Is a Demon someone who is in hell?

Answer 1

Answer:

A demon is an "unclean spirit," as it is called in the New Testament. It's one of the angels that sinned in the beginning who joined with Satan in his rebellion against God's throne in heaven, and were cast back down to earth.

"...God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto Judgment..." (II Peter 2:4).

"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, He hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the Judgment of the Great Day." (Jude 1:6)

This "hell" of which Peter speaks is unique from the rest of the ones translated thus in the King James Version. It's the word "Tartarus" or "tartaroo."

Greek mythology would call it something like the "deepest abysmal recesses of Hades"... but it's really more on the order of "a condition of restraint" more than "a place." Strong's Definitions says: "...to incarcerate in eternal torment...".

These are "evil spirits." They must surround themselves with a "host" of some kind or they suffer great mental torment as illustrated in the story of the "feeding swine."

"...when He was come out of the ship, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him... he was in the mountains... and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.

"But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped Him, and cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the Most High God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.

"For He said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit." (Mark 5:2-8)

When Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man, it confessed that it was actually many demons possessing the man... and they begged Jesus not to cause them the torment that would result from their departure from their "host."

So, Jesus allowed them to enter into the herd of feeding swine: "...the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea." (verse13)

The Bible doesn't go into it here... but with the death of the swine, the many demons suddenly found themselves in torment anyway, and since spirit beings don't die, they soon found themselves in search of a new host.

Jesus says: "When the unclean spirit (devil, demon) is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of the man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation." (Matt.12:43-45)

A demon is not the "immortal soul" of a human living in hell. "Immortal soul" isn't in the Bible. The Bible says: "...the dead know not any thing..." (Eccle.9:5).

Demons are the one-third of God's created angels who rebelled against God's Government in the beginning. The war in heaven resulted with their being cast back down to the earth from which they launched their attack. And a great spiritual restraint was placed upon them. It's described as a condition of "darkness" where no light can penetrate. This deep spiritual darkness must be an emptiness of excruciating mental torment to a demon. And the ultimate destiny in the Judgment.

Remember, they "walk through dry places." "These are wells without water... to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever." (II Peter 2:17)

Demons: "...wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever." (Jude 1:13)