THINKPOD: What Everyone Gets Wrong About Demons | Michael Heiser

Demons. Many use the word, but we seem to use it in different ways. We use it metaphorically, as when we say, "He's wrestling with his demons" about characters facing inner conflict. But demons as actual, spiritual entities crop up in various religions (including Christianity and Hinduism), and even in popular entertainment (e.g. the film, "Paranormal Activity"). Within Christianity, attitudes toward demons vary by denomination. Some pay them practically no attention at all, whereas others find demons under every rock and focus lots of attention on binding demons, casting out demons, etc. And then of course, if you listened to Christian hip-hop in the 1990s, you can probably remember many a track about fighting and slaying demons (T-Bone's "Demon Executor," anyone?).   So, just what exactly *are* demons, really? On this episode, my guest is Michael Heiser, and he's going to reveal the truth about what the Bible and history actually teaches about demons.   Michael S. Heiser is a scholar of the Bible and its ancient context. He earned his MA in Ancient HIstory from UPenn and his MA and PhD from University of Wisconsin- Madison (M.A., Ph.D., Hebrew Bible and Semitic Studies). He's taught biblical studies for over twenty years, he's worked as the Scholar-in-Residence at Logos Bible Software, and is currently Executive Director of the School of Theology at Celebration Church in Jacksonville, FL. Dr. Heiser has written several best-selling books on The Unseen Realm, Angels, and topics like Enoch, the Watchers, and the Forgotten Mission of Jesus Christ. He has written a ton of other books, over 100 articles for Bible Study Magazine and several peer-reviewed articles in academic journals.  Dr. Heiser also hosts the Naked Bible Podcast and has a non-profit corporation, MIQLAT, which provides free translations of his biblical studies content in over twenty languages. As you can see, Dr. Mike Heiser is *the* perfect person to bring on to talk about this topic, and he'll be discussing his book, Demons: What the Bible Really Says About the Powers of Darkness, with Think Institute Founder Joel Settecase. Get the full show notes at https://thethink.institute/podcast.