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3. Satan’s Fall

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What led to Satan’s fall from heaven? Various verses contribute to our understanding of this, including Ezekiel 28:11-19 and Isaiah 14:12-17. Since both of these passages also refer to a human king (the king of Tyre and the king of Babylon), some doubt whether they refer to Satan at all. We’ll consider both to help us understand more about Satan and his fall.

Ezekiel 28:11-19 (ESV) says,

Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord God: “You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you. By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever.”

Charles Ryrie describes the likelihood that this prophecy not only refers to the king of Tyre but also to Satan who was empowering the king:

To understand the prophecy as including references to Satan does not mean that Ezekiel did not also have a historical leader of Tyre in mind in his denunciations. The question is, did he only have the historical human leader in view, or did he also have a greater being, Satan, in mind? The flowery and highly figurative language can argue for either conclusion. Those who feel that only the human leader is in view understand the language as a typical, exaggerated way an oriental ruler might be referred to. Those who also see Satan in the passage argue that such language includes too many superlatives and figures to be true of only an earthly king no matter how great he was. It would seem difficult to apply verses 14 and 15, for example, to any earthly king.

It would, of course, not be unusual for a prophetic passage to refer both to a local personage and also to someone else who fully fulfills it. This is true of many passages that relate both to King David and Jesus Christ. It is also true of the reference to the prince of the kingdom of Persia in Daniel 10:13, a reference that must include a superhuman being related to the kingdom of Persia. So for Ezekiel 28 to refer both to the then-reigning king of Tyre as well as to Satan would not be a unique interpretive conclusion. Indeed, it seems the right conclusion: The historic king of Tyre was simply a tool of Satan, possibly indwelt by him. And in describing this king, Ezekiel also gives us glimpses of the superhuman creature, Satan, who was using, if not indwelling, him.1

What can we learn from the verses about Satan and his fall?

1. Satan was created perfect, with tremendous wisdom and beauty. Ezekiel 28:12 (ESV) says, “…You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.” In Genesis 1:31, when God looked at all he had made during creation and said “it was very good! this included his creation of Satan, who was originally a beautiful holy angel. He was created without sin and was perfect in all his ways.

2. Satan was in the Garden of Eden (Ez 28:13), which could refer to the earthly garden or an angelic garden in heaven which the earthly garden is probably patterned after. Apparently, heaven has many things of which earthly things are patterned after, including the tree of life, the tabernacle, the temple, and Jerusalem (cf. Ex 25:9, 40, Heb 8:1-2, 5, 9:23, 12:22, Rev 15:5, 22:2). Hebrews 8:5 says this about the earthly temple, “The place where they serve is a sketch and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary, just as Moses was warned by God as he was about to complete the tabernacle. For he says, ‘See that you make everything according to the design shown to you on the mountain.’” Since Ezekiel 28:13 seems to refer to a time before Satan’s fall, most likely a heavenly garden is in view.

3. Satan was gloriously clothed with all types of jewels and possibly instruments, which may reflect his previous priestly role in leading other angels in the worship of God. Ezekiel 28:13 (ESV) says,

You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared.

Many of the stones that were part of Satan’s being were included in the high priest of Israel’s breastplate (Ex 39:8-14). In Revelation 8:3-4, an angel in heaven offers incense with the prayers of the saints to God. Perhaps, Satan performed a similar priestly role. Also, when verse 13 describes his “settings” and “engravings,” these can be translated as “timbrels” and “pipes” (NKJV). Dwight Pentecost said this about the instrumental makeup:

Musical instruments were originally designed to be means of praising and worshiping God. It was not necessary for Lucifer to learn to play a musical instrument in order to praise God. If you please, he had a built-in pipe organ, or, he was an organ! That’s what the prophet meant when he said, “The workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes …” Lucifer, because of his beauty, did what a musical instrument would do in the hands of a skilled musician—bring forth a psalm of praise to the glory of God. Lucifer didn’t have to look for someone to play the organ so that he could sing the doxology—he was a doxology.” (Your Adversary, the Devil, p. 16)2

4. Satan was anointed to serve God in a special way. Ezekiel 28:14 (ESV) says, “You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked.” In the Old Testament, the priest, the prophet, and the king were anointed. Since Satan might have been second in authority under God, he possibly functioned in all of these roles. Being on the holy mountain of God and walking in the midst of fiery stones probably represents how Satan dwelled in God’s presence. As an anointed cherub, he would have guarded God’s presence, worshiped God, and probably led others in worship. He was perfect, wise, beautiful, and anointed. Donald Barnhouse said this about how God created Satan, as quoted by Charles Ryrie:

He awoke in the first moment of his existence in the full-orbed beauty and power of his exalted position; surrounded by all the magnificence which God gave him. He saw himself as above all the hosts in power, wisdom, and beauty. Only at the throne of God itself did he see more than he himself possessed … Before his fall he may be said to have occupied the role of prime minister for God...3

5. Satan, though perfect, sinned against God by becoming prideful and instigating a rebellion in heaven and was therefore punished. Ezekiel 28:15-19 (ESV) says,

You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you. By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever.

In this section, Ezekiel may be alternating between God’s word to the king of Tyre and Satan. Satan was initially perfect until he became proud because of his beauty, which corrupted his wisdom. Other verses tell us more about his pride. Isaiah 14:12-17 describes some of the words within Satan’s heart. Like Ezekiel 28:11-19, Isaiah 14:12-17 is addressed to a human king (the king of Babylon) but some of the words seem to be addressed to Satan who was empowering the king. Isaiah 14:13-14 specifically describes the evil one’s prideful words, which led to his judgement:

… “I will climb up to the sky. Above the stars of El I will set up my throne. I will rule on the mountain of assembly on the remote slopes of Zaphon. I will climb up to the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High!”

Satan said in his heart that he wanted to be above the “stars of El” referring to God’s angels (v. 13). He wanted to rule on the “mountain of the assembly”—sitting on the place of glory and attention (v. 13). He wanted to climb to the tops of clouds, which probably represented God’s glory. Often in the Old Testament, God would appear in a glory cloud (Ex 16:10; 40:34). Satan wanted God’s glory. He wanted to be like God, as he declared, “I will make myself like the Most High” (v. 14). Pride led him to seek the glory and obedience of others. Ezekiel 28:16a (ESV) says, “In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned...” Though this might only refer to the king of Tyre and how his trade with other nations led to violence, it probably also refers to Satan. Wilmington said the word “trade” or “traffick” is “from the Hebrew root word meaning ‘to go about, for either the purpose of trade or for slanderous gossip’ and that the latter word is in view here.”4 Ezekiel may be referring to how Satan went around sharing slanderous gossip to incite other angels to turn away from God and follow him. In fact, he led one-third of the angels to rebel against God. Revelation 12:4 says, “Now the dragon’s tail swept away a third of the stars in heaven and hurled them to the earth.” This led God to judge both Satan and his angels. Ezekiel 28:16b says, “…so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.” Likewise, Isaiah 14:15 says, “But you were brought down to Sheol, to the remote slopes of the pit.”

Conclusion

In considering Satan’s fall, Charles Ryrie said this:

Satan’s sin was all the more heinous because of the great privileges, intelligence, and position he had. His sin was also more damaging because of the widespread effects of it. It affected other angels (Rev. 12:7); it affects all people (Eph. 2:2) … it affects all the nations of the world, for he works to deceive them (Rev. 20:3).

All sin is serious, and all sin affects others. But sin in high places is more serious and its ramifications more widespread. The sin of Satan should serve as a constant reminder and warning to us.5

Certainly, Satan’s fall must challenge us who serve in ministry to recognize that we are only servants meant to glorify God and serve others. We should not exalt ourselves or overly exalt another minister, no matter how much God may use us or them. When the Corinthians were overly exalting their preachers and dividing over them, Paul said, “What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us” (1 Cor 3:5). After recognizing ministers as mere “servants,” he then says, “So then, no more boasting about mere mortals!” (1 Cor 3:21). We should heed his words well, recognizing that true servants are focused on the glory and benefit of others and not their own glory and benefit. In addition, Satan’s fall must also challenge us as we see how far a faithful servant can fall and how widespread the effects of that fall can be. First Corinthians 10:12 says, “So let the one who thinks he is standing be careful that he does not fall.” And James 3:1 says, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, because you know that we will be judged more strictly.” Lord, keep our feet lest we fall!

Reflection

  1. What stood out most in the reading and why?
  2. What are the main Scriptures that describe Satan’s fall?
  3. What can we discern about Satan’s fall from Scripture?
  4. What practical applications can we take from Satan’s fall?
  5. What other questions did you have from the reading?

Copyright © 2021 Gregory Brown

Unless otherwise noted, the primary Scriptures used are taken from the NET Bible ® copyright © 1996-2016 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

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Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

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1 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (p. 162). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

2 Wilmington, Harold. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible (Olive Tree Bible Software), 2011 Updated Edition.

3 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (pp. 162–163). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

4 Wilmington, Harold. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible (Olive Tree Bible Software), 2011 Updated Edition.

5 Ryrie, C. C. (1999). Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (pp. 164–165). Chicago, IL: Moody Press.

Related Topics: Satanology

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