Could it be that goblins, fairies, elves, and other such fantastical entities, which are part of popular culture, were inspired by actual demonic manifestations?

A woman from the UK who was demonized contacted me for prayer. She was heavily involved in various New Age practices (a huge demonic door opener) but turned to Christ, and she related to me something I found interesting. She said that while in the New Age, a goblin appeared to her and gave her commands telepathically, and naturally she thought she was going out of her mind. While in the New Age, she was told that spirit guides can appear to her as different creatures, such as animals and even goblins. Her telling of her account sounded sincere.

I may have been extremely skeptical if I didn’t myself see demons in their various manifestations such as gray aliens, a hideous clown, a zombie, and The Grudge (Ju-On) girl — aside from the dark shadow humanoid figure commonly seen during sleep paralysis (believe me, I’m really a grounded person 🙄).

I suspect those aforementioned characters or archetypes are inspired by satan’s kingdom. Perhaps a lot of entities the world thinks of as fictional, mythical, or part of folklore come from the spirit realm – satan’s kingdom. For example, there is Slender Man, a (fictional?) supernatural character that originated as an Internet meme, but it led two young girls to commit attempted murder by stabbing their classmate — they claim Slender Man told them to. It seems like a demon to me. There is now a horror movie about Slender Man (I would shun watching any horror movies).

Other examples are gargoyles and chimeras. There are statues of them on the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, and are probably representations of kinds of demons (or at least as they appear to people) in satan’s kingdom.

What about Fairies?

In the occult and New Age world, Fairies, Nymphs, Pixies, Sprites, or Sylphs are believed to be real. Isn’t it interesting that at Psychic Fairs, Occult Stores, etc., fairy books and paraphernalia are sold? As mentioned earlier, some in the New Age believe they talk to fairies via séance type experiences. Disney and Hollywood movies may have convinced everybody that fairies are benevolent, but that is not the case in actual folklore. Fairies originally were bad spirits, demon creatures in several cultures. They were romanticized by the Victorians, though they never lost their evilness. The earliest stories are that these creatures steal children from their beds at night — Peter Pan is based on this. Fairies were actually old (though they could appear young) and could not have babies, so they would steal them. Some of it is fantasy, of course, but I think the stories are based on demonic manifestations (as well as legend and imagination). In some ancient cultures, they were considered gods and goddesses. In my view, fairies are just demons masquerading. Demons can shape-shift (2 Cor. 11:14). They oppose God and humanity.

What about goblins, elves, dwarfs, and other nature spirits?

I am in agreement with Kurt Koch (1913-87), who had decades of counseling people in the occult when he concluded such entities are demons.

He wrote:

In my travels I have often gained valuable insights into the life and culture of primitive tribes and peoples. Some years ago, I gave twenty-nine lectures at the Bible school of the Swiss Indian Mission in Pucallpa, Peru. The missionaries took me to visit the various tribes. There I learned many interesting things.

Ex 71 A Christian believer among the Piro Indians told me, through an interpreter, of his encounter with a tiny dwarf who was only about two feet tall. This believer was hunting at the time, and was just about to kill a wild boar, when this tiny man stepped forward. He thought at first that it might be a pigmy, like those in South Africa. There are many such dwarfs in the Amazon area. This little fellow stopped him from shooting the boar. The dwarf had incredible strength and threw the hunter to the ground, where he lay unconscious for three days. Men from his village came out to search for him, and found him after three days. Experiences like this have led the Piros to believe that these little things are a kind of goblin. Missionaries see this as part of their pagan superstition. In this case, however, the man who had the experience was a Christian believer. Of course, it is true that in primitive tribes, even Christians can be influenced by their old pagan ideas. However, one ought not to dismiss an experience like this as a fairy tale.

Ex 72 In Africa, a missionary took me to visit the Xhosa tribe. This African tribe also believes that there are goblins and elves. These elves often appear to children and even play with them. The moment an adult comes on the scene, the elves disappear. The experience of these children could, of course, be regarded as the product of an eidetic disposition. eidetic is a term used for the ability to project images of ideas or imagination outward, so that one can see the product of one’s own imagination. This eidetic disposition is generally found in children under fourteen, especially those of primitive tribes.

I have often heard of experiences like this from missionaries… I have travelled through Scandinavia several times and have visited every Scandinavian country, yes, even the North Pole. Particularly in Northern Sweden, one hears many stories of imps, pixies, elves, sprites, goblins, and other remarkable creatures one associates with fairy tales. In Northern Sweden, I learned the names of several such little people. There are goblins about two feet tall, gnomes, oeck, and above all, tomter, which are widely believed in by the Swedes. Many elves are ready to play practical jokes. Goblins are regarded as useful spirits. If a person wants their help, he must apply to their chief, the devil himself. This, however, would cost a person his salvation.

The idea that these spirits are demonic in origin is in accordance with the Bible. I have observed furthermore that the elves, goblins, and all these little people appear especially to people who have a psychic disposition. This is another indirect confirmation that these little fairy-tale creatures are not ethically neutral…….

What does the Bible have to say on the subject of goblins, nature spirits, sprites, and demons of the open air? In Isaiah 13:21 satyrs are mentioned in connection with wild beasts. Their role is to destroy the land and make it unsafe. Isaiah 34:14 is an even clearer reference. “The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the screech owl [night hag] shall also rest there, and find for herself a place of rest.” Here we have the combination of wild animals, satyrs and night hag or screech owl, demons of the open places. Satyrs are mentioned again in 2 Chronicles 11:15, where King Rehoboam appoints priests to offer sacrifice to these demons.

Having looked at the Bible references, let us now glance at church history. Let us take what Martin Luther, the German reformer, thought about goblins. In his table talk he says on one occasion: “The goblin jolted me in bed. But I took little notice of him. When I was almost asleep, he began such a rumbling on the stairs that you would have thought someone was throwing three score barrels of wine down them. I stood up, went to the stairs, and called out ‘If it is you, so be it.’ Then I committed myself to the Lord, of whom it is written, ‘Thou hast put all things under His feet,’ and went back to bed. That is the best way to get rid of him: to scorn him and to call on Christ. That he cannot bear.” Another time Luther is said to have thrown his inkpot after the devil.

In the face of all these powers of darkness, we may take heart from the message of the apostle Paul. Think for instance of Colossians 2:15. Freely translated this says, “Christ has unmasked the powers of darkness, He has disarmed the demons, and He draws along the mighty ones behind Him in His triumphal procession.”

Occult ABC, 82-84

If you have any statues or images of such creatures, I would recommend removing them from your home, as some inanimate objects can become vehicles for satanic power. 

If any such entity manifests to you, I would challenge the entity to reveal its true nature by the name and authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, the name of above all names (Phil. 2:9).

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If you don’t know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you can receive Him into your heart, and He can deliver you from darkness and sin and have your name written in His Book of Life.

If you are sincere, you can say this simple prayer to the Father (it doesn’t have to be word for word):

“God, I recognize that I have not lived my life for You up until now. I have been living for myself and that is wrong. Please forgive me of all of my sins just as I forgive others. I need You in my life; I want You in my life. I acknowledge the completed work of Your only begotten Son Jesus Christ in giving His life for me on the cross, I believe in my heart Jesus is Lord and was raised from the dead and I long to receive the forgiveness you have made freely available to me through this sacrifice. Come into my life now, Lord. Take up residence in my heart and be my king, my Lord, and my Savior. From this day forward, I will no longer be controlled by sin, or the desire to please myself, but I will follow You all the days of my life. Those days are in Your hands. I ask this in the Lord and GOD Jesus’ precious and holy name. Amen.”