What Can We Know About Demons?
1) Direct Answer
Demons are real, personal, unclean spirits. They are under Satan’s rule, they seek embodiment, they deceive, torment, and oppress, and they war against the Word of God. They fear the Lord Jesus Christ and are subject to His Name. A born‑again believer, sealed with the Holy Spirit, cannot be demon‑possessed, though he can be attacked or oppressed. Their end is judgment, and they cannot cross the Blood of Jesus Christ.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- What they are:
- The Bible calls them “unclean spirits” and “devils” (demons): Mark 1:23–27; Matthew 10:1.
- They are many and have ranks: “We wrestle… against principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness, spiritual wickedness” (Ephesians 6:12). A “legion” spoke from one man (Mark 5:1–13).
- They are persons without bodies, they speak, reason, and beg (Mark 5:7–12). They seek rest and embodiment; when cast out, they wander and try to return to an empty life (Matthew 12:43–45). They can even enter animals (Mark 5:13).
- What they do:
- Deceive and teach error: “doctrines of devils” (1 Timothy 4:1). A lying spirit can influence prophets (1 Kings 22:21–23).
- Imitate the supernatural: a spirit of divination operated in a girl until the Name of Jesus drove it out (Acts 16:16–18).
- Afflict bodies and minds: Jesus rebuked a “spirit of infirmity” (Luke 13:11–16), a deaf and dumb spirit with seizures (Mark 9:17–27), and even rebuked a fever (Luke 4:39). The Scripture says people were “oppressed of the devil” and healed by Jesus (Acts 10:38).
- Their limits and defeat:
- They know Jesus and tremble (Mark 1:24; James 2:19). They begged not to be tormented “before the time” (Matthew 8:29).
- Authority is given to believers: “In My Name shall they cast out devils” (Mark 16:17). “I give you power… over all the power of the enemy” (Luke 10:19).
- The devil is one being, not omnipresent; demons are many (1 Peter 5:8; Mark 5:9). They are driven back by the Word and the Blood (Matthew 4:1–11; Revelation 12:11).
- A believer sealed by the Holy Spirit belongs to God; the wicked one cannot lay hold of him to possess his soul (Ephesians 1:13; 4:30; 1 John 5:18; John 10:28–29).
- Open doors and resistance:
- Sin, bitterness, and occult involvement give place to the devil (Ephesians 4:26–27; 2 Corinthians 2:10–11; Deuteronomy 18:10–12; 1 Corinthians 10:20).
- We overcome by repentance and renouncing darkness (Acts 19:18–19), submitting to God and resisting the devil (James 4:7), standing in the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:10–18). Some cases require prayer and fasting (Mark 9:29).
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- Demons are not imaginations; they are real spirits because they speak, know, fear, choose, and obey when commanded in Jesus’ Name.
- They crave bodies; an “empty house” is a target. Therefore deliverance without being filled with the Holy Spirit and the Word invites a worse return (Matthew 12:44–45).
- Not every sickness means possession, but all oppression and bondage trace back to Satan’s kingdom. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil, so healing and deliverance are part of His victory (1 John 3:8; Acts 10:38).
- A Christian can be tempted or oppressed, but cannot be demon‑possessed in the soul when sealed by the Holy Spirit. Keep the door shut by walking clean, keeping the Word, and staying filled with the Spirit.
4) Reinforcing Counsel
- Expose and renounce all hidden works of darkness.
- Do not argue with demons; command them in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
- Keep your “house” filled—daily Word, prayer, worship, and obedience. The devil cannot cross the Blood line. Stay under the Blood, and stand on the Word, and the enemy must flee.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
Questions and Answers on Genesis
53-0729 §27
...h is in sin, and more than that, which two-thirds of the angels was kicked out. And those demon spirits come into people and habitate their bodies. See what I mean? They're demons that once ... they once existed and they come into the people and give them a nature. Jesus cast seven of them out of Mary Magdalene: pride, boast (big people, you see), unclean, filthy, vulgarity, emulations, strife. All these things, see. Them were spirits that was made up back there when God began to make man off there in His own image...
At Thy Word, Lord
48-0305 §44
...ake Him at His Word. "Nevertheless, Lord, I will just take... [Gap in the audio.] But at Thy Word, here I come, Lord. I will take You at Your Word. Here I am, Lord. I don't know how I'm going to take this last step. I know the doctor says I'm dying... [Gap in the audio.] Thy Word, Lord, here I come." You don't know how... [Gap in the audio.] " I'm not trying to test how it can be done. Lord, at Thy Word, here I come. Nothing in my arms I bring; simply to Thy cross I cling. I'm taking You at Your Word." Shall we bow...
Reconciliation through fellowship with God
56-0120 §52
Only exalting the cross and the Lord Jesus Christ. And your personal faith in that finished work, yonder at Calvary, will make every demon shake. I know it to be the truth, friend. I'm not standing here as an impostor, I'm not standing here as a deceiver; I'm standing here knowing what I'm speaking of, and you know the truth, every one of you that has been born again of the Spirit of God. It's through the shed blood alone, nothing but the blood of Jesus. The old Salvation Army used to sing that song: Oh, precious i...
Demonology, physical realm, part 1
53-0608A §9
Now, Heavenly Father, we thank Thee this afternoon for being out here. We thank Thee for these little children that's sitting around. They're the men of tomorrow, and women, if there is a tomorrow, if Jesus tarries. And now, Father, we pray that You'll bless us now as we're talking now on Your Word, and about the great enemy we have: Satan. We pray, God, that You'll let us put a front out, a mechanized unit here of the power of God, that'll withstand him tonight in every inch of his ground, Lord. And show him that...
Demonology, religious realm, part 2
53-0609A §33
..., if there ever was one sitting there. And I ought to have called it out, but he'd have raised up and started fussing, so I just let it go on, account of the meeting. But I knowed him. Yes, sir. There's one, two of them sitting right back there the other night, belongs to a certain church right here in the city. Real critics! I seen them. But, if you would, it just starts the trouble. I've done it many times. I just let them alone, see. It's all right. God knows; He's the Judge. Let them call me one time, and then...