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Bible Question: Where
did Satan come from? Did God create him? When he first appeared in
Genesis 3:1, he had not been mentioned prior to that.
Bible Answer: The
answer to your questions will be provided in three sections: the creation
of Satan, the fall of Satan, the goal of Satan, and the victory over
Satan.
Creation
of Satan. Satan
was created sometime before Adam and Eve. Genesis does not tell us
exactly when this happened, but we know that this is true since we
see Satan for the first time in Genesis 3:1. Adam and Eve are alive,
and Satan appears in the form of a serpent.
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Now
the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which
the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed,
has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”
(NASB) Genesis
3:1 |
The book of Revelation tells us that Satan, the dragon, or the devil,
appeared as a snake or serpent.
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And
the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is
called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he
was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down
with him. (NASB) Revelation
12:9 |
In Ezekiel 28:13 we discover that he was a created being - a beautiful
angel. He is a wicked angel.
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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. 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. You were blameless
in your ways From the day you were created, Until unrighteousness
was found in you. 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.
(NASB) Ezekiel
28:13-16 |
He was the anointed cherub who used to cover God. A cherub is not
a baby angel but a powerful angel with wings (Ezekiel 10:2). The word
cherubim refers to more than one cherub (Exodus 25:19). They appear
for the first time in Genesis 3:24 when God commanded some of them
to guard the Garden of Eden to prevent Adam and Eve from returning
to the garden. God had thrown Adam and Eve out because they had sinned.
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So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden
He stationed the cherubim, and the flaming sword which turned
every direction, to guard the way to the tree of life. (NASB)
Genesis
3:24 |
Fall of Satan. When Satan appears
in Genesis, he is a wicked angel. But Satan was not always evil. Initially,
he and the other angels in heaven were created holy. Their home was
heaven. Sometime after his creation, Satan sinned when he wanted to
be like God and take control.
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How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son
of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have
weakened the nations! But you said in your heart, "I will
ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of
God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses
of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High." Nevertheless
you will be thrust down to Shale, To the recesses of the pit.
(NASB) Isaiah 14:12-15 |
Both the gospel of Luke (Luke 10:18) and the book of Revelation explain
that he was thrown down from heaven along with the angels who followed
him. He sinned and became a fallen cherub - an evil cherub.
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And
the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is
called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he
was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down
with him. (NASB) Revelation
12:9 |
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