Hi all!  I had a listener email me from Glynda Lomax’s podcast, Just Praise Him where we talked about remitting sins (Podcast 1, Podcast 2, Podcast 3).  The discussion involved some particular questions but I wanted to address a demon versus a principality and when to know the difference.  This may be jumping ahead a little bit on what I want to teach in a future podcast but that’s okay.

One theory behind the origin of demons is they are the disembodied spirits of the Nephilim (the giants bore to women whom the fallen angels mated with).  There are several other theories but this is the one that I personally believe.  I know Perry Stone believes the same based on the ISOW course I took on Demonology.  Demons like to inhabit a body (see Matt 8:28-34, Mark 5:1-20, Luke 8:26-39) and Legion, who inhabited the Gadarene Demoniac, is a good example.  In that account, they knew they would get cast out and asked Jesus to send them into the pigs.  There are other verses that show that demons like to inhabit a body as well (Matt 12:43-45 and Luke 11:24-26).

A principality on the other hand, is a territorial spirit (city block, city, state, or nation) and ranks higher than a demon.  Think of the principality over Persia from Daniel 10:13.  The word “prince” used there is the Hebrew word “sar” or “sarar”.  The Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains (DBL Hebrew) provides one of the definitions this way: high ranking angel.  This is 8569 in DBL, which is equivalent to Strong’s 8269.  Also, the Whole Armor of God given to us by Paul in Ephesians 6 tells us to put on the whole armor as protection from the forces of darkness, principalities included.  “Principalities” in Eph 6:12 is Strong’s G794 which is “arche” which means “supernatural power”.  It’s my opinion these are the same things…a principality.  The devil is also referred to as the prince of power of the air.  It’s my belief these entities are in that same realm…in the air.  It’s also my belief that these principalities are fallen angels.  I don’t recall ever seeing in the Bible where a principality inhabited a body.  It’s my opinion that they would be too powerful for a human body.

How do you know when you’re addressing a demon versus a principality in warfare (for those of you who are familiar with deliverance)?  When rebuking a demon, you’re addressing the demon in a person or a demon who is harassing a person on the outside.  They can be both “in” and “on” a person.  We are never told in the Bible to address a principality.  The Whole Armor of God was given as protection against them.  Jesus never engaged a principality either…just the demons that oppressed or possessed people.  Why do we not rebuke principalities?  Because we were never given authority to do so (again, jumping ahead) and you have to understand the protocols of engagement.  In Jude, the angel named Michael understood his position when contending with the devil over the body of Moses.  The devil ranked equally or higher than Michael so he appealed to the highest authority when he stated “The Lord rebuke you!”.  Michael understood his level of authority and was “in order”.  So, do not address these principalities…stay in your level of authority with the demons and you will be safe.  Stick to warring against the demons.  I want to study this more though for a future lesson so I can provide better information. God bless!