Belial
Belial ( Hebrew בליעל); or Beliar ( Greek Βελίαρ) is a demonic figure from the Bible .
etymology
The meaning of the word Belial is unclear. Rabbinical explanations refer to a play on words: The biblical phrase בני בליעל (for example "children of worthlessness") is interpreted as בני בלי ע (ו) ל (for example "children without [the] yoke [of the Torah]"). Other considerations start from the root עלה ("to rise") in the sense of a negative desire ("may they not rise [from the underworld]") or from the root בלה ("devour"). More likely, however, is a combination of the negation בלי and a noun יעל meaning “value”. Parallels for such a word composition, which is generally unusual in Semitic languages , can be found e.g. B. in Ugaritic . Then the term would have to be rendered as “worthlessness”, “useless”.
Tanakh and Qumran
In the Tanach the word occurs 27 times, including three times with an article, there is no plural form. It refers to highly negatively described people or deeds. Some passages seem to understand Beliar as a personified power of evil. The Vulgate follows this view by - unlike the Septuagint - leaving the word partially untranslated and treating it as a proper name. In 1 Kings 21:13 VUL she reads Diabolus .
Belial plays an important role in the Dead Sea Scrolls , particularly in the Rule of War and the Hodajjot (1QH). They describe the mythical final battle between the powers of light and the powers of darkness. Earthly these are represented by the teacher of righteousness and the lying priest, in heavenly by the archangel Michael and Belial. The last time can be described as the "rule of Belial", the evil forces and people belong to the "lot of the Belial". Ultimately, however, good will prevail and Belial will be overcome.
Pseudepigraphs of the Writings and New Testament
In the Greek-language literature of Judaism of the time of the Second Temple, Belial / Beliar appears as the antagonist of God and is identified here for the first time with the devil . The deviation of the Greek form of the name Βελίαρ from the Hebrew Belial has not yet been adequately explained. Possibly the form (once also as Belior ) is a play on words: The devil is "the one without light" (Hebrew בלי אור). The dualism of light and darkness could be influenced by Zoroastrianism .
In the New Testament Beliar is mentioned in 2 Cor 6:15 LUT : “How does Christ agree with Beliar? Or what part does the believer have with the unbeliever? ”The passage reflects a religious dualism and, like the texts from Qumran, uses a metaphor of light and darkness.
In the Gospel of Bartholomew , Belial describes a figure who is chained in hell and who is responsible for the corruption of the world. The author calls him Belial or Satan , while Belial calls himself Satanael or Satan. At the command of Jesus he answers questions and tells Bartholomew the reason for his exile, how he seduces the world and that he was one of the first angels .
middle Ages
Beliar also appears as the name of the devil in popular tradition. Supposedly he is the fallen angel, spirit and prince of darkness.
Beliar was said to be the favorite demon of the infamous Gilles de Rais , who killed around twelve dozen children in the 15th century.
Beliar was used particularly often in the Middle Ages when the devil represented his interests in "legal" matters. For example, Beliar appears before God and demands that the deeds of Jesus be investigated. In the book Belial (1473) there is a woodcut that shows how the devils sit in a flaming throat and attentively follow the arguments Beliar wants to represent before God in the name of Hell. Beliar's complaint against Christ is essentially that he has illegally interfered in hellish affairs and assumed control of things that are none of his business. But the devil Beliar is unlucky: God votes for Christ.
Belial at John Milton
In John Milton's Paradise Lost , Belial appears as the eloquent cabinet companion of Satan and is described as the most beautiful creature to have ever walked in heaven. Contrary to the great demon general, a giant, hellish war hero with a gigantic shield and spear, who is pushing for another open war against the Almighty, Belial advises a more cautious approach, because he is from an even worse hell than the one he has with the rest currently inhabited by Satan's legions, fears and the indolent cowardice simply corresponds to his nature as a demagogue. He wants to stay in hell so that the apparitions of the devil can adapt to the blazing heat and the other life-threatening circumstances and ultimately feel no more torment. Mammon agrees with him on certain points, but Beelzebub , who enjoys a much higher status than Belial and Mammon, vehemently disagrees.
Beliar / Belial in popular culture
The demon Belial, or its name, is used extensively in various areas of popular culture, for example as an antagonist in the Basket Case film series or as a demon in the film The Exorcism by Emily Rose , books, role and tabletop games, particularly often however in computer games:
Computer games
The demon appears in numerous video and computer games. For example under the name Berial as boss opponent in Devil May Cry 4 , BloodRayne , as "Lord of Lies, Lower Evil" in Diablo III , as Beliar the "God of destruction and death" in Gothic or as ancestor god in Lands of Lore - Götterdämmerung . Other games put it in a different context, for example as a summoning in Final Fantasy XII , or simply use the name of the demon, for example in Realms of the Haunting and in Vampires: The Masquerade - Bloodlines or Odin Sphere . Due to its background, Belial usually represents an adversary for the player and the protagonists of the game. On the other hand, as in Painkiller: Overdose , it is rare that there is the possibility of directing the demon himself or of using his presumed powers himself, for example in Form of an object as in The Binding of Isaac , in which the player can pick up a so-called Book of Belial .
Modern occultism
Satanism
In the satanic interpretation, Belial plays the role of one of the four arch demons. He represents the north, the wickedness of the earth and independence. The name "Belial" is traced back to the Hebrew beli ja'al (worthless) in The Black Magic by Richard Cavendish (1980) . In the LaVeyian style of Satanism, the arch demon can be understood as a metaphor of an independent spirit that is antagonistic to monotheistic dogmas and rules.
Engelwerk
The manual of the Engelwerk from 1961 describes Belial as a demon who exercises power over the human body.
literature
- Meinrad Limbeck: Art. Belial , in: Neues Bibellexikon, Volume 1, Zurich 1991, Sp. 267 ISBN 3-545-23074-0
- Peter von der Osten-Sacken: God and Belial. Traditional historical studies on dualism in the texts from Qumran ; Studies on the New Testament Environment 6; Goettingen 1969
- SD Sperling: Art. Belial , in: K. van der Toorn, B. Becking, Pieter W. van der Horst (eds.): Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible ; Leiden, Boston, Cologne, 2 1999, 169-171.
- Jacobus de Theramo: The Book of Belial ; 1382
- John Milton: Paradise Lost ; England 1667
- Ralf Isau: The Circle of Twilight 1–4 ; Germany 1999–2001
- Ulrich Dahmen: Belial / Beliar. In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (eds.): The scientific Bibellexikon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff., Accessed on July 18, 2017.
- Ernst Riess : Beliar . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume III, 1, Stuttgart 1897, Col. 208.
- Ott, Norbert H .: Legal Practice and Salvation History. On the tradition, iconography and usage situation of the German Belial. Munich 1983
Web links
- Iconographic indexing of the miniatures of a manuscript by Belial's trial (Cgm 48) in the Warburg Institute Iconographic Database, with links to the digital edition of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
- Text output e.g. B. The Teutsche Belial by Jacobus de Theramo, Augsburg 1487 by Johann Schoensperger [1]
Individual evidence
- ↑ So in the Book of Jubilees and in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs ; see. M. Limbeck, Art. Belial , in: Neues Bibellexikon, Volume 1, Sp. 267.
- ↑ Excerpt from the Gospel of Bartholomew
- ↑ The story of Belial, retold by Jeanette Rüdisühli and Ueli Suter (online at pkgodzik.de) (PDF; 178 kB)