Let’s be honest: the idea of a devil can seem childish, like believing in the tooth fairy. Is there actually a devil, or is that just an invention of religious people to explain away things they don’t like? In Rob Bell’s book What is the Bible? He makes the case that the Jews developed the concept of a devil while they were exiled in Babylon—quite late in their history—as a way of coping with a God that would allow bad things to happen.
They blamed the devil to let God off the hook.
Pointing out that the first mention of Satan is in 1 Chronicles 21, written after the exile, Bell states: “The idea of Satan didn't emerge until the exile, until the Hebrews had experienced extraordinary evil and oppression and had found themselves in a foreign land miles from home in the midst of great alienation and suffering…You can see how the idea of an opposing, evil, destructive, force/spirit/god/goddess emerged as people became more sophisticated in their thinking.”
But here are a few things Bells doesn’t seem to know. First, the earliest book of the Bible to be written is Job, and in the opening chapter Satan is present. Far from the post-exilic 1 Chronicles, the absolute first chapter to be penned mentions Satan, so no, he wasn’t invented during the exile.
Second, Isaiah 14, written before the exile, describes the fall of Lucifer (“How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn!”).
Third, the devil appears in Genesis 3. He is not mentioned by name, but he lies to Eve and goads her into eating the fruit and disobeying God. All the way at the end of the Bible, Revelation 12:9 says, “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”
The ancient serpent—a clear reference to the snake in Genesis 3—is Satan, the devil. So no, Mr. Bell, Satan was not invented during the exile. He was created by God during Creation Week. He is not a myth, he is roaming as a roaring lion, looking for his next victim. Don’t dismiss the devil. Instead, stand guard against him dressed in God’s armor, and you will be victorious.
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