Who is Satan?

"The fullest light on this mysterious subject is presented to us in highly symbolical language in Ezekiel 28, where we read of the Prince of Tyrus and the King of Tyrus, the latter very definitely being a description of Satan, the former his human understudy."

"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 emerald, and the carbuncle and gold; the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day thou wast created" (Ezek. 28:12-13).

"Then we are told he was the anointed cherub that covers, that is that defends, a word used for the cherubim covering the mercy seat. He walked upon the holy mount of God. He was perfect in all his ways till iniquity was found in him."

"In him was found the perfection of creature beauty: 'every precious stone was thy covering;' representing, I suppose, the various lights in which God's glory was reflected in creation. 'Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth' shows that he was charged with the execution of God's judgments, and that intelligently — the anointed cherub. 'Thou wast upon the holy mountain of God,' the seat or symbol of His holy authority. He had walked 'in the midst of stones of fire,' representing, it would seem, how conversant he had been with the display of God's moral glory, before which evil is consumed and disappears. And yet, perfect as he had been, his heart became lifted up because of his beauty, and iniquity was found in him. Such, alas! is the creature — such fully was Satan."

"Could this be a description of anything but the fall of Satan? He was evidently the highest creature that God in His wisdom created. Alas! pride was his ruin, and pride is designated in Scripture as 'The condemnation of the Devil' (1 Tim. 3:6)."

"This is what Satan aimed at, to be God, and sit in the place of supreme power, and this is what his human understudy aims at."

"The secret of Satan's fall was pride, by which he sought to exalt himself to the throne of God. The secret of this second fall of angels was lust, by which they left their own habitation and kept not their first estate (Jude 6)."

"A name by which THE DEVIL, the great enemy of God and man, is designated. The name may be said to be the same in Hebrew, Greek, and English, and signifies 'adversary,' as the word is rendered in several places where other adversaries are alluded to."

"The expressions 'the prince of this world,' 'the god of this world,' and 'the prince of the power of the air,' all presumably refer to Satan."

"And the great Dragon was cast out, that old Serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole earth" (Rev. 12:9).

"Actually they were marked by hatred and the spirit of murder. Cain had shown that spirit, and he was 'of that wicked one, and slew his brother' (1 John 3:12); so, too, they were doing the deeds of their father, and thus manifesting themselves to be of their father the devil, who was a murderer from the beginning and had no truth in him. Hatred and lying are both fathered by the devil, and those characterized by these two things thereby betray their spiritual origin."

"Your adversary the Devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8).

"Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness" (2 Cor. 11:14-15).

"His efforts are frustrated by God or none would be saved."

"It is well to remember that Satan is morally a vanquished foe, for he is exposed; and that no Christian can be touched by him except as permitted and controlled by his God and Father in discipline for his good."

"We can discern three steps in his fall. First there was the unjudged covetousness which led him to become even a thief (John 12:6). Then came the action of Satan, putting it into his mind to recoup himself in part (John 13:2), since the three hundred pence which the ointment represented had not come into his hands; and he finally settled for ten per cent of this sum. Lastly Satan entered into him. The master spirit of evil took personal control."

"Satan is not possessed of powers beyond creature range, though in his case his wonderful powers as 'the covering cherub' have been sadly perverted to evil ends. Satan is neither omnipotent, omniscient, nor omnipresent."

"In the Epistle of Jude, the act of Michael the archangel in reference to Satan is given as an example of restraint in speaking of dignities: he dared not bring a railing accusation against the devil, but said, 'The Lord rebuke thee.' This implies that Satan had been set in dignity, which, though he had fallen, was still to be respected."

"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 accused them before our 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."

"And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."