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How are Ares (from the Iliad) and Satan (from the Bible) related?

Both characters are divine entities and thus part of their respective societies' religious belief systems.


The character of Satan appears in the Biblical story of Genesis as an evil divine being, an antagonist to God who is the good divine being of the story. This suggests some form of dualism, in which the forces of good and evil are personified as divine beings in conflict with one another. The origin of evil and humanity's capacity for evil are thus attributed to the external evil force of Satan.


The Iliad, unlike the Bible, is not primarily a religious text, but an historical one, focused on the Trojan war. Greek religion, unlike Hebrew religion, was polytheistic, with many gods embodying different aspects of human life and different human tendencies. Ares is a war god, and can be loutish at times, but he is not pure evil. He is just one among many gods with a specific role in the pantheon. His main similarity to Satan is that they are both divine beings. 

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