Lucifer

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This article is about the biblical figure. For other uses, see Lucifer (disambiguation).
William Blake's illustration of Lucifer as presented in John Milton's Paradise Lost

Lucifer (pron.: /ˈluːsɪfər/ or /ˈljuːsɪfər/) is the King James Version rendering of the Hebrew word הֵילֵל in Isaiah 14:12. This word, transliterated hêlēl or heylel, occurs only once in the Hebrew Bible and according to the KJV-influenced Strong's Concordance means "shining one, morning star, Lucifer".[1] The word Lucifer is taken from the Latin Vulgate,[2] which translates הֵילֵל as lucifer,[3][4] meaning "the morning star, the planet Venus" (or, as an adjective, "light-bringing").[5] The Septuagint renders הֵילֵל in Greek as ἑωσφόρος[6][7][8][9][10] (heōsphoros),[11][12][13] a name, literally "bringer of dawn", for the morning star.[14] (In spite of the unanimous testimony of published texts of the Septuagint, Kaufmann Kohler says that the Greek Septuagint translation is "Phosphoros".)[2]

Before the rise of Christianity, the pseudepigrapha of Enochic Judaism, the form of Judaism witnessed to in 1 Enoch and 2 Enoch, which enjoyed much popularity during the Second Temple period,[15] gave Satan an expanded role. They interpreted Isaiah 14:12-15 as applicable to Satan, and presented him as a fallen angel cast out of Heaven.[16] Christian tradition, influenced by this presentation,[16] came to use the Latin word for "morning star", lucifer, as a proper name ("Lucifer") for Satan as Satan was before his fall. As a result, "Lucifer has become a by-word for Satan in the Church and in popular literature",[2] as in Dante Alighieri's Inferno and John Milton's Paradise Lost.

Contents

Lucifer or morning star [edit]

Translation of הֵילֵל as "Lucifer", as in the King James Version, has been abandoned in modern English translations of Isaiah 14:12. Present-day translations have "morning star" (New International Version, New Century Version, New American Standard Bible, Good News Translation, Holman Christian Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, Common English Bible, Complete Jewish Bible), "daystar" (New Jerusalem Bible, English Standard Version, The Message), "shining one" (New Life Version) or "shining star" (New Living Translation).

The term appears in the context of an oracle against a dead king of Babylon,[17] who is addressed as הילל בן שחר (hêlêl ben šāḥar),[18][19][20][need quotation to verify] [21][need quotation to verify] rendered by the King James Version as "O Lucifer, son of the morning!" and by others as "morning star, son of the dawn".

In a modern translation from the original Hebrew, the passage in which the phrase "Lucifer" or "morning star" occurs begins with the statement: "On the day the Lord gives you relief from your suffering and turmoil and from the harsh labour forced on you, you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: How the oppressor has come to an end! How his fury has ended!"[22] After describing the death of the king, the taunt continues:

"How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, 'I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit. Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate: 'Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, the man who made the world a wilderness, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?'"[23]

J. Carl Laney has pointed out that in the final verses here quoted, the king of Babylon is described not as a god or an angel but as a man.[24][25]

For the unnamed[26] "king of Babylon" a wide range of identifications have been proposed.[27] They include a Babylonian ruler of the prophet Isaiah's own time[27] the later Nebuchadnezzar II, under whom the Babylonian captivity of the Jews began, or Nabonidus,[27][28] and the Assyrian kings Tiglath-Pileser, Sargon II and Sennacherib.[24][27][29] Herbert Wolf held that the "king of Babylon" was not a specific ruler but a generic representation of the whole line of rulers.[30]

Mythology [edit]

In ancient Canaanite mythology, the morning star is pictured as a god, Attar, who attempted to occupy the throne of Ba'al and, finding he was unable to do so, descended and ruled the underworld.[31][32] The original myth may have been about a lesser god Helel trying to dethrone the Canaanite high god El who lived on a mountain to the north.[33][34] Similarities have been noted also with the story of Ishtar's or Inanna's descent into the underworld,[34] Ishtar and Inanna being associated with the planet Venus.[35] The Babylonian myth of Etana has also been seen as connected.[36]

The Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible points out that no evidence has been found of any Canaanite myth of a god being thrown from heaven, as in Isaiah 14:12. It concludes that the closest parallels with Isaiah's description of the king of Babylon as a fallen morning star cast down from heaven are to be found not in any lost Canaanite and other myths but in traditional ideas of the Jewish people themselves, echoed in the Biblical account of the fall of Adam and Eve, cast out of God's presence for wishing to be as God, and the picture in Psalm 82 of the "gods" and "sons of the Most High" destined to die and fall.[17] This Jewish tradition has echoes also in Jewish pseudepigrapha such as 2 Enoch and the Life of Adam and Eve.[17][36][37]

Judaism [edit]

See also: Satan#Judaism

The Hebrew term הֵילֵל (heylel)[1] in Isaiah 14:12, became a dominant conception of a fallen angel motif[38] in Enochic Judaism, when Jewish pseudepigrapha flourished during the Second Temple period,[15] particularly with the apocalypses.[16] Later Rabbis, in Medieval Judaism, rejected these Enochic literary works from the Biblical canon, making every attempt to root them out.[15] Traditionalist Rabbis often rejected any belief in rebel or fallen angels, having a view that evil is abstract.[39] However, in the 11th century, the Pirqe de-Rabbi Eliezer, drawing on ancient legends of the fallen angel or angels, brought back to the mainstream of rabbinic thought the personification of evil and the corresponding myth.[40] Jewish exegesis of Isaiah 14:12–15 took a more humanistic approach by identifying the king of Babylon as Nebuchadnezzar II.[41]

Christianity [edit]

Main article: Devil in Christianity

Early Christians were influenced by the association of Isaiah 14:12-18 with the Devil, which had developed in the period between the writing of the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament,[42] also called the Intertestamental Period when the deuterocanonical books were written. Even in the New Testament itself, Sigve K Tonstad argues, the War in Heaven theme of Revelation 12:7-9, in which the dragon "who is called the devil and Satan … was thrown down to the earth", derives from the passage in Isaiah 14.[43] Origen (184/185 – 253/254) interpreted such Old Testament passages as being about manifestations of the Devil; but of course, writing in Greek, not Latin, he did not identify the Devil with the name "Lucifer".[44] Tertullian (c. 160 – c. 225), who wrote in Latin, also understood Isaiah 14:14 ("I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High") as spoken by the Devil,[45] but "Lucifer" is not among the numerous names and phrases he used to describe the Devil.[46] Even at the time of the Latin writer Augustine of Hippo (354 – 430), "Lucifer" had not yet become a common name for the Devil.[44] But some time later, the metaphor of the morning star that Isaiah 14:12 applied to a king of Babylon gave rise to the general use of the Latin word for "morning star", capitalized, as the original name of the Devil before his fall from grace, linking Isaiah 14:12 with Luke 10:18 ("I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven") and interpreting the passage in Isaiah as an allegory of Satan's fall from heaven.[47][48]

However, the understanding of the morning star in Isaiah 14:12 as a metaphor referring to a king of Babylon continued also to exist among Christians. Theodoret of Cyrus (c. 393 – c. 457) wrote that Isaiah calls the king "morning star", not as being the star, but as having had the illusion of being it.[49] The same understanding is shown in Christian translations of the passage, which in English generally use "morning star" rather than treating the word as a proper name, "Lucifer". So too in other languages, such as French,[50] German,[51] Portuguese,[52] and Spanish.[53] Even the Vulgate text in Latin is printed with lower-case lucifer (morning star), not upper-case Lucifer (proper name).[4]

Calvin said: “The exposition of this passage, which some have given, as if it referred to Satan, has arisen from ignorance: for the context plainly shows these statements must be understood in reference to the king of the Babylonians.”[54] Luther also considered it a gross error to refer this verse to the devil.[55]

The modern translations have been decried by adherents of the King James Only movement and others who hold that Isaiah 14:12 does indeed refer to the devil.[56][57][58]

Islam [edit]

In the Quran[59] Najmun thāqib (Ar. "blazing star") may correspond to the morning star (He. heylel) of Isaiah 14:12.[60]

In Islam, the account of Iblis follows the Lucifer motif. Iblis is banished from heaven and becomes Satan by refusing to prostrate before Adam. Thus, he sins after the creation of man. Satan then swears an oath of revenge by tempting human beings and turning them away from God. However, in contrast to Judaic and Christian beliefs, Iblis is not seen as a fallen angel in Islam but rather a Jinn who has disobeyed God. Muslims believe that angels are the servants of God and cannot disobey Him; whereas Jinn, like men, can make choices and can choose to obey or disobey.[61]

Occultism [edit]

The Seal of Lucifer a magical sigil[62] used occasionally as an emblem by Satanists

Luciferianism is a belief system that venerates the essential characteristics that are affixed to Lucifer. The tradition, influenced by Gnosticism, usually reveres Lucifer not as the Devil, but as a liberator or guiding spirit[63] or even the true god as opposed to Jehovah.[64]

In Anton LaVey's The Satanic Bible, Lucifer is acknowledged as one of the Four Crown Princes of Hell, particularly that of the East. Lord of the Air, Lucifer has been named "Bringer of Light, the Morning Star, Intellectualism, Enlightenment."[65]

In the modern occultism of Madeline Montalban,[66] Lucifer's identification as the Morning Star (Venus) equates him with Lumiel, whom she regarded as the Archangel of Light, and among Satanists he is seen as the "Torch of Baphomet" and Azazel.

Author Michael W. Ford has written on Lucifer as a "mask" of the Adversary, a motivator and illuminating force of the mind and subconscious.[67]

Taxil's hoax [edit]

Léo Taxil (1854–1907) claimed that Freemasonry is associated with worshipping Lucifer. In what is known as the Taxil hoax, he claimed that supposedly leading Freemason Albert Pike had addressed "The 23 Supreme Confederated Councils of the world" (an invention of Taxil), instructing them that Lucifer was God, and was in opposition to the evil god Adonai. Supporters of Freemasonry contend that, when Albert Pike and other Masonic scholars spoke about the "Luciferian path," or the "energies of Lucifer," they were referring to the Morning Star, the light bearer,[68] the search for light; the very antithesis of dark, satanic evil. Taxil promoted a book by Diana Vaughan (actually written by himself, as he later confessed publicly)[69] that purported to reveal a highly secret ruling body called the Palladium, which controlled the organization and had a satanic agenda. As described by Freemasonry Disclosed in 1897:

With frightening cynicism, the miserable person we shall not name here [Taxil] declared before an assembly especially convened for him that for twelve years he had prepared and carried out to the end the most sacrilegious of hoaxes. We have always been careful to publish special articles concerning Palladism and Diana Vaughan. We are now giving in this issue a complete list of these articles, which can now be considered as not having existed.[70]

Taxil's work and Pike's address continue to be quoted by anti-masonic groups.[71]

In Devil-Worship in France, Arthur Edward Waite compared Taxil's work to what today we would call a tabloid story, replete with logical and factual inconsistencies.

Gallery [edit]

See also [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ a b Strong's Concordance, H1966: "shining one, morning star, Lucifer; of the king of Babylon and Satan (fig.)"
  2. ^ a b c Kohler, Dr. Kaufmann (1923). Heaven and hell in Comparative Religion with Special Reference to Dante's Divine Comedy. New York: The MacMillanCompagny. pp. 4–5. ISBN 0766166082. "Lucifer, is taken from the Latin version, the Vulgate" 
  3. ^ "Latin Vulgate Bible: Isaiah 14". DRBO.org. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  4. ^ a b "Vulgate: Isaiah Chapter 14" (in Latin). Sacred-texts.com. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  5. ^ "Charlton T. Lewis, Charles Short, "A Latin Dictionary"". Perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  6. ^ "LXX Isaiah 14" (in Greek). Septuagint.org. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  7. ^ "Greek OT (Septuagint/LXX): Isaiah 14" (in Greek). Bibledatabase.net. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  8. ^ "LXX Isaiah 14" (in Greek). Biblos.com. Retrieved 2013-05-06. 
  9. ^ "Septuagint Isaiah 14" (in Greek). Sacred Texts. Retrieved 2013-05-06. 
  10. ^ "Greek Septuagint (LXX) Isaiah - Chapter 14" (in Greek). Blue Letter Bible. Retrieved 2013-05-06. 
  11. ^ Neil Forsyth (1989). The Old Enemy: Satan and the Combat Myth. Princeton University Press. p. 136. ISBN 9780691014746. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  12. ^ Nwaocha Ogechukwu Friday (2012-05-30). The Devil: What Does He Look Like?. American Book Publishing. p. 35. ISBN 9781589826625. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  13. ^ Rachel Adelman (2009-12-31). The Return of the Repressed: Pirqe De-Rabbi Eliezer and the Pseudepigrapha. Brill. p. 67. ISBN 9789004170490. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  14. ^ Taylor, Bernard A. ; with word definitions by J. Lust; Eynikel, E.; Hauspie, K. (2009). Analytical lexicon to the Septuagint (Expanded ed.). Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc. p. 256. ISBN 1565635167. 
  15. ^ a b c Jackson, David R. (2004). Enochic Judaism. London: T&T Clark International. p. 2. ISBN 0826470890. 
  16. ^ a b c Adele Berlin, Maxine Grossman (editors), ''The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion'' (Oxford University Press 2011 ISBN 9780199730049), p. 651. Google.com. 2011-03-14. ISBN 9780199730049. Retrieved 2012-07-03. 
  17. ^ a b c James D. G. Dunn; John William Rogerson (2003). Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible. Eerdmans. p. 511. ISBN 9780802837110. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  18. ^ "Isaiah 14 Biblos Interlinear Bible". Interlinearbible.org. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  19. ^ "Isaiah 14 Hebrew OT: Westminster Leningrad Codex". Wlc.hebrewtanakh.com. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  20. ^ Zondervan, [edited by] J.D. Douglas; Silva, Merrill C. Tenney ; revised by Moisés (2011-05-03). Zondervan Illustrated Bible Dictionary ([Rev. ed.], 2011 ed.). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan. p. 863. ISBN 0310229839. 
  21. ^ Tonstad, Sigve K. (2006). Saving God's reputation : the theologial function of Pistis Iesou in the cosmic narratives of Revelation. London [u.a.]: T&T Clark. p. 89. ISBN 0567044947. 
  22. ^ Isaiah 14:3–4
  23. ^ Isaiah 14:12–17
  24. ^ a b Laney, J. Carl (1997). Answers to Tough Questions from Every Book of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications. p. 127. ISBN 9780825430947. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  25. ^ Isaiah 14:16
  26. ^ Carol J. Dempsey (2010). Isaiah: God's Poet of Light. Chalice Press. p. 34. ISBN 9780827216303. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  27. ^ a b c d Manley, Johanna; Manley, edited by Johanna (1995). Isaiah through the Ages. Menlo Park, Calif.: St Vladimir's Seminary Press. pp. 259–260. ISBN 9780962253638. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  28. ^ Roy F. Melugin; Marvin Alan Sweeney (1996). New Visions of Isaiah. Sheffield: Continuum International. p. 116. ISBN 9781850755845. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  29. ^ Doorly, William J. (1992). Isaiah of Jerusalem. New York: Paulist Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780809133376. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  30. ^ Wolf, Herbert M. (1985). Interpreting Isaiah : the suffering and glory of the Messiah. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Academie Books. p. 112. ISBN 9780310390619. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  31. ^ John Day, Yahweh and the gods and goddesses of Canaan (Continuum International Publishing Group, 2002 ISBN 0-8264-6830-6, ISBN 978-0-8264-6830-7), pp. 172–173
  32. ^ Gregory A. Boyd, God at War: The Bible & Spiritual Conflict (InterVarsity Press, 1997 ISBN 0-8308-1885-5, ISBN 978-0-8308-1885-3), pp. 159–160
  33. ^ Marvin H. Pope, ''El in the Ugaritic Texts''. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  34. ^ a b Gary V. Smith, (2007-08-30). Isaiah 1-30. B&H Publishing Group. pp. 314–315. ISBN 978-0-8054-0115-80 Check |isbn= value (help). Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  35. ^ Marvin Alan Sweeney, (1996). Isaiah 1-39. Eerdmans. p. 238. ISBN 9780802841001. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  36. ^ a b "Lucifer". Jewish Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  37. ^ Schwartz, Howard (2004). Tree of souls: The mythology of Judaism. New York: OUP. p. 108. ISBN 0195086791. 
  38. ^ Herzog, Schaff- (1909). In Samuel MacAuley Jackson, Charles Colebrook Sherman, George William Gilmore. The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Thought: Chamier-Draendorf (Volume 3 ed.). USA: Funk & Wagnalls Co. p. 400. ISBN 1428631836. 
  39. ^ Bamberger, Bernard J. (2006). Fallen angels : soldiers of satan's realm (1. paperback ed.). Philadelphia, Pa.: Jewish Publ. Soc. of America. p. 148,149. ISBN 0827607970. 
  40. ^ Rachel Adelman (2009-12-31). The Return of the Repressed: Pirqe De-Rabbi Eliezer and the Pseudepigrapha. Brill. pp. 61–62. ISBN 9789004170490. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  41. ^ Breslauer, edited by S. Daniel (1997). The seductiveness of Jewish myth : challenge or response?. Albany: State University of New York Press. p. 280. ISBN 0791436020. 
  42. ^ David L. Jeffrey (1992). A Dictionary of Biblical Tradition in English Literature. Eerdmans. p. 199. ISBN 9780802836342. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  43. ^ Sigve K Tonstad, (2007-01-20). Saving God's Reputation. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 75. ISBN 9780567044945. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  44. ^ a b Luther Link (1995). The Devil: A Mask without a Face. Reaktion Book. p. 24. ISBN 9780948462672. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  45. ^ "Tertullian, ''Adversus Marcionem'', book 5, chapters 11 and 17 (Migne, ''Patrologia latina'', vol. 2, cols. 500 and 514)" (PDF) (in Latin). Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  46. ^ Jeffrey Burton Russell (1987). Satan: The Early Christian Tradition. Cornell University Press. p. 95. ISBN 9780801494130. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  47. ^ The Merriam-Webster New Book of Word Histories. Merriam-Webster. 1991. p. 280. ISBN 9780877796039. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  48. ^ Harold Bloom (2005). Satan. Infobase Publishing. p. 57. ISBN 9780791083864. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  49. ^ Johanna Manley (1995). Isaiah through the Ages. St Vladimir's Seminary Press. p. 252. ISBN 9780962253638. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  50. ^ "Ésaïe 14:12-15" (in French). Biblegateway.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  51. ^ "Jesaja 14:12" (in German). Bibeltext.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  52. ^ "Isaías 14:12-17" (in Portuguese). Biblegateway.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  53. ^ "Isaías 14:12" (in Spanish). Biblegateway.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  54. ^ Calvin, John (2007). Commentary on Isaiah. I:404. Translated by John King. Charleston, S.C.: Forgotten Books. 
  55. ^ Ridderbos, Jan (1985). The Bible Student’s Commentary: Isaiah. Translated by John Vriend. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Regency. p. 142. 
  56. ^ Larry Alavezos (2010-09-29). A Primer on Salvation and Bible Prophecy. TEACH Services. p. 94. ISBN 9781572586406. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  57. ^ David W. Daniels (2003). Answers to Your Bible Version Questions. Chick Publications. p. 64. ISBN 9780758905079. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  58. ^ William Dembski (2009). The End of Christianity. B&H Publishing Group. p. 219. ISBN 9780805427431. Retrieved 2012-12-22. 
  59. ^ Quran 86:3
  60. ^ Glassé, Cyril (2008). The new encyclopedia of Islam (3rd ed.). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. pp. 388, 389. ISBN 0742562964. 
  61. ^ Jung, Rabbi Leo (2004 Reprint). Fallen angels in Jewish, Christian, and Mohammedan literature. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Reprints. pp. 34–35. ISBN 0766179389. 
  62. ^ Alternative Religions[dead link]
  63. ^ Michelle Belanger (2007). Vampires in Their Own Words: An Anthology of Vampire Voices. Llewellyn Worldwide. p. 175. ISBN 0-7387-1220-5. 
  64. ^ Spence, L. (1993). An Encyclopedia of Occultism. Carol Publishing. 
  65. ^ LaVey, Anton Szandor (1969). "The Book of Lucifer: The Enlightenment". The Satanic Bible. New York: Avon. ISBN 978-0380015399. 
  66. ^ "Madeline Montalban and the Order of the Morning Star". Sheridandouglas.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  67. ^ "Adversarial Doctrine". Bible of the Adversary. Succubus Productions. 2007. p. 8. 
  68. ^ "Lucifer, the Son of the Morning! Is it he who bears the Light, and with its splendors intolerable blinds feeble, sensual, or selfish Souls? Doubt it not!" (Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma, p. 321). Much has been made of this quote (Masonic information: Lucifer).
  69. ^ "Leo Taxil's confession". Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon. 2001-04-02. Retrieved 2012-12-23. 
  70. ^ Freemasonry Disclosed April 1897
  71. ^ "Leo Taxil: The tale of the Pope and the Pornographer". Retrieved 14 September 2006. 

Further reading [edit]

Campbell, Joseph (1972). Myths To Live By ([2nd ed., repr.] ed.). [London]: Souvenir Press. ISBN 0-285-64731-8. 

External links [edit]

Wikisource has the text of the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia article Lucifer.
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