SATAN
By
LEWIS SPERRY CHAFER
1909
Contents
Foreword, by Dr. C. I. Scofield
Author's Introduction
I. The Career of Satan
II. The Ages
III. The Course of This Age
IV. This Age and the Satanic System
V. The Satanic Host
VI. Satan's Motive
VII. Satan's Methods
VIII. The Man of Sin
IX. The Fatal Omission
X. Modern Devices
XI. The Believer's Present Position
XII. The Believer's Present Victory
Foreword.
If any word of mine shall add to the number of the readers of this book
I shall be glad to have written it; and I sincerely wish that all
believers, and especially all ministers and Christian workers, might in
some way be led to read it.
The subject is vital to any right understanding of the age in which we
live, and of the personal conflict which we wage; for the existence,
personality, and power of Satan are awful facts and of immense present
significance.
We walk in the midst of his snares, hear on every hand his doctrines
proclaimed by men of blameless lives "transformed as the ministers of
righteousness," and are allured by the pleasure, place and power of his
perfectly organized world-system.
I know of no other book on Satan in which the dispensational aspects of
the subject are so clearly stated, nor any other so severely Biblical.
C. I. Scofield.
Introduction.
The world has been willing to comply with the wishes and projects of
Satan to the extent of ceasing to believe that he really exists; this
unbelief being most advantageous to his present undertakings. Yet the
opinions of men have never changed the facts of revelation, and,
according to Scripture, Satan exists; still possessed with great power
and influence over the affairs of men--a power and influence to be
increasingly dreaded as this present age advances.
The teachings of Scripture on this important subject are but little
understood by Christians and seem to be entirely outside the thought of
the world. It is, therefore, to be expected that any attempt to present
this truth will seem, to many, mere folly and fiction.
The name Satan has by no means been lost. It has, however, been
associated with a most unscriptural fancy. Without reference to
revelation, the world has imagined a grotesque being, fitted with
strange trappings, who has been made the central character in theatrical
performances; and by this relation to the unreality of the theatre, the
real character of Satan has come to be only one of the myths of a bygone
age.
Scripture reveals a detailed description of the person and career of
Satan; beginning with his creation; his original condition; his fall,
and on to his kingdom with all its developments, and his final defeat
and banishment. It presents a personage so mighty and so prominent in
the world to-day that the Christian heart would fail, were it not for
faith in the One who has triumphed over all principalities and powers.
This attempt to outline the Scripture teaching on this character will be
undertaken under certain general conditions:
First--The authority of the Scriptures of both the Old and the New
Testaments will be accepted without question.
Second--Evidence will be drawn from the Word of God alone, since no
final light can be found on this subject other than it has pleased God
to reveal in the Bible.
Third--There will be no discussion as to the actual existence of Satan;
this being both assumed and taught from Genesis to Revelation.
These pages are prepared especially for believers; knowing that this
body of truth will be wholly unnoticed or rejected by the Satan-blinded
world (2 Cor. 4:4).
There has also been a deep sense of the seriousness of the undertaking:
both because Satan, by his present direct power, would, if possible,
hinder any larger understanding of his projects and purposes; and
because so great a warning has fallen from the lips of Christ against
the sin of ascribing to Satan the things which are really of God (Matt.
12:22-32). The work has, therefore, been undertaken with some degree of
reliance upon the keeping and guiding power of the Spirit of God, and is
presented with the prayer that believers may have a clearer
understanding of this important body of truth and be able to say with
Paul, "We are not ignorant of his devices." It is also desired that
some clearer vision of this mighty foe may be had which will cause the
child of God to realize the overwhelming power of his adversary and be
constrained to "be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might;"
that greater victory may be had in the realization of the whole will of
God.
Chapter I.
The Career of Satan
This chapter is a brief outline of the past, present and future of
Satan, which is taken up at this point both that the following chapters
may be more easily studied and because of the fact that those passages
which deal most directly with his earliest condition are closely
interwoven with predictions of his future and final defeat.
Revelation in regard to Satan begins with that dateless period between
the perfect creation of the heavens and the earth (Gen. 1:1) and the
desolating judgment which ended that period, when the earth became waste
and empty (Gen. 1:2; Isa. 24:1; Jer. 4:23-26). One passage, Ezek.
28:11-19, deals at length with Satan and his relation to that age. In
this Scripture Satan is evidently described under the title of "The King
of Tyrus." Like the Messianic Psalms,--wherein the Psalmist is
apparently referring to himself, though statements are made and
conditions described that could only be connected with the Messiah, the
Son of God,--so, here, that which is addressed to "The King of Tyrus"
is, by its character, seen to be a direct reference to the person of
Satan; for no similar person to whom this description could apply is
revealed in Scripture. In the previous as well as the following chapters
the final judgment of Jehovah is pronounced upon the enemies of His
chosen people. Satan is distinctly numbered among these enemies in I
Chron. 21:1; and his record and judgment naturally appear in this list.
Every sentence of this extended passage is a distinct revelation and is
worthy of long and careful study. Only a passing reference can be made
to it here. The passage is as follows:
"Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, take up
a lamentation upon the King of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the
Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in
beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone
was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the
onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle and
gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in
thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou art the anointed cherub
that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain
of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day thou wast created, till
iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they
have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned:
therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I
will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of
fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast
corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to
the ground, I will lay thee before Kings, that they may behold thee.
Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thy iniquities,
by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from
the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes
upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that
know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a
terror, and never shalt thou be any more."
This passage describes much of the early and latter career of Satan.
Twice is his creation referred to. In verse fifteen it is stated that he
was created perfect, and in verse thirteen that perfection is set forth
in detail by the suggestive symbols of precious gems. He was also "full
of wisdom," "perfect in beauty," filling up the sum of perfection. In
verse fourteen he is called the "anointed cherub that covereth." By this
the purpose of the Creator is revealed. The general interpretation of
this verse is that Satan was created as a guard or protector to the
throne of the Most High. This is reasonable. Like the golden cherubim,
covering the visible mercy seat in the Holy of Holies of the earthly
tabernacle, he was created a guard and covering cherub to the heavenly
center of Glory. It is expressly stated that he was located by the Most
High upon the holy mountain of God, the mountain of God being a symbol
of the center of God's power, government, and eternal throne (Ps. 48:1;
68:15; Isa. 2:2). Over this exalted throne Satan was set as a covering
cherub. He is also said to have been in "Eden, the garden of God," which
is evidently another Eden than that in which Satan appeared as a
serpent. It is probably a reference to the primitive creation, and the
whole passage suggests a position of great authority for which he was
created and anointed; a position from which he fell, drawing with him a
host of beings over whom he had governing influence and power.
Again, it is stated that Satan was perfect in all his ways from the day
he was created. It is important to notice both that he was created, and
that he was created perfect. Since he was created, he is not
self-existent, and never can be free from his dependence upon the
Creator. He may vainly propose to become independent, and even be
permitted for a time to act under that delusion; but that would only
delay the inevitable judgment that awaits him. He was created perfect,
or was a perfect fulfilment of the Creator's intention. Satan was a free
moral agent; capable of choosing evil, but not obliged to do so. That he
chose evil must ever be his own condemnation; for the Creator had
surrounded him with sufficient motives to choose the good.
The crime of Satan is partly revealed in verse sixteen and this is
followed by an exact description of his final judgment as it is
predicted in the book of Revelation.
The important teaching of this passage is of Satan's first position and
power--a power and wisdom sufficient to guard the throne of God from
every possible enemy, and a glory and beauty that would become the
highest officer in the Court of Heaven. By this revelation his present
position and power may be estimated.
The revelation next in importance is that of his crime; this is clearly
set forth in Isa. 14:12-20. Before reading this passage it should be
noticed that the prophet's vision of Satan, here recorded, is from the
time of his final judgment, and the prophet is looking backward over
Satan's whole career. Much that is still future is, therefore, referred
to as though it were past. The passage is as follows:
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art
thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou
hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my
throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the
congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights
of the clouds; I will be like the Most High. Yet thou shalt be brought
down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly
look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the
earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; that made the world as a
wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house
of his prisoners? All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in
glory, every one in his own house. But thou art cast out of thy grave
like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain,
thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a
carcass trodden under feet."
Here Satan appears under a different title. When he is seen in the
primal glory, as described in Ezekiel 28:11-19, he bears the earthly
title of "The King of Tyrus" and when fallen from that sphere, he bears
the heavenly title of "Lucifer, Son of the Morning." It is as though,
being out of harmony with the Creator by his sin, he is out of harmony
with every sphere in which he may appear. This glorious heavenly title,
"Lucifer, Son of the Morning," speaks of his first place in the
celestial sphere, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons
of God shouted for joy (Job 38:7). It would indicate a position near to
the unsurpassed glory of "The Bright and Morning Star," "The Sun of
Righteousness" who shall yet arise with healing in His wings.
Satan is here again said to be fallen from heaven. Of this fall Jesus
speaks in Luke 10:18, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."
The reference in both of these passages is not to Satan's moral
degeneration but rather to a great event when he was, because of his
sin, driven from his place in glory and made to inhabit the earth and
air (Eph. 2:2; 6:12; I Pet. 5:8). Yet he was granted the privilege of
access to the presence of God (Job 1:6; Rev. 12:10).
Referring to these texts: In the first two chapters of the book of Job,
Satan is seen appearing in the midst of other heavenly beings, before
the presence of Jehovah; and there seems to be nothing unusual in the
presence of Satan in this celestial company. To the question of Jehovah,
"Whence cometh thou?" he replies, "from going to and fro in the earth
and from walking up and down in it." From this revelation the important
information is given that Satan, while inhabiting the earth and air, is
free to appear in the presence of God. His occupation of the earth and
air is also taught in Eph. 6:11, 12. Here believers are addressed as
follows: "Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. For our wrestling is not against flesh
and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against
the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual host of
wickedness in the heavenlies" (R.V.). Another injunction to believers is
contained in I Pet. 5:8, 9: "Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the
devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
whom withstand steadfast in your faith."
These two latter passages, taken together, restate with greater emphasis
the revelation in regard to the present abode of Satan. That the earth
and the air are his present abode must be accepted on the testimony of
Scripture: in spite of the almost universal impression that he is now in
hell.
In addition to this statement in regard to Satan's fall, the passage in
Isaiah, which is under consideration, reveals two aspects of his present
activity. He is first seen seeking to establish a throne for himself,
and then as the promoter of confusion and terror in the Divine purpose
in the world. This is followed with another statement of the certainty
of his final judgment and banishment.
The crime of Satan is concisely stated in the fourteenth verse as being
a purpose in his heart to become _like_ the Most High. His heart was
lifted up because of his beauty; he who was created and placed as the
"Covering Cherub," with the high honor of guarding the throne of God,
has corrupted his wisdom by reason of his brightness; he has struck at
the throne he was set to protect. It was a purpose in his heart which
would require the time of the ages to wholly destroy. There could be
but one Most High, and the purpose of Satan to become like him could,
naturally, be nothing less than an attempt to dethrone the Almighty.
The secret purpose in his heart reveals his method to be, not a violent
attack upon the throne: but, like Absalom's, to steal the hearts of the
unfaithful in the kingdom, and, through subtlety, to gain a government.
He would thus become an object of worship, and attract attention from
other beings to himself. To accomplish this, a hindering attitude must
be assumed toward the purpose and projects of the Most High. No adequate
appreciation can be formed of Satan's present projects and devices, and
the motive that prompts them, without a clear understanding of his
age-abiding attitude toward the Person of God.
There are two prominent events revealed in the history of Satan, falling
within the period of time when he proposed in his heart to become like
the Most High, and his yet future banishment and execution. The first of
these was his meeting with and triumph over the first Adam; when he
wrested the scepter of authority from man, by securing man's loyal
obedience to his own suggestion and counsel. This earthly scepter Satan
held by the full right of conquest, seemingly without challenge from
Jehovah, until the first advent of the Second Adam; this meeting of the
Second Adam, Christ, with Satan being the second great event which is
revealed during this period in his career. Only the unfolding of the
coming ages can reveal the magnitude of this terrible conflict. A
glimpse is revealed from time to time of the unceasing effort of Satan
to triumph over the Second Adam, as he had done over the first. He met
Him in the wilderness, offering Him all he had gained from the first
Adam, even the kingdom of this world; if only he might become like the
Most High, and receive the obedient worship and adoration of the Second
Adam, the Son of God. Again he is seen voicing his attempt to dissuade
the Christ from His sacrificial death, through the impetuous Peter; and
still again in the crushing attack upon the very life of Jesus in the
Garden, when, it would seem, Satan attempted to take that life before it
could be offered for the sins of the world.
However victorious Satan may have been over the first Adam, it is
certain that he met a complete and final judgment and sentence in the
Second Adam; and that bruising of the serpent's head was realized which
was a part of the Adamic covenant. Referring to His Cross, Jesus said,
"Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the prince of this world
be cast out" (Jno. 12:31). And again in Jno. 16:11, "Of judgment because
the prince of this world is judged." Still another Scriptural testimony
to this great defeat of Satan is recorded in Col. 2:13-15: "Having
forgiven you all trespasses; blotting out the handwriting of ordinances
that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the
way, nailing it to the cross; and having spoiled principalities and
powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it." It
is, therefore, clear that, though Satan may have triumphed over the
first Adam and thereby become the god and prince of this world; he
himself was perfectly and finally triumphed over and judged by the
second Adam in the Cross.
It is quite possible, however, that a sentence may be pronounced and
made known some time before that sentence is actually executed. During
such an interval a criminal is said to be under sentence awaiting his
execution, which some higher authority has decreed. This period of
sentence is that in which Satan appears in the present age; which age
had its beginning with the Cross. Execution of this sentence would have
banished him forever. That he is not banished is revealed in the fact
that he, even after his judgment in the Cross, is referred to in
Scripture as still being in authority over this world.
An illustration of Satan's present relation to this world may be taken
from the history of Saul and David. It is natural that David, the first
to occupy the Davidic throne, should be a type of Christ, the last and
most glorious occupant of that throne (Luke 1:31-33). As there was a
period between the anointing of David and the final banishment of Saul,
in which Saul reigned as a usurper, though under Divine sentence and
David was the God-appointed king: in like manner there is now a similar
period in which Satan rules as a usurper, though under sentence; and the
actual occupation of the throne by Christ is still future. In this
period Satan, the rejected monarch, still rules; hunting to the death
all those who have allied themselves with Christ, the God-anointed King.
Why Satan is thus allowed to continue his reign is perhaps but partly
revealed. The real Church which is the Bride of Christ, is to sit with
Him upon His throne (Rev. 3:21; I Cor. 6:2, 3; Matt. 19:28), and the
present age must continue until that glorious heavenly people are
gathered out from the world by regeneration. Again, it seems the course
of Divine wisdom to make a sufficient and final trial of every claim of
His adversaries; and when this age, with all its developments, shall
have passed by, every mouth will be stopped, and the whole world and
Satan will know their own failure and sin before God. They will stand
self-condemned; and nothing could accomplish this but the testing, by
actual trial, of all the self-sufficient claims of Satan and man. The
sin of man has brought him under sentence too; and grace alone withholds
his immediate execution (Jno. 3:18; Rom. 5:18, 19). Though the day of
execution is, in the purpose of God delayed; it is, nevertheless, sure;
and the time is fast approaching when an awful destruction of
self-enthroned beings will be executed; and He alone shall reign, whose
right it is to reign; "for He must reign until He hath put all enemies
under His feet" (I Cor. 15:25). The Kingly Son shall yet arise and claim
the nations of the earth and "break them with a rod of iron, and dash
them in pieces as a potter's vessel" (Ps. 2:9).
It would seem that Satan cherishes the expectation of actually
accomplishing his purpose until near the end of his career (though the
demon testimony of Matt. 8:29 is suggestive on this point). Preceding
his banishment to the pit, he is violently cast out of heaven and into
the earth, according to Rev. 12:7-12; and his activity, from that time
on is limited to that sphere. He is no longer granted access to God. The
passage is as follows:
"And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the
dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither
was there place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast
out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the
whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast
out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come
salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His
Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accuseth
them before God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the
Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives
unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in
them. Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea! for the devil
is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he
hath but a short time."
Here Satan is pictured as being in great wrath as he is banished from
heaven into the earth, "knowing that he has but a short time." After
this short time, which is a terrible tribulation in the earth, Satan is
bound and cast into a pit; this being an event in the glorious return of
Christ to the earth, where He will reign on the throne of His Father
David for a thousand years. Satan is confined to the pit during the same
period, at the end of which he is released for "a little season." He
then gathers an army for a last and terrible attack upon the government
and people of God, which ends in his being banished to the lake of fire,
where he meets his final and long predicted doom. These events are
clearly stated in their order in the nineteenth and twentieth chapters
of Revelation.
Satan is thus revealed as having been first created perfect in all his
ways, mighty in power, and full of beauty and wisdom. While thus
privileged, he proposed a stupendous project in his heart--himself to
become like the Most High. Though cast down and yet having access to
God, he is seen wresting the world scepter from man; and ruling as the
god of this world, until the judgment of the Cross; and after that he
still rules as a usurper. At the end of the age he is cast out of his
access to heaven, into the earth; from thence to the pit; and, finally,
is banished to the lake of fire forever.
This review of the career of Satan is made at this point in order to
call attention to the direct and mighty influence he exerts upon the
affairs of this world according to his varying positions and freedom.
After Satan rebelled, humanity, too, was thrown into an abnormal and
almost universal attitude of independence toward God; and this continues
beyond the Cross with increasing confusion and darkness, to the end of
the age. The only exception to this rebellion is the little company of
believers; and how terribly real is the tendency to the self-governed
life of the old nature, even among these! When Satan is cast out of
heaven and limited to the earth, there is tribulation upon the earth of
which Jesus speaks in Matt. 24:21, and which is also referred to in Dan.
12:1. When Satan is bound and put in the pit, and the promised Kingdom
of Christ has come, there is peace covering the earth as waters cover
the face of the deep.
Can it be doubted that this mighty being is a living power, acting
directly over the affairs of men, even in this self-glorying age?