Pastor David B. Curtis

HOME | STUDY INDEX


Media #984 MP3 Audio File Video File

Who Is the Devil?

(1 John 3:8a)

Delivered 11/03/19

We are continuing our study of 1 John and for this morning we are only going to be looking at the first half of verse 8 and talking about Who is the Devil.

We saw last week that this passage, 1 John 3:4-9 consists of two short parallel sections, each of which contains three things. We looked at the first section last week.

1. A definition of sin (vv. 4, 8); Sin is lawlessness (v. 4) Sin is of the devil (v. 8a)

2. A statement about the purpose of Christ's work (vv. 5, 8) Christ came to take away sins (v. 5) Christ came to destroy the devil's works (v. 8b)

3. A statement about the implications of Christ's work for the Christian life (vv. 6, 9). No one who abides in Christ sins (v. 6) No one who is born of God sins (v. 9).

Let's jump into verse 8:

The one who commits sin is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God was revealed for this purpose: to destroy the devil's works. 1 John 3:8 CSB

Our text in the CSB says, The one who commits sin is of the devil. The ESV says, Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil. As I have been saying, the idea of practice is not a good translation. The text simply states that the one who commits sin is of the devil. We saw in verse 4 that Everyone who commits sin practices lawlessness. The word, lawlessness, is anomia which I said has the idea of unbelief. So, we could say that the one who does not believe is of the devil. I think that John has the secessionist opponents in view when he says this. They are of the devil— at least in the sense that they are rejecting Yahweh's savior, Yeshua.

For the devil has sinned from the beginning this is the first time we see the word devil in this epistle. It is from the Greek adjective diabolos. Strong's Greek Dictionary says it means, false accuser, devil, slanderer. Thayer's Greek Definitions says, 1) prone to slander, slanderous, accusing falsely. 2) metaphorically applied to a man who, by opposing the cause of God, may be said to act the part of the devil or to side with him.

In John's Gospel, Yeshua calls one of his followers (Judas) a devil (6:70). He accuses his detractors of having the devil as their ideological father and adds that he was a murderer from the beginning (8:44).

I want to try to answer two questions in our study this morning: 1. Who or what is the devil? 2. When is the beginning that the devil sinned from?

Our study this morning will be on devilology. Who is the devil? Most Christians would probably say that devil is Yahweh's equal and opposite. He is the arch enemy of Yahweh. Let's look at Scripture and see if we can understand who the devil is. Let's start at the beginning. In the far reaches of eternity past Yahweh always existed. The Eternal God of the Bible has always existed and always will:

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. Psalms 90:2 ESV

As El Olam, Yahweh is known as the Everlasting God. The Hebrew name Olam means: "forever, perpetual, old, ancient" implying that there is an infinite future and past. The principles of the laws of nature, the beginning of time, and the first existence of this world are all the result of Yahweh, the Creator who possesses never-ending wisdom and power. He was before all time and all worlds.

Yahweh existed from all eternity—Yahweh being the three persons of the divine Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. At a point in time, Yahweh created other gods, lesser gods, and angels to be part of His family. They made up His divine council. Christ, who is Yahweh incarnate, is said to have created everything including other gods:

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things were created through him and for him. Colossians 1:16 ESV

The phrase "all things" occurs six times in Colossians 1:15-20, and it literally means "the all" or "the totality" referring to The Creation. Yeshua designed all creation "visible" (that is, earthly kingdoms and empires) and "invisible" (that is, the divine principalities and powers). The words "thrones," "dominions," "rulers" and "authorities" probably refer to spirit beings and not to human government. In part, this refers to the hierarchy of spiritual beings.

Who are these rulers and powers in the heavens? I believe these are divine beings who were once part of Yahweh's divine counsel. The idea of a divine council may sound strange to you because most Christians today simply view God as ruling and Satan as opposing Him. Yahweh is seen as the only good deity, and Satan is seen as the only bad deity. But in the Hebrew Bible we see a divine council, a ruling body consisting of Yahweh as the supreme monarch and various supernatural attendants.

All ancient Mediterranean cultures had some conception of a divine council. But the Hebrew Bible describes a divine council under the authority of Yahweh, the God of Israel. While the divine council of Israel and its neighbors share significant features, the divine council of Israelite religion was distinct in many important ways. Yahweh is a unique God, but He is not alone.

The idea of a pantheon of gods in a heavenly council is witnessed to by various literary genres of the Hebrew Bible. It is mentioned in historical, narrative and poetic passages as well as in Temple liturgy and prophetic and apocalyptic visions. It also transcends the historical timeline from the earliest primeval history to the final eschatological frontier. The concept and imagery of the divine council is woven throughout the pages of the Hebrew Bible:

A Psalm of Asaph. God takes His stand in His own congregation; He judges in the midst of the rulers. Psalms 82:1 NASB

The NASB really obscures this text. The word God and the word rulers are both Elohim. So why translate them differently? Notice how the ESV translates it.

A Psalm of Asaph. God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: Psalms 82:1 ESV

"Council" is from the Hebrew, edah, and means "a stated assemblage (specifically a concourse, or generally a family." The term "divine council" is used by Hebrew Bible scholars to refer to the "heavenly host" (the pantheon of divine beings who administer the affairs of the cosmos). It is the consensus among ANE scholars that every society from the time of the ancient Sumerians to the time of the Babylonians and the Greeks believed in a pantheon of gods.

Here "God" and "gods/rulers" are both the Hebrew word elohim. This is speaking of the divine counsel, or the "watchers," as Daniel calls them. We don't know at what point in time Yahweh created these other gods, but we see that these gods were there when Yahweh created the world:

Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? Job 38:4-7 ESV

Here "morning stars" and "sons of God" are names of divine beings, they are members of the divine council. Some folks see "sons of God" as humans, but how were humans at creation? Before the creation of the earth and man, you have Yahweh and other (lesser created) divine beings that make up the divine council. Yahweh always existed. He has no beginning or end, but at a point in time, He created other divine beings as His council or family.

Let's start in the Tanakh and see if we can come to an understanding of who this "devil" is. When is the first time we see the devil in the Tanakh? We don't—unless you are looking at the LXX. Devil is from the Greek diabolos and the Tanakh is written in Hebrew. The LXX uses the word diabolos instead of the Hebrew word satan. Let me just say here that "Satan" is one of the few words that English has borrowed from Hebrew. We use the Hebrew name for Satan, but not for Yeshua. That makes no sense to me.

Where would you find the first use of Satan in the Scriptures? Most Christians would probably say in Genesis in the Garden of Eden. But if you look at that text, Satan is not mentioned in that story at all. What we see is "the serpent." The last book of the Bible, Revelation, does connect the "the serpent" with "the devil and Satan" (Rev. 12:9), but you do not find that in the Tanakh. We must be careful not to read New Testament theology back into the Tanakh. Let's see if we can develop a theology of the devil/Satan in the Tanakh itself. Where is the first use of Satan? It first occurs in Numbers 22:

So Balaam rose in the morning and saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab. But God's anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him. Numbers 22:21-22 ESV

The word "adversary" here is the Hebrew word Satan. Who is called Satan here? Yahweh and the angel of Yahweh. So, the very first use of Satan in the Bible refers to Yahweh. Does that surprise you? The Hebrew word "Satan" is not a proper noun in the Tanakh. As such, the term was not used to refer to a cosmic archenemy of Yahweh. "Satan" isn't a proper name but is rather a function or office with the primary meaning of "adversary or "challenger." Satan describes a particular action or role, often in the context of opposition or judgment:

And the angel of the LORD said to him, Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me. Numbers 22:32 ESV

Again, we see that it is the Angel of Yahweh, who is "Satan" because he opposes Balaam on his journey to curse Israel. From these two verses we see that the word "Satan" doesn't carry an exclusive evil meaning because both Yahweh and the Angel of Yahweh are called a "Satan."

Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel. 1 Chronicles 21:1 ESV

You may be thinking, there he is, this is God's archenemy in this verse. The translators certainly thought so because instead of "adversary," they put "Satan." Let's look at the parallel passage to this event:

Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, Go, number Israel and Judah. 2 Samuel 24:1 ESV

Here Yahweh Himself prompts David to take the census. Contextual clues in 1 Chronicles 21:1 indicate that Satan is again the angel of Yahweh and should have been translated "the adversary." These two passages can be easily harmonized, because in the Tanakh we often see Yahweh and the angel of Yahweh co-identified.

There are 27 uses of "Satan" in the Tanakh. We have seen that three of them refer to Yahweh. Seven uses of "Satan" refer to human adversaries. Let's look at 1 Kings 11:14 as an example (you can look up the rest for yourself).

And the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was of the royal house in Edom. 1 Kings 11:14 ESV

So here "Satan" is Hadad the Edomite, a human adversary and not a supernatural being. You may be thinking, why is the word "Satan" used to refer to humans and the Angel of Yahweh. As I have already stated, the term "Satan" means "accuser" or "challenger. It describes a particular action or role, not a person.

The rest of the uses of "Satan" in the Tanakh are found in Job and Zechariah. Chapters 1 and 2 of the Book of Job show two instances of the divine council composed of the sons of God (the beney 'elohim) gathering in heaven for a meeting of the council:

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. The LORD said to Satan, From where have you come? Satan answered the LORD and said, From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it. Job 1:6-7 ESV
Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the LORD. Job 2:1 ESV

The term Satan is used in Job 14 times. Now this is where we find Yahweh's archenemy, right? Hang on a minute. Hebrew scholar Michael S. Heiser writes:

The Hebrew word satan is not a proper noun in the Old Testament. As such, the term was not used to refer to a cosmic archenemy of God. A brief consideration of the Hebrew grammar helps explain why. Like English, Hebrew does not attach the definite article ( the) to proper personal nouns. For example, English speakers do not refer to themselves (or to another person) with phrases like the Tom or the Janet. However, most of the 27 occurrences of satan in the Hebrew Bible include a definite article essentially reading the satan. For example, all occurrences in the Book of Job (Job 1:6-9, 12; 2:1-4, 6-7) include the definite article.

All the mentions of Satan in Job are "ha satan" (the satan), which means "the adversary." Satan is not a name here; it is a particular action or role. Here we see that "ha satan" is used for one of the divine council members. Here we have the term "sons of God" which is one of the names for those on the divine council. We see this in Deuteronomy 32:8:

When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God. Deuteronomy 32:8 ESV

The "sons of God" (beney 'elohim) are divine beings. Notice that in our text in Job these sons of God, "present themselves before Yahweh" this is the divine council with the sons of God coming to report before the King, Yahweh. Satan also came to these meetings, but from the text we cannot tell if he is one of the members of the council or if he simply appeared to bring a petition before the council.

The vast majority of Old Testament scholars who are experts in the field of ANE literature conclude that what we see here in Job is that Satan is "one of members of the divine council of Yahweh." What we see here is not Yahweh's archenemy but rather is a member of the divine council who had some sort of role as a heavenly court prosecutor.

In the Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings, the section on "Satan" says this:

Though it is common for the satan's job to be portrayed as seeking out human failings (Page, 26), it is God's policies that are the true focus of the challenge (Day, 80-81). Job's character is only the test case. In that vein, the existence of disinterested righteousness and the effect of a reward system on a person's motives are both legitimate issues. God neither scoffs at the challenge nor discounts the legitimacy of the question. What the satan is in fact challenging is God's blueprint for divine-human relations. In other words, the satan is questioning the validity of a moral order in which the pious unfailingly prosper. The test of true righteousness would be worship without the promise of reward. In this sense we might consider a loose analogy to someone designated as Ôparliamentarian' in a group organized by Roberts Rule of Order. His/her job is to identify procedures that are out of order. The role is intended to serve, not disrupt. The Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings (Downers Grove, IL; Nottingham, England: IVP Academic; Inter-Varsity Press, 2008)

The question is, "Can human beings have a disinterested faith in God that is, can they believe in God without looking for rewards and fearing punishments?" Even more specifically: Are human beings capable, in the midst of unjust suffering, of continuing to assert their faith in God and speak of God without expecting a return? This seems to be the issue in Job.

In Job "the satan" does not appear to be the archenemy of Yahweh but rather is rather a heavenly court prosecutor. There is really nothing intrinsically evil in the author's portrayal of "the satan" in Job. There is no tempting, no possession, no evil intent. This doesn't fit most people's view of Satan.

What is interesting in the story of Job is that he never blamed "the satan." Notice what Job says:

Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. Job 1:20-22 ESV

Job uses the covenant name Yahweh and says, "Yahweh has taken away. Blessed be the name of Yahweh." He attributes his losses to Yahweh, not the Sabeans, Chaldeans, and natural disasters. Job seems to understand the sovereignty of Yahweh. He sees that all things come from His hand no matter who brings them.

There are two more uses of "Satan" in the Tanakh. They are found in Zechariah 3:1-2.

Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the LORD said to Satan, The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire? Zechariah 3:1-2 ESV

In both Zechariah and Job, "Satan" includes the definite article (the), which grammatically rules out its use as a proper name. Instead, it should be understood to mean "the Accuser." In Zechariah, Satan functions much like he does in Job he stands before the Angel of Yahweh and accuses the high priest Joshua.

Bottom line, there are no passages in the Tanakh where the word "Satan" refers to Yahweh's divine archenemy. None! These verses that we have looked at in the Tanakh blow away the assumption that the technical term "Satan" always applies to the same supernatural being, a single Satan. As we have seen, "Satan" is attached to several different beings.

Now as we look at the intertestamental literature, or "Second Temple Literature," (books written by Jews between Malachi and the time of Yeshua), things begin to change. In this literature, Satan begins to take on an evil persona, and we also see that there are many Satans.

The word "Pseudepigrapha" literally means "falsely ascribed writings," and it refers to a work that falsely claims to be written by a specific author. In case you think that because these writings are falsely named they therefore serve no importance to us, let me read you a passage from The Lexham Bible Dictionary:

Although they are called the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, these texts are important for New Testament scholarship as well, because the books of the New Testament were not written in isolation from the history, literature, and culture of their time. In fact, New Testament authors were familiar with portions of this literature; for example, the Epistle of Jude contains references to two writings from the Pseudepigrapha (1 Enoch and the Testament of Moses). Second Peter, which was written after Jude (and borrows many elements from Jude), alludes to the Pseudepigrapha, but without explicit reference. This relates directly to issue in canon development and hermeneutics, offering a glimpse into the New Testament world's use of sources outside of Scripture. The Lexham Bible Dictionary.

The writers of the New Testament used Pseudepigrapha writings when they wrote the Bible. That should give us an idea of their importance for our Bible study.

This Intertestamental Literature (Apocrypha, DSS, and Pseudepigrapha) says considerably more about Satan than the Tanakh does. Ancient conceptions of Satan and demons developed during the Second Temple period. Works from this period like 1 Enoch, Jubilees, and the Life of Adam and Eve increasingly focused on the character of Satan as the celestial archenemy of God. These works also retold the stories of Israel's history and recounted Satan's influence in certain events.

1 Enoch is fundamental in the development of Satan as an evil celestial being with a contingent of evil spirits under his command. In 1 Enoch 69:4-12, there is a list of five satans. The Assumption of Moses (10:1) and the Book of Jubilees (2:23-29) may be the earliest evidence for the term "Satan" being employed as a proper name.

In his book, When Giants Were Upon The Earth, Brian Godawa writes,

"Second Temple and Qumran Literature show an evil divine figure rising to prominence as the primary adversary to the people of God, along with a host of demons. Besides the terms 'the adversary' (satan) and 'the accuser' (devil), this figure was variously called 'Beliel,' 'Beliar, 'Mastema,' and 'Sammael'" (Godawa, 294).

We see quite a change in the view of Satan in the intertestamental period. This is how the Jews viewed Satan and demons. And that brings us to the New Testament:

Then Yeshua was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Matthew 4:1 ESV

As soon as the New Testament starts, we see "the devil" and "satan" as adversaries of Yeshua and God's people. Most of the New Testament references to demon possession appear in the Gospels and represent the outburst of satanic opposition to Yahweh's work in Christ. Demon possession seems to be something that happened only during the time of Christ and the apostles for the purpose of manifesting the power of Christ over the demonic world.

The New Testament shows a developing picture of Satan as an archenemy of God. Extra-biblical works written prior to and contemporary with the New Testament documents parallel this development. In the New Testament, the word "devil" is used 32 times, Satan is used 33 times, Belial once (2 Cor 6:15), and Beelzebul is used 7 times.

We see various titles used for Satan. He is classified as a dragon (Rev 20:2), a serpent (Rev 12:9), the evil one (John 17:15; Eph 6:16) and a tempter (Matt 4:3; 1 Thess. 3:5); and he prowls like a lion (1 Peter 5:8). According to Paul, he is a ruler of the kingdom of the air the leader of the demonic realm:

in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience Ephesians 2:2 ESV

People in Paul's day believed spirits existed in the space located between heaven and earth. On several occasions Satan is called "Beelzebul":

And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. Matthew 12:26-27 ESV

"Beelzebul" might mean "lord of the house" or "lord of the heights." Like the phrase "kingdom of the air," Beelzebul probably means that Satan is perceived as being in charge of the demons.

One thing that really strikes those who study the Bible is how radically different things are between the end of the Hebrew Bible and the beginning of the New Testament. Now we have Satan and his demons in an all out war against Yahweh and His people. Yeshua pictures Satan as a heavily armed prince dwelling with his demonic subjects in a fortified palace (Matt. 12:25-29). Satan, along with his demons, exercises so much power over the nations that he is termed the "ruler of this world":

Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. John 12:31 ESV

Did Satan rule the whole world? No! The word "world" here is used of the Roman Empire. This is the world that he offered to Yeshua if he would worship him. Notice what we see in Daniel:

Then he said, Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come. Daniel 10:20 ESV

Here we see these divine "host of heaven" allotted with authority over pagan nations. They are depicted as spiritual "princes" or rulers battling with the archangels Gabriel and Michael. Some Second Temple non-canonical Jewish texts illustrate an ancient tradition of understanding this interpretation of the gods of the nations as real spirit beings that rule over those nations:

(There are) many nations and many people, and they all belong to him, but over all of them he caused spirits to rule so that they might lead them astray from following him. But over Israel he did not cause any angel or spirit to rule because he alone is their ruler and he will protect them. Jubilees 15: 31-32

If Persia and Greece had a prince or watcher behind them that Michael was fighting with, do you think that maybe Rome had a Watcher over it also? Whom do we see Michael fighting with in Revelation 12?

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. Revelation 12:7-9 ESV

Where is this war taking place? Heaven. In Revelation, Michael is depicted as warring on behalf of Israel (12:7). He is called, "Israel's protector" in Daniel 12:1. Michael is the patron angel of Israel. So "Israel's protector" is fighting Rome's prince, Satan. It seems as though Satan has moved from adversary in the Divine Council to the spiritual power behind Rome. Most scholars of Revelation teach that the Beast represents Rome and the Dragon that gives power to the Beast is Satan.

It seems as if this watcher, now known as Satan, has turned against Yahweh and is ruling over Rome and trying to destroy Yeshua and God's people. This is who the devil or satan is. He was a watcher turned bad. Now that we know who the devil is, let's see if we can figure out when he sinned.

For the devil has sinned from the beginning so when is the beginning and when did he sin? It is difficult theologically to determine when Satan rebelled against God. In Luke 10:18, Yeshua said He saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning, but it does not tell us exactly when.

I think that the devil sinned sometime after Yahweh had created Adam and Eve but before their fall. I think Satan's fall had to do with Adam. We don't see this in the Bible, but we learn this from the writings in the Pseudepigrapha.

In Genesis we learn that after Yahweh created Adam and Eve He brought them into the garden, into an intimate relationship with Himself:

And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Genesis 3:8 ESV

Adam and Eve walked in the garden with Yahweh. They dwelt in His presence. Eden is where Yahweh lives and issues decrees. He is with His heavenly host who existed before humanity did. This is the divine council, the family of God, and Adam is there with them.

You know what happens next? Man is tempted, and he sins. How long were Adam and Eve in the Garden before they sinned? The Bible does not tell us, but the Book of Jubilees says:

"And after the completion of the seven years, which he had completed there, seven years exactly, and in the second month, on the seventeenth 8 A.M. day (of the month), the serpent came and approached the woman" Jubilees 3:17

In the Biblical text it sounds like Adam sinned right away, but Jubilees says he lasted 7 years. The Book of Jubilees, a pseudepigrapha work, sometimes called the "Lesser Genesis," was written in the 2nd century BC. It records an account of the biblical history of the world from the creation to Moses.

Who tempted Eve and why? The text in Genesis says it was a serpent. We know that this is the devil and Satan because Revelation 12:9 tells us who the serpent was. They were not tempted by a snake. I think what we see in Genesis 3 is one of the sons of God (a watcher, a council member, a divine being) and not an animal. It was a throne room guardian, a saraph, a serpentine being. It was one who was part of the divine council in Eden who decided to deceive humanity in order to get rid of them.

The goal was to get humans removed from Eden and from Yahweh's council and family. Why? Why does this divine being want man kicked out of Eden? I think the Scriptures hint at pride or jealousy. We will look at that in a minute, but first let's look at the pseudepigrapha work called Life of Adam and Eve. This writing elaborates on the motive and role of Satan in the fall of humankind. In chapter 14 it states:

And Michael went out and called to all the angels, "Worship the image of God as the Lord God has commanded." And Michael himself worshiped first; then he called me and said, "Worship the image of the Lord God." And I answered, "It is not for me to worship Adam." And since Michael kept urging me to worship, I said to him, "Why do you urge me? I will not worship an inferior and younger being than I. I am his senior in the Creation, before he was made was I already made. It is his duty to worship me."

When the angels who were under me heard this, they refused to worship him. And Michael said, "Worship the image of God, but if you will not worship him, the Lord God will be angry with you." And I said, "If He be angry with me, I will set my seat above the stars of heaven and will be like the Highest."

Does that sound familiar to you? It sounds like Isaiah 14:13.

You said in your heart, ÔI will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; Isaiah 14:13 ESV.

Satan is told to worship Adam, but he will not and says, I will set my seat above the stars of heaven and will be like the Highest. Consequently, God expelled the devil and his angels from heaven onto the earth. Most scholars seem to believe that Isaiah 14:12-14, which on one level describes a taunt against the king of Babylon (14:4), is also a description of Satan's fall.

The devil explained to Adam in chapter 16 of Life of Adam and Eve:

And the Lord God was angry with me and banished me and my angels from our glory; and on your account we were expelled from our abodes into this world and hurled to the ground. Straight away we were overcome with grief, since we had been robbed of such great glory. And we were grieved when we saw you in such joy and luxury. And with guile I cheated your wife and through her action caused you to be expelled from your joy and luxury, as I have been driven out of my glory.

In 1 Enoch the temptation of Eve is attributed to Gadreel; here it is attributed to Satan. The link between Satan and the serpent is also attested in the book, The Life of Adam and Eve, and in the book of 2 Enoch. Both texts state it was the devil who led Eve astray. The Life Of Adam And Eve chapter 33 states:

Moreover the Lord God gave us two angels to guard us. The hour came when the angels had ascended to worship in the sight of God; immediately the enemy the devil found an opportunity while the angels were absent and the devil led your mother astray to eat of the unlawful and forbidden tree. And she ate and gave to me.

So, the divine being the devil or satan seems to have been jealous of man because he was told to worship him. He enticed him to sin so that Yahweh would kick him out of the cosmic mountain.

The devil's sinning from the beginning probably refers to Genesis 1–4, where the devil tempted the first couple, and their sin spread to Cain, who murdered his brother. This is hinted at in the Fourth Gospel, where Yeshua says that the devil was a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44).

Continue the Series

Berean Bible Church provides this material free of charge for the edification of the Body of Christ. You can help further this work by your prayer and by contributing online or by mailing to:

Berean Bible Church
1000 Chattanooga Street
Chesapeake, VA 23322