The word “demon” is not correct. I only use “demonologist”, to convey meaning. The original words for demons in the Bible are the Hebrew word shedim and the Greek word daimōn.

Shedim appears in the Old Testament and is linked to spirits or demons. The term shows up sparingly, notably in Deuteronomy 32:17 and Psalm 106:37, where it’s associated with entities receiving sacrifices—often interpreted as “false gods” or “idols” worshiped by neighboring peoples like the Canaanites. The connection to the Akkadian shedu is widely accepted by scholars. In Mesopotamian culture, shedu referred to protective spirits, often depicted as winged bulls or guardians (think of the massive statues at ancient city gates). These could be benevolent or malevolent depending on context, but in the Hebrew Bible, shedim takes on a decidedly negative tone, likely to emphasize their illegitimacy compared to Yahweh.

The derivation from Akkadian suggests a cultural borrowing, which makes sense given Israel’s interactions with Mesopotamian civilizations. However, the biblical usage doesn’t retain the “good spirit” aspect of shedu. Instead, shedim are portrayed as dangerous or deceptive entities tied to idolatry. Some Jewish traditions later linked shedim to a broader class of supernatural beings—neither fully divine nor human—sometimes created by God but prone to mischief or malice. For example, in later Jewish folklore (like the Talmud), shedim are semi-corporeal beings with traits like eating, drinking, and even procreating, distinct from the purely malevolent demons of Christian tradition.

Daimōn (Greek)

Daimōn in the New Testament is also on the right track, but let’s refine it. In ancient Greek culture, a daimōn (or daemon in Latinized form) wasn’t inherently evil. The term derives from daio (“to divide” or “distribute”) and originally denoted a supernatural entity that apportioned fate or acted as an intermediary between gods and humans. Philosophers like Socrates (via Plato) spoke of a personal daimōn as a guiding spirit or inner voice—think of it as a divine nudge rather than a tormentor. In Homer’s works, daimones could even refer to gods themselves in a vague sense.

By the time of the New Testament, written in Koine Greek, daimōn (and its derivative daimonion) is used almost exclusively to describe malevolent spirits—those causing possession, illness, or opposition to God (e.g., Matthew 8:31, Mark 5:12, Luke 8:29). This shift reflects a Jewish and early Christian reinterpretation of the term. The Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible) had already paved the way by using daimonion to translate shedim and other terms for foreign gods or spirits, framing them as evil. So, while daimōn in classical Greek lacked the evil connotation, in the biblical context, it’s consistently negative, aligning with the monotheistic rejection of pagan deities or forces.

Evolution of the “Demon” Concept

The modern view of demons as purely evil entities crystallized in Christianity. The English word “demon” comes from the Latin daemon, which itself borrows from Greek daimōn. Early Christian thinkers like Augustine and later medieval theologians (e.g., Thomas Aquinas) solidified the idea of demons as fallen angels under Satan’s command, drawing from passages like Revelation 12:9. This wasn’t the case in the original Hebrew or Greek contexts, where shedim and daimōn had broader, more neutral meanings.

In pre-Christian traditions:

• Shedim likely reflected a mix of foreign spiritual influences and local fears of the unknown, not a cohesive “demonology.”
• Daimōn spanned a spectrum from divine beings to personal spirits, only later narrowing to “evil” in Judeo-Christian usage.

Christianity’s emphasis on a cosmic battle between good and evil sharpened these terms into the malevolent, rebellious figures we recognize today. By the Middle Ages, popular culture—think Dante’s Inferno or medieval art—further cemented demons as horned, tormenting fiends, a far cry from their ambiguous origins.

Additional Notes

• The rarity of shedim in the Old Testament (just two explicit mentions) suggests it wasn’t a central concept in early Israelite religion, unlike the more developed demonology of later Christianity.
• In the New Testament, daimonion is often paired with “unclean spirits” (pneuma akatharton), reinforcing their role as adversaries to divine order (e.g., Acts 16:16-18).
• Outside the Bible, texts like the Dead Sea Scrolls and apocryphal works (e.g., the Book of Enoch) expand on malevolent spirits, bridging the gap between shedim and Christian demons.