When God first create the angels, they were all good, including the one we refer to now as Satan the Devil, as well as the demons. One angel, AKA Satan the Devil, thought too much of himself and started craving the worship God received. Likely, he reasoned, God already has an untold number of angels worshipping him, why can I not have the humans on earth.

Genesis 1:28 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

²⁸ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 2:9, 15-17 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁹ And out of the ground Jehovah God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. ¹⁵ And Jehovah God took the man and set him in the garden of Eden to cultivate it and to keep it. ¹⁶ And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, “From every tree of the garden you may freely eat, ¹⁷ but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat,^[1] for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.”^[2]

It was God’s intention that his first couple, namely, Adam and Eve were to procreate, and cultivate the Garden of Eden until it covered the entire earth, filled with humans worshipping him. – Genesis 1:28

If the first couple had not rebelled, they and their offspring could have lived forever. – Genesis 2:15-17

One of the angels in heaven (who became Satan), abused his free will (James 1:14-15). He then willfully chose to rebel against God. Satan used a lowly serpent to contribute to Adam and Eve abusing their free will, and disobeying God, believing they did not need him, and could walk on their own. – Genesis 3:1-6; Job 1-2.

God removed the rebellious Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. (Gen. 3:23-24) The first human couple had children, but they all grew old and eventually died. (Gen. 3:19; Rom. 5:12), just as the animals died. – Ecclesiastes 3:18-20

Genesis 6:5 (AT) tells us just before the flood of Noah, that “the wickedness of man on earth was great, and the whole bent of his thinking was never anything but evil.” After the flood, God said of man, “the bent of man’s mind may be evil from his very youth.” (Gen 8:21, AT) Jeremiah 10:23 tells us “that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.” Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” Yes, the man was not designed to walk on his own. However, the man was also not designed with an absolute free will, but free will under the sovereignty of his Creator. The imperfect man is mentally bent toward wickedness, fleshly desires, to which Satan has set up this world, so it caters to the fallen flesh of imperfect humans. The apostle John tells us, “For all that is in the world, the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life, is not from the Father but is from the world.” – 1 John 2:16.

Getting back to Genesis 1:27 that says, “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them,” which means that man is born with a moral nature, which creates within him a conscience that reflects God’s moral values. (Rom 2:14-15) It acts as a moral law within all imperfect humans but even more so, those who have trained the conscience with God’s Word. However, it has an opponent as fallen man also possesses the “law of sin,” ‘missing the mark of perfection,’ the natural desire toward wickedness.

Genesis 3:1-5 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which Jehovah God had made. And he said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You^[3] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ² And the woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat,  ³ but from the tree that is in the midst of the garden, God said, ‘You shall not eat from it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”  ⁴ And the serpent said to the woman, “You shall not surely die.  ⁵ For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” knowing good and evil.

Later Bible texts establish Satan the Devil as the one using a serpent as his mouthpiece like a ventriloquist would a dummy. Anyway, take note that Satan contradicts the clear statement that God made to Adam at Genesis 2:17, “you will not surely die.” Backing up a little, we see Satan asking an inferential question, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” First, he is overstating what he knows to be true, not “any tree,” just one tree. Second, Satan is inferring, ‘I can’t believe that God would say . . .  how dare he say such.’ Notice too that Eve has been told so thoroughly about the tree that she even goes beyond what Adam told her, not just that you ‘do not eat from it,’ no, ‘you do not even touch it!’ Then, Satan out and out lied and slandered God as a liar, saying that ‘they would not die.’ To make matters much worse, he infers that God is withholding good from them, and by rebelling they would be better off, being like God, ‘knowing good and bad.’ This latter point is not knowledge of; it is the self-sovereignty of choosing good and bad for oneself and act of rebellion for created creatures. What was symbolized by the tree is well expressed in a footnote on Genesis 2:17, in The Jerusalem Bible (1966):

This knowledge is a privilege which God reserves to himself and which man, by sinning, is to lay hands on, 3:5, 22. Hence it does not mean omniscience, which fallen man does not possess; nor is it moral discrimination, for unfallen man already had it and God could not refuse it to a rational being. It is the power of deciding for himself what is good and what is evil and of acting accordingly, a claim to complete moral independence by which man refuses to recognize his status as a created being. The first sin was an attack on God’s sovereignty, a sin of pride.

The Issues at Hand

(1)  Satan called God a liar and said he was not to be trusted, as to the life or death issue.

(2) Satan’s challenge, therefore, took into question the right and legitimacy of God’s rightful place as the Universal Sovereign.

(3) Satan also suggested that people would remain obedient to God only as long as their submitting to God was to their benefit.

(4) Satan all but said that humankind was able to walk on his own, there being no need for dependence on God.

(5) Satan argued that man could be like God, choosing for himself what is right and wrong.

(6) Satan claimed that God’s way of ruling was not in the best interests of humans, and they could do better without God.

Job 1:6-11 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁶ Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah, and Satan also came among them. ⁷ Jehovah said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered Jehovah and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” ⁸ Jehovah said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” ⁹ Then Satan answered Jehovah, “Does Job fear God for nothing? ¹⁰ Have you not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. ¹¹ But put forth your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse you to your face.”

Job 2:4-5 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁴ Satan answered Jehovah and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. ⁵ However, put forth your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse you to your face.”

This general reference to “a man,” as opposed to explicitly naming Job, is suggesting that all men [and women] will only obey God when things are good, but when the slightest difficulty arises, he will not obey. If you were put to the test, would you prove your love for your heavenly Father and show that you preferred His rule to that of any other?

God Settles the Issues

There is one thing that Satan did not challenge, namely, the power of God. Satan did not suggest that God was unable to destroy him as an opposer. However, he did challenge God’s way of ruling, not His right to rule. Therefore, a moral issue must be settled.

An illustration of how God chose to deal with the issue can be demonstrated in human terms. A neighbor down the street slandered a man, who had a son and daughter. The slanderer said that he was not a good father, i.e., he withheld good from his children and was so overbearing, to the point of being abusive. The slanderer stated that the children would be better off without their father. He further argued that the children had no real love for their father and only obeyed him because of the food and shelter. How should the father deal with these false, i.e., slanderous accusations? If he were to go down the road and pummel the slanderer, it would only validate the lies, making the neighbors believe the accuser is telling the truth.

The answer lies with his family as they can serve as his witnesses. (Pro 27:11; Isa 43:10) If the children stay obedient and grow to be successful adults, turning out to be loving, caring, honest people with spotless character, it proves the accusations false. If the children accept the lies and rebel and grow up to be despicable people, it just further validates that they would have been better off by staying with the father. This is how God chose to deal with the issues. The issues that were raised must be settled beyond all reasonable doubt.

If God had destroyed the rebellious three: Satan, Adam, and Eve; he would not have resolved the issues of

(1) Whether man could walk on his own,

(2) if he would be better off without his Creator,

(3) if God’s rulership were not best, and

(4) if God were hiding good from man.

(5) In addition, there was an audience of untold billions of angelic spirit creatures looking on.

If God destroyed without settling things, these spirit persons would be following God out of dreadful fear, not love, fear of displeasing God. Moreover, say He did kill them and start over, and ten thousand years down the road (with billions of humans now on earth), the issues were raised again, He would have to destroy billions of people again, and again, and again all throughout time, until these issues were laid to rest.

What God has done is, allow time to pass, and the issues to be resolved. Man thought he was better off without God and could walk on his own. In addition, man has attempted every kind of rulership imaginable, and one must ask, ‘have they proven themselves better than rulership under the sovereignty of their Creator?’ (Proverbs 1:30-33; Isaiah 59:4, 8) Sadly, the issues must be taken up to the brink of destroying man. (Rev 11:18) Otherwise, the argument would be that if given enough time, they could have turned things around. If man goes up to the point of destroying himself and Armageddon comes at the last minute, it will have set a case law, solved the issue, and the Bible can serve as the example forever. If the issues of God’s sovereignty or the loyalty of His created creatures, angelic or human, is ever questioned again, we would have the Holy Bible that will serve as a law established based on previous verdicts of not guilty, please see below.

What Have the Results Been?

(1)  God does not cause evil and suffering. Romans 9:14.

(2) The fact that God has allowed evil, pain, and suffering have shown that independence from God has not brought about a better world. Jeremiah 8:5, 6, 9.

(3) God’s permission of evil, pain, and suffering has also proved that Satan has not been able to turn all humans away from God. Exodus 9:16; 1 Samuel 12:22; Hebrews 12:1.

(4) The fact that God has permitted evil, pain, and suffering to continue has provided proof that only God, the Creator, has the capability and the right to rule over humankind for their eternal blessing and happiness. Ecclesiastes 8:9.

(5) Satan has been the god of this world since the sin in Eden (over 6,000 years), and how has that worked out for man, and what has been the result of man’s course of independence from God and his rule? Matthew 4:8-9; John 16:11; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4; 1 John 5:19; Psalm 127:1.

Satan’s impact on the earth’s activities has carried with it conflict, evil and death, and his rulership has been by means of deception, power and his own self-interest. He has demonstrated himself an unfit ruler of everything. Therefore, God is now completely vindicated in putting an end to this corrupted rebel along with all who have shared in his evil deeds.―Romans 16:20.

God has tolerated evil, sickness, pain, suffering, and death until our day in order to resolve all the issues raised by Satan. We are self-centered in thinking that this has only pained us. Imagine that you are holding a rope on a sinking ship that 20 other men, women, and children are clinging to when your child loses her grip and falls into the ocean. You can hold the rope, saving 20 people, or you can let go and attempt to rescue your daughter. God has been watching the suffering of billions from the day of Adam and Eve’s sin. Moreover, it has been His great love for us, which causes Him to cling to the rope of issues, saving us from a future of repeated issues. Nevertheless, he will not allow this evil to remain forever. He has set a fixed time when He will end this wicked system of Satan’s rule.

Genesis 3:6 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁶ So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desirable to make one wise, and she took of its fruit and ate, then she also gave some to her husband when with her, and he ate.

One must recognize that the freedom given to a child to make decisions on their own means they are given responsibilities and are trusted to carry out those responsibilities. Moreover, it does not mean that the act of decision making alone, for the sake of making them, were going to end with good results. A child must learn and grow from being taught by their father and mother, and as they demonstrate that, they are ready for more freedom and responsibility; then, they will receive it. God did not create Adam and Eve so that there was no need for growth, no need to learn. He gave both man and woman intelligence so that they could grow in knowledge and understanding, wisely making application to what they were learning. Of both Adam and Eve God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” This means that the inner person within the first human pair would have possessed the same qualities in their decision-making skills as their Creator. If their love and respect for God and all he had done grew, it would have only been natural that they would have wanted to please him.

There was one law that the first couples were given, which would allow them to evidence their love and appreciation, as well as grow from their experience of obeying this law. “And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, ‘From every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.’” (Gen. 2:16, 17) They had an entire Garden of trees to eat from, as “God caused to grow every tree that was pleasing to the sight and good for food.” (Gen. 2:9) What did this mean? It meant that they lacked nothing regardless of this one restricted tree. It also meant that to obey or not obey was within their free will, and they were not lacking anything that would have contributed to their disobeying. Nevertheless, Adam, who was to be the father of humankind, had to learn that while he was given the earth as his domain, it still belonged to God as the rightful Ruler. Psalm 24:1, 10.

As you can see, humankind’s continued existence in paradise, with perfection, was dependent upon obedience, his continued acceptance of God as his sovereign.

It was God’s intention that his first couple, Adam, and Eve, were to procreate and cultivate the Garden of Eden until it covered the entire earth, filled with perfect humans worshipping him. – Genesis 1:28

If the first couple had not rebelled, they and their offspring could have lived forever. – Genesis 2:15-17

One of the angels in heaven (who became Satan), abused his free will (James 1:14-15), chose to rebel against God, and he used a lowly serpent to contribute to Adam and Eve abusing their free will, and disobeying God, believing they did not need him, and could walk on their own. – Genesis 3:1-6; Job 1-2.

We have many Bible examples, who showed a lack of self-control, and the consequences that resulted. The very first case was the angel that became Satan (Gr., “resister”) the Devil (Gr., “slanderer”), who entertained the desire of taking hold of the sovereignty (right to rule) of God, but failed to dismiss such thoughts, and so set about tempting humankind. Genesis 3:1-6; John 8:44; James 1:14-15; 1 John 5:19; Revelation 12:9

John 8:44 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁴⁴ You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. That one was a manslayer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

What important questions did Satan in the Garden of Eden and with the man Job raise? Does God have a right to rule humans or is man capable of self-rulership? Does God carry out his rulership in the best interests of humans? Satan challenged the rightfulness and the righteousness of God’s rulership. Was God’s right to rule really in the best interests of humans? Satan inferred that such an idea was preposterous and excessively restrictive. (Gen 2:16-17; 3:1-5) Satan challenged the loyalty and integrity of all created beings, by saying they serve God, not out of love for him, but for selfish gain only. He argued that whenever humans fall under hardship, he will abandon God if it lifts the difficulties he is facing. (Job 1:6-1; 2:1-5: Luke 22:31) Satan accused God of lying, being a cruel dictator, who deprives freedom and good from humans. Satan labels God as a failure because he was unable to carry out the purpose of creating the earth, to have it full of perfect humans, worshiping him.

It is our responsibility to understand the issues raised, and why God has allowed suffering to enter the human family. Once we have a full grasp of the facts, we can live a life that will serve as evidence that Satan is a liar and the father of all lies. (John 8:44) We need to make our gospel message such that God is the sovereign of the universe, and rightfully so, because he ‘created all things, and by his will, they existed and were created.’ (Rev. 4:11; Psa. 83:18) We will then be in harmony with our prayer, “Your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:9-10) We want to walk with God, as he will lead us in the way we should walk, as he is “the only wise God.” (Rom. 16:27) Because “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” – Peter 5:8.

Other Angels Rebel

Genesis 6:1-2 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

6 Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, ² that the sons^[4] of God^[5] saw that the daughters of men were beautiful;^[6] and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose.

Jude 6 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁶ And the angels who did not keep to their own domain but deserted their proper dwelling place, he has kept in eternal bonds under deep darkness for the judgment of the great day,

Angels Materialized as Humans

Genesis 6:4, 11; 7:23 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁴ The Nephilim^[7] were on the earth in those days,^[8] and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. ¹¹ Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. ²³ And he blotted out every living thing that was upon the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky, and they were blotted out from the earth; and only Noah was left, together with those that were with him in the ark.

These rebel angels had the power at one time to materialize in human form, just like the ones that remain faithful to Jehovah God, as they delivered messages for Him. (Gen. 18:1, 2, 8, 20-22; 19:1-11; Josh. 5:13-15) The “proper dwelling” that Jude speaks of is heaven, to which these angels abandoned, to take on human form, and have relations that were contrary to nature with the “the daughters of man.” (Dan. 7:9-10) The Bible intimates that these rebel angels were stripped of their power to take on human form, as you never hear of it taking place again after the flood, only spirit possession after that. These disobedient angels are now “spirits in prison,” who had been thrown into “eternal chains under gloomy darkness,” which is more of a condition of limited powers, not so much a place, like a maximum-security prison.―1 Peter 3:19; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6.

Wicked Angels Return to the Spirit Realm

Job 1:6-11 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁶ Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah, and Satan also came among them. ⁷ Jehovah said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered Jehovah and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” ⁸ Jehovah said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” ⁹ Then Satan answered Jehovah, “Does Job fear God for nothing? ¹⁰ Have you not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. ¹¹ But put forth your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse you to your face.”

Job 2:4-5 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁴ Satan answered Jehovah and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. ⁵ However, put forth your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse you to your face.”

The understanding that these “sons of God” were disobedient angels, an interpretation that has been around since the beginning is the best choice. The same expression “sons of God” is found in Job 1:6 and Job 38:7 and is applied to angels. This interpretation is supported by the apostle Peter as well, for he writes, “he [Jesus] went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared.” (1 Pet. 3:19-20) Moreover, Jude adds weight to this position as well, when he writes, “the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.” (Jude 6)

These rebel angels had the power at one time to materialize in human form, just like the ones that remain faithful to Jehovah God, as they delivered messages for Him. (Gen. 18:1, 2, 8, 20-22; 19:1-11; Josh. 5:13-15) The “proper dwelling” that Jude speaks of is heaven, to which these angels abandoned, to take on human form, and have relations that were contrary to nature with the “the daughters of man.” (Dan. 7:9-10) The Bible intimates that these rebel angels were stripped of their power to take on human form, as you never hear of it taking place again after the flood, only spirit possession after that. These disobedient angels are now “spirits in prison,” who had been thrown into “eternal chains under gloomy darkness,” which is more of a condition of limited powers, not so much a place, like a maximum-security prison.―1 Peter 3:19; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6.

2 Peter 2:4 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁴ For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into Tartarus^[9] and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;

The Bible intimates that these rebel angels were stripped of their power to take on human form, as you never hear of it taking place again after the Flood, only spirit possession thereafter. These disobedient angels are now “spirits in prison,” who have been thrown into “eternal chains under gloomy darkness [Tartarus],” which is more of a condition of limited powers (1 Pet. 3:19; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6), not so much a place, like a maximum-security prison. – Matt. 28:2; Rev. 22:8.

Satan Cast Out of Heaven

Revelation 12:7-9, 12 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

⁷ And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels made war with the dragon, and the dragon and its angels waged war, ⁸ but they were not strong enough, nor was a place found for them any longer in heaven. ⁹ And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole inhabited earth; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. ¹² Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! Woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows he has a short time.”

For many, it is a challenge to determine, who or what is behind our difficult times, which includes our mental health issues. With our imperfections and the violent, oppressive world that we live in, there is little wonder why we find no happiness, or at least very little. Who or what is to blame for all of this. Moreover, is there anything that we can do to remove some of the problems we have, or, at least, limit them? Yes, there are answers as to where the fault lies, and what we can do to improve our circumstances as we have seen in the above.

Spelling it out more plainly, there are four factors to our stress and difficult times (1) We are imperfect and live in an imperfect world, compounded by the fact that God’s Word says we are mentally bent and lean toward doing bad. We read, “When the LORD saw that the wickedness of man on the earth was great and that the whole bent of his thinking was never anything but evil, the LORD regretted that he had ever made man on the earth.” (Gen. 6:5, AT) (2) We have a wicked spirit creature, Satan the Devil, who is misleading the entire world of humankind. We read, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Pet 5:8) (3) We live in a world that caters to the imperfect flesh. We read, “For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions, is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:16-17) (4) We are unable to understand our inner person, which the Bible informs us is wicked: “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick; who can understand it?” The apostle Paul tells us, “just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.” There is only one major factor in all four parts that will have an effect on the other two, you. Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 5:12.

Yes, we create our own stress. Because (1) we do not understand our true imperfection, and our imperfection is easily misled by point number (2), Satan. Moreover, we are easily enticed by point number (3-4), the world and its desires, as well as our heart. We read, “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire, when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” (Jam 1:14-15) Only by an active faith in Christ, and a true understanding of our imperfection, can we hope to function in an imperfect world, defeat Satan, gain control over our imperfect flesh, allow God to read our heart and help us not to fall victim to our own desires of the eyes.

It does not take long for us to realize that we live in an imperfect world, imperfect in the extreme! For example, we think of the Islamic radical, who flew two commercial jets into the Twin Towers in New York City (killing 3,900 people), now famously known as 9/11 (because it happened on September 11), the Holocaust (six million Jews were killed), or a natural disaster that wipes out hundreds of thousands of lives. Crimes so intense, they paralyze us, as well as the recent Florida school shooting.

One may wonder how a loving God can allow thousands of years of this to go on, and at the same time, we are told, “God is love.” (1 John 4:8) Within this book we have given you the biblical answer to that seeming contradiction: a loving God allowing thousands of years of pain and suffering.

Deep into in these last days, Satan is like a crazed armed robber who realizes the bank is surrounded and there is no way out, and time is short. This is why; Christians must have prepared themselves, for the even worse difficult times that lie ahead. The main target of Satan at this stage is taking as many true servants of God with him as he can at Armageddon.

Was Satan Punished?

Yes.

COMMON QUESTION: Why did God not destroy the Satan, Adam, and Eve right away?

I would follow up with what would have happened if God had chosen that path. Hundreds of billions of angels with free will were watching, and they knew of the issues raised. What would their love of God have been like if God did not address the issues raised? Was Satan, right? Was God lying? Would free will creatures, spirit and humans, be better off? Will God just destroy us over anything? First, the spirit creatures would have followed God out of dreadful fear, rather than fear of displeasing the one they loved so much up to that point, like a child to a parent. Second, what happens if the issue is raised a hundred thousand years after a restart and there are 30 billion perfect humans on the planet? Would God simply destroy everyone again and start over. Do we think it wise that he does this reboot every time or was it not better that he settled the issue once and for all?

POINT: Satan raised Issues of sovereignty in the Garden of Eden.

POINT: Can humans walk on their own; do they really need their Creator? Are they better off without God?

POINT: Was God lying and withholding?

When a teenager becomes a rebel in our house, we have a choice: (1) severe punishment or (2) teach them an object lesson.

HUMANS AND ANGELS are a created product no different than a car coming off of an assembly line, i.e., (1) they owe their existence to their creator and (2) they were created to function based on the design of the creator. If we take a ford escort and treat it like a heavy-duty four-wheel-drive truck and go off roading (not what the car was designed to do), what will happen?

God wisely chose to teach both angels and humans an object lesson. Neither was designed to walk on their own. Both angel and human were given relative freedom (under the sovereignty of God), not absolute freedom. They were not designed to choose what is right and what is wrong on their own. They were given God’s moral standards by way of an internal conscience. How can we tell a rebel that we do not have absolute freedom, we are better off under the umbrella of our creator’s sovereignty, we cannot walk on our own? They will just reject it as a rebel teenager would.

OBJECT LESSON: We let them learn from their choice, no matter how painful it is, and hard love means that we do not step in until the lesson is fully learned. Humankind was essentially told, “Oh, you think you can walk on your own, well go ahead, we will see how that works out.” After six-thousand-years, God could actually use a common saying among young people today: “How is that absolute freedom working out for you?”

When will the lesson fully be learned? Humankind will walk right up to the very edge of the cliff of killing themselves, actually falling over, when God will step in and stop the object lesson. To stop it anytime before, will cause doubts. If it had been stopped a century ago, the argument would have been; God simply stepped in before we got to the scientific age because he knew we were going to find true peace and security, along with something to give us eternal life. However, if humanity has actually fallen over the edge of the cliff and the destruction of us is definite, and God steps in, no argument can be raised, the object lesson is learned.

Why Was Satan Not Kicked Out of Heaven Right Away?

Satan stayed in his realm, just as humans stayed in theirs. God changed nothing right away because he would have been accused of adjusting the pieces on the chessboard to get the desired outcome, i.e., cheating. When will Satan be kicked out of heaven? Satan and the Demons lost access to the person of God long ago, and they lost some of their powers, such as being able to materialize in human form, like they did when they took human women for themselves at the flood, producing the Nephilim.

Satan would be thrown to the earth very shortly before the end of his age of rulership, when “he knows that his time is short.” (Rev 12:9-12) This, then, means that Satan will be thrown from heaven likely sometime before the Great Tribulation and Christ’s return. Revelation 12:12 says, “‘Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath because he knows that his time is short!’”

Notice that it is at a time, when “Satan knows that his time is short!” What comes next for Satan? He will be abyssed, thrown into a super-maximum-security prison for a thousand years (for lack of a better way to explain it) while Jesus fixes all that Satan has done. After the thousand years, he will be let loose for a little while, and he will tempt perfect humans, and sadly some will fall away. In the end, Satan and those humans will be destroyed, and Jesus will hand the kingdom back over to the father.

Review Questions

• What rebellion took place in heaven?
• What took place in Noah’s day?
• Where did the wicked angels return to when the flood took place?
• In the Gospel of John, how does Jesus describe Satan?
• What should Christians prepare for and what is the primary goal of Satan at this time and up unto Armageddon?

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[1] Lit eat from it

[2] Lit dying you [singular] shall die. Heb moth tamuth; the first reference to death in the Scriptures

[3] In Hebrew you is plural in verses 1–5

[4] Septuagint angels

[5] This refers to angelic sons of God. See Job 1:6; 38:7; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6

[6] Lit good

[7] The Nephilim were giant offspring resulting from the sexual relations between sons of God (i.e., angels) and the daughters of men (i.e., human women).

[8] I.e., the days when Adam and Eve, and their descendants, began having female offspring. All of the Nephilim were destroyed in the flood of Genesis 7.

[9] Greek verb tartaroo (to “cast into Tartarus”) the angels who sinned were cast into the pagan mythological Tartarus, a place of torture or torment. Rather, it was a condition that restrained some of their former powers, such as materializing in human form.