Encounters with demons have been reported going back thousands of years and up to our current times. The various reports do have many elements in common so that we can see a thread of consistency through the ages.

An excellent definition of a demon comes from the ancient text of First Enoch:

"But now the giants (Nephilim) who are born from the [union of] the spirits and the flesh shall be called evil spirits upon the earth, because their dwelling shall be upon the earth and inside the earth. Evil spirits have come out of their bodies. Because from the day that they were created from the sons of God they became Watchers: their first origin is the spiritual foundation. They will become evil upon the earth and shall be called evil spirits. The dwelling of the spiritual beings of heaven is heaven; but the dwelling of the spirits of the earth, which are born upon the earth, is in the earth." (1 Enoch 15:8-10)

These earth-bound evil spirits are the disembodied spirits of the Nephilim. Genesis 6 tells us that the Nephilim are the offspring of the fallen angels who mated with humans. These Nephilim are later described through the Old Testament as the giants in the land. As the Nephilim died, their souls, an abomination to the Lord, were destined to roam endlessly across the earth, constantly in search of a body to re-inhabit.

[note: the terms evil spirit, unclean spirit and demon are used interchangeably throughout the Bible.]

We see the arrival of demons on the scene in the Old Testament in Deuteronomy. According to this verse they were not always around, which is consistent with the Enochian explanation of their appearing on the earth. This describes the beginnings of encounters between the demons and mankind.

"They sacrificed to demons, which are not God-
gods they had not known,
gods that recently appeared,
gods your fathers did not fear." (Deuteronomy 32:17)

So we see one aspect of the demon/human encounter is one of worship (false, idolatrous worship according to God). This worship was based on fear and appeasement.

Moving forward in time to the New Testament era, we see demons and demon possession in full swing. One aspect of Jesus' ministry, and later his disciples', was the casting out of demons.

One notable example:

"When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the

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