Who is Belial?

Belial is the fallen angel who speaks second at the council of devils in Book II. In keeping with his faint-hearted counsel of "ignoble ease and peaceful sloth" (11.226), he is the last to rise from the burning lake. Because Belial is not the name of a pagan god, but an abstract noun meaning "wickedness," he represents vice in general and is associated with atheism. In Book II, he is described as outwardly dignified, but false and hollow, speaking persuasive words which disguise his inner weakness and vice. He argues that it is useless to pursue a war they cannot win, and admonishes that Hell is not the worst fate that could befall them. In essence, his is a counsel of craven fear: he wishes to avoid war in order to avoid worse punishment, and clings to the hope that if they do not give God further cause for alarm, in time God's anger may abate and the fires of hell will lessen.