Satan’s History

Satan is probably the “star of the morning” who desired to be like God. The Bible doesn’t give plain specific details regarding such things as Satan’s pre-fall history, or when and how Satan and his angel followers sinned and fell from grace. It’s an instance of the fact that the Bible provides all the information we need to know to be rightly related to God but doesn’t answer every possible question we may ask. Two passages probably, but not definitely, give insight into Satan’s early history. The first is Isaiah 14:12-17. It speaks of the “star of the morning,” who…

Fallen Angels

All angels were created holy, but many, including Satan, sinned and fell from grace. Satan is the leader of all fallen angels and the only one referred to by name. The others are referred to as “demons,” “unclean spirits,” “evil spirits,” and the devil’s “angels.” Since fallen angels were created as holy angels, they likely have the same potential powers and abilities as holy angels. But since fallen angels, unlike holy angels, operate contrary to God’s moral law, we may be confident that the Holy Spirit’s temporary restraint on Satan (2 Thess. 2:6-8) includes restraining the full use of those…

Satan is a Person

Satan is a fallen angel. The literal meaning of the Hebrew and Greek words translated as “angel” is “messenger.” God has used holy angels as messengers to His people, but that’s only part of their overall role, which is glorifying God and serving Him and His people. Angels are spirit beings created by God and numbering at least in the hundreds of millions (Rev. 5:11). As spirit beings they may have spiritual bodies but they don’t have permanent “physical” bodies like humans. They were likely all created at once, before the creation of the earth (Job 38:4-7). Their numbers are…

The New Testament Declares Satan is Real

The New Testament declares Satan is real. Satan is mentioned much more frequently in the New Testament than in the Old Testament, about 115 times. Over half of the times he is called “Satan” or the “devil.” He’s also called the evil one, Beezelbub, the dragon, the serpent, the enemy, the ruler of demons, the ruler of this world, the prince of the power of the air, Apollyon, the tempter, and the god of this world. Some of the names, like “the dragon,” are symbolic. That’s one way the Apostle refers to him in the book of Revelation. Though Satan…

The Old Testament Declares Satan is Real

The Old Testament Declares Satan is Real Scripture declares the reality of Satan from Genesis to Revelation. The third chapter of Genesis (Gen. 3:1-5) tells the story of the serpent tempting and lying to Eve in the Garden of Eden. That encounter, followed by Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, led to the fall of man. Because of Adam’s fall, death, hardship, and suffering entered the world (Gen. 3:17-19), affecting not only man, but all creation (Rom. 8:19-21). Two main objections to this being a plain teaching of the…

Satan is Real

Satan is Real In the introduction to his book, “Satan: His Motives and Methods,” Lewis Sperry Chafer wrote: “The name Satan has by no means been lost. It has, however, been associated with a most unscriptural fantasy. Without reference to revelation, the world has imagined a grotesque being, fitted with strange trappings, who has been made the central character in works of fiction and theatrical performances, and by this relation to that which is unreal, the character of Satan has come to be considered only one of the myths of a bygone age.” Chafer’s comment isn’t particularly striking today because…