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Demons by Dr. Michael S. Heiser:
The subtitle of Dr. Michael Heiser’s book, Demons: What the Bible Really Says about the Powers of Darkness, is perfect because it dispels many of the popular conceptions surrounding demonic forces and grounds us firmly in the Biblical accounts. Heiser accomplishes this in a manner that is both accessible to a popular audience and fascinating to those wishing to better understand the supernatural Christian worldview.
In my novel, I include a demon who is a disembodied spirit. The demon is the unnatural offspring of angels and humans – a ghost of the Nephilim. Demons demonstrates why that is a Biblically accurate depiction. Heiser goes on to explain many other aspects of demonology that the popular culture is generally unaware of. For instance, there were three demonic rebellions against God, not just one:
The first rebellion occurred when Satan decided he wanted to rule instead of serve. He tempted Adam and Eve and brought about humanity’s fall from grace.
The second rebellion is hinted at in Genesis 6 where the sons of God take human wives and produce the monstrous Nephilim. A deep dive into the pseudepigrapha 1 Enoch describes the emergence of this unholy race as a primary cause of the Biblical flood. The giants were killed, but their spirits became the demons that humanity still struggles against.
The third rebellion occurred during the fall of the Tower of Babel. Psalm 82 finds God pronouncing judgment against “lesser Gods” who were assigned to rule the Gentile nation, but instead began claiming divine worship for themselves.
Serious students of the Bible will find Heiser’s analysis both compelling and thorough. Yet Demons is accessible enough that the general reader’s eyes can be opened to a whole realm of supernatural understanding.
