Part 33: Third Playthrough - 2 AM

[MUSIC: Greenhouse]



The devil is never on the same frequency, but you sometimes hear a bit of him by accident when you're changing channels.

By the time we find god he's already talking. He never says "for those just listening." He expects attentiveness.



God sounds like every boy you are afraid of talking at once.

GOD: —of the vanity to be seen and to see. The human eye sees clearly by the light of god, but the devil by his own light, and thus sees only his own truth. The meaning of the parable—

Lucifer is Latin for "morning star" or "light-bringing". The King James Bible's use of this word comes directly from the Vulgate, the Latin translation authored mostly by St. Jerome of the Septuagint—which is in turn the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible authored by 72 Jewish scholars for the Library of Alexandria. In the Septuagint, the word used is ἑωσφόρος, eosphoros, literally "Dawn-Bringer", translated from הילל בן שחר, "helel ben-shahar," in the original Hebrew. More to the point, all of these refer to the star in the sky we know as Venus.

From the Hebrew Bible to the Vulgate, the morning star Venus is likely a metaphor for the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II (or possibly his son Balthazar), infamous as the conqueror of Judah and the one responsible for the Babylonian captivity. In Isaiah 14:12-15 he is mocked, characterized as prideful and arrogant, and a prophecy is made that his time for retribution will come. You can make the connection in that Venus is the brightest star in the dawn, but is always outshone when the sun comes. There actually have been references to Venus with a similar theme even before the Bible, as far back as ancient Canaan, of gods or men whose arrogance led to their fall from grace.

We know Lucifer as another name for Satan, aka the Prince of Darkness ironically enough, but that's because the meaning of the word has morphed over the years from when it was used in the King James Bible. It may be because of the similarities to the dawn star metaphor and the fallen angel, or in reference to Nebuchadnezzar's described insanity, but who knows for sure how it happened. More recent translations have changed Lucifer to "morning star" or some variation, to separate it from the now common interpretation of Lucifer in English.

For comparison here's Isaiah 14:12 from the KJB version, the verse that's caused this centuries-old misnomer:

"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!"

And here's the same verse from the New International Version:

"How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations!"

One last thing: just like with Parables, there's no Venus chapter in the Bible either. God is either misremembering his own book or an asshole who steals theology from humans and acts like HE wrote it



♃: Shh, let's listen.
♆: Whatever.

GOD: —each of you shall choose. It is certain that the devil is coming.

♀: Oh no.

GOD: It is certain.

♆: I told you.

GOD: It is absolutely certain the devil is already here.

♃: ...

GOD: Parables I:I "The devil is only the shadow of man cast from the light of god."

GOD: The meaning of this parable is that there is no devil.

GOD: The weather is scheduled for 100 with humidity tomorrow. And now for the news—

[SFX: The radio turns off.]

Jupiter shuts off the radio.