Iblis

by Alan G. Hefner

Iblis is the name for the devil in the Qur’an. Although the term “devil” comes from the Greek diabolos, the Muslims derived the name from the Arabic, balasa, “he despaired,” which can be interpreted “despaired of the mercy of God” but he is also al-Shairan, Satan, and “the enemy of God.” The latter aspect of Satan is a commonly shared belief of both Muslims and Christians. According to one tradition, when Allah ordered the angels to bow down to the newly created man, Adam, Iblis refused to do so because he, being made of fire, thought himself superior to a creature made of earth.