my throne above the stars of God,
And I will sit on the mount of assembly
In the recesses of the north.
‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
(Isaiah 14:12-14 NASB)

Satan sought to usurp the Lord's authority and preside over the divine council (the stars of God), thereby making himself god above all.

I'm in agreement that "angel" is a vague term which can be used to describe those whom God created as spiritual, not subject to death as we are in this world. "Angel" can mean different things depending upon the context where the word appears. That some measure of confusion on our part exists is given seeing as how knowledge and understanding of spiritual matters (and ancient Hebrew euphemism) has been lost to us in this world of the falling away. Lost, but not irrevocably lost. Why?

God's Spirit is our Teacher. He illuminates our heart with Truth and makes the way straight.  

An example: when I refer to the stars of heaven (or of God) I am referencing the elohim you refer to in your post above. These are the morning stars who sang in Job 38:7; the sons of God present themselves before the Lord upon the mount of assembly. The stars of heaven may also be referred to as principalities (princes); the book of Revelation reveals that the seven churches of Asia were each assigned a star/prince, identified as an angel. Michael is revealed as the prince of Israel in the book of Daniel. 

Considering how Jew and Gentile alike are members of God's holy nation which the Lord calls Israel (we are all Jews inwardly), Michael is therefore the prince of His heavenly nation which Israel of old was a type. Who is the brightest of God's stars in heaven? Michael, whom I have likened to the star which heralded the birth of the Son of Man. Michael is the prince of our nation, a servant of the Most High God like we are. We worship God alone and no other. 

Therefore those stars of heaven who rallied to the dragon (Satan) during the war in heaven are mighty as the sons of God are demonstrated to be. Evil spirits (demons) can be cast out, but the devil and his angels must be resisted.

I'm glad you were also studying this or you might all think I'm mad. I liked the way you put it: That demons can be cast out but the devil ( or Satan) must be resisted. That the battle continues to wage probably at least infers  the stars who fell never lost their powers. Even though they are only a 3rd in comparison to the 2/3 that are still in heaven, they have the capability to do a lot of harm. 

I think sometimes when we hear  we war against principalities and powers unseen some might assume it's a battle of only spiritual. While this is true, the spiritual world affects everything in the physical world. This isn't a collection of cute puffy Casper the friendly ghost clouds we are up against. Essentially the spiritual forces are the rudder driving the physical ship. Take the potential of one man i.e. Hitler, driven by satanic influences and we can see what happens. We are not to fear though. We are on the "eventual" winning side. Neither is this a game. 

Not sure about you, but many times I can see the influences of the unseen on the seen. I have many questions and very few answers for some of it. I was on a kick for awhile and wrote a few songs that had to do with mountains, holy men, spiritual warfare and the like. Not overtly Christian but having to do with these subjects. I guess those things were moving around in my thoughts. Mountains or the idea of Gods on mountains, stars and principalities all figure into a bunch of this. Please pardon this abstract paragraph lol. It was a phase I went through. I still enjoy the study of it.

1 hour ago, Speks said:

How can this be when every living creature perished?

"The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth... ...every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground..."; ...And all flesh died that moved on the earth... He blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground... They were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ark... "the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done" (from Genesis 6-8).
 

There are sometimes these inferences we can read things into. I would agree with you, however the fact that there were still giants after the flood might mean there were alternative explanations that don't require us to trade solid scriptural definitions to get to an explanation.

I will pose one theory I've been kicking around for quite awhile now. Once I say the first few words here you'll probably know where I'm going with it. Lucifer, star of the morning was(is) the prince and power of the air.....does that tell you where I'm headed yet? 

The Bible says God destroyed everything on the ground....hmmmmm. Are you thinking what I'm thinking? 

I pose that there is at least the possibility that they weren't all on the ground at the time. This view leaves some other loose ends though. For one, God is always complete in what He does, so it wouldn't miss him that Lucifer had many of his cronies in the sky. Men have developed ways to survive in harsh environments, so it is no stretch to think that maybe Lucifer had similar or likely much much better. Some Mesopotamian texts speak of fish men coming from the sea as well. I know that's a stretch. The lesser elohim apparently do have at least some limited ability to modify genetics. They would understandably be at least millions of years ahead of us in that regard. Am I going "off the deep end" in my theories? Probably. I see some of it as possible though, even if not specifically documented.

Then there is another subject I've been following that might tie in to this in an indirect way. Antarctica. Speks, this has nothing to do with the idea that all life was wiped away. I think the scriptures are clear there. 

You know they have found "something" in Antarctica that's a big secret. Lots of people going there. Important people. No one is talking, but there is some info leaking in small bits and pieces here and there. Could be nothing at all. I think it's something.

I can't in any way confirm this so take it with a grain of salt. Word has it at one time Antarctica was a tropic location because they have found ancient vegetation and animals consistent  with a tropical location. There is a possibility that during the flood the world climate changed in an instant and that area was 'flash frozen". Now I'm venturing into conspiracy theory territory, so forgive me if this sounds to far fetched to be true. It might well be. They have found complete specimens of giants there as well...or Nephilim. No one is talking because those in power don't want it getting out.  Ponder that one for a minute ( or two) lol. Finding thousands of frozen anatomically complete Nephilim would probably be the find of the century if disclosed. They, meaning others who have dug in other world location HAVE found the skeletons of giants. YES you will find more than a few photo shopped images of giant skeletons. What better way to throw anyone looking off of the scent trail?

[BeauJangles]

2 hours ago, Speks said:

How can this be when every living creature perished?

 

37 minutes ago, Starise said:

There are sometimes these inferences we can read things into. I would agree with you, however the fact that there were still giants after the flood might mean there were alternative explanations that don't require us to trade solid scriptural definitions to get to an explanation.

Thank you. This is my point exactly. If birds, aquatic, marinelife, and I'm under the assumption that a remnant of Nephilim survived the Flood, then I'm of the opinion "every creatures"  without a doubt in proper interpretation pertains to "all mankind". I have serious doubts other than super humanoid beings such as Nephilim would have made it though 40+ days without food or a fresh water source. Only Moses and Jesus by divine empowerment have been documented as doing so, when they fasted before the Father. To believe otherwise in this instance would be erroneous. This just doesn't fly far up the flagpole of my salute status. 

Edited October 14, 2020 by BeauJangles

[Marathoner]

Something to ponder. Since this delves into subject matter which isn't addressed in the canon of scripture but touched upon in the Book of Enoch and the history of some indigenous peoples, "test the spirits" to discern if they are of God.

First, ancient legends of North American people which describe light-skinned giants of tremendous size. These red-haired giants were eaters of men, forbidden and reviled in many NA indigenous cultures. These could be Nephilim. 

There is indeed a possibility that the flood was local and not global in scope; flooding of the Mediterranean basin resulted in the Mediterranean Sea which at that time was "the world" to the ancient authors of scripture. In all honesty I don't hold fast to a regional flood though there is evidence supporting it. Again, we're dealing with ancient Hebrew euphemism which as a friend who is fluent in the Hebrew language points out, "is exceedingly thick and terribly nuanced."

Second, the sins of the Watchers were manifold: not only did they violate their first estate but their corruption of the human race and even beasts is recorded in the Book of Enoch. Each Watcher imparted forbidden knowledge to the race of men, secrets of creation which men were not supposed to know by the command of our Lord. We know from the canon of scripture that the descendants of Nephilim like Arak persisted in the land of Canaan so this begs the question:

How did their abominable seed survive the flood? 

 

[Justin Adams]

Please read Deut 32 and Psalm 82. The pantheons of territorial spirits were supposed to rule their nations (approx 70) with equity and Godliness. They failed and the territorial spirits (principalities and powers) were in charge of the nations until Pentecost. The cross disarmed them and they are loosing the battle even as we speak.

Pentecost began the regathering of the nations once scattered at Babel by God.

Sons of God are the higher tiers of Gods ruling council and many were indicted (Ps 82).

Demons are small fry and the disembodied spirits of dead Nephilim or Anakim. 

"Anakim (Hebrew: עֲנָקִים ‎ 'Ǎnāqîm ) were described as a race of giants, descended from Anak, according to the Old Testament.They were said to have lived in the southern part of the land of Canaan, near Hebron (Gen. 23:2; Josh. 15:13). According to Genesis 14:5-6 they inhabited the region later known as Edom and Moab in the days of Abraham."

Num 13:33