“Get Thee Behind Me, Satan.”

 

We read in Matthew 16:23 and in the parallel account in Mark 8:33 that Jesus said to Peter,  “Get thee behind me, Satan: thou are an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.”  Was the Messiah calling Peter “Satan” or the devil?  No!  Not at all.  Let us understand just what is going on here.

The Greek word translated “Satan” is satanas and directly corresponds to the Hebrew satan and means the same thing, adversary.  That is, “one who opposes another in purposes or act.”  Every place that this word, satanas, Strong’s  G4567, is used it is translated in the KJV as “Satan,” with the word being capitalized, although grammatically there is no reason for it.  31 times out of the 36 the word is used the Greek shows the definite article “the” is in the original, the satanas, the adversary.

The other 5 times satanas is used the word would properly be translated as “adversary” or “enemy.”  Let us take a quick look at those 5 passages.   “Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, satnas” (adversary), for it is written,” (Matt. 4:10) In the context here we see Jesus is going through His great temptation by “the devil,” verse 1.  Verse 2 calls him “the tempter.”  Neither “devil” or “tempter” is a name but a description.  Devil is from the Greek diabolos, Strong’s G1228, meaning slanderer, accuser.  Tempter is from the Greek peirazo, Strong’s G3984, meaning to try, make trial or test.  These two words are, as I said, descriptions and so is the word satnas, adversary.  The angelic satanas is also an angelic diabolos and an angelic peirazo. Jesus describes him as adversary, slanderer and tempter.  A second passage in Luke 4:8 is a parallel Scripture to this one in Matthew.

The third and fourth passages are the ones we referenced in the opening paragraph, and which we will come back to in a moment.  Let us look at the 5th passage, Revelation 20:2.  “And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the devil, and satan, and bound him a thousand years.”  The dragon, serpent, diablos (devil) and satanas (satan) are all descriptions, none of these are names.

Now back to Matthew 16:23.  As we read, Jesus is addressing Peter.  Let us read it as it should be translated.  “...Get thee behind me adversary:” He doesn’t call him “Satan” as a name.  He calls him an adversary, one who is opposing Him in what He had to do.  At that moment Peter was an adversary or an enemy to Jesus.

This is just an unfortunate translation and one that has been perpetuated by most translators, yet it is common knowledge.  Here are just a couple of quotations from some common Bible commentators.

From Adam Clarke’s commentary of Matthew 16:23.  “Get thee behind me, Satan - (he gives the Greek which I won’t put in) Get behind me, thou adversary.  This is the proper translation of the Hebrew word satan, from which the Greek word is taken.  Our blessed Lord certainly never designed that men should believe he called Peter, Devil, ...”

Quoting from Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible, Matthew 16:23, “Get thee behind me, Satan - The word ‘Satan’ literally means ‘an adversary,’ or one who opposes us in the accomplishment of our designs.  It applies to the devil commonly, as the opposer or adversary of man; but there is no evidence that the Lord Jesus meant to apply this term to Peter, as signifying that he was Satan or the devil, or that he used the term in anger.  He may have used it in the general sense which the word bore as an adversary or opposer; and the meaning may be, that such sentiments as Peter expressed then were opposed to him and his plans....”

Again, the Messiah did not call the disciple Peter a dirty name, did not insensate that Peter was the great adversary or was possessed or influenced by that being.  He called him what he was at that moment, an adversary, one that was opposing what He, the messiah, had to do and face.

10/26/2013 with minor edits 9/1/19