Who is Satan? (Part 1)
Who And What Satan Was
Satan (aka. The devil, Lucifer, the Enemy) was a sort of archangel created by God to be a protector of God’s throne. The most revealing verse in the Bible dealing with Satan’s beginning (and end) is Ezekiel 28:11-19 (NKJV)
“11Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, “Thus says the Lord GOD: “You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering: the sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created. 14You 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. 15You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you. 16By 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. 17Your 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. 18You defiled your sanctuaries by the multitude of your iniquities, by the iniquity of your trading; therefore I brought fire from your midst; it devoured you, and I turned you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who saw you. 19All who knew you among the peoples are astonished at you; you have become a horror, and shall be no more forever.””
In this passage, Satan is given the title “King of Tyre.” Like the Psalms–where the psalmist is seemingly referring to himself, but the statements made and the conditions described could only be connected to the Messiah, Jesus Christ- so here that which is addressed to the “king of Tyre” is seen to be a direct reference to the person of Satan (since the descriptions cannot be related to any human who has ever lived). In verse 15 it is stated that Satan was created perfect, and in verse 13 that perfection is presented in detail by the use of the precious gems. He among all created beings was also “full of wisdom” and “perfect in beauty,” adding to the image of a perfect created being. In verse 14 he is called the “anointed cherub who covers” making reference to the fact that Satan was created as a guard or protector to the throne of the Most High; he was the highest of all cherubs ever created (since cherubs are given the duty of servicing the throne). It is also stated in verse 14 that Satan was located upon the Holy Mountain of God, the mountain of God being a symbol of the center of God’s power, government, and eternal throne (see also Psalms 48:1 and Isaiah 2:2 for references to the Holy Mountain of God).
In verse 14, Satan is said to have been in “Eden, the garden of God,” which is evidently another Eden than that in which Satan appeared as a serpent. The Eden of Genesis was one of great greenery from vegetation and exceedingly beautiful, whereas the Eden stated in verse 14 has “stones of fire.” This is probably referencing a place in heaven located near the throne.
The whole passage suggests a position of great authority for which Satan was created and anointed, and from which he fell, drawing with him a host of other angelic beings over whom he had governing power and influence. Again, in verse 15, it is stated that Satan was perfect in all his ways from the day he was created. It is important to note both that Satan was created, and that he was created perfect. Since he was created, he is not self-existent, and never can be free from his dependence upon the Creator. Satan was created a free moral agent, capable of choosing evil but not intended to do so. That he chose to do evil must always be to his own blame, since the Creator surrounded him with sufficient motives for doing good. Christ said of Satan in John 8:44, “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth.” The conclusion, then, is that Satan was created in perfection, truth, and goodness, but afterward turned to a state in which Christ went on to say of him, “There is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of [lies].” Thus, an important teaching of the passage in Ezekiel is of Satan’s first position and power- a power and wisdom sufficient to guard the throne of God from every possible enemy, and a glory and beauty that would make him become the highest officer in the court of heaven.
Another revelation about the crime of Satan is set forth in Isaiah 14:12-20. Before I quote the passage, it should be noted that the prophet Isaiah’s vision of Satan is from the time of his final judgment and working backward from that point over Satan’s entire existence. Thus, much that is still future is referred to as though it were in the past.
The passage is as follows:
“12How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! 13For 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; 14I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be LIKE the Most High.’ 15Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit. 16Those who see you will gaze at you, and consider you, saying: “Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, 17Who made the world as a wilderness and destroyed its cities, who did not open the house of his prisoners?’ 18All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house; 19But you are cast out of your grave like an abominable branch, like the garment of those who are slain, thrust through with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a corpse trodden underfoot. 20You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land and slain your people. The brood of evildoers shall never be named.” (emphasis mine)
Notice Satan says he wants to be like the Most High.” He does not want to BE God”¦he wants to be like Him in power and authority. The title used in verse 12, “Lucifer, son of the morning,” speaks of his first place in the celestial sphere, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy (see Job 38:7). This is referencing Satan’s once exalted position in heaven, obviously he was extremely bright like a star, when all those heavenly beings created by God shouted for joy at the wonder of God’s creative works.