As a lover of words, I've been very interested in the Interlinear Bible for a while now, and looking up the original translations of different words.
Most recently, I discovered the original Greek word for "the Devil" is an Adjective, not a Noun, and my mind is officially blown.
First, for context, here's the passage of scripture I was reading that inspired this research...
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But he answered, "It is written, "'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, "'He will command his angels concerning you,' and "'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written, "'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'" Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Matthew 4:1-11 (ESV)
Out of curiosity I looked up this verse on BibleHub to see what it is in the original Greek, and this is what I found out:
The word is diabolos, and even though it can be used as a noun to indicate the Devil, it's typically an adjective that means "slanderer" or "false accuser."
Tonight I've been so hard on myself. Actually, I'm always hard on myself. No matter what goes wrong in my life, internally I find some way that I'm to blame for it. I remind myself of my failures over and over again, even if I know I wasn't really at fault. And now, reading this... This makes so much sense to me.
He's the voice whispering lies to weigh us down, and the constant accuser in our heads. He twists the truth just enough to suit his plan, so we're distracted from the One in whom our purpose rests. He wants us to believe we're nothing, because the moment we believe that we separate ourselves from our source of power.
As a writer I believe the best way to defeat the antagonist is to know two things very well: the strategies of your enemies, and the strengths of your allies. God wanted us to know the strategy of our enemy so well, He put that strategy right in the Devil's name as a reminder. Satan's strategy is making us believe lies about ourselves. God's strength is combating lies with the truth.
How can we put that strength into action?
By knowing the worth the Creator bestowed upon us. The price was His perfect son's life! We need to acknowledge our flaws, but then give them to God and allow ourselves to see the good He's doing in us. We need to venture forward with fear in our bones and holy abandon, taking each step with spiritual intention. We need to study God's Word like we're preparing for battle.
We need to look the Devil in the eyes and call his bluff.
Easier said than done, I know.
But God put the strategy of our enemy in his name. So, what are we going to do about it?
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But he answered, "It is written, "'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, "'He will command his angels concerning you,' and "'On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan! For it is written, "'You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'" Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Matthew 4:1-11 (ESV)
Out of curiosity I looked up this verse on BibleHub to see what it is in the original Greek, and this is what I found out:
The word is diabolos, and even though it can be used as a noun to indicate the Devil, it's typically an adjective that means "slanderer" or "false accuser."
Tonight I've been so hard on myself. Actually, I'm always hard on myself. No matter what goes wrong in my life, internally I find some way that I'm to blame for it. I remind myself of my failures over and over again, even if I know I wasn't really at fault. And now, reading this... This makes so much sense to me.
He's the voice whispering lies to weigh us down, and the constant accuser in our heads. He twists the truth just enough to suit his plan, so we're distracted from the One in whom our purpose rests. He wants us to believe we're nothing, because the moment we believe that we separate ourselves from our source of power.
As a writer I believe the best way to defeat the antagonist is to know two things very well: the strategies of your enemies, and the strengths of your allies. God wanted us to know the strategy of our enemy so well, He put that strategy right in the Devil's name as a reminder. Satan's strategy is making us believe lies about ourselves. God's strength is combating lies with the truth.
How can we put that strength into action?
By knowing the worth the Creator bestowed upon us. The price was His perfect son's life! We need to acknowledge our flaws, but then give them to God and allow ourselves to see the good He's doing in us. We need to venture forward with fear in our bones and holy abandon, taking each step with spiritual intention. We need to study God's Word like we're preparing for battle.
We need to look the Devil in the eyes and call his bluff.
Easier said than done, I know.
But God put the strategy of our enemy in his name. So, what are we going to do about it?
Amazing! So true. We need to believe more of God's truth about who we are and not listen to the lies of the accuser of the brethren.
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