What Does the Bible Say About Demons?

Demons and the Bible: What is said about them?

There has been good in our world since God created us, this we know. But man’s struggle against evil began some time after Adam and Eve were gifted with the Garden of Eden and the total love of God, and then made the decision that ultimately led to their fall from God’s grace. That fall was engineered by Satan, who is assisted in everything by his demons.

Demons are likely the angels who rebelled against God. The Bible talks of demons in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. In the New Testament, the Book of Revelation, Chapter 12, Verses 7 through 9 (Rev. 12:7-9, NIV) makes mention of a great war which took place in Heaven. In this war, God’s heavenly army was led by his archangel Michael, who commanded all the angels who fought for God.

The battle between good and evil was fierce. God’s army stood against the rebel angel Lucifer and his supporters, and won out in the end. Verse 9 (Rev. 12:9) says that “The great dragon was hurled down – that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.” Bible scholars say that Revelation seems to say that at least one-third of all the angels in Heaven followed Lucifer, now called Satan, after his defeat.

Demons look to carry out Satan’s bidding in his eternal war against good. The New Testament of the Bible discusses the activities and goals of demons throughout its length. For instance, in the first book of Peter, the Bible warns us to be always on the lookout for the devil, or Satan, who is chief among all the demons who contest against those who follow and worship God. In Peter, we are told to always “… be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8, NIV)

They are true servants of the devil. Nowhere else in the Bible is the fact that demons are servants of Satan shown more clearly than in the second book of Corinthians, where we are advised that …“Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness.” (2 Corinthians 11:14-15, NIV)

Demons are not human. Just as with the occasional misconception that angels were once glorified human beings, so too do some people assume that demons were once very evil people who were transformed upon the death of their earthly bodies. But those same two verses in second Corinthians make it clear that demons are spiritual beings, though they can appear to us in physical form. It seems that demons are the fallen angels who chose the side of Satan in his attempt to overthrow God.

Demons were given a choice by God, but theirs is an eternal one. As demons were once angels who were created by God -- the same as we once were -- they were given a choice that sets them apart from humanity. It revolved around their fate after Michael and the army of God defeated Satan and his forces. The choice was given to them to remain faithful to our Father or to follow Satan, and those who chose to remain with Satan would have no possibility of eventual redemption or salvation. The first book of Timothy (1 Timothy 5:21, NIV) calls the angels who remained faithful to God “elect angels,” meaning only they would be privileged to remain in his light. The fallen angels who chose to stay with Satan would never be given another chance to change their minds.

Man always has a choice, though. In the matter of fallen angels/demons, the Bible lays out no course for their repentance or salvation. This is unlike in man’s case, where the path to redemption and salvation is laid out time and time again, if only we take the time to learn it and follow it.