Who Is the Devil?

Does the devil really exist? Would God create such an evil being?

Many people today don’t really believe there is a devil. Why would God create an enemy, an evil being who opposes Him?

God didn’t create the devil

The answer is that God didn’t create an evil being, called “Satan” (meaning adversary). The being He did create, called Lucifer in many Bibles, was perfect in every respect when he was created (Isaiah 14:12; Ezekiel 28:12). In fact, in the beginning Lucifer had everything going for him. He was one of three archangels, or cherubim, mentioned in the Bible. He was at God’s throne in heaven (Ezekiel 28:14).

God gave Lucifer another position—one of rulership. He assigned Lucifer to rule over other angels whom God had placed on this earth (Ezekiel 28:13).

What went wrong?

So what happened? Well, Lucifer was not a robot. He had been created with the will to choose. And as time went on, he became more and more fixated with and proud of his own beauty and his own perfection. Eventually he grew tired of being No. 3 in the pecking order and decided to make his play to become No. 1.

Yes, he actually plotted to overthrow God (Isaiah 14:13-14; Ezekiel 28:15-16). He was patient enough to wait until he had convinced a massive number (about a third) of the angels to join him. After his rebellion, he was cast down on the earth with all his angels (Isaiah 14:12; Luke 10:18). Henceforth, he would be known as Satan (meaning “adversary”), and his angels would be known as demons.

Lucifer rebelled! Attempted seizure of a throne is treason! He wants to substitute his own government for God’s government.

Satan hates God. He knows the angels are destined to be the servants of mankind (Hebrews 1:13-14). Only humans are destined to become the children of God (Genesis 1:26; 1 John 3:1-2). The devil and his demons know and hate this fact!

The last thing that Satan wants, therefore, is for more children of God to be born into God’s own family. Satan will do his utmost to prevent this! So make no mistake about it: Satan is planning the eternal destruction of all mankind! The only question is, how is he going about it?

Satan’s plan to destroy humanity

With his perverted and twisted mind, Satan views human beings as usurpers. So what could be better than to cause these usurpers to disobey God and thereby disqualify themselves so God cannot use them!

The Bible says Satan is the “god” of this evil world (2 Corinthians 4:4; Galatians 1:4). He is God’s adversary, and he and his demons are hiding the true gospel—the way to become part of God’s own family—from mankind.

Deception and counterfeits

Again and again, the Bible clearly shows that most human beings are deceived. Revelation 12:9 tells us that Satan “deceives the whole world.” Now, a deceived person does not know he is deceived! Most professing Christians find it very hard to accept that Satan has not only deceived those in the pagan, non-Christian world, but that he has also devised a counterfeit Christianity and foisted it off on millions who sincerely think they are following the Christ of the Bible (2 Corinthians 11:3-4)!

Remember, a counterfeit $100 bill is designed to look very much like the original.

It’s hard to grasp that Satan is actually the “father” of lies (John 8:44). As part of his conspiracy to overthrow God, Satan has his own ministers! In 2 Corinthians 11:13-15 the apostle Paul warns us about this: “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness.”

In the very near future a church-state system will arise, a resurrection of the Roman Empire, that will eventually bring about the Great Tribulation. It will be a clever counterfeit of true Christianity. To millions, though, it will seem like the real thing. Why?

Because the vast majority of professing Christians do not genuinely study the Bible (2 Thessalonians 2:10). Therefore, they (and their ministers) will be caught up in the euphoria of this system. It will seem like the “thing to do.”

What should you do?

Now that you have realized that a being surely exists who is driving the world along his chosen and fatal path, what do you need to do to avoid following him? Study the Bible and, in Paul’s words, “test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

The main purpose of this website is to help you find and understand the biblical truth. Examine the FAQs and download and read the booklets you will find here. Then send us any questions that arise using our Contact form. One of our dedicated ministers will make sure you receive a well-considered biblical answer. And pray that God will deliver you from the evil one and help you understand His wonderful truth!

Larry Murray, an ardent cyclist and marathon runner, is a member of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association, in Johannesburg, South Africa.