Belial

Culture: Hebrew scripture (as a term for wickedness), later personified in apocryphal and grimoire tradition   Traditional rank: King (in the Ars Goetia)

Belial's name originates in Hebrew scripture as an expression meaning "worthlessness" or "wickedness," only later personified as an individual demonic figure in intertestamental Jewish literature (such as the Dead Sea Scrolls) and eventually incorporated into the Ars Goetia, where he is described as appearing in a chariot of fire and traditionally associated with worldly favor and rank.

Associations

The evolution of an abstract Hebrew term into a personified figure, historical demonological catalogs.

Ways people engage with this material (modern)

• Research the linguistic origin of the term in Hebrew scripture before it became personified
• Read Dead Sea Scroll material and later grimoire entries as two distinct historical stages
• Compare this pattern of abstract-term-to-personified-figure with similar developments elsewhere in religious history
• Approach the material as historical and literary study

Approach any deity with respect and do your own research. Practices vary widely between traditions, and modern devotional practice often goes beyond what survives in ancient sources.