The power of a meme is great and, sometimes, just soul destroying.
I often think of how damaging a meme carrying elements of truth to demonstrate an untruth can live on and on – damaging people’s perceptions of others time and time again.
We find a backlash against the ‘woke’ brigade and their ways of communicating funny and yet concerning at the same time.
But, I draw the line at people using ancient texts from the Bible to attack ‘wokeness’.
Like this meme which is still doing the rounds years later and which says;
“When you realize in the Bible demons refer to themselves as ‘they/them/we/us'”
Aside from the fact that being woke and non binary or gender neutral is a new phenomenon we also need to remember that ancient language contains words that mean different things today. Let’s take recent history – it was not so long ago in the early 20th century that being ‘gay’ was defined as being light hearted and funny. We all know the context today.
So, if you have used the words in the meme illustrated here at anytime in the recent past 3 years then you would be wrong and should seek repentance on your knees for sowing hatred, confusion and lies.
More examples of words whose meanings have changed over the years:
Queer: Entering the English language in the 16th century, it simply meant strange, odd, or eccentric. By the 19th century, it was also used to describe counterfeit money or feeling physically unwell (“feeling queer”).
Straight: Historically, this word meant unbent, direct, honest, or law-abiding (as in the phrase “the straight and narrow”).
Lesbian: A “Lesbian” was simply someone who lived on the Greek island of Lesbos.
Sapphic: “Sapphic” referred to the style of poetry written by Sappho, an ancient female resident of the island of Lesbos.
Bisexual: This began as a strictly botanical and biological term. In the 18th and 19th centuries, “bisexual” meant possessing both male and female reproductive organs within a single organism (what science now refers to as hermaphroditic or intersex).
Memes can harm:
Taiwanese model Heidi Yeh suffered near-total professional and financial destruction because of a misconstrued meme.
In 2012, Yeh posed for a print advertisement for a plastic surgery clinic. The photo featured her alongside an attractive male model and three children whose faces had been digitally altered to look vastly different from the parents. The ironic tagline read: “The only thing you’ll have to worry about is how to explain it to the kids.”
Internet trolls hijacked the image and invented a completely fictional backstory. They claimed the man in the photo was a real husband who had successfully sued his “ugly” wife for lying about having plastic surgery before they met, citing the children’s appearance as proof.
The fake story went viral globally as a meme. Yeh’s modelling career evaporated overnight as international agencies refused to hire her, assuming she was a fraud embroiled in a bizarre legal scandal. She faced intense public ridicule, broke down in tears during subsequent press conferences, and suffered massive financial losses and deep emotional trauma trying to clear her name against an untraceable internet rumour.
And just because I can, here is what Gemini has to say about Demons:
In the Bible, demons (often referred to as “unclean spirits” or “evil spirits”) do not speak frequently, but when they do, their self-reference is highly distinct. They typically refer to themselves in two ways: through a shirting mix of the singular (“I”) and plural (“Us”), or as a collective entity (“We”).
Here is a breakdown of how these entities refer to themselves in the biblical text:
The Collective Plural: “We” and “Legion”
The most famous instance of a demon referring to itself occurs in the Gospels of Mark and Luke during Jesus’ encounter with a possessed man in the region of the Gerasenes.
When Jesus demands to know the entity’s identity, it replies by highlighting both a singular identity and a massive collective presence:
“My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” > — Mark 5:9 (and echoed in Luke 8:30)
In the Roman military structure of the time, a “legion” consisted of roughly 3,000 to 6,000 soldiers. By calling themselves “Legion,” the demons referred to themselves as a unified, highly organized military force occupying a single individual.
The Mixed Perspective: “I” and “Us”
In other New Testament accounts, demons frequently blur the lines between a single voice and a collective group. They often speak in the plural when defending their territory, but drop into the singular to acknowledge Jesus’ identity.
During an exorcism in a synagogue at Capernaum, the unclean spirit cries out:
“What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”
— Mark 1:24 / Luke 4:34
By using “us,” the demon may be referring to itself and the human host it has claimed, or speaking on behalf of all fallen spirits. By switching to “I,” it speaks as an individual entity terrified of immediate judgment.
The Singular Individual: “I”
When demons are depicted as communicating their personal intent or interacting with other spirits, they refer to themselves using standard singular pronouns (“I,” “Me,” “My”).
The Wandering Spirit
In a teaching by Jesus regarding spiritual vacancy, a demon speaks to itself like a displaced homeowner:
“I will return to my house from which I came.” > — Matthew 12:44
The Sons of Sceva Encounter
In the Book of Acts, a group of itinerant exorcists tries to use the name of Jesus to cast out an evil spirit. The demon completely dismisses them, referring to itself in the singular while acknowledging true spiritual authority:
“Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?”
— Acts 19:15
Summary of Biblical Demonic Self-Reference:
| Biblical Passages | Context | Pronouns Used | Self-Designation / Meaning |
| Mark 5:9 / Luke 8:30 | The Gerasene Demoniac | My, We | “Legion” – Signifying a massive, organized multitude acting as one. |
| Mark 1:24 | The Capernaum Synagogue | Us, I | Collective / Individual Split – Speaking for a group, but expressing personal fear. |
| Matthew 12:44 | Parable of the Unclean Spirit | I, My | Individual Agent – Viewing the human host merely as “my house.” |
| Acts 19:15 | The Seven Sons of Sceva | I | Individual Agent |
