Demythologizing the Satan Tradition of Historical-Criticism: A Reevaluation of the Old Testament Portrait of שָׂטָן in Light of the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha

Abstract

The traditional scholarly narrative is that Satan as a hostile independent agent did not appear within the Jewish ideological framework until after the composition of the OT. There are many theories played out by scholars to explain how this phenomenon occurred and when. In most cases, what is suggested is that שָׂטָן moves from being a role played within the divine council to antagonist as the tradition moves from Numbers to the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Using the discipline of narrative criticism, I attempt to overturn this consensus by demonstrating that no reification of שָׂטָן occurs but that Satan has been envisioned by the Jewish authors of the OT from his first appearance. He has always appeared as an individual antagonist and not a role played by a being in the heavenly court.