Chapter 23

The Spirit World

Satan's Fall into Sin

We have already seen that the spirit world is as real as our physical world. The Bible tells us that the Supreme Being, God Himself, is Spirit. Angels, both good and bad, are likewise spirit beings created by God. When creating man in His own image, God gave him a spirit as well.

In this chapter we will look at the fascinating subject of the introduction of sin into the universe by the archangel Lucifer, who became known as Satan. Two passages deal with his fall into sin; both are in the Old Testament prophetic books. We will begin with the prophet Ezekiel's account of Satan's fall, and in the next chapter we will study Satan's purpose in the world according to Isaiah.

Before Satan's Fall

The fall of Satan is described in some detail in Ezekiel 28:11-23. Some people do not believe that this passage is addressed to Satan because it says "take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre." But if you will look at the verses preceding these you will find that Ezekiel 28:2 addresses this person as the leader of Tyre or the prince of Tyre. Later the title changes from prince of Tyre to the king of Tyre. As you read the following verses you will see that the things that are said about this person cannot apply to a mere man. For example, "You were in Eden, the garden of God" and "On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were the anointed cherub who covers." Therefore, many teachers believe these verses actually speak to and about the power behind the throne, that is, to Satan. Now let us start reading at verse 11 and explain the teaching of the passage as we proceed through it:

		Ezekiel 28:11-12
	11	Again the word of the Lord came to me saying,
	12	"Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, 'Thus says the Lord God, "You had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty."'"

Once again, it is evident that this passage speaks of one who is more than a mere man. It speaks of Satan, who was the evil, spiritual power behind the throne of Tyre. No human being, other than Jesus Christ, ever had the seal of perfection, except perhaps Adam and Eve before they sinned.

Satan is also full of wisdom. The book of James speaks of two kinds of wisdom: one that is earthly, natural, and demonic; and another wisdom which comes from above. The first produces jealousy, selfish ambition, disorder, and every evil thing. The second is peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, and without hypocrisy (James 3:13-17). Satan was full of wisdom which became corrupt when he fell. He has since used that corrupt wisdom to produce all sorts of evil.

		Ezekiel 28:13
	13	"You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz, and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx, and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, Was in you. On the day that you were created They were prepared."

Adam and Eve were the only human beings in the garden of Eden. They were cast out after they sinned. This creature, however, is said to have been in Eden, the garden of God. Furthermore, verse 13 says, "Every precious stone was your covering" and proceeds to list nine precious stones. Interestingly, those nine stones were among the twelve precious stones found on the breastplate of the Old Testament high priest who served in the tabernacle. More will be said about this later.

Ezekiel goes on to say, "On the day that you were created they were prepared." Note that this being was created directly by God, not procreated as all people, except Adam and Eve, have been.

		Ezekiel 28:14
	14	"You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire."

"The anointed cherub" is a high order of angelic being. Cherubim serve God in some relationship to the great tribes of the earth. They are described elsewhere as having four faces – a lion, an ox, a man, and an eagle – all facing in different directions. These faces represent the earthly creation: the lion stands for wild animals, the ox for tame animals, man for humanity, and the eagle for the birds of the air. This relationship with the earth may partially explain Satan's interest in earth and those who live here.

Satan's Fall

Following his creation, Satan was on the holy mountain serving God. He was created in perfection directly from the hand of God without sin:

		Ezekiel 28:15-16
	15	"You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created, Until unrighteousness was found in you.
	16	By the abundance of your trade You were internally filled with violence, And you sinned; Therefore I have cast you as profane From the mountain of God. And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, From the midst of the stones of fire."

In order to have creatures who could love Him without being forced, God created both angels and man as free moral agents. Of necessity that made it possible for His creatures to make both right and wrong moral choices. If that were not so, neither angels nor men would be free, but would rather function as robots, able to follow only one predetermined course. If that were the case, then God could not hold either angels or men responsible for their actions. But, He does hold us responsible for what we do!

But, something tragic happened. There came a time when Satan's heart turned against God. As a result he was filled with violence, like others who live in sin. They have inner turmoil, finding no rest for their souls. Because sin entered through this cherub, God declared, "I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire." Satan lost his place of service to God and was removed from his important ministry.

Why Satan Fell

Pride Over Beauty – It is clear that pride was Satan's motivation for falling into sin. Pride is, therefore, the original sin. Ezekiel 28:17 begins, "Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty. You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor." He saw that he was beautiful and took the credit for himself rather than giving God the glory.

This is a good lesson for those who desire to serve the Lord. God gives us gifts and talents to use in His service. How often do we fall into pride because of God's gifts to us? We should not boast over His gifts. They are ours only because God gives them. If God makes you a good teacher or preacher or if He gives you some other gift to serve Him, do not let your heart be filled with pride. Satan took credit for God's gift and work in creating him and that produced pride rather than worship for the Lord.

Pride Over Position – Because of the Ezekiel 28 passage, many believe that Satan led the angels in the worship of God. He had a covering of precious stones (verse 13). A comparison of those stones with the twelve stones of the High Priest of Israel shows that Satan's were the same as those worn on the high priest's breastplate. The difference is the High Priest had twelve stones rather than nine, because he represented the twelve tribes of Israel. It is interesting that both the High Priest and Satan had these stones as a covering.

Satan is also called the "anointed cherub who covers." Two cherubim were carved on the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament tabernacle holy of holies. The cherubim covered the mercy seat and symbolically looked on where the blood of atonement was sprinkled once a year by the high priest.

Satan also had great musical ability. Tambourines and flutes (Ezekiel 28:13, marginal reading) were created within his very being. Music is used in worship in heaven (Revelation 5). This is also an implication that he was involved with leading heaven's worship of God.

Verse 18a adds to the understanding that Satan led heaven's worship of God:

		Ezekiel 28:18a
	18a	"By the multitude of your iniquities, In the unrighteousness of your trade, You profaned your sanctuaries."

A sanctuary is a place of worship. Putting these things together, it is not unreasonable to believe that Satan led the angels in worship of God until he decided to divert worship to himself because of his beauty and splendor. That decision defiled his place of worship and caused his fall.

The Results of Satan's Fall

Verse 17b through verse 19 describe some results of his fall.

		Ezekiel 28:17b
	17b	I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, That they may see you.

Both in Ezekiel and in Isaiah, the results of his fall reach through time to the fall of the Antichrist who will rule the world at the end of this age. Ezekiel 28:18-19 describe in graphic poetic language the humiliation of Satan and his man, Antichrist, at the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul describes for us the dethronement of Antichrist:

		2 Thessalonians 2:8-9
	8	And then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;
	9	that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders.

The passage from Ezekiel continues with a description of what happened as a result of Satan's fall, and looks on into the future to Satan's total imprisonment when he "will be no more" upon the earth to torture and harass.

		Ezekiel 28:18-19
	18	By the multitude of your iniquities, In the unrighteousness of your trade, You profaned your sanctuaries. Therefore I have brought fire from the midst of you; It has consumed you, And I have turned you to ashes on the earth In the eyes of all who see you.
	19	All who know you among the peoples Are appalled at you; You have become terrified, And you will be no more.

Old Testament prophecies reach to the very end of this age and beyond into the eternal state. The final destiny of Satan is everlasting torment in the lake of fire and he "will be no more," insofar as terrifying the earth is concerned. Those who choose to follow him, whether they be angelic or human, will be with him forever in the place created for him (Matthew 25:41).

Make It Personal

This brief survey shows how sin came to be. Pride is the root sin at the center of every human being and fallen angel. The power of pride should not be judged too lightly. One of the greatest of God's creatures ruined himself because of it. Let us honestly acknowledge our own pride as sin and put it away as unworthy of those who follow Jesus Christ.

If you still have not trusted in Jesus because of your pride, do not let that become the thing that keeps you from Him and from eternal life. Ask Him to be your Savior now.

		Luke 10:18
	18	And He said to them, "I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning."

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