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Beelzebub
In
the Old Testament, Beelzebub is the Philistine god of Ekron,
(2 Kings 1:2)
Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room
in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers, saying to
them, "Go and consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, to see if I will
recover from this injury."
The story of Beelzebub evolves further in the Testament of
Solomon where Beelzebub is identified as one of the
fallen Angels.
"Then I summoned Beelzeboul
to appear before me again. When he was seated, I
thought it appropriate to ask him, 'Why
are you alone Prince of
the Demons?' He replied, 'Because I
am the only one left of the heavenly angels (who
fell). I was the highest-ranking angel in
heaven, the one called Beelzeboul. There is also
accompanied me another ungodly (angel) whom God
cut off and now, imprisoned here, he holds in
his power the race of those bound by me in
Tartarus. He is being nurtured in the Red Sea;
when he is ready, he will come in triumph."
"I said to him, 'What are your activities?' He
replied, 'I bring destruction by means of
tyrants; I cause the demons to be worshiped
alongside men; and I arouse desire in holy men
and select priests. I bring about jealousies and
murders in a country, and I instigate wars." -
TSol 6:1-4
In the Testament of Solomon Beelzebub is not only
associated with the fallen Angels but also with the
Morning Star, (Hesperus / Venus) which would tie in
with the Legend of Lucifer discussed further on in
this page.
The
Watchers
There are several theories and legends
pertaining to the concept and origin of Fallen Angels. The
Book of Enoch,
describes the fall of a group of angelic renegades known as
"the Watchers" .
Shemhazai, an angel of high
rank, led a sect of angels in a descent to earth to instruct humans in
righteousness. Their mission lasted for a few centuries,
but soon the soldiers/missionaries/angels became corrupted in their
lusting after human females. After lusting, the fallen angels
instructed the women in magic and conjuring, mated with them, and
produced offspring, who would later be referred to as the
Nephilim. This activity was apparently in direct
contradiction to their orders
Genesis 6:2
the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful,
and they married any of them they chose. [See
Sons of God: Daughters of Men
]
1 Enoch 6:1-7 " In those days, when
the children of man had multiplied, it happened that there were born
unto them handsome and beautiful daughters. And the angels, the
children of heaven , saw them and desired them; and they said to one
another, 'Come, let us choose wives for ourselves from among the
daughters of man and beget us children.' And Semyaz, being their
leader, said unto them,'I fear that perhaps you will not consent
that this deed should be done, and I alone will become (responsible)
for this great sin.' But they all responded to him, 'Let us all
swear an oath and bind everyone among us by a curse not to abandon
this suggestion but to do the deed.' Then they all swore together
and bound one another by (the curse) And they were altogether two
hundred;"
The fallen angels then went to Enoch to
intercede on their behalf with God. The remainder of the book describes
Enoch's visit to Heaven in the form of a vision, and his revelations.
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Enoch also mentions angels called Grigori,
{Grigori is derived from the Greek word egrḗgoroi which
translates roughly to Watchers} the Grigori are similar to the Watchers.
Their leader is Satanail. In this account only three angels fall upon
the earth to mate with Humans and beget giants.
The Book of Enoch was suppressed in the
Early Years of Christianity, {there are varying reasons and or
excuses for this. Not the least of which being that Fallen Angels
had influenced in one way or another the compilation of the Bible,
not the scriptures themselves, but the compilation of what would be
deemed acceptable by the Council of Nicea etc...}
Fallen Angels and the Origins of Evil: Why Church Fathers Suppressed the Book of Enoch and Its Startling Revelations
Connections to the concept of a subterranean
Hell can also be concluded from the writings of the Book of Enoch.
"But now the giants who are born from the
(union of) spirits and the flesh shall be called evil spirits upon
the earth, because their dwelling shall be
upon the earth and inside the earth. Evil spirits have
come out of their bodies. Because from the day that they were
created from the holy ones they became the Watchers; their first
origin is the spiritual foundation. They will become evil upon the
earth and shall be called evil spirits. The dwelling of the
spiritual beings of heaven is heaven; but the dwelling of the
spirits of the earth, which are born upon the earth, is in the
earth."
The Book of Jubilees 
contains a similar account of the Watchers .
Jubilees 5:1 And it came to pass when the children of men began to
multiply on the face of the earth and daughters were born unto them,
that the angels of God saw them on a certain year of this jubilee,
that they were beautiful to look upon; and they took themselves
wives of all whom they
2 chose, and they bare unto them sons and they were giants. And
lawlessness increased on the earth and all flesh corrupted its way,
alike men and cattle and beasts and birds and everything that walks
on the earth -all of them corrupted their ways and their orders, and
they began to devour each other, and lawlessness increased on the
earth and every imagination of the thoughts of all men .
In the
The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs , the fall of the angels is also mentioned.
A brief reference stating that the Watchers "changed the order of their
nature." (Naphtali 3:5) And also in Reuben, where Reuben accuses women
of seeking to ensnare men.
"Thus they allured the Watchers before the Flood, for as these
continually beheld them, they lusted after them and conceived the
act in their mind; for they changed themselves unto the shape of men
and appeared to them when they were with their husbands; and the
women, lusting in their minds after their forms, gave birth to
giants, for the Watchers appeared to them as reaching up to heaven."
Reuben account differs in that the Women were
physically mating with their husbands and "lusting in their
minds after their forms,... for the Watchers appeared to them as
reaching up to heaven."
Names and Attributes of
the Fallen Angels
Enoch 7:9 These are the names of their
chiefs: Semiazaz (who was their leader), Araqiel,
Kokabiel, Tamiel, Ramiel, Daniel, Chazaqiel,
Baraqiel, Asael, Armaros, Batariel, [Bezaliel],
Ananiel, Zaqiel, Shamsiel, Satariel, Turiel, Yomiel,
and Sariel. These are the leaders of the 200
[fallen] angels.
- Semyaz or Semiazaz- taught enchantments, root-cutting,
and arts of divination; some speculate that he taught women the art
of seduction.
- Kokabiel or Kokba'el - taught astrology and writing; - "he
taught men "the bitter and sweet, and the secrets of wisdom"
- Chazaqiel -name means "cloud of God" . taught men the knowledge
of the clouds, possibly referring to meterology
- Baraqel -name means "lightning of God", taught men astrology
- Armaros -Name means "cursed one", some people speculate that
Armaros was the fallen angel that had the idea of "swearing on an
oath; we will bind ourselves by mutual imprecations not to abandon
our plan but [to] execute our projected undertaking"
- Shamsiel - Name means "sun of God".
Taught men the signs of the sun as per the Book of
Enoch. Shamsiel is also equated with Shamash the sun-god in
Babylonia and Assyria,
- Araqiel Name means "one
who has dominion over the earth."
"Taught the signs of the Earth." .Araqiel is also mentioned in the
Sibylline Oracles. And
in some accounts he is the angel who carries the souls of the
Deceased to heaven and before the throne of God for judgment.
- Tamiel -Name means
"perfection of God" . Tamiel is also called Kasdeja or
Kasyade (meaning "observer of the hands") in Enoch chapter 69.
Tamiel taught "the children of men all of the wicked strikes of
spirits."
- Azazel -The name 'Azazel' is probably derived from 'azaz'
meaning 'strong' or "physically tough" and 'el' meaning 'of God'
. It has also been speculated that it denotes "showing strength
towards God" which comes out as arrogant to God. Azazel taught humanity to make metallic weaponry, as well as
ornaments and cosmetics.
- Azazel also appears are in Leviticus 16,
when in the Yom Kippur ritual , a scapegoat is to taken to Azazel
and cast into the wilderness. Azazel is also associated with
goat-demons to whom some Semitic tribes offered sacrifices similar
to that in Leviticus 16.
- In the Book of Enoch 9:3-6, the Archangel Raphael is ordered to
"bind Azazel's hands and feet; cast him into the darkness and make
an opening in the desert, which is in Dudael. Place rough and jagged
rocks over him; cover him with darkness, let him abide there forever
{till the end of time}, and cover his face so that he may not see
light. Azazel will be cast into the fire on the Great Day of the
Judgment" . The story states that "the whole world has been
corrupted through the works that were taught by Azazel"
- The Apocalypse of Abraham says that the wicked will "putrefy in
the belly of the crafty worm Azazel, and be burned by the fire of
Azazel's tongue." Muslims believe that God created Azazil, who
worshipped God for a 1000 years while he was in the 7th hell. Then
he ascended a stage at a time, all the while worshipping God.
Finally, he reached the earth
- Muslim tradition says he stayed 3000 years by the gate of
paradise, with evil intentions against Adam and Eve. He was envious
of them. This runs parallel with "a son of fire should be forced to
bow before a son of clay?". quotation sometimes attributed to Satan
at the initiation of the War in Heaven.
The naming of angels is an ancient one. Many names for angels are
found in Hebrew religious writings of the first two centuries BC,
including the Apocrypha. The Dictionary of Angels
contains hundreds of pages of angels identified and named
in sources from Christian, Jewish and Pagan traditions
Lucifer
Lucifer is a Latin term comprised of
two words, lux (light; genitive lucis) and ferre (to bear, to
bring), meaning light-bearer. Lucifer is not the actual name of the
devil, but denotes only the status from which he has fallen
Venus /Lucifer- the brightest object in the
heavens after the Sun and the Moon. However, primitive sky watchers
couldn't comprehend why it couldn't be seen at midnight like other
planets, or during midday, like the Sun and Moon. Some believe they
invented myths about Lucifer being cast out from Heaven to explain this.
Venus orbit lies between that of the Earth
and the Sun, it can't rise high in the sky at night from an
Earthbound vantage point. It can be seen briefly in the eastern
morning sky before the Sun rises, and in the western evening sky briefly
after the Sun sets, It can never be seen during the full darkness of
night.
The primitive myths about Lucifer being cast
from Heaven apparently arose from the belief that Lucifer shined so
intensely because it wanted to conquer the status of Saturn and Jupiter,
the most important of the planets.
As per post-primitive Legend, Lucifer rebelled against God , and
became the leader of the Fallen Angels.
This resulted in a mighty war in Heaven. Lucifer, along with one
third of the angelic host, was defeated by the Archangel Michael,
and was cast down from Heaven to the earth where he became equated
with
"Satan", {ln Hebrew "Saw-tawn" or "Har
saw-tawn" which means; "Adversary" as well as "Devil", which
means, "Accuser of the brethren". Shaytan (Shaitan)
in Islam. }
Some versions of the fallen angels legend
state that Lucifer was upset because God the Father made Lucifer second
to his brother, Jesual. When lucifer attempted to seize the throne after
his brother Jesual is proclaimed Son of God over him. This fable is
obviously derived from from Christian Mythology and the simile of Jesus and Jesual are no coincidence.
The Bible mentions four angels by
their names , Gabriel, Michael, Raphael, and Lucifer.
In Isaiah 14:12-14,
12 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You
have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13
You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne
above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,
on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. 14 I will ascend above the
tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."
O morning star, son of the dawn - In the original Hebrew text it appears
as heilel ben-shachar. Heilel refers to the planet Venus, and
ben-shachar means "son of the dawn". And this is obviously a reference
to the Legend of Lucifer and the Fallen Angels. Canaanite manuscripts contain the story of a
deity Shahar, Shahar was thrown out of heaven due
to ego and pride, the same faults attributed to Lucifer. In addition
Shahar aloso is "dawn" in Hebrew, which draws a simile to the
"Morningstar" accolade of Lucifer. Helel, the son of the
god Shahar. Helel sought the throne of the chief god and was cast down
into the abyss because of this. Further reading
of Isaiah demonstrates that in context of Isaiah ,it is used as a
parable against the Babylonian King (Nebuchadrezzar.) A man so full of
self-idolizing power and vanity that he becomes consumed with a desire
to become like God and ascend into heaven to exalt his throne above the
stars of God. This man is blinded by his own light, his vision clouded
by an insatiable hunger for power.
Nowhere in the Old Testament itself does it
mention the actual rebellion and fall of Satan/Lucifer directly. This
belief probably arose from variant interpretations of different
passages, as well as assimilation of Pre-Christian Pagan Myths.
One theory pertaining to the conflict in
Heaven is that when God created Adam he called upon all the angelic
forces to bow before this new creation. Satan being one of the highest
archangels before his rebellion found this too humbling and refused to
degrade himself in this manner -he asked if "a son of fire should
be forced to bow before a son of clay?".
"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own
habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto
the judgment of the great day" (Jude 6).
"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me,
ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels"
(Matt. 25:41).
The Archangel Michael assumed
Lucifer's role as the Morningstar , after the great Battle.
7And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels
fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
8But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9The
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 (Rev. 12:7–9)
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Similarities to The Fallen Angel
saga can be found in the ancient Greek
drama of the Titans vs. (Titan translated means overreacher
which would equate once more to Pride} the Olympians,
and are probably an ancient interpretation of a conflict that took
place between angelic beings, they labeled Gods. Greek
mythology can be traced back to the ancient Middle Eastern cultures
of Mesopotamia, As can the Israelites through Abraham.
In the Greek tale Cronus is the Patriarch
of the Titans. Titans fought with Cronus against Zeus and were
punished by being banished to Tartarus. Tartarus
bears a strong resemblance to the current Concept of Hell. It is interesting to note that Chaos ,
the Creator God is not mentioned in this conflict.
*There
is also a similar account of this battle of the Angels in
Babylonian/Chaldean mythology in the struggle between
Merodach{Marduk} and the dragon Tiamat . Bel-Merodach, was the
champion of the "Gods" of heaven, assailing Tiamat, the power
of the primeval deep.
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