In several sources, this evil enemy is
seen as the agent of death. (Wis 2:24; Jubilees 49:2; John 8:44; cf. Testament
of Abraham (B) 14.1-4) Hebrews goes a step further and identifies the devil as
the one who has the power of death. As Satan is always constricted by the sovereign
power of God (cf. Job 2:6), this power cannot be understood as an independent
authority to kill. Rather, the power of death must be understood in a purely
negative sense; it is the ability to deprive people of God’s live-giving force.
The devil exercises his power through deception, as in the case of Adam and Eve,
who were led to defy God’s life-giving instructions (Gen 3:1-7). In the
literature of Second Temple Judaism, the function of God’s archenemy is often
to lead people astray to idolatry and a sinful life. (Jubilees 10.708; 11.5;
19.28; 1 Enoch 6.108.4; 9.6-8) The New Testament also shows that the foremost
activity of the devil is temptation and deception. (Matt 4:1 parr.; Luke 22:3;
John 13:2, 27; Acts 5:3; 1 Cor 7:5; 2 Cor 11;14; 1 Thess 3:5; 2 Thess 2:9; 2
Tim 2:26; Rev 12:9)
Now, the devil is neutralized by
Jesus. The verb that is rendered “neutralize” (katargeĊ) is generally
capable of two different translations: “abolish” (cf. 1 Cor 6:13; 13:11; Gal
5:11) or “render powerless” (cf. Rom 3:3; Gal 3:17; Eph 2:15). Both shades of
meaning come into play here. The devil has lost his power, and he is in the
process of being eliminated. That Christ has defeated the devil is a recurring
idea in the New Testament, but the elimination of death is described as still
in progress (1 Cor 15:26). (Mark 3:23-27 parr.; John 12:31; 16:11; 1 John 3:8;
Rev 12:9-10) Hebrews also presupposes that people have to go through death
(9:27).
Jesus’s triumph over the devil may
therefore be understood in analogy with D-Day (Tuesday, June 6, 1944) of World
War II. On that day, the Allied forces landed in Normandy in France, an event
that effectively brought the end of the war. Even though the war still
continued for almost a year before the Germans capitulated on May 7, 1945, the
outcome was secured on D-Day. With Christ’s death, the devil has been defeated.
Death has not yet been eradicated, but its annihilation has been guaranteed. (Sigurd
Grindheim, The Letter to the Hebrews [The Pillar New Testament
Commentary; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2023], 182)
Further Reading:
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