#141-Lucifer (aka Naming bible characters names that they never wanted).

 Alright, so here is another informative blog. It's not even my own...it's far better than what I could've written on the subject and plus it has an optimistic ending (something I think we need more of around these parts). For now the author has yet to give permission to use their name so for now, we'll just leave the author anonymous. Also, a challenging study, do an in depth study of satan, it will not get boring (note Job 1 & 2, I Cor. 5 for instance). 


Without futher adieu:


Is Lucifer the name of Satan?
This idea that the true name of Satan or the devil is Lucifer comes from a passage of scripture in the Old Testament, Isaiah 14:12,

How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! (KJV)

To many this verse is referring to Satan and in this paper I will assume that position.
I am not going to argue the interpretation of this passage of scripture but rather the error in thinking that Lucifer is the real/original name of Satan.

Let’s take a look at the word Lucifer. Where does this word come from? Was this word in the original Hebrew manuscripts? Why did the King James Version of the bible use the word Lucifer in Isaiah 14:12? The word Lucifer is a Latin word from the words lucem ferre, and it literally means “light-bearer”. In the Latin language it was used to describe the planet Venus, which is the third planet from the sun and the third brightest object in the night sky. Venus appears in the night sky an hour or so before sunrise so they gave it the name Lucifer (light-bearer, bringer of light) because it brought the morning. So, was this word used in the original Hebrew manuscripts that the bible was written in? No, the bible was not written in Latin and the word wasn’t even invented yet. So what word was used in Isaiah 14:12? This is the only place in the KJV bible that you will see the word Lucifer but the original Hebrew word is Heylel, which means light-bearer, shining one, morning star. This same Hebrew word is translated into “to shine” in Job 29:2-3.

The author of Isaiah was not trying to reveal to us some mystical hidden name of Satan. He was giving us a description of the angelic being that ounce dwelt in the presence of Jehovah. Satan must have been a glorious angelic being that shined like the morning star that is why the Hebrew word Heylel is used here.

If you want to imagine Lucifer to be the name of Satan then you run in to some big problems when you get to the New Testament, mainly that Jesus Christ is referred to as the mourning star (Lucifer in Latin). One of these scriptures is 2 Peter 1:19,
Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts. (NLT)

Here Christ is referred to as the morning star and in the Latin Vulgate the word used is Lucifer. As you can see Lucifer can not be the name of Satan because if it was the 2 Peter 1:19 would be saying to wait until the day dawns and Christ Lucifer shines in your hearts.

The reason why this misconception has gone so far is that people don’t get into the word of God like they should. The Word is not just for the preachers and pastors to study, every saint should be a studier. We must become lovers and studiers of the Word of God. 2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.” 2 Timothy 2:15 “Work hard so God can approve you. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.”