Jewish Demonology

When we turn to the Sacred Books of the Jews, in other words the canonical Scripture, we witness the lack of an elaborate system of demonic belief such as that of the Persians and Assyrians. There is much said about the angels, the hosts of heaven, the Seraphim and Cherubim, and other spirits who stand before the "throne" or minister to men. But the mention of the evil spirits is comparatively minimal. It is not extinct, because there are references to demonic  manifestations, for example the temptation by the serpent in the garden of Eden; in Job also Satan appears as the tempter and the accuser of the just man; in Kings it is he who incites David to murder the prophet; in Zacharias he is seen in his office of accuser; Saul is afflicted or apparently possessed, by an evil spirit, so on and so forth.

The activity of the demon in the magical arts is indicated in the works wrought by the magicians of Pharaoh, and in the Levitical laws against wizards or witches. The scapegoat is sent into the wilderness to Azazael, who is supposed by some to be a demon. Here we can make a parenthesis regarding the fact that most demons are regarded to live in wastelands and desolate places. "And demons and monsters shall meet, and the hairy ones shall cry out one to another, there hath the lamia lain down, and found rest for herself" (Isaias, xxxiv, 14). The Hebrew word here rendered by "demons" may simply mean wild animals. However, the Hebrew word which is rendered very literally as "hairy ones" is translated "demons" by Targum and Peshitta, and is supposed to mean a goat shaped deity analogous to the Greek Pan. "Lamia" also represents the original Lilith, a spirit of the night who in Hebrew legend is the demon wife of Adam (yeap, they've got their heads mixed up here, don't they?).

A further explanation of the Old Testament demonology can be seen in the Book of Tobias, which, though not included in the Jewish Canon, was written in Hebrew or Chaldean, and a version in the latter language has been recovered among some rabbinical writings. Here we encounter the demon Asmodeus. He has been identified by some authorities with the Aeshmo Daeva of the Avesta; but Whitehouse doubts this identification and prefers the alternative Hebrew etymology. Asmodeus became a prominent figure in later Hebrew demonology. 

In later Hebrew demonology we see a great difference from the canonical writings to the rabbinical doctrine of the Talmud and Midrashim. Some modern critics ascribe this rich growth of demonic belief among the Jews to the effects of the Captivity (fact which is yet till date debated, and don't let Charlton Heaston be your historical figure), and regard it as the result of Babylonian or Persian influence. Some sources claim (admittedly Christian ones) that  the Jewish demonology has a distinctive character of its own, and should be regarded as an outgrowth from beliefs and ideas which were present in the mind of the "chosen people" before they came into contact with Persians and Babylonians.  I seriously doubt that, mainly because it contradicts the core element of the development of the Hebrew demonology, that which is based on the Captivity mentioned above. An apparent question, nevertheless elusively answered is that since the Jews were "captives", and indeed they claim for long, how did they not become influenced by the local systems of organization, law, culture and religious belief? We know fairly well that they were indeed influenced by all of the above, except, somehow, the last. However, I will not proceed to comment on that further. 

One interesting element of later Jewish demonology is the multitude of demons. According to all accounts every man has thousands of them at his side. The air is full of them and, since they were the causes of various diseases, men should keep their mouths fairly shut (!) because if they swallowed a demon, they might be afflicted with some deadly disease. This is reminiscent of the common tendency to personify epidemic diseases, and a good example from "recent" history is the Black Death. The Black Death, the plague, stroke more than half of the population of Medieval Europe. In manuscripts and other texts the plague is represented by the well-known Black Death figure, a hooded skeleton holding a scythe, leading men to the Dance.  However, there is a peculiar analogy to the also almost religious doctrines of present-day medicine. We now know that the air is indeed full of microbes and germs and that some times, by inhaling, one can become susceptible to disease. One comes to wonder on the analogies of religious belief...