Overlook

Matthew 8:9 (NIV)

"What do you want with us, Son of God?"

What the Pharisees and religious leaders overlooked, the demons could recognize. These demons, or fallen angels, are the same beings that rebelled against God Almighty in heaven (Rev 12:7-9). It is ironic that these fallen angels and evil spirits believe in God and tremble (James 2:19), while humans, made in the image of God, often overlook Him.

So why did the Pharisees then, and so many today, fail to recognize the Son of God? The answer can be found in John 9:41. Spiritual blindness had blinded the Pharisees. The god of this age, Satan, had deceived them then and continues to deceive many unbelievers today (2 Cor 4:4). As evil and sinful as Satan and his fallen angels are, this suggests that the Pharisees may have been worse than the demons and their leader, Satan. The pride and arrogance of the Pharisees, who claimed to possess spiritual insight yet were blind, likely placed them lower than the demons who acknowledged their evil and recognized the Son of God.

Hell was initially not created by the Lord for humans but for Lucifer and his fallen angels (Matthew 25:41). Tragically, many humans, such as the Pharisees, choose to join the demons in hell.