Asmodeus is a demon in the Book of Tobit, where he threatens Sarah’s marriages and is bound by Raphael. Related accounts appear under the name Ashmedai in rabbinic literature and Asmoday in later demonological catalogues. Their descriptions need to be attributed to the individual texts.
Asmodeus in Tobit
Tobit 3:7–17 introduces Sarah’s distress: seven husbands have died before their marriages could be consummated. The passage names Asmodeus as the demon responsible and tells how the prayers of Sarah and Tobit are heard.
In Tobit 8:1–3, Tobiah follows Raphael’s instructions involving the fish’s heart and liver. The demon flees to the upper regions of Egypt, where Raphael pursues and binds him.
These are events in the religious narrative. Tobit does not supply the elaborate crowned, three-headed appearance found in a later grimoire.
Ashmedai and King Solomon
Gittin 68a names Ashmedai as king of the demons during a discussion of Solomon’s search for the shamir, needed for the Temple’s construction. Solomon sends Benayahu to capture him.
The narrative continues in Gittin 68b, where Ashmedai’s strange conduct becomes the subject of explanation and his encounter with Solomon develops further. This is a different story and setting from Sarah’s ordeal in Tobit.
Asmoday in the Goetia
Entry 32 of the Ars Goetia calls the spirit Asmoday and describes a powerful king with three heads and a serpent’s tail. Such details belong to this demonological catalogue; they should not be presented as a description given in Tobit.
Angelicpedia’s legacy list has separate entries for Asmoday and Asmodeus. This profile brings the related readings together while showing which name and description each source uses.
Demon or fallen angel?
In Tobit, Asmodeus is a demon who torments Sarah and is bound by Raphael; the book does not describe him as a formerly holy angel expelled from heaven. The distinction between the catalogue’s scope and a text’s own classification is important.
Explore related entries
Continue with Raphael, Abaddon, the fallen-angel catalogue, or our guide to sources and traditions.