How the spiritual realm influences us

This is the second of a series of articles about the spiritual realm and its influence on us. This may seem a strange topic, especially for us Torah-observant believers in Y’shua. It is a topic that is often ignored or not much talked about, especially in this movement.

When YHVH revealed the truth to us that His law has not been done away with and that all His commandments were still valid, basically that we have been lied to all our lives, we put all things identified with Christianity aside. For many years, we have focused on learning how to keep YHVH’s commandments, while unlearning all the ingrained untruths. However, we believe that YHVH is guiding us to learn more about the spiritual realm, especially how we can be influenced by it and how to deal with it when we are. This will become even more important as things progress toward the second coming of Messiah Y’shua.

The world is immersed in darkness and we as believers must know how to navigate through it in order to live effective lives. This is a daily battle and we are to be properly equipped. We will otherwise be defeated or distracted so much that we will not be able to do what we are here to do. Speaking of being distracted, this has been a very difficult article to write, I wonder why?…

Ephesians 6:12
¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

This war is against us, the believers. The adversary is not interested in unbelievers, they are his. They are no threat to him.

Revelation 12:17
¹⁷ So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of Elohim and hold to the testimony of Y’shua.

This is us and we must be prepared for this. We would like you to join us on this journey to learn about the spiritual realm and how it influences us. We will use Scripture as our foundation to learn more about this.

The Spiritual and physical realms are interconnected

It is important to understand that the spiritual and physical realms are interconnected. What we do in the physical realm will have an effect in the spiritual realm and vice versa. Think about this… do you realize what the impact is of what we say and do on a daily basis?

We have also proven this from Scripture as far as health and healing are concerned. We have learned that many of our ailments are a result of or a manifestation of something spiritual. We have learned how the sin of unforgiveness, bitterness or fear can cause sickness in our bodies. Here are links to all these articles in case you missed them:

His perfect will is not to heal you ; What do we do with disease and The spiritual fix for fear.

This study will give you even more understanding as to why this is so. This is not only true for health, but also for other areas of our lives. We will show you from Scripture how this works.

Before we do, we need to understand what ha satan’s plan is. His plan is to distract us in order to prevent us from doing what YHVH has planned for us to do or to destroy our faith. He uses our shortcomings to achieve this. We will show you a few characteristics of ha satan, in order for you to understand this plan better, but we first need to understand YHVH’s plan.

What is YHVH’s plan

YHVH’s plan is to reconcile mankind back to Him. He wants to dwell among His people and be their Elohim as in the garden of Eden. He also gave mankind free will, He wants us to choose Him and obey Him. YHVH has made this reconcilement possible through Y’shua, but we must choose to accept it, by faith in and obedience to Him. YHVH is patient, full of mercy and long-suffering and do not want anyone to perish.

What is ha satan’s plan?

Ha satan, on the other hand, is focused on himself, he wants to rule. From Scripture we learn that he has rebelled against YHVH’s authority. This fall of ha satan is described in Isaiah 14:10-17. He wanted to exalt himself above YHVH and was thrown down to the earth. He is now referred to as the god of this world.

2 Corinthians 4:4
⁴ in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Messiah, who is the image of Elohim.

Or the ruler of this world whose role it is to lie and deceive.

John 12:31
³¹ “Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.

1 John 5:19
¹⁹ We know that we are of Elohim, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

Revelation 12:9
⁹ And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

It is also said of him that he is the father of lies

John 8:44
⁴⁴ “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

All false ideologies, deceptions, false religions and other lies originated from him. He is the deceiver of the world. He mixes some truth with lies and deceives many people. He does this in order to impede YHVH’s plan. He knows his time is limited and if he can distract people and destroy their faith, he may have a little more time. In the meantime, we as believers are a threat to him and for this reason, he will look for ways to tempt, steal from, kill and destroy us.

However, it is very important to know that YHVH is always in control. My friend Lydia describes it so well. She said “everything that happens to us is filtered through the fingers of our Heavenly Father.” He always remains in control, but can allow ha satan and his host to affect our lives. You can learn more about this from our previous article An introduction to the spiritual realm. In this article, you will learn how YHVH uses His heavenly council to effect His will on earth.

We have written much about spiritual affliction, but what does spiritual affliction look like?

What does spiritual affliction look like?

We all experience spiritual affliction in varying degrees. Things like strife in a marriage, attitudes or rebellion in our children, relationship issues, difficulties at work, depression or outbursts of anger could all be manifestations of spiritual affliction. Suicidal tendencies, chronic illness, feelings of defeat and hopelessness are some other examples. There may also be manifestations like having “a hole in your purse” or your land may show characteristics of being cursed. We have done an in-depth study on defiled land. There is no such thing as coincidence, every action has a reaction and what we sow, we shall reap. This is a spiritual principle spoken of in Scripture.

What causes this spiritual affliction?

There are many causes for spiritual affliction. We will look at some here.

In the book of Job, we learn that YHVH can use the adversary to test a believer.

A test from YHVH

In Job 1, ha satan basically told YHVH, that Job is righteous only because of the blessing and protection he receives from YHVH.

Job 1:8–11
⁸ YHVH said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing Elohim and turning away from evil.” ⁹ Then Satan answered YHVH, “Does Job fear Elohim for nothing? ¹⁰ “Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. ¹¹ “But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.”

YHVH allowed him to test Job to see if this was so. This test was not for YHVH, He knew Job’s heart, but for ha satan to prove to him that Job chose to be righteous out of love for YHVH.

Job 1:12
¹² Then YHVH said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.” So Satan departed from the presence of YHVH.

From this passage, it is clear that YHVH allowed ha satan to afflict Job, but he was told that he was not allowed to take his life. Job passed the test and proved to ha satan that he will remain righteous no matter what happens to him. YHVH afterwards replaced everything Job has lost and doubled it. There are other reasons for spiritual affliction.

Discipline or judgment from YHVH

In many other passages, we learn that YHVH can also use ha satan or angels to discipline.

After David committed the sin of numbering the people, YHVH gave him three choices to punish him. He chose to fall into the hand of YHVH. First YHVH sent a pestilence and then an angel to destroy.

1 Chronicles 21:15
¹⁵ And Elohim sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; but as he was about to destroy it, YHVH saw and was sorry over the calamity, and said to the destroying angel, “It is enough; now relax your hand.” And the angel of YHVH was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

Abimelech killed all Gideon’s sons. This is how YHVH used an evil spirit to discipline him.

Judges 9:23–24
²³ Then Elohim sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech, ²⁴ so that the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and their blood might be laid on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the men of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to kill his brothers.

Saul sinned against YHVH on more than one occasion, but did not repent. The Spirit of YHVH departed from him, and YHVH sent an evil spirit to torment him. YHVH wanted Saul to turn back to Him, but he chose not to.

1 Samuel 16:14
¹⁴ Now the Spirit of YHVH departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from YHVH terrorized him.

Ahab was an unrighteous king and YHVH had decided that he was to die. He sat with His council and this is what was decided. One of His council would go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of Ahab’s prophets.

1 Kings 22:19–22
¹⁹ Micaiah said, “Therefore, hear the word of YHVH. I saw YHVH sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right and on His left. ²⁰ “YHVH said, ‘Who will entice Ahab to go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one said this while another said that. ²¹ “Then a spirit came forward and stood before YHVH and said, ‘I will entice him.’ ²² “YHVH said to him, ‘How?’ And he said, ‘I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ Then He said, ‘You are to entice him and also prevail. Go and do so.’

From these verses, we learn that YHVH can and does use spiritual beings to discipline people, righteous or unrighteous.

A third reason for spiritual affliction is not related to our personal sin, but related to the sin that entered the world.

Sin in the world

We are in this world, but not of this world. When we sin, there are consequences, for us and for those around us. The sin of others, especially idolatry, in this world does have an impact on us. The spiritual powers behind these idols will try to destroy our relationship with YHVH and rob us from our covenantal protection. To grasp this concept, it is necessary to understand the spiritual impact of Babel. It is too much information to include here.

Curses brought or spoken over us by others and ourselves

Words have power. We have written about this previously. As we said before, the physical manifests in the spiritual and the spiritual in the physical. So when we speak something over someone, that will cause a reaction. When we speak blessing or life, blessing and life will manifest, but when we speak a curse, a curse will manifest unless we are protected by YHVH. To give you an example, parents may sometimes become exasperated with their children and speak things over them in anger. They may say something like “you will never amount to anything” These words have the power to influence the rest of their lives. This parent speaking this, is in a position of authority over that child and it will therefore come to pass unless it is cancelled. Ha satan will use these words over and over to break down this child and the child will believe these words and it will manifest in his or her life.

When we speak something over another person, we give ha satan the power to act on it. We are giving him an opportunity to use our words.

Ephesians 4:27
²⁷ and do not give the devil an opportunity.

There are quite a few references in Scripture of curses pronounced over people. A good example is the passage telling how Balak wanted to curse Israel. He wanted Balaam to curse Israel in order for him to gain victory over them.

Numbers 22:6
⁶ “Now, therefore, please come, curse this people for me since they are too mighty for me; perhaps I may be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

Balaam as a prophet had some authority to bless and to curse. YHVH prevented him from speaking a curse over Israel. This proves to me that curses pronounced can have an impact, why would YHVH not allow it, if it has none. People can speak a curse over us

Another example of a curse is with regard to the rebuilding of Jericho.

Joshua 6:26
²⁶ Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, “Cursed before YHVH is the man who rises up and builds this city Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates.”

This came to pass.

1 Kings 16:34
³⁴ In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho; he laid its foundations with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of YHVH, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

David often prayed to YHVH to curse his enemies: Psalm 55:15, 69:28, 109:8, 35:6 and Ps 58:6 are examples of this. With these prayers he prayed for YHVH’s judgment upon his enemies.

In Psalm 35:6 he prayed “may their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of YHVH pursuing them”

Curses spoken against us will have power over us only if YHVH allows it. YHVH can use this the same way he can use ha satans other devices.

Isaiah 54:17
¹⁷ “No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; And every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of YHVH, And their vindication is from Me,” declares YHVH.

We can bring curses over ourselves and our children by being disobedient to YHVH.

The sins of the fathers or generational curses

When we study the topic of spiritual warfare, we often hear the term “generational curses. ” The question is: is this biblical?

When you read Leviticus 26:14-46 and Deuteronomy 28:15-68, we read about curses that were spoken by YHVH, for covenantal unfaithfulness. These are warnings spoken by YHVH to show us what will happen if we do not mend our ways. These come into effect when we disobey His commandments. YHVH may use people or spiritual forces or spiritual forces in people to make this come to pass.

This covenantal unfaithfulness is often referred to as the sins of the fathers. It is because this is transferred from generation to generation. For this reason, we can refer to the curses incurred due to covenantal unfaithfulness as generational curses. We find an example of this in 2 Kings 17:41.

2 Kings 17:41
⁴¹ So while these nations feared YHVH, they also served their idols; their children likewise and their grandchildren, as their fathers did, so they do to this day.

We have written much on this topic before: The sins of our fathers and Shavuot, Preparing for the Fall feasts and a few others.

We have also been affected by this. As children, we were taught a religion that served YHVH in a way, while living in disobedience to Him and following pagan traditions like Christmas, Halloween, Easter etc. This was done by our fathers and father’s father. We practiced covenantal unfaithfulness and were suffering the consequences of the curses due to the sins of our fathers. These curses are the punishment for doing this.

These curses can be broken by repentance and returning to YHVH in obedience. When we do this YHVH will restore us back to Him.

Leviticus 26:40–42
⁴⁰ ‘If they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their forefathers, in their unfaithfulness which they committed against Me, and also in their acting with hostility against Me— ⁴¹ I also was acting with hostility against them, to bring them into the land of their enemies—or if their uncircumcised heart becomes humbled so that they then make amends for their iniquity, ⁴² then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and I will remember also My covenant with Isaac, and My covenant with Abraham as well, and I will remember the land.

Spiritual affliction, whatever the cause, is allowed by YHVH for a reason. Most of the time we cause it. In all this, man has free will and can either choose for or against YHVH’s kingdom. Our choices will determine the outcome. Allow me to show you how.

Not only does YHVH allow this in our lives, He can and does also protect us from this.

A protective hedge

In the book of Job, we learn that YHVH makes a protective hedge around every believer. We can call this covenantal protection. YHVH is also called our stronghold in Scripture. We shall look in more detail into this in the article about defiled land.

Job 1:10
¹⁰ “Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.

This is confirmed in Psalm 34 and Zechariah 2.

Psalm 34:7
⁷ The angel of YHVH encamps around those who fear Him, And rescues them.

Zechariah 2:5
⁵ ‘For I,’ declares YHVH, ‘will be a wall of fire around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.’ ”

This hedge was removed by YHVH and He thus allowed ha satan to afflict Job to prove that Job will remain faithful and righteous. This hedge can also be removed by YHVH as a result of sin. In Isaiah, Israel is spoken of as YHVH’s vineyard, and YHVH said he would remove the hedge around them due to their sin.

Isaiah 5:5
⁵ “So now let Me tell you what I am going to do to My vineyard: I will remove its hedge and it will be consumed; I will break down its wall and it will become trampled ground.

As we have seen above, it could be a test or a trial to make us grow. It could also be as a result of our sin.

In Ecclesiastes, it is written that he who breaks through a wall or hedge will be bitten by a serpent.

Ecclesiastes 10:8
⁸ He who digs a pit may fall into it, and a serpent may bite him who breaks through a wall.

Ecclesiastes 10:8
⁸ He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him.

It is not the same Hebrew word that was used, but the analogy is similar in that when this protection is taken away, we shall be bitten by a serpent. This verse in Ecclesiastes, is referring to a spiritual hedge, not physical. We all know the saying “if you dig a pit for someone else, you will fall into it” It is derived from this verse and we know it is an analogy, because we know that digging a physical pit for water for example does not mean we will necessarily fall into it. In this case it is clear that we are responsible for breaking this hedge. Our sin causes YHVH to remove this hedge of protection around us.

This is also described in a different way in the epistle to the Ephesians. It is said when we sin, we give ground or a place to ha satan.

A place to ha satan

This ground or place gives him a foot in the door, so to speak.

Ephesians 4:27
²⁷ and do not give the devil an opportunity.

In other translations, it was translated as “do not give a place to satan”

The context of the verse is about being angry, but not to sin and so give ha satan a place or opportunity in our life. So, we can conclude from this that when we sin, not only do we cause YHVH to remove the hedge of protection around us, but we also give ha satan and his demons an opportunity to afflict or tempt us further. Another way in which we give ha satan and his host an opportunity is by having that which is an abomination to YHVH in our homes, but more about this in future.

We have now seen how we can be afflicted spiritually for different reasons. Are these afflictions the same as demon possession? The question we need to answer is: can a believer be possessed by a demon or demons?

Can a believer be possessed by a demon or demons?

We need to be careful how we answer this question. Possession means ownership. We do not own demons and they don’t own us, but they can have control over us or influence us. A better way to put it is to say we are demonized or under the control or influence of a demon/s or associated with. In Luke 4:33, we read of a man in the synagogue who was afflicted by a demon. He must have been a believer to have been in the synagogue? Let us test this by asking another question. Can a Spirit-filled, Torah-observant believer in Y’shua sin? The answer is yes, he or she can. We have seen in the previous sections how sin in our lives can cause YHVH to remove the protective hedge around us and how we give a place to ha satan when we sin. Also, when we sin, we become spiritually defiled, and when we are defiled, we can come under the influence of demons or demonized. Defilement creates a habitat for them, being defiled creatures themselves.

We previously did a study on spiritual defilement: Spiritual uncleanness and shadows…

When we did this study, we learned how the physical is a shadow of the spiritual and how sin defiles us spiritually, causing this habitat and separation between us and YHVH. This separation is caused because YHVH has no fellowship with darkness.

2 Corinthians 6:14–15
¹⁴ Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? ¹⁵ Or what harmony has Messiah with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever?

This is why YHVH commanded us to be holy for He is holy.

Leviticus 11:44
⁴⁴ ‘For I am YHVH your Elohim. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth.

Titus 1:15
¹⁵ To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled.

Defilement of the mind

It starts with defilement of the mind. A mind is defiled by impure thoughts and a conscience by impure deeds. The one leads to the other.

Matthew 15:18–20
¹⁸ “But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. ¹⁹ “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. ²⁰ “These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man.”

The heart can be influenced by ha satan or demons. Here are a few examples from Scripture:

David was moved by ha satan to number Israel.

1 Chronicles 21:1
¹ Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel.

In the book of Kings, we read about how YHVH said he will put a spirit in Sennacherib – king of Assyria- so that he will hear a rumor which will cause him to return to his own land. There YHVH will make him fall by the sword because he blasphemed YHVH.

2 Kings 19:7
⁷ “Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor and return to his own land. And I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.” ’ ”

Peter spoke against Y’shua’s suffering and being killed. Where did this come from? Y’shue gave us the answer in his rebuke against Peter.

Matthew 16:22–23
²² Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “Elohim forbid it, Master! This shall never happen to You.” ²³ But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on Elohim’s interests, but man’s.”

Acts 5:3
³ But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land?

John 13:2
² During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him,

Later, ha satan entered into him…

John 13:27
²⁷ After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore Y’shua said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”

From this verse and the passage about YHVH sending an evil spirit to torment Saul (1 Sam 16:15, 16 and 1 Sam 18:10; 19:9), it seems that a believer can because of continually choosing to sin becomes more controlled by a demon/s. It was translated that the evil spirit came upon him. In the article about demons we will go into more details as to what this means. Saul started to refer to YHVH as Samuel’s Elohim. We could also see from his behavior that he was controlled by this evil spirit.

Not only does ha satan plant thoughts in our minds, but he also appeals to our flesh by tempting us in areas where we have weaknesses. If your weakness is lust, you will be tempted in this area, if it is addiction, that’s where you will be tempted. These weaknesses are a result of sins we have committed in the past. To give you an example, someone who has never smoked will less likely be tempted by a cigarette that a smoker who stopped smoking. The “sins of the fathers” also play a role here, but more on this later.

We are to resist these temptations by fleeing from them. Do not allow yourself to be in situations where you might be tempted in these weak areas. Don’t think you are strong enough and will be able to stop. There is no such thing as a little bit of sin. Sin is sin, a little bit or a lot. Ha satan will first tempt us to compromise a little, then tempt us more and slowly he will draw us further and further away from YHVH. That is his plan. However, through this plan he may impede, but not defeat YHVH’s ultimate plan.

To recap: it is important to understand that any sin we commit can cause spiritual affliction or demonic influence in our lives. This sin causes YHVH to remove His protective hedge and causes separation between us and YHVH. Without protection, we are a sitting duck for ha satan and his schemes. Why does YHVH allow this? It may sound strange, but this too is mercy towards us because YHVH uses this oppression to get us to return to Him.

We have experienced how YHVH is urging us and other believers to make sure we live pure and holy lives. YHVH has always required it of us, but if you understand the workings of the spiritual realm, you should comprehend that this is of the utmost importance. We cannot afford to compromise.

What to do if we are demonized?

This will not be a detailed answer to this question, but this is a start. We will in future articles focus more on getting free from demonization.

The first step is to determine what caused this demonization. Did we commit sin or is it a test? This reminds me of the film Uzhpizim we watched during Sukkot. This is a great movie! I won’t do it justice to tell you more about it, but will just mention a few things. The characters were facing a difficult situation, two prison escapees from the man’s past came to them during Sukkot. They invited them to be their guests, but were afflicted by them almost causing separation between husband and wife. Anyway, they also asked the question what sin have we committed or are we being tested? The story proceeds with them dealing with this situation from both these perspectives.

So, the first step is introspection and prayer. We have to pray and even fast to find out if we have sinned in any way that caused YHVH to remove His protective hedge around us. Ask YHVH to show you what is causing whatever you are experiencing.

The next step is repentance, sincere repentance from the heart. Also, remember to repent is to turn away from. We are to leave this sin behind. In the book of James it is written that we are to submit to YHVH. He allows whatever we are experiencing.

James 4:7
7 Submit therefore to Elohim. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

First, we are to submit to YHVH, humble ourselves before YHVH. He allowed this either as a test or discipline. This is how we are to do this:

James 4:8–10
8 Draw near to Elohim and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the presence of YHVH, and He will exalt you.

We can do this by prayer and fasting. YHVH may reveal the root of the problem to us. The next step is to resist ha satan. After we have repented of sin, we may be tempted again by ha satan.

Resist the devil and he will flee from you. How do we do this?

How did Y’shua resist ha satan? He resisted him by quoting scripture accurately (Matt 4:1-11). In order for us to do this, we are to know YHVH’s word. That is where Scripture memorization comes in. That is how we equip ourselves to prevent temptation from overcoming us. This is by no means a remedy

Conclusion

We hope to have shown you, if you have not been aware, that we are influenced by the spiritual realm on a daily basis. Nothing is random or coincidence. The physical and spiritual realms are interconnected. Whatever we do in the physical does have spiritual consequences and vice versa. We have also given you a few examples of what spiritual affliction looks like and what the possible causes of it could be.

It is important to know that YHVH and ha satan are not two equal, but opposing forces. YHVH is the King of the Universe, He controls and allows everything that happens. He created ha satan and all the other spiritual beings. They, like us, have free will and ha satan chose to rebel against YHVH. He is still in rebellion, and will for this reason continue to try and oppose YHVH’s ultimate plan. However, if you read the end of the book, you will know that he has been defeated.

1 John 4:4
⁴ You are from Elohim, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

We too can live in victory, if we know how to identify and deal with the schemes of the adversary. This is not all there is to be said on this topic, but enough for now. We will end this article with Psalm 91, a psalm of deliverance.

Psalm 91, a psalm of deliverance

Psalm 91:1–16
¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. ² I will say to YHVH, “My refuge and my fortress, My Elohim, in whom I trust!” ³ For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper And from the deadly pestilence. ⁴ He will cover you with His pinions, And under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. ⁵ You will not be afraid of the terror by night, Or of the arrow that flies by day; ⁶ Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon. ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side And ten thousand at your right hand, But it shall not approach you. ⁸ You will only look on with your eyes And see the recompense of the wicked. ⁹ For you have made YHVH, my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place. ¹⁰ No evil will befall you, Nor will any plague come near your tent. ¹¹ For He will give His angels charge concerning you, To guard you in all your ways. ¹² They will bear you up in their hands, That you do not strike your foot against a stone. ¹³ You will tread upon the lion and cobra, The young lion and the serpent you will trample down. ¹⁴ “Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name. ¹⁵ “He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. ¹⁶ “With a long life I will satisfy him And let him see My salvation.”

References

1. All quoted passages are from the New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update. LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995. We have substituted YHVH for LORD, and Y’shua for Jesus
2. Swanson, J. (1997). Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek (New Testament) (electronic ed.). Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
3. Stern, D. H. (1996). Jewish New Testament Commentary : a companion volume to the Jewish New Testament (electronic ed., Jas 4:7). Clarksville: Jewish New Testament Publications.