The “Seven Spirits”

Testament of Reuben 2:1–9

2nd Century

And now give heed to me, my children, concerning the things which I saw during my time of penitence, concerning the seven spirits of deceit. For seven spirits are established against mankind, and they are the sources of the deeds of youth. And seven other spirits are given to man at creation so that by them every human deed (is done). First is the…

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This excerpt from the second-century CE Testament of Reuben relates the deathbed admonition of Reuben (son of the biblical Jacob) to his children. In it, Reuben discusses the bodily senses and their correspondence to the seven evil spirits of Belial, the prince of evil, also known as Satan. There is some emphasis on lust and the passions of the body, presumably because Reuben was widely known for having had sexual relations with Bilhah, his father’s concubine (see Genesis 35:22).

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