Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible Online

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Mastemah משׂטמה
(860 words)

I. Name

Mastemah appears as a noun meaning ‘hostility’ in OT (Hos. 9.7–8) and Qumran writings. In Qumran literature the word is mostly connected with an evil angel (Belial) and in Jub. Mastemah is always a proper name for the leader of the evil angels.

II. Identity

Maśṭēmâ originates from the Hebrew root śṭm, a by-form of śṭn (Wanke 1976: 821–822; [Satan] cf. the noun שׂטמה in 1QM. 14:9), and occurs also in Ethiopic. It is probable that the semantic evolution of Mastemah is like that of ʾAbaddôn: a noun for…

Cite this page
J. W. van Henten, “Mastemah משׂטמה”, in: Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible Online, Edited by: Karel van der Toorn, Bob Becking, Pieter W. van der Horst. Consulted online on 28 March 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2589-7802_DDDO_DDDO_Mastemah>



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