How Evil Became Personified

The story of the biblical word b’liya’al.

Got a question for Philologos? Ask him directly at philologos@mosaicmagazine.com.

Jerome Chanes writes:

What—or who—in the Bible is b’liya’al? In biblical Hebrew, ben-b’liya’al, a “son of b’liya’al,” is the ultimate pejorative by which someone can be called. In Christian literature, Belial is Satan’s helper or even Satan himself, and in today’s popular culture he is a kind of evil Grand Poobah who turns up in films and computer games. What do you make of it—or of him?

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Got a question for Philologos? Ask him directly at philologos@mosaicmagazine.com.

Jerome Chanes writes:

What—or who—in the Bible is b’liya’al? In biblical Hebrew, ben-b’liya’al, a “son of b’liya’al,” is the ultimate pejorative by which someone can be called. In Christian literature, Belial is Satan’s helper or even Satan himself, and in today’s popular culture he is a kind of evil Grand Poobah who turns up in films and computer games. What do you make of it—or of him?

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