Mental Illness or Demonic Attack?

Introduction

Are all mental illnesses demonic attacks? Or are all demonic attacks mental illnesses? Is there a discernable difference?

These are questions that have run through the minds of many questions, and of which, you’ll hear many different answers.

What Some Believe

The proposed connection between mental illness and demonism has had a long history through Christendom, from a combination of ignorance of medical matters, paranoia and theological interpretations.

To this day, there are some who believe that there is “no such thing” as mental illness, and that all mental sufferings, anxiety disorders, depressions, intrusive thoughts, compulsive behaviours, or experiences of hallucination, are but “demonic attacks”, and as such can all merely be rebuked by calling on the name of Yeshua.

Meanwhile, there are others who do not believe all mental illnesses are demonically imparted, but that nevertheless believe that merely through faith and prayer, such illnesses will go away, and that people who do not overcome their mental suffering, clearly must be “lacking in faith” or perhaps are “disapproved by God”.

There are others of course, on the more sceptical side, who don’t believe in demonic attacks at all, and would view the Bible’s and other people’s testimonial accounts of such things, to merely be ‘all’ mental illnesses, interpreted through the lens of ignorant superstition.

And of course, there are some individuals who would fall between these categories, believing in elements of all these interpretations.

What does the Bible have to say?

To get solidarity on the matter, we should look to the Bible to see if it describes to us any differentiation or descriptions between mental illnesses and demonic possession.

Does the Bible Differentiate Mental Illness from Demonism?

Though different people have very strong views on the nature of mental illness and demonic possession, we should take note of the fact that the Bible actually does make mention of mental illnesses that are distinct from anything connected to the supernatural.

• “Well, David took those words to heart and he was afraid to appear before Achish. So he started [putting on an act] in front of them. He crawled around on his hands [and knees], laid on the ground at the [city] gate, and let spit to run down his beard. So Achish said to his servants: ‘Look, you can see that the man is having convulsions! Why have you brought him to me? Do you want to bring a person [having a] seizure (or a madman) to me? Should I invite him into my house?'”. – 1 Samuel 21:13-15
• “Woe to those who speak prophecies From ideas that come from their hearts While they have seen nothing at all… Those following the direction of their [own] spirits! …The visions that they see are all false, and all of their omens are useless…”- Ezekiel 13:3, 6
• “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones“. – Proverbs 17:22
• “Then when she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so excited that she failed to open the gate, she just ran inside and told everyone that Peter was standing outside. Well, everyone there said that she had to be crazy, but she kept insisting”. – Acts 12:14-15
• “…’You’re crazy, Paul! All of the writings are driving you mad!'”. – Acts 26:24
• “If the whole congregation is speaking in tongues when some ordinary person or unbeliever comes into your meeting place, won’t he just think you’re crazy?”. – 1 Corinthians 14:23
• So don’t listen to what your false prophets say (Those who through dreams prophecy, or those who give omens through potions) – Jeremiah 27:9

From this handful of examples, we do see that ancient people, including those who wrote scripture, recognised forms of mental illness, that were not caused by demonic influence or anything otherwise supernatural.

David attempted to pretend to be a person with mental illness, or possible as someone who was epileptic, of which was recognised as some kind of medical condition. Likewise, Paul was accused of being “driven mad” by all of his studies of the scriptures, as opposed to being “mad because of demonic control”. We are told that our ‘attitude’ can have an impact upon our health. We also see what may even be a reference to those who have hallucinations, when it is mentioned that some false prophets “see visions” which come from “their own hearts and spirits”, and also from what looks to be drug abuse (a common practice in the ancient world to evoke altered states of mind to see visions, much like LSD users today).

These things are clearly being distinguished as having origins from more naturalistic causes. And so people did not think every single case of someone having convulsions, hallucinations, dreams or delusions, were a result of something either exclusively divine or demonic. Thus, we should not hapzardly cast off any and all mental health difficulties as all but “demonic attacks”.

This being said, we do of course also see the symptoms of mental illnesses and other medical conditions (e.g; hearing voices nobody else can, convulsions, involuntary movements, etc) in scripture, which ‘are’ a result of demonic attack… so what is the discernable difference?

Unique Features of Demonism

Whilst on the surface, some mental disorders and other conditions can seem reminiscent of demonic possession, there are certain distinct features which are ‘not’ a part of mental illnesses:

• “…two demon-possessed men came out from among the tombs to meet him. They were so unusually fierce that no one else had the courage to even pass that way. Then Look! they started shouting: ‘What do you want with us, O Son of God? Did you come here before the appointed time to torment us?’”. – Matthew 8:28-29
• “…And [the demon] shouted at him: ‘Ah! What dealings do we have with you, Yeshua… You Nazarene? Did you come here to destroy us?‘ I know exactly who you are; [You’re] the Holy One of God! …Demons also came out of many of them, shouting: ‘You’re the Son of The God!’’”. – Luke 4:33-34, 41
• “For he lived among the tombs and no one had been able to restrain him, even with chains. ⁴In fact, he’d often been bound using leg irons and chains, but he broke the chains and smashed the leg irons. Nothing was strong enough to hold him!”. – Mark 5:3-4

We should note here, that there was something beyond just mental instability in these people. We see that the demons were capable of speaking “through” the individuals they possessed, and not just “to” them. And we see they have intimate knowledge of things the human individuals did not. For example, they knew the identity of Yeshua, even when the humans they took control of would not have.

A modern example of this might be an individual who appeared to be in some altered mental state speaking of intimate details regarding your life, where you lived, were born, people you knew or even things you did in private.

Thus if oneself is experiencing distress and suffering whilst “hearing voices”, and it is indeed genuinly telling them concrete things from beyond what would be considered “natural knowledge”, and is not a form of delusion (i.e; “delusions of” secret knowldge – as psychosis can trick a person into thinking they know “supernatural secrets” which are in fact usually just nonsense) which others can confirm when spoken outloud, then this of course, may be a case of demonic harrasment.

We also see a demonstration of supernatural ability or strength.

Of course, it is known that sometimes, mental disorder or extreme distress can result in extreme strength. For example, there is a medical term which is known as “Hysterical Strength”. People experiencing this kind of strength have been known to perform feats they would not usually be capable of in their everyday life with the most endeavoured of efforts. The ability to throw people much bigger than oneself, or to lift heavy objects. And some people with “Hysterical Strength” as a result of a psychotic breakdown have been known to break extremely robust objects.

Of course, there are physical limitations to such surges of strength, in accordance to a person’s mass and overall muscle. And after effects usually result in bodily harm.

The super strength of demonism however, is of an entirely different nature. It is not merely through adrenaline, or madness, but feats that would be seemingly impossible are performed, in which not even the most severe case of “hysterical strength” would be able to achieve. In these Biblical accounts, for example, we see the breaking of iron chains.

It appears that demonised individuals are not merely acting on uncontrollable impulse, hearing intrusive thoughts and speaking nonsensical gibberish, but may in fact be, for lack of better word, “puppeteered”. In scripture, we see that the demons who once possessed men, causing them to harm themselves, were cast into pigs, which then made them run off the cliff (Mark 5:13).

Whilst not all demonic experiences would be the same, it should be taken note that there are very clear factors often at play which make it more obvious that something more evil is at work than someone with a mental disorder such as psychosis or neurosis.

Modern Day Demonic Experiences

According to some in the modern day, there are those who have witnessed having a demon speak to them through an individual.

One such example comes from Adam Blai (an experienced and critical mental health professor, demonologist and Catholic exorcist) who always takes the sceptical approach to claims of demonism. He has claimed to experience very real accounts of demonic possession and recounts them in detail.

Though I do not personally agree with Catholicism’s doctrines and do not promote their ritualism, I do believe such accounts of demonism as described to be genuine, and the details of such stories sounded very genuine in their minute details to me. Even the Pharisees we are told by Yeshua, were seemingly capable of expelling, or had at least encountered real demons (Matthew 12:27).

In one account, Adam noted that that the mouth of who believed to be a possessed person appeared to move “unnaturally” and the body not expressing breath, as if the voice was to “come out” of the mouth, but was not “of it”. In other experiences, he claimed a person’s speech seemed capable of such booming intensity filling the entire room, that it was not something that could be performed by a human voice, even the best of sound impersonators.

Again, some people have claimed to experience possessed individuals speaking foreign languages they have never previously learned or even heard, even ancient languages (akin to the manner the holy spirit enabled some Christian to be speaking in tongues). Likewise, others have expressed similar experiences of Biblical proportions, dealing with those who spoke of very intimate details of the individual they were engaging with.

In some other examples of possession, I have personally known some individuals speak of feeling physically pushed on the floor and feeling as they were being set on fire – these individuals or their household members having had been involved with occultic or other kinds of spiritistic activity.

Medical Evidence for Naturalistic Mental Disorders

Not only do we see the Bible itself mention mental illness absent of any demonic involvement, but we should also pay attention to the modern medical and scientific knowledge we have of mental illness today, along with the obvious observable patterns of such conditions.

It’s important to accept the reality of natural mental illness for the sake of everyone involved who need help in such areas of their life, and for them not to feel judged, paranoid or condemned. And so the notion of there being “no such thing” as mental illness, and laying all blame to either lack of faith or demonic attack must be pointed out for the cruel and ignorant talk that is truly is.

As modern followers of Yeshua, we should seek to heal others or do what we can to be on the path of healing in whatever power we have, be it through gifts or just being a good loving neighbour.

As Yeshua said himself, “the sick need a doctor” (Luke 5:31), and it’s something Luke the beloved physician would also certainly attest to.

We see in the world we live in, people with mental health disorders of various kinds, do see improvement with either therapy, medication, or both. It’s of course the personal choice to choose for themselves what type of treatment they seek, be it pharmaceutical, natural, psychotheraputic or otherwise, and I won’t push any personal opinion here on the reader for medical matters…

We also see that mental health issues can be born from trauma, such as phobia, PTSD, and even inherited conditions passed down through families. Such is not true of demonic possession.

The main point to take is that we should not assume a mental health issue is born of something supernatural.

Does Poor Mental Health Indicate Lack of Faith?

Some Christians might express that sufferng with one’s mental health indicates a lack of faith, for if they “truly had faith”, they could simply get well. Some would point to the “fruitage of the spirit” and point out that it includes “joy and peace” (Galatians 5:22), and hence claim if one doesn’t feel joyful or at peace but suffers anxiety and depression, then they must not have the spirit and are therefore being punished. Whilst others might point to people’s experiences, or even refer to their own saying “I prayed, and I got well immediately, so God must be displeased with you somehow, or finds your faith lacking”.

But is this true?

Firstly, we of course, should pray for our and other people’s wellness. We do see in scripture, that sometimes, a lack of anything happening for someone, was indeed a result of their lack of faith:

• “…Because of your lack of faith! ‘I tell you the truth: If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there’, and it would go… Nothing would be impossible for you!’” – Matthew 17:20
• “However, you must believe [that you’ll receive it] and not have any doubts, for those who doubt are like waves of the sea that are driven and blown about by the wind. Such a person shouldn’t expect to receive anything at all from YHWH, due to his unsureness and lack of faith…. Are there any among you who are ill?Let them call the elders and ask them to pray over them, as they rub them with oil in the name of the Lord! Then their faithful prayers will rescue the ill and the Lord will lift them and forgive any sins that they’ve committed. So, admit your errors to each other and pray that each one of you’ll be healed, because prayer has a lot of power when it’s working through righteous people.”. – James 1:6-8, 5:14-16

So indeed, we should not doubt, and pray with confidence and trust for God to aid us. And we must make sure we are repentant of our sins.

However, what if still nothing happens? What if we are still suffering from mental crisis? Or even illness in general? Are we always lacking in faith? Does it mean God doesn’t love us? Are we bound by sin?

It can feel painful and upsetting sometimes, and it might even evoke jealously, when we might witness someone else being seemingly cured by a miracle, maybe a person who we believe is suffering even less than we are, whilst we ourselves are still left in continual pain. But a lack of a cure or answer from God, certainly isn’t always a result of lack of faith or dissaproval. And we see evidence of this in scripture. If we are praying with trust in Yah and his Son continually, then surely we are showing at the very least a “mustard seed’s worth” of faith.

It’s important to remember, that God is not being unloving, mean, picky or arbitrary when he chooses to either act or not. For we are told “God shows no partiality” (Romans 2:11). He even sent his Son to die for every single one of us, meaning Yeshua personally died for not just your neighbour, but for ‘you’ (John 3:16).

There are several reasons why some people may be healed or others not in the grand scheme of God’s plans and on the scene of what is a “spiritual war” in the realms unseen:

• “For our fight isn’t against flesh and blood, but against the governments, the authorities, the mighty ones of this worldly darkness, and against the unseen wicked powers in the heavens”. – Ephesians 6:12

Heavenly politics and legalities have always been complicated, and there are things at play which we as humans currently do not fully grasp, but have only seen “hints of” (Job 1:6-22, Luke 22:31). There are times where healing is permitted in part or in full, and times when nothing must be done. One might humorously say that, thanks to Satan, red-tape even exists in the Heavenly realm of health care provision, (ha). But indeed, unlike wordly red-tape, our suffering is not in vain. If afterall, we were all cured now of all our problems, then we would already be living in the Kingdom of the New Earth, but we know this grand event is future.

In the meantime, it is inevitable that we will suffer, even the most righteous of us.

We see examples of both anxiety, depression, and physical illness in scripture, even amongst the faithful who even had the gifts of healing:

• “And he [Elijah] asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, YHWH take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers”. – 1 Kings 19:4
• “And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he [Yeshua] began to be sorrowful and troubled“. – Matthew 26:37
• “And there appeared to him an [angelic] messenger from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground“. – Luke 22:43-44
• “Yeshua broke into tears“. – John 11:35
• “And so that I wouldn’t become too conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh… A ‘messenger from the Opposer’ who keeps ‘slapping’ me so I don’t get too impressed with myself! I’ve begged the Lord three times to remove it from me, and he really answered me and said: ‘My loving kindness is enough for you, since [your] strength is being perfected [by your] weaknesses!’ Therefore, I’ll gladly boast of my weaknesses so that the power of the Anointed One will cover me like a tent!”. – 2 Corinthians 12:6-9
• “And don’t just drink water, instead you might take a little wine for the sake of your stomach and for your frequent illnesses“. – 1 Timothy 5:23

These examples of righteous men who were clearly suffering on the regular, show us that it’s not always a lack of faith as to why we are not being cured of something or why we are experiencing emotional trauma. Indeed, scripture tells us that bad things happen to good people (Ecclesiastes 9:11).

Even the Lord Yeshua himself experienced suffering, and went through an experience of agonising anxiety in Gethsemane, even whilst praying to God and being ‘strengthened’ by an angel!

We also see that Yeshua and the Apostles both advocated the use of practical medical care, and not just prayer alone, as aforementioned Yeshua mentions the need for doctors, Luke himself was a doctor, and Paul recomended Timothy drink wine for his stomach. They didn’t blame all illness on sin, faithlessness, nor demons. So we see it is not sinful or an expression in a lack of faith to seek out medical or psychiatric care. In fact sometimes an answer to a prayer may in itself be something provided to us on a practical scale (1 Thessalonians 4:18, Proverbs 12:25).

Whilst indeed, the fruits of the spirit include “joy and peace”, we see that the most righteous people of all, full of God’s spirit, had times in their life where they didn’t feel joyful or at peace at all. So we are to understand that our “emotional experiences” and our deeper spiritual “character qualities”, are two different things.

So you should not be distraught over a lack of miraculous cure and interpret it as a lack of faith or dissaproval of God. Mental illness on its own, is already enough to cause emotional distress, anxiety, depression and self doubt, and it does not need to be compounded upon with more sense of guilt or worry.

If you have prayed, and believe in Yeshua firmly, and do your best to serve and obey God in your capacity, then that is enough.

Determining the Case

If one is in doubt or confusion over the nature of mental illness versus demonic attack, it is good to keep to the facts and act in a grounded way to detirmine the issue.

Litmus Test for Mental Health Disorders

Ask whether:

• If you have a history of mental vulnerability (e.g anxiety, depression, impulse, halucination, etc)
• If your personal life history might have trauma
• If you have other diagnosed mental health conditions
• If your family has any history of mental health conditions
• If you have a history of using hard or psychoactive drugs (LSD, Cocain, etc)
• If you have allergies to something in your diet which may cause mental disturbance
• If something such as a toxic substance is in your enviomentment (e.g; heavy metal poisoning, ‘extremely’ mouldy enviromnment, etc)
• If your symptoms seem to be in line with common clusters of known mental health disorders (e.g; anxiety disorders, depression, ocd, autism spectrum, adhd, bipolar, schizofrenia, epilepsy, etc)
• If diet, lifestyle change, or medication helps adjust your mental experiences in anyway
• If you’ve had any recent head injuries

It is good to pray for aid, have our brothers and sisters pray for us, as well as seek out practical help from friends, family and doctors in the case of suffering a mental health condition. A naturalistic explantion is usually the case of most mental disturbances and altered states of mind, and a check up by a doctor will be invaluble in deducing a cause.

Litmus Test for Demonic Attack

When it comes to demonic attack, we should only make such an assumption as a ‘last resort’ after other options have been exhausted, and one should ask themselves:

• If they are experiencing genuine supernatural knowledge, that other people can confirm
• If they are capable of other supernatural abilities not explainable by natural phenomena
• If there are other supernatural happenings in ones home, that other people can confirm
• If the individual has had the entity not merely speak “to them”, but also “through them” to others, and was capable of supernatural knowledge when it spoke, that others can confirm
• If they have been or are currently involved with the occult (black magic, fortune-telling, ghost hunting, contacting the dead, superstitious practices, etc) or worship of false gods
• If they are living in ‘blatant’ and ‘unrepentant’ sin
• If professional doctors and psychiatrists cannot at all explain ones condition
• If medical aid (e.g; medication, therapy, detox, or otherwise) is having no affect whatsoever
• If prayer appears to be affective at expelling what might be a demonic entity when no other therapeutic method works.

If one truly believes and has tangible evidence that what they experience of is demonic activity, then they should move to try and expel the demon from the individual. More on the proper way of dealing with such things can be read in my article below:

Possession & Exorcism

Conclusion

So overall to recap.

When it comes to mental illness, we should not assume it’s of a demonic attack. Mental illness is a very common thing, just as physical illness, and can have a number of causes. There can be circumstantial, medical, historical or hereditary explanations for mental health disorders, and as a first assumption, one should look to these things as potential explanations.

It is not a lack of faith to either have or seek practical help for a mental illness. The cases of true demonic possession are rare, and in such cases, the ‘spiritual and moral’ cause should be detirmined, and the entity dealt with via prayer and faith, in Yeshua’s name.

Whatever the cause of grief, God never rejects those faithful to Him and His Son. And in the end, whether we are cured now, or in the future, all of our suffering will be gone forever.

“Well at that, I saw new skies and new lands, because the previous skies and lands had disappeared, as had the seas. I also saw the Holy City, New Jerusalem, stepping down out of the sky from God, prepared like a bride that had been adorned for her man. Then I heard a loud voice from the throne say: ‘Look! The Tent of God is with mankind! He’s going to put up His Tent among them, then they’ll be His people and He’ll be their god. He’s going to wipe all the tears from their eyes and there won’t be any more death, mourning, wailing, or pain, because all that once was will be gone!'”
Revelation 21:1-4