HomeIt has been pointed out earlier that "demons" and "unclean spirits" appear to be almost interchangeable phrases in the Gospels; almost, but perhaps not quite. Most significant, again, is the case of Legion, who considered himself to be possessed by many demons, whereas Mark, Luke and Jesus himself all speak of his having one "unclean spirit". Attention has also been drawn to the fact that in the Acts, Luke does not use the word "demons", but only the phrases "unclean spirits and "evil spirits", the second phrase perhaps denoting something more intrinsically wicked than the first. In the Epistles there are no descriptions of believers being possessed by demons, but there are many references to different kinds of spirits they should or should not have! It ought to be helpful therefore, to examine the use of the word "spirit" in scripture, and especially what might be meant by an unclean or evil spirit.
In the O.T., the word translated "spirit" is the Hebrew word ruach. The primitive meanings of this word are "breath" and "wind", and it is often correctly translated in one or other of these ways. However, there are many passages where such a translation would clearly be inadequate, and the word "spirit" is used instead. The word "mind" is also used occasionally. "Spirit" is used of both God and man, but it is the latter with which we are most concerned at the moment.
Here are a few examples:
| Exodus 6:9 | "anguish of spirit" |
| Psalm 78:8 | "whose spirit was not faithful to God" |
| Proverbs 16:32 | "he who rules his spirit" |
| Isaiah 26:9 | "by my spirit within me I will seek you early" |
| Isaiah 29:24 | "these also who erred in spirit" |
| Daniel 5:20 | "his spirit was hardened" |
| Zechariah 13:2 | "unclean spirit" |
In the New Testament, the corresponding word in Greek is pneuma (as in our word pneumatic). The primitive meanings of this are the same as for ruach, but, with one exception, it is always translated "spirit". (The exception is John 3:8, where it is translated "wind": however, a good case can be made for "spirit" here too).
Here are some examples of how it is used in relation to man:
| Luke 1:47 | "my spirit has rejoiced" |
| John 13:21 | "troubled in spirit" |
| Acts 17:16 | "his spirit was provoked within him" |
| Romans 1:9 | "whom I serve with my spirit" |
| 1 Corinth. 7:34 | "holy both in body and in spirit" |
| 1 Corinth. 16:18 | "they refreshed my spirit and yours" |
| Ephesians 4:23 | "be renewed in the spirit of your mind" |
These examples, and there are more, illustrate how the word "spirit", when used of man in both the Old and New Testaments, has to do with his thoughts, attitudes, emotions and moral sense.
In 2 Corinthians chapter 6, Paul argues that a believer ought not to have liaisons with an unbeliever, and especially not with the pagans: "What agreement has the temple of God with idols?" He continues, and on into chapter 7:
"Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty. Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." (2 Cor. 6:16 - 17:1)
The believers are urged to "cleanse" themselves from the defilement associated with things "unclean", the worship of the pagan gods. The ideas incorporated in pagan worship would defile their thoughts, attitudes, emotions and moral understanding; they would lead to their spirits, and consequently their behaviour, being unclean. What kinds of things might Paul have had in mind from which the spirits of the Corinthians needed cleansing? Here are some examples:
| Proverbs 16:18 | "haughty spirit" |
| Ecclesiastes 7:8 | "proud in spirit" |
| Hosea 4:12 | "spirit of prostitution" |
| Luke 4:33 | "spirit of an unclean demon" |
| Romans 8:15 | "spirit of bondage" |
| Romans 11:8 | "spirit of stupor" |
| 1 Tim. 4:1 | "deceiving spirits" |
| 1 John 4:6 | "spirit of error" |
All of these could be described appropriately as unclean or evil spirits. In contrast, there are the following:
| Proverbs 11:13 | "faithful in spirit" |
| Proverbs 16:19 | "humble spirit" |
| Ecclesiastes 7:8 | "patient in spirit" |
| 1 Cor. 4:21 | "spirit of gentleness" |
| 2 Cor. 4:13 | "spirit of faith" |
| Eph. 1:17 | "spirit of wisdom" |
| 2 Tim.1:7 | "spirit ... of power and of love and of a sound mind" |
| 1 Peter 3:4 | "a gentle and quiet spirit" |
Here we have spirits, qualities of holiness, which Paul was looking for in the Corinthian believers. They correspond with those characteristics of the holy spirit of God revealed to perfection in the Lord Jesus:
| Galatians 5:22 | "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control" |
Parallel to the two categories of positive and negative spiritual characteristics set out above, there are verses which refer to being filled with them:
| Matt. 23:25 | "full of extortion and self-indulgence" |
| Matt. 23:28 | "full of hypocrisy and lawlessness" |
| Luke 4:28 | "filled with wrath" |
| Luke 6:11 | "filled with rage" |
| Acts 5:17 | "filled with indignation" |
| Acts 13:45 | "filled with envy" |
| Romans 1:29 | "filled with ... unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, ... envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness;" |
To speak of being "filled" with a spirit of such a kind as these is very close to being described as "having an unclean spirit" and, hence, being "possessed with a demon". There may, however, be a difference of degree; a point to which we shall return later.
It is notable that the condition described in the Romans reference (1:29) is found in those who "changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man - and birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things" (v. 23). That is to say, they had abandoned God for idolatry. The next verse says: "Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness in the lusts of their hearts ..." So we have another link here between pagan religions and unclean aspects of thought and behaviour.
On the positive side, we find the following:
| John 1:14 | "full of grace and truth" |
| Romans 15:14 | "full of goodness, filled with all knowledge" |
| 2 Corinth. 7:4 | "filled with comfort" |
| Ephesians 3:19 | "filled with all the fullness of God" |
| Philippians 1:11 | "filled with the fruits of righteousness" |
| Colossians 1:9 | "filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding" |
| 2 Timothy 1:4 | "filled with joy" |
| James 3:17 | "full of mercy and good fruits" |
There are other references which show that, as far as these qualities are concerned, the believer is expected to abandon those which are unclean and cultivate these of a holy nature in their stead. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul writes of being "renewed in the spirit of your mind" (Eph. 4:23), and later exhorts his readers to "be filled with the Spirit" (Eph. 5:18). To the Romans (8:9) he says "Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his." Notice how to "have the Spirit of Christ" is both parallel to and contrasts with "having an unclean spirit".
Elsewhere, Paul elaborates on what he means by using various figures of speech. A common one is the idea of putting an old garment off and new one on, as in the following example:
"But now you must also put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language ... do not lie ... since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created him ... therefore ... put on tender mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering ... put on love..." (Colossians 3:8,9,10,12)
This passage, and there are many others like it, shows that in some measure it must be within the believers' capabilities to "put off the old man" and "put on the new", to cleanse themselves from unclean spirits and be filled instead with a holy spirit. If this were not so, would the apostle exhort them to do it? Surely he would not ask them to do something which is impossible.
Nevertheless, in human frailty, however much believers desire to cultivate such a holy spirit, they will fall far short of the perfection seen in the Son of God. If the desire is genuine, it will, of course, be reflected in their prayers. James exhorts "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him (James 1:5). Later, he sets out the holy spiritual characteristics of that wisdom: "the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy." (3:17).
In most of his letters, Paul prays for his readers in the same terms, the following being a typical example:
"And this is my prayer, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." (Philippians 1:9-11)
"Filled" with the fruits of righteousness, instead of being "possessed" by an unclean spirit.
However, when we come to those having "unclean spirits" or "demons" in the Gospels and the Acts, it would seem that, for some of them at least, their obsession with pagan ideas had brought them to such a state that there was little, if anything, which they could do to help themselves. It needed a miracle to rid them of the malign thoughts, feelings and moral corruption which had taken possession of their minds, and to heal them of the resulting mental disturbance.
But there would be other poor folk, already mentally handicapped, or suffering from epilepsy or profound dumbness, or combinations of these afflictions, whose abnormal behaviour would lead observers to attribute this to possession by a demon, an unclean spirit. The sufferers themselves flight come to believe this, and again it would need a miracle to effect a cure for the affliction and to remove the erroneous ideas from their minds.
There are some sombre warnings here for us in these modern days. As the opening chapter illustrated, in some countries there are still people who believe in other gods than the God of the Bible, including gods, or demons, which they imagine can possess men and women. We have seen, in scripture, how such ideas can seriously disturb the mental and moral health of those who believe them.
But even in countries where few people believe such ideas, other things are often allowed to take the place of God in people's lives. Paul described "covetousness" as "idolatry" (Colossians 3:5). Men and women can become obsessed with the pursuit of money, possessions, pleasures of all kinds, power and the fulfilment of ambitions. For many people, these are the gods, the demons, of today, by which their minds are possessed. When such things become the dominant influences in the lives of men and women, their thinking and behaviour can become seriously distorted and far away from the kind of life which the Bible teaches us to follow:
"whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue, if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things ... and the God of peace will be with you." (Philippians 4:8-9)
Easier said than done. The demons of this present world are all too close to each one of us. But we need not despair for, as Paul teaches in many like prayers, help is at hand:
"Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good work and word" (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)
and
"may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ." (2 Thessalonians 3:5)
Even so, none of us, however good our intentions, and however sincere our prayers, will be anywhere near fully cleansed of "unclean spirits" until our hearts are established "blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints." (1 Thessalonians 3:13).