Spirit of suicide

Description

Suicidal thoughts can arise in severe depression, despair, after trauma, loss, rejection, prolonged suffering, or another serious crisis. In Christian deliverance ministry, some teachers also point to a spiritual attack directed against a person’s life, described as the activity of a spirit of suicide or a spirit of death.

Derek Prince distinguishes a passive desire for death from an active impulse that leads a person toward suicide. In his teaching, rejection may lead through loneliness, discouragement, depression, and despair to a desire for death or to taking one’s own life. Prince speaks directly about a spirit of death and a spirit of suicide, while at the same time noting that the belief that an evil spirit is directly active in every case of suicide is his personal discernment.

Frank and Ida Mae Hammond, in Pigs in the Parlor, place “suicide” and “death” in a group connected with depression, alongside despair, hopelessness, discouragement, and a sense of failure.

HungryGen also teaches about a spirit of death that attacks a person with thoughts leading toward self-destruction. In this view, the enemy uses periods of pain, loss, rejection, and hopelessness in an attempt to convince a person that their life no longer has meaning and that death is the solution.

The Bible shows people of God who reached places of extreme exhaustion and despair. Elijah came to such a state that he said: “It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life” (1 Kings 19:4). Yet this was not the end of his story. God gave him rest, food, His presence, and a way forward.

This is especially important in a suicidal crisis. A person may be convinced that there is no way out anymore. They may hear in their mind: “there is no future for me,” “everyone will be better off without me,” “nothing will ever change,” or “death is the only solution.”

Such thoughts may occur in depression, despair, and deep crisis. From a Christian perspective, they may also take the form of a spiritual attack directed against a person’s life, hope, and faith. Derek Prince, Frank and Ida Mae Hammond, and HungryGen explicitly connect persistent suicidal thoughts with the activity of a spirit of death or a spirit of suicide.

From a spiritual perspective, despair and everything that pushes a person toward death should be resisted. If spiritual oppression is present, prayer for deliverance may also be needed. Deliverance ministry can go together with psychological, psychiatric, and medical help.

If you are having these thoughts now

Do not wait to seek help, and tell someone you trust. If you are afraid that you may take your own life or harm yourself, immediate help is needed.

In Poland:

112 or 999 — immediate danger to life
800 70 2222 — 24/7 Support Center for adults in a mental health crisis
116 123 — crisis support for adults
116 111 — Helpline for Children and Young People

You can also go directly to a hospital emergency department or to the admission unit of a psychiatric hospital.

Prayer and deliverance ministry can be real help, but needed medical or psychological care should not be postponed.

“The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Psalm 34:18 [34:19 in some numbering]

Sources

Derek Prince — teaching concerning rejection, depression, despair, the spirit of death, and the spirit of suicide.

Frank and Ida Mae Hammond — Pigs in the Parlor, the “Depression” group.

Vlad Savchuk / HungryGen — teaching concerning the spirit of death, suicidal thoughts, deliverance, and recovering hope.

Bible: 1 Kings 19:4–18; Psalm 34:18–19; John 10:10.

Polish Ministry of Health — information on help for people in a mental health crisis.