Belial

Belial
(Beliar)
   One of the most important and evil DEMONs, who is deceptively beautiful in appearance and soft in voice, but full of treachery, recklessness, and lies. The 68th of the 72 SPIRITS OF SOLOMON, Belial is dedicated to creating wickedness and guilt in humankind, especially in the form of sexual perversions, fornication, and lust. St. Paul considered him to be chief of demons. Belial’s name may be derived from the Hebrew term beli ya’al, which means “without worth.” In Hebrew lore, Belial was the next angel created after LUCIFER and was partly of the order of angels and partly of the order of virtues. He was evil from the start, one of the first to revolt against God. After his fall from heaven, he became the personification of lies and evil. Belial’s name is sometimes a synonym for SATAN or the ANTICHRIST. In the Old Testament, the phrase “sons of Belial” refers to worthlessness and recklessness.
   In the Testament of Solomon, a pseudepigraphical text, Belial danced before King SOLOMON and was among the demons who worked under the king’s command, ruled by Solomon’s magical ring.
   In the Dead Sea Scrolls, Belial is described as the leader of the Sons of Darkness, the chief of all devils, dedicated to destruction.
   In a Qumrun text called the Testament of Amran (Q543, 545–48), Belial is one of the WATCHERS, whose three titles are Belial, Prince of Darkness, and King of Evil. He is empowered over all darkness and his every way and every work are darkness.
   JOHANN WEYER said Belial commands 80 legions of demons and serves as infernal ambassador to Turkey. According to the magical grimoire the Lemegeton, sacrifices and offerings are necessary to invoke him. He appears as a beautiful angel riding a chariot pulled by firebreathing dragons, and he speaks sweetly. He will break his promises to magicians, but those who manage to gain his true favor are handsomely rewarded with good FAMILIARs and other favors, such as preferences for senatorships or political offices.
   FURTHER READING:
   - Eisenman, Robert, and Michael Wise. The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered. London: Element Books, 1992.
   - Hyatt, Victoria, and Joseph W. Charles. The Book of Demons. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974.
   - The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Vols. 1 & 2. Edited by James H. Charlesworth. 1983. Reprint, New York: Doubleday, 1985.

Encyclopedia of Demons and Demonology. . 2009.

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  • Bélial — Belial est un démon cité dans la Bible et régnant sur l Orient. Il tire son nom de l hébreu signifiant sans utilité, vaurien. Ce roi de l Enfer, à l aspect extérieur séduisant et au maintien gracieux, passe pour l esprit le plus dissolu, le plus… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Belial — Bélial Belial est un démon régnant sur l Orient. Il tire son nom de l hébreu signifiant sans utilité, vaurien. Ce roi de l Enfer, à l aspect extérieur séduisant et au maintien gracieux, passe pour l esprit le plus dissolu, le plus crapuleux, le… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Belial — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Belial y algunos seguidores Jacobo de Teramo Belial (del hebreo beli•yá•, inútil, de belí, no, y ya• ál, ser provechoso), también llamado Belhor, Baalial, Beliar, Beliall, Beliel, es un demonio que aparece en el… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Belial — • Found frequently as a personal name in the Vulgate and various English translations of the Bible, is commonly used as a synonym of Satan, or the personification of evil Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Belial     Belial …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • BELIAL — (Heb. בְּלִיַּעַל; lit. worthlessness ). In the Bible a common noun characterizing persons who behave in a dissolute manner, give false testimony, or hatch infamous plots. It is used in apposition to such words as son (Deut. 13:14; I Sam. 2:12),… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • BELIAL — Nonnulli volentes hoc nomen hominem inutilem significare, derivant a absque et profuit. Alii contendentes eôdem Daemonem intelligi, derivant a absque et altissmo. Aquila vertit Apostatam. Sane B. Paulus Satanam Belial vocat. 2 Corinth. c. 6. v.… …   Hofmann J. Lexicon universale

  • Belial — Be li*al, n. [Heb. beli ya al; beli without + ya al profit.] An evil spirit; a wicked and unprincipled person; the personification of evil. [1913 Webster] What concord hath Christ with Belia ? 2 Cor. vi. 15. [1913 Webster] {A son} (or man) {of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Belial — Belial, betyder slethed, fordærvelse; sammensætninger som Belials mænd eller sønner betyder ifølge hebraisk sprogbrug fordærvede, uværdige personer . I den jødiske litteratur f.Kr. opfattedes belial, også i formen Beliar, som et egennavn, der… …   Danske encyklopædi

  • Belĭal — (v. hebr.), 1) im. A. T. das Schädliche, Verderbliche, Böse., Schlechte; 2) im N. T. Bezeichnung des Teufels …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Belĭal — (Belijaal, hebr., »Nichtsnutzigkeit, Bosheit«), in der spätern jüdischen und christlichen Literatur soviel wie Sakan im Sinn: »der Verderber« …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Belial — Belĭal (hebr., »Nichtswürdigkeit«, »Verderben«), der Teufel …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

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