The Origin and Fall of the Devil
Where did the devil come from? Did God create the devil? How could a God of love create the devil? Many decide that God seriously erred in this area, so we should not put our trust in Him. But we must get our facts from the Bible.
God Did Not Create the Devil as We Know Him
Satan did not come out as the devil we know. In fact, he used to be a high ranking angel. But a chain of events resulted in him becoming the evil we know him as today.
Lucifer’s Fall From Heaven
The Bible gives us this information about the devil before his fall
- Named Lucifer, which means “son of the morning”
- Held a high-ranking position in the angelic host
- Had exquisite beauty and great wisdom
- Given a position of great power and influence
- Called “the guardian cherub”
“You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God. . . You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you. By the abundance of your trading you became filled with violence within, and you sinned; Therefore I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God; And I destroyed you, o covering cherub, from the midst of the fiery stones. Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor; I cast you to the ground, I laid you before kings that they might gaze at you” (Ezekiel 28:12–17 NKJV).
Cherubim are depicted in Scripture as powerful and majestic angelic creatures who surround God’s throne. And Lucifer had once been a guardian cherub. Ironically, after Adam and Eve succumbed to the devil’s temptations, disobeyed God, and were expelled from Eden, God sent cherubim to guard Eden (Genesis 3:24).
Since Lucifer had been the model of perfection, what sort of sin led to his fall? His heart became proud because of his incredible beauty. Lucifer allowed his perfection to be the cause of his corruption.
God’s Judgment on Lucifer
Lucifer was not satisfied with worshiping God; instead, he wanted to be worshiped. Once a beautiful, powerful angel of God, he lost his former, exalted position in Heaven.
“How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit” (Isaiah 14:12–15 NKJV).
Lucifer (“son of the morning”) became Satan (“accuser”) when he fell to the earth. Jesus, speaking of this event, said, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from Heaven” (Luke 10:18 NKJV).
The Devil’s Followers
When the devil fell, he did not fall alone. Scripture tells us that he took one-third of the angels (Revelation 12:4). They account for the fallen angels, or demons, that now do his bidding. As a result, Satan is a fallen, but powerful, spirit-being with a well-organized network of demon powers to help him accomplish his purposes. Those purposes, according to Jesus, are to “steal, kill, and destroy” (John 10:10).
That’s the bad news. The good news is that two-thirds of the angels are on our side! As the prophet Elisha said to his servant, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (2 Kings 6:16 NKJV).
As Christians, we have an even greater asset than the majority of angels on our side: Jesus Christ, who conquered Satan at the cross of Calvary, is also on our side!
