Does this evil being exist?
We must begin by saying that there are ELCA Lutherans who understand Satan (or the Devil) to be a very real being, author of evil, prompter of sin, destroyer of humankind. Other ELCA Lutherans view Satan metaphorically — as the personification of evil forces in this world that oppose and obstruct God’s will in every age, be they human or spiritual. Adherents of both views would agree that sinful, evil forces do exist and oppose God’s will for humankind, that in God’s plan for humankind these forces were defeated on the cross, are under God’s power and authority, and will ultimately be destroyed under God’s judgement.
Tracing the idea of Satan in the Old Testament
The Hebrew/Arabic root for Satan ("s-t-n") primarily means obstruct/oppose. In the Old Testament, the word usually appears with the article ‘the’ as in "the satan." The translation of the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, or LXX) often renders the word as diabolos (accuser or slanderer) — hence, the English word devil. In the New Testament, satans, satan and diabolos are used in various ways, but in the Old Testament, the basic meaning of satan is as an accuser in a court of law. Mostly, the word is used in the metaphorical sense of adversary. Nowhere does Satan appear as a distinctive demonic figure, opposed to God and responsible for all evil.
The name is applied in three passages (all after the Hebrews returned from exile in 539 B.C.) to a superhuman being, but in each case it defines the role which the being in question happens to play in a particular situation. For instance, Zechariah. 3:1-2 (519 B.C.) portrays the prophet’s vision of a divine tribunal in which Satan (the accuser) is a celestial being who challenges the fitness of Joshua to function as high priest. In Chronicles 21:1 Satan is said to have incited David to the sin of taking a census — in this case denoting a spirit, virtually a personification of human frailty.
In perhaps the most well known appearance of Satan (Job 1-2), he is not an evil spirit of the kind which appears in Mesopotamian and later Jewish literature. Rather, he is an accuser, a heavenly officer or prosecutor, whose function is to question and test the genuineness of humana virtue. To accomplish his work he has the power to inflict evil such as sickness or natural catastrophes, as well as human agents. Thus, the evils which in ancient superstition were attributed to demons are here attributed to an agent of God.
Apocryphal/Deutero-canonical literature
I isn’t until the "between the testaments" time during the Greco-Roman period (see "Apocrypha") that Satan begins to emerge as a distinctive personality. This may be due to the special circumstances Israel found itself in, with Zoroastrian influence from time in exile. The nation’s national fortunes were in decline, and the Judaism of the day turned increasingly to dualism. They imagined a world in the clutches of a demon who was responsible both for the massive sinfulness that had occasioned God’s displeasure, and for the vicious malevolence of Israel’s oppressors. In this theory, the current dark state of affairs was not so much an expression of God’s vengeance as it was a temporary setback in a continuous battle against the Evil One that would surely end in God’s eventual triumph.
In II Enoch 29:4 we read that Satan had led a rebellion against God and was driven from heaven. He led people into discord and violence, and all human tribulations were due to him. He is both the obstructor of humankind’s happiness and prosperity, and the obstructor (satan) of God. II Enoch and others picture him at work even before creation (see also Ascension of Isaiah 2:9), commanding his own rival hosts. It is the Apocryphal book Adam and Eve (chapters 14-16) that identifies him with the serpent in the Garden of Eden, an identification probably influenced by the common notion that serpents were demonic. In the folklore of this period, he is identified with the rebel angel Lucifer of Isaiah 14:12-15.
Satan in the New Testament
Satan is mentioned 33 times in the New Testament, but the concept is not advanced beyond what was Jewish popular lore in the period before Jesus’ birth. In addition, the image appears 32 times in translated forms such as the obstructor, Devil, evil one, tempter, accuser, the devil, the prince of demons, etc. He
- is presented as a distinctive personality - the author of evil, able to enter human beings
- tempts Judas and Simon Peter (Luke 22:3, 31; John 13:27)
- actually enters Judas ( John 13:27 and Luke 22:3)
- prevents Paul from visiting Thessalonica (I Thessalonians 2:18)
- is pictured as a demon who causes bodily pains and afflictions
Jude 9 refers to an altercation between Satan and the archangel Michael for the body of Moses, and in Revelation he is described as the great dragon - the ancient serpent said to be vanquished by Michael and thrust into the bottomless pit, to break loose in 1,000 years only to be vanquished again forever (Revelation 12:9, 20:2-3, 10). In Revelation 20, at God’s discretion he is bound (v. 2), released (v.7) and incinerated (v.10).
The New Testament makes it clear that Satan has limitations:
- Jesus stalls his designs on Peter (Luke 22:32)
- he is a fallen being (Luke 10:18)
- judged (John 16:11)
- his power over a person’s life may be broken (Acts 26:18)
- God may use Satan to chasten an apostate believer (1 Cor5:5, 1 Tim 1:20)
However potent his temptations, they may be overcome and his ruses exposed as pointed out in Matthew (4:1-11), the only New Testament incident that records any of his words. He may be resisted, just as Jesus resisted him (e.g. James 4:7, 1 Peter 5:8-9). The New Testament never refers to Satan as simply the prince/ruler but as "prince of devils" or "prince of the world" (Matt 9:34, John 12:31).
Satan in Lutheran theology
"In his reference to the devil (Martin) Luther primarily followed Scripture but also church tradition. ... (He) strongly accented the power of the devil but also held to the idea that ultimately God alone has the power, even to the point of drawing the devil into the divine plan. Luther thus avoided an actual dualism, though some of his statements have a dualistic tone ... (This) extended to the idea that wherever God’s kingdom is not present, there is necessarily the kingdom of the devil.... Though the devil is God’s enemy and the power of good is locked in combat with the power of evil throughout history, even the devil must ultimately serve God, just as do the law and even death.... Through Christ the devil’s power has already come to an end."*
Whether ELCA Lutherans picture an almost anthropomorphic Satan, or see evil metaphorically as a force of sin and brokenness, all agree with Luther that, "... throughout history the battle is still being waged ... and in this battle humans, as all other creatures, are engaged."* We believe with Luther that "... humans are positioned as it were between God and the devil. It is not true, as they suppose, that they are like observers in the battle.... They must themselves do battle in the arena."*
The struggle with the power of evil
Therefore, ELCA Lutherans believe that, "Humanity thus stands in the midst of a struggle between God and the powers hostile to God. We may thus speak of the devil only as those who are involved, who experience ever anew our own incapacity for coming to terms with those (evil) powers."* Luther believed that one is "ridden" either by God or by the devil. ELCA Lutherans, acknowledging that all humankind is affected by the struggle between good and evil, believe that it is also our struggle, and that in this struggle against the "... old Satanic foe ... God himself fights by our side with weapons of the Spirit" (Martin Luther: "A Mighty Fortress is Our God," Lutheran Book of Worship 228).
* Bernard Lohse, Martin Luther’s Theology, Fortress Press 1999