Side by side, from the sources
Belial vs Satan
These two are identified with one another in the record, which is not the same as being the same figure. Belial is a common noun for worthlessness before it is a person; the equation is Christian. Recorded by Wikidata (P460); not asserted by a text this corpus carries.
Demonic · Goetic Spirit · c. 400 BCE
Belial
also called Beliall, Beliar, Bofi
In the Hebrew Bible beliya'al is not a name but a word meaning worthlessness; by 2 Corinthians it is a person, and by the Goetia a king in a chariot of fire handing out senatorships. The text says he was created next after Lucifer and fell among the first, and will not answer truly without gifts.
- Alignment
- Infernal
- Rank
- King
- First attested
- Hebrew Bible & Deuterocanon · c. 900–100 BCE
- Named there as
- Belial
- Texts naming it
- 7
- Powers attributed
- 5
Demonic · Infernal Court · c. 400 BCE
Satan
also called ha-Satan, The Adversary, Shaitan, The Devil, Satanas, Shaytan, Sam Hill, Lord of This World
Not originally a name but an office — 'the accuser'. In Job he is a member of the divine court doing his job; only later does he become the enemy.
- Alignment
- Fallen
- Rank
- Adversary
- First attested
- Hebrew Bible & Deuterocanon · c. 900–100 BCE
- Named there as
- ha-Satan
- Texts naming it
- 5
- Powers attributed
- 5
Where do they actually overlap?
Texts naming both
Powers credited to both