Where did Satan actually come from?

Links Mentioned in this Episode:
- https://www.bartehrman.com/whatthehell - Bart’s free course about Hell called What the Hell? Jesus' Teachings of the Afterlife – learn where the doctrine of hell actually came from, what Jesus really taught about the afterlife, and how a doctrine that scares so many people made its way into Christianity in the first place.
- https://www.bartehrman.com/NINT - our fourth annual New Insights into the New Testament (NINT) is coming up September 26th and 27th. This year’s theme is Apocrypha and Canon: Lost Scriptures and the Making of the New Testament. Get discounted early-bird pricing through August 22nd and use code MJPODCAST for a special additional discount.

*Episode Outline:*
0:00 How did Satan evolve from a minor biblical figure into Christianity’s lord of evil?
2:06 Satan in Job and Chronicles: an adversary who still works under God’s authority
5:17 Does God have supernatural enemies anywhere in the Hebrew Bible?
6:58 Was the serpent in Genesis actually Satan?
11:41 Satan in the New Testament: tempting Jesus and becoming the chief power of evil
14:15 How Jewish ideas about Satan changed between the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament
18:17 Fallen angels, demons, 1 Enoch, and the origins of Satan’s supernatural forces
21:14 How Satan became associated with hell, punishment, fire, and eternal torment
24:33 The Apocalypse of Peter, named demons, and early Christian visions of hell
26:14 The Harrowing of Hell, the Gospel of Nicodemus, and Jesus confronting Hades
29:36 Bart’s Soapbox: Christianity, healthcare, money, and the origins of public hospitals
34:25 Final recap: how Satan developed from biblical adversary to the Christian devil

*Episode Description*

How did we get from a minor angelic prosecutor in the Old Testament to the horned, pitchfork-wielding lord of evil in popular imagination? Satan is one of the most recognizable yet misunderstood figures in the Judeo-Christian tradition. In this episode of *Misquoting Jesus*, Dr. Bart Ehrman traces how the concept of Satan transformed dramatically over centuries.

Dr. Ehrman begins by reflecting on his Christian upbringing, where Satan was understood as a literal, powerful being responsible for evil and the torment of souls. Yet this familiar image finds little support in the Bible’s earliest texts.

In the Hebrew Bible, “Satan” is far from God’s ultimate enemy. The Hebrew *ha-satan* is not a proper name but a title meaning “the adversary” or “the accuser.” In Job, he appears as a member of God’s heavenly council, acting like a celestial prosecutor who tests human faithfulness. He afflicts Job only with God’s permission, operating under divine authority rather than against it. Similarly, Chronicles attributes David’s sinful census to Satan, while the earlier account in Samuel attributes it directly to God.

So where did the New Testament’s Devil come from? Dr. Ehrman traces the transformation to the centuries between the Hebrew Bible and Jesus. Jewish apocalyptic thinkers, confronted with persecution and the suffering of righteous people, began questioning the traditional belief that suffering always came from God as punishment. This opened the door to the idea of a powerful evil force opposing God and causing suffering in the present world.

Extra-biblical works such as the *Apocalypse of Peter* and *Gospel of Nicodemus*, along with later literature like John Milton’s *Paradise Lost*, further shaped the familiar image of the Devil. In many ways, these later traditions have influenced popular ideas about Satan more than the Bible itself.

*Three Key Takeaways from the Episode:*

1. *Satan Was Originally God's Servant, Not His Enemy:* In the Hebrew Bible, “ha-satan” is a member of God’s divine council who serves as a tester or accuser. He acts only with God’s permission and remains under divine authority.

2. *The Idea of an Ultimate Evil Arose from the Problem of Suffering:* Satan developed into God’s cosmic enemy in later Jewish apocalyptic thought. This helped explain why righteous people suffer without blaming God directly.

3. *Our Modern Image of the Devil is a Product of Post-Biblical Tradition:* The horned devil, ruler of hell, and identification of Satan with Eden’s serpent are not found in the original biblical texts. These ideas emerged through later Christian interpretation, extra-biblical writings, and works like Paradise Lost.

*Also watch these episodes:*
Did Jesus Really Go to Hell?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMlSovHYlSY

Am I Going to Hell? What the New Testament Says About Death and the Afterlife
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLfATpg1rBw

Is the God of Revelation the Same as the God of Jesus?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWjYuKgFzAI

#Satan
#Devil
#OriginsOfSatan
#Hell
#BookOfJob
#Genesis