Why Did God Make The Devil?

[rojse]

Why did God make the Devil?

 

[Storm]

You mean the modern, embodiment of evil, wants to steal your soul one? Got me.

 

[rojse]

:devil:

 

[Mr Cheese]

He's the tester.....

The Christians twisted and made the concept into a mockery...

"It was Christianity which first painted the devil on the world's wall;
It was Christianity which first brought sin into the world.
Belief in the cure which it offered has now been shaken to it's deepest roots; but belief in the sickness which it taught and propogated continues to exist."

– Friedrich Nietzsche

 

[averageJOE]

I think a better question would be "Why did Christians make the devil?"

 

[rojse]

I think a better question would be "Why did Christians make the devil?"

That would also be an interesting question. I think the way that you have phrased the question means that it can be best answered by an atheist, while I have tried to phrase the question so that it is best answered by a theist.

 

[averageJOE]

That would also be an interesting question. I think the way that you have phrased the question means that it can be best answered by an atheist, while I have tried to phrase the question so that it is best answered by a theist.

True.
I'll try and think of another way to phrase the question too so that theists can answer it.
Are there any theists who think Satan and the Devil are the same? Different?

 

[rojse]

True.
I'll try and think of another way to phrase the question too so that theists can answer it.

It's not a bad question by any means (it's why I gave you frubals). Perhaps you might ask it in the non-theist board - I'll tell you how to join up if you don't know how.

 

[JustWondering]

The God that is potrayed in the Bible must be insane. Most of the things done by God do not make any logical sense whatsoever. Therefore there is no real reason for the creation of the devil besides God just wanting to mess with people. The same reason he said he created the world as it is today in six days but planted dinosaur fossils around the globe just to mess with our heads.

 

[Jeremiah]

Why did God make the Devil?

It's a ploy, a smoke screen, God can run amuck then blame the Devil.

 

[Phasmid]

For the lols.

 

[Oberon]

Why did God make the Devil?

Boredom?

 

[idea]

Why did God make the Devil?

God did not make the Devil, did not "make out of nothing" any of it. God forms what eternally exists.

Hebrew Word Studies
[FONT=Palatino Linotype, Book Antiqua, Palatino, Georgia]Pronunciation: "Qa-NeH"[/FONT]
[FONT=Palatino Linotype, Book Antiqua, Palatino, Georgia]Meaning: To build a nest.[/FONT]
[FONT=Palatino Linotype, Book Antiqua, Palatino, Georgia]Comments: This child root is a nest builder, one who builds a nest such as a bird. Also God as in Bereshiyt (Genesis) 14.19; "God most high creator (qaneh) of sky and earth". The English word "create" is an abstract word and a foriegn concept to the Hebrews. While we see God as one who makes something from nothing (create), the Hebrews saw God like a bird who goes about acquiring and gathering materials to build a nest (qen), the sky and earth. The Hebrews saw man as the children (eggs) that God built the nest for. [/FONT]




[FONT=Palatino Linotype, Book Antiqua, Palatino, Georgia]"The English word "create" is an abstract word and a foriegn concept to the Hebrews. " ie - the word create (with ex-Nihlo def) should not be in the Bible. transform/organize would be a much better words to describe what is happening.[/FONT]


[FONT=Palatino Linotype, Book Antiqua, Palatino, Georgia]We were not "created ex-nihlo" either. God is cleaning up a mess He did not create. (and doing it without taking away anyone's agency) Pretty nice/selfless of Him to do it really.[/FONT]

Premortal Life
Before we were born on the earth, we lived in the presence of our Heavenly Father as one of His spirit children. In this premortal existence, we attended a council with Heavenly Father's other spirit children. At that council, Heavenly Father presented His great plan of happiness (see Abraham 3:22–26).
22 Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
23 And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.
24 And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
25 And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
26 And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.

Abraham3:22 - 26
In harmony with the plan of happiness, the premortal Jesus Christ, the Firstborn Son of the Father in the spirit, covenanted to be the Savior (see Moses 4:2; Abraham 3:27).
27 And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first.
28 And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him.
Abraham3:27 - 28

1 AND I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying—Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor.
2 But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me—Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.
3 Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down;
4 And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice.
Pearl of Great Price | Moses4:1 - 4

[12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! Isaiah14:12
What would it take to save all mankind? It would require that our free wills be taken from us. God was not willing to do this… This was the war in heaven, this is when the son of the morning fell.]

Those who followed Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were permitted to come to the earth to experience mortality and progress toward eternal life. Lucifer, another spirit son of God, rebelled against the plan and "sought to destroy the agency of man". He became Satan, and he and his followers were cast out of heaven and denied the privileges of receiving a physical body and experiencing mortality.
Throughout our premortal lives, we developed our identity and increased our spiritual capabilities. Blessed with the gift of agency, we made important decisions, such as the decision to follow Heavenly Father's plan. These decisions affected our life then and now. We grew in intelligence and learned to love the truth, and we prepared to come to the earth, where we could continue to progress.

 

[madhatter85]

God did not create "Satan"...Lucifer created himself when he rebelled against God. please see Idea's post above

 

[Rogue Cardinal]

God did not create "Satan"...Lucifer created himself when he rebelled against God. please see Idea's post above

Well there are problems with this line of thought. See it depends on which translation you bother reading.

NIV-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!

NAS-How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations!

GWT-How you have fallen from heaven, you morning star, son of the dawn! How you have been cut down to the ground, you conqueror of nations!

KJV-How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

AKJ-How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how are you cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations!

ASV-How art thou fallen from heaven, O day-star, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, that didst lay low the nations!

BBE-How great is your fall from heaven, O shining one, son of the morning! How are you cut down to the earth, low among the dead bodies!

DRB-How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, who didst rise in the morning? how art thou fallen to the earth, that didst wound the nations?

DYB- ow art thou fallen from heaven, Lucifer, son of the morning! Thou art cut down to the ground, that didst prostrate the nations!

ERV-How art thou fallen from heaven, O day star, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst lay low the nations!


The truth of the matter is that while it is nice to try to fit Satan into that role, he doesn't really fit with the rest of the Chapter. IT more than likely means that they will fade like the morning star when the sun rises and is more than likely talking about the Kings of Assyria and/or Babylon. This could mostly likely be referring to Sannacherib or Nebuchadnezzer, kings with supreme power. Their people looked upon them as gods and they wanted to rule the world.

This is also speaking about pride....which can be attributed to "satan" but at the time of the writing Satan wasn't even really a thought in the minds of the Jews. In fact the idea of Satan comes much much later. So it is a bit of intellectual dishonesty to attribute this passage as talking about satan.

 

[te_lanus]

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!
(Isa 14:12 NIVUK)

Has nothing to do with Satan/Devil. It has all to do with Nebuchadnezzar.

And although the context speaks explicitly concerning Nebuchadnezzar, yet this has been, I know not why, applied to the chief of the fallen angels, who is most incongruously denominated Lucifer, (the bringer of light!) an epithet as common to him as those of Satan and Devil. That the Holy Spirit by his prophets should call this arch-enemy of God and man the light-bringer, would be strange indeed. But the truth is, the text speaks nothing at all concerning Satan nor his fall, nor the occasion of that fall, which many divines have with great confidence deduced from this text. O how necessary it is to understand the literal meaning of Scripture, that preposterous comments may be prevented! - Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1715-1832)

This is not to be understood of the fall of Satan, and the apostate angels, from their first estate, when they were cast down from heaven to hell, ..., but the words are a continuation of the speech of the dead to the king of Babylon, - John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible (1690-1771)

 

[Kilgore Trout]

People have a strong propensity to dichotimize things.

 

[madhatter85]

Well there are problems with this line of thought. See it depends on which translation you bother reading.

We know from modern revelation that the KJV is the most correct of any bible translations. That is why we use that version for teaching purposes. People are free to read whatever version they want, even the lolcat bible.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Why did God make the Devil?

Because he's wickedly cool in the Hells Angels jacket and riding a Harley.

 

[Commoner]

We know from modern revelation that the KJV is the most correct of any bible translations. That is why we use that version for teaching purposes. People are free to read whatever version they want, even the lolcat bible.

I know! I saw Jesus in my lasagna yesterday!

Talk about recent revelations!