The Book of Job

The Great Controversy

Lesson #2 for October 8, 2016

Scriptures: [Job 1:1-12; Zechariah 3:2; Matthew 4:1; Ezekiel 28:12-16; Romans 3:25-26; Hebrews 2:14][1].

1.    In order to understand the Scriptures-especially some of the more important sections-it is essential to have a knowledge of the great controversy between God and Satan over the character and government of God. Seventh-day Adventists have been helped to understand the great-controversy theme woven through all of Scripture by the writings of Ellen White. See the handout: The Great Controversy Described in Scripture on www.Theox.org under Teacher’s Guides, General Topics: (Paste the line below into your internet browser.)

https://www.theox.org/images/uploads/tg/tg_general/KHart_BBL_PDF_TG_Gen_Great_Controversy_Described_in_Scripture-2016.pdf

2.    The story of Job cannot be correctly understood without a clear understanding of the great controversy. We need to understand that Job went through the experiences that he did because of a controversy which began in heaven. (Job 1&2) Satan has done his best to malign and misrepresent the character of God; when he cannot malign God’s character directly, he seeks to malign and misrepresent the characters of God’s followers.

3.    In the previous lesson, we suggested that there are interesting parallels among the experiences of Job, the final events in the life of Christ, and what will happen to the 144,000 during the final days of this earth’s history. Does it seem possible to you that something on the order of a Job-like experience could actually happen in our day?

4.    Do you see evidence that the great controversy is still going on in your life personally? Or, in the lives of those around you?

5.    Read Job 1:1-4[2]. This idyllic picture suggests that things were going very well for Job. How did Job develop such a wonderful character before there was any Bible, church, synagogue, pastor, or prophet? There is no doubt that he somehow communicated with God. How did he do that? Or better, how did God communicate with him? (Job 29:1-5) Did God visit Job?

6.    Somehow, in those ancient times, Job managed to develop a “blameless” and “upright” or “righteous” character. In our world of sin, such a thing does not happen by accident.

7.    Read Job 1:5-6[3]. Job clearly realized that there was sin in our world. He also realized that it would be very easy for one or more of his children to be drawn into the evil practices of those around them. Try to imagine yourself watching Job as he offered sacrifices for his children.

Amid the festivities of his sons and daughters, he trembled lest his children should displease God. As a faithful priest of the household, he offered sacrifices for them individually. He knew the offensive character of sin, and the thought that his children might forget the divine claims, led him to God as an intercessor in their behalf.—Ellen G. White, RH, August 30, 1881, par. 12, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 3, 1140.4; SD 257.3.

8.    Given the idyllic description of Job’s early years, is it possible that Satan’s accusations against God were partially true, that is, that God was blessing Job and protecting him from Satan’s attacks? Did Satan know about “faithful” Job? Of course! He wanted more access to Job.

9.    Many of our Christian friends believe that because of the sovereignty of God, virtually nothing that we can do here on planet earth can affect Him in any way. The story of Job is a direct refutation of that idea. Read Job 1:6-12[4]. How often do you think the council of heaven, including the sons of God, came/comes from other parts of the universe to meet with God and take time to discuss single individuals here on this earth? Didn’t both God and Satan know about Job? Does Satan still attend the councils in heaven? How do the sons of God feel about Satan mocking God? Who were/are the sons of God? (Job 38:7; Job 1:6; 2:1; Luke 3:38)[5]

10.    Are there any other places in Scripture where it suggests there is concern or even worry in the inner councils in heaven? See Revelation 5[6]. That seems to describe considerable concern about being able to find someone qualified to open the scrolls by taking off the seals. Why was that?

11.    So, why does God call councils of the sons of God in heaven? And why would He allow Satan to attend? The sons of God are leaders of the other worlds throughout the universe. (DA 834.1; ST, February 5, 1894, par. 8) When Adam who was supposed to be the leader of our world ate the fruit and surrendered his leadership to Satan, Satan claimed his place among the heavenly council as the leader of this earth.

12.    Does God need a council in heaven to advise Him? Or, does He call them together to discuss with them what His plans are? Do you think God specifically called these two councils described in Job 1&2 in order to discuss the case of Job?

13.    Read [Genesis 3:1-4; Zechariah 3:2; Matthew 4:1; 1 Peter 5:8; 1 John 3:8; and Revelation 12:7-12][7]. Is it possible to understand these verses without believing that there is a personal Devil? Why do so many of our Christian friends seriously doubt the existence of a personal Devil?

The opening scenes of the book of Job show us a few crucial points. First, as we have stated, they reveal the reality of another dimension beyond what, of ourselves, we can now know—a heavenly dimension with heavenly beings other than God. Second, they also show just how interconnected our earthly life here is with the heavenly realm. What happens here on the earth is not disconnected from the heavenly beings in this realm. Third, they reveal a moral conflict in heaven that is indeed connected to what happens here on earth.—Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide for Wednesday, October 5.

14.    In these first two chapters of Job, we see the core issues in the great controversy brought out into the open. How did that controversy begin? Read [Isaiah 14:12-14; Ezekiel 28:12-16; and 1 Timothy 3:6][8]. Satan, one of the covering cherubs, became jealous and envious of Jesus!

15.    Now that Jesus has come and lived His life on this earth and died that cruel death as an answer to many of Satan’s accusations, why is the great controversy still going on? Why can’t God just wrap things up?

The earth was dark through misapprehension of God. That the gloomy shadows might be lightened, that the world might be brought back to God, Satan’s deceptive power was to be broken. This could not be done by force.

The exercise of force is contrary to the principles of God’s government; He desires only the service of love; and love cannot be commanded; it cannot be won by force or authority. Only by love is love awakened. To know God is to love Him; His character must be manifested in contrast to the character of Satan. This work only one Being in all the universe could do. Only He who knew the height and depth of the love of God could make it known.

Upon the world’s dark night the Sun of Righteousness must rise, “with healing in His wings.” Malachi 4:2.—Ellen White, The Desire of Ages 22.1. [Bold type is added.]

There was one who perverted the freedom that God had granted to His creatures. Sin originated with him who, next to Christ, had been most honored of God and was highest in power and glory among the inhabitants of heaven.—Ellen White, The Great Controversy 493.3 (1888); Patriarchs and Prophets 35.1. Compare 4SP 316.2-3 (1884).

16.    As we have stated repeatedly in the past, God’s government is based on love. No force is ever exercised by God. God will accept only voluntary service. By contrast, Satan will use any kind of force he can possibly get away with. Whatever God allows him to do, he will do.

17.    Unfortunately, most of us as human beings have little understanding of the great controversy. We still “see through a glass, darkly.” (1 Corinthians 13:12) To get a much better idea of how sin began, read Patriarchs and Prophets 33-43[9] and The Great Controversy 492-504[10].

18.    A careful reading of the Scriptures will reveal that Satan prefers to keep himself hidden behind the scenes as much as possible. He has used people and organizations down through the generations to do his dirty work. Even in the book of Job, it might appear superficially that Satan’s only appearances were in Job 1:6-12 and 2:1-7. That is not true. Read Job 4:12-21[11] where we see Eliphaz repeating a message he got directly from Satan himself-or possibly from one of Satan’s evil angels. That message is specifically repeated in [Job 9:2 and 25:4][12]. But, it is also repeated many times by implication throughout the book. In such an important battle in the great controversy, Satan was not going to go away and leave the field of battle.

19.    The book of Job does not go on to explain how Satan is ultimately defeated and finally destroyed. We need the rest of the Bible for that. What does the death of Jesus have to do with the defeat of Satan? Undoubtedly, that is the key question in the great controversy. See [John 12:31-32; Revelation 12:7-12; Romans 3:25-26; and Hebrews 2:14-15][13]. By his temptations of Jesus and by his schemes to destroy Jesus, Satan unmasked himself before the universe as the liar and murderer he has always been.

20.    In order to fully understand the great controversy and the issues involved, it is very important to notice in Romans 3:25-26 that Paul said three times in direct response to Satan’s accusations, “God is righteous,” before he mentioned what God has done for us. But, theologians almost always focus only on what God has done for us.

21.    Throughout the ages, many cultures have myths or ancient stories about conflicts between good and evil. Modern higher criticism has even led many Christians to deny the reality of a personal Devil and his angels. Fortunately, there are some among our Christian friends who recognize the reality of the cosmic conflict. Gregory Boyd has written a book entitled God at War where he commented on Daniel 10 saying:

The Bible from beginning to end presupposes spiritual beings who exist “between” humanity and God and whose behavior significantly affects human existence, for better or for worse. Indeed, just such a conception, I argue in this work, lies at the center of the biblical worldview.—Gregory A. Boyd, God at War. Downer’s Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1997, p. 11.

22.    So, what happens to our understanding of the great controversy if we eliminate Satan and his demonic friends? We are left with some kind of a conflict going on between God and man!

23.    In ancient times, it was believed that might makes right. Thus, kings and military leaders exercised their authority by producing fear in their subjects. God has repeatedly refused to take that approach.

Even when it was decided that he could no longer remain in heaven, Infinite Wisdom did not destroy Satan. Since the service of love can alone be acceptable to God, the allegiance of His creatures must rest upon a conviction of His justice and benevolence. The inhabitants of heaven and of other worlds, being unprepared to comprehend the nature or consequences of sin, could not then have seen the justice and mercy of God in the destruction of Satan. Had he been immediately blotted from existence, they would have served God from fear rather than from love. The influence of the deceiver would not have been fully destroyed, nor would the spirit of rebellion have been utterly eradicated.

Evil must be permitted to come to maturity. For the good of the entire universe through ceaseless ages Satan must more fully develop his principles, that his charges against the divine government might be seen in their true light by all created beings, that the justice and mercy of God and the immutability of His law might forever be placed beyond all question.—Ellen White, The Great Controversy 498.2-499.0.

At the beginning of the great controversy, the angels did not understand this. Had Satan and his host then been left to reap the full result of their sin, they would have perished; but it would not have been apparent to heavenly beings that this was the inevitable result of sin. A doubt of God’s goodness would have remained in their minds as evil seed, to produce its deadly fruit of sin and woe.

But not so when the great controversy shall be ended. Then, the plan of redemption having been completed, the character of God is revealed to all created intelligences. The precepts of His law are seen to be perfect and immutable. Then sin has made manifest its nature, Satan his character. Then the extermination of sin will vindicate God’s love and establish His honor before a universe of beings who delight to do His will, and in whose heart is His law.

Well, then, might the angels rejoice as they looked upon the Saviour’s cross; for though they did not then understand all, they knew that the destruction of sin and Satan was forever made certain, that the redemption of man was assured, and that the universe was made eternally secure. Christ Himself fully comprehended the results of the sacrifice made upon Calvary. To all these He looked forward when upon the cross He cried out, “It is finished.”—Ellen White, The Desire of Ages 764.2-4.

24.    So, why is it that God is so opposed to having us serve Him out of fear?

A sullen submission to the will of the Father will develop the character of a rebel. By such a one service is looked upon as drudgery. It is not rendered cheerfully, and in the love of God. It is a mere mechanical performance. [If he dared, such a one would disobey. His rebellion is smothered, ready to break out at any time in bitter murmurings and complaints.] Such service brings no peace or quietude to the soul.—Ellen White, MS 20, 1897 (MR # 970); Signs of the Times, July 22, 1897, par. 11; section in brackets is omitted in That I May Know Him 120.4; 12MR 236.1.

25.    Is it obvious to you that we are still in the great controversy? Will Satan ultimately be able to destroy us? See Isaiah 33:10-16[14]. But, we must not be naive. “Everyone who wants to live a godly life, in union with Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:12, GNB) If we are not being persecuted or somehow treated like Job, is it because we are not really any threat to Satan’s kingdom, and therefore, he is leaving us alone?

26.    Seventh-day Adventists believe that Christ won the great controversy by His decisive victory on Calvary. Is there anything we can do to hasten the end of this great controversy? God is waiting for us to get ready so He can come back. (2 Peter 3:10-12[15]. Compare Evangelism 694-697[16].)

By giving the gospel to the world it is in our power to hasten our Lord’s return.—Ellen White, The Desire of Ages 633. (1898)

It is the privilege of every Christian, not only to look for, but to hasten the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the whole world would be sown with the seed of the gospel. Quickly the last harvest would be ripened, and Christ would come to [697] gather the precious grain.—Ellen White, Testimonies, vol. 8, 22.4. (1904); Ev 696.5.

27.    When Satan accused Job, did he really care about Job? Or, was his plan to accuse Job in order to accuse God? Satan was hoping to prove that Job was not “blameless and upright” and, thus, prove that God was mistaken. Clearly, Job suffered a lot. Is that-by causing suffering-the only way that Satan gets involved in the events of this earth?

28.    It might be easy for those of us growing up with western mindsets to think that in the great controversy there are two equally powerful forces in conflict. That is not true. Satan’s very life is sustained by God. No life can exist without God’s continuing support and power.

God could have destroyed Satan and his sympathizers as easily as one can cast a pebble to the earth; but He did not do this. Rebellion was not to be overcome by force. Compelling power is found only under Satan’s government.

The Lord’s principles are not of this order. His authority rests upon goodness, mercy, and love; and the presentation of these principles is the means to be used. God’s government is moral, and truth and love are to be the prevailing power.—Ellen White, The Desire of Ages 759.1.

29.    It may be hard for us to understand why God did not just eliminate Satan when he first started to rebel or perhaps quarantine him to some far corner of the universe so he could no longer harass us. But, God was not happy with the idea of just eliminating Satan; He wanted to decisively defeat Satan and disprove all his arguments and preserve the records for eternity.

30.    One of the ways in which Satan has tried to corrupt our thinking about God is by suggesting strange stories about how this world came into existence.

The famous Enuma Elish epic is an ancient Babylonian story about creation that stems in its original form from the twelfth century B.C. and was found by Austen Henry Layard in 1849 in the ruins of Nineveh. It describes creation in terms of a Chaoskampf (German for “struggle against chaos”) in which Marduk, the supreme Babylonian deity, enters into combat with Tiamat, who represents the mighty and chaotic waters. Marduk eventually subdues and destroys Tiamat in battle and then rips her corpse into two parts, from which he forms the earth and the skies. Throughout the epic story, there are always two sides-order versus chaos, good versus evil (although Marduk himself is quite a barbaric character as it turns out), thus creating a strong dualist perspective on creation, which is based on an epic battle. The Bible, in contrast, presents a very different picture of the origins of our earth and of sin.—Adult Teachers Sabbath School Bible Study Guide 27.

31.    Unfortunately, we must admit that Satan has often been pictured in Christian art as having horns, animal parts along with a tail, sometimes with chicken legs and other fearsome body parts. He is shown carrying a pitchfork which we assume is supposed to be his instrument for stoking the fires of hell.

32.    Because these false pictures are so unbelievable, many “moderns” just laugh off the idea of Satan’s existence. But, it is impossible to understand the Bible without realizing that Satan is a very intelligent, personal being. The Old Testament word for Satan means “the adversary” or “the enemy.” See for example [1 Kings 11:14; Psalm 109:6; Zechariah 3:2; Job 1:7-9,i2; 2:1-4,6-7; and 1 Chronicles 21:1][17].

33.    One of the obvious questions that arises when we talk about God and evil is the question: How could a good God make a bad world? There have been numerous attempts to try to answer that question. Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 give us some hints. Ellen White said:

It is impossible to explain the origin of sin so as to give a reason for its existence. Yet enough may be understood concerning both the origin and the final disposition of sin to make fully manifest the justice and benevolence of God in all His dealings with evil. Nothing is more plainly taught in [493] Scripture than that God was in no wise responsible for the entrance of sin; that there was no arbitrary withdrawal of divine grace, no deficiency in the divine government, that gave occasion for the uprising of rebellion.

Sin is an intruder, for whose presence no reason can be given. It is mysterious, unaccountable; to excuse it is to defend it. Could excuse for it be found, or cause be shown for its existence, it would cease to be sin.

Our only definition of sin is that given in the word of God; it is “the transgression of the law;” [1 John 3:4] it is the outworking of a principle at war with the great law of love which is the foundation of the divine government.—Ellen White, The Great Controversy 492.2; TMK 15.2; FLB 66.3. [Bold type and content in brackets are added.]

34.    In conclusion, let us remember that the great controversy is not over. This world of ours-this little blue dot in an immense universe-is the theater of the universe at this time. (1 Corinthians 4:9) The great controversy will finally come to an end when Satan is thrown into the “lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:10) When everyone has been given an opportunity to see exactly his/her role in the great controversy and to reap the results of his/her own choices without any force or arbitrary decisions on the part of God, the great controversy will end.

35.    But, at this point in time, we need to recognize how Christ’s death on the cross and His ministry before that make a difference in our own lives.

1.    He died for my sins. What does that mean?

2.    He died to show the results of sin-death. Do we understand the implications of that?

3.    He died to show what will happen to sinners in the end if they refuse to repent and turn to Him.

36.    As Seventh-day Adventists, we have been blessed enormously by the help of Ellen White, spelling out the details of the great controversy. Are we taking advantage of that?

1-Job 1:1 There was a man named Job, living in the land of Uz,[a] who worshiped God and was faithful to him. He was a good man, careful not to do anything evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, one thousand head of cattle, and five hundred donkeys. He also had a large number of servants and was the richest man in the East.

4 Job's sons used to take turns giving a feast, to which all the others would come, and they always invited their three sisters to join them. 5 The morning after each feast, Job would get up early and offer sacrifices for each of his children in order to purify them. He always did this because he thought that one of them might have sinned by insulting God unintentionally.

6 When the day came for the heavenly beings[b] to appear before the LORD, Satan[c] was there among them. 7 The LORD asked him, “What have you been doing?”

Satan answered, “I have been walking here and there, roaming around the earth.”

8 “Did you notice my servant Job?” the LORD asked. “There is no one on earth as faithful and good as he is. He worships me and is careful not to do anything evil.”

9 Satan replied, “Would Job worship you if he got nothing out of it? 10 You have always protected him and his family and everything he owns. You bless everything he does, and you have given him enough cattle to fill the whole country. 11 But now suppose you take away everything he has—he will curse you to your face!”

12 “All right,” the LORD said to Satan, “everything he has is in your power, but you must not hurt Job himself.” So Satan left.

Zechariah 3:2 The angel of the LORD[a] said to Satan, “May the LORD condemn you, Satan! May the LORD, who loves Jerusalem, condemn you. This man is like a stick snatched from the fire.”

Matthew 4:4 Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the Devil.

Ezekiel 28:12 “Mortal man,” he said, “grieve for the fate that is waiting for the king of Tyre. Tell him what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: You were once an example of perfection. How wise and handsome you were! 13 You lived in Eden, the garden of God, and wore gems of every kind: rubies and diamonds; topaz, beryl, carnelian, and jasper; sapphires, emeralds, and garnets. You had ornaments of gold. They were made for you[a] on the day you were created. 14 I put a terrifying angel there to guard you.[b] You lived on my holy mountain and walked among sparkling gems. 15 Your conduct was perfect from the day you were created until you began to do evil. 16 You were busy buying and selling, and this led you to violence and sin. So I forced you to leave my holy mountain, and the angel who guarded you drove you away from the sparkling gems.

Romans 3:[a] 25 God set forth Yeshua to bring at-one-ment,[b] through faith in His blood, to show His righteousness in passing over sins already committed. 26 Through God’s forbearance, He demonstrates His righteousness at the present time—that He Himself is just and also the justifier of the one who puts his trust in Yeshua.[c]

Footnotes:

1. Romans 3:25 cf. Isa. 53:10-12.

2. Romans 3:25 Lit. a mercy seat, the place of atonement (Heb. kaporet); cf. Rom. 5:10; 2 Cor. 5:19, 21.

3. Romans 3:26 Or the one who lives on the basis of Yeshua’s faithfulness.

Hebrews 2:14 Since the children, as he calls them, are people of flesh and blood, Jesus himself became like them and shared their human nature. He did this so that through his death he might destroy the Devil, who has the power over death,

2-Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job. Now that man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters 3 and his possessions were 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen and 500 female donkeys, and a very large household. That man was the greatest of all the people of the East.

4 Now it was customary for his sons to hold a banquet, each on his own day in his own house. They would send to invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.

3-Job 1:5 When the round of banquet days was completed, Job would send for them and consecrate them. He would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings, according to the number of them all. For Job said, “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did everyday.

6 One day the sons of God came to present themselves before ADONAI, and the satan[a] also came with them.

4-Job 1:6 One day the sons of God came to present themselves before ADONAI, and the satan[a] also came with them. 7 ADONAI said to the satan, “Where have you come from?”

The satan responded to ADONAI and said, “From roaming the earth and from walking on it.”[b]

8 ADONAI said to the satan, “Did you notice my servant Job? There is no one like him on the earth—a blameless and upright man, who fears God and spurns evil.”

9 Then the satan responded to ADONAI, saying, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Have you not made a hedge around him, his household, and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But now, stretch out Your hand and strike everything he has, and he will certainly curse You to Your face!”

12 Then ADONAI said to the satan, “Everything he has is in your hand. Only do not extend your hand against him!” So the satan departed from the presence of ADONAI.

5-Job 38:7 when the morning stars sang together,

and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

Job 1:6 One day the sons of God came to present themselves before ADONAI, and the satan[a] also came with them.

2:2 Again the day came when the sons of God came to present themselves before ADONAI, and the satan also arrived among them to present himself before ADONAI.

Luke 3:38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam,[a] the son of God.

6-Revelation 5:5 And I saw in the right hand of the One seated upon the throne a scroll, written on both the front and the back, sealed with seven seals. [a] 2 I also saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” 3 No one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. 4 I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it.

5 Then one of the elders tells me, “Stop weeping! Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah,[b] the Root of David,[c] has triumphed—He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

Worshiping the Lamb

6 And in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, I saw a Lamb standing, as having been slain—having seven horns and seven eyes,[d] which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He came and took the scroll from the right hand of the One seated on the throne. 8 When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense—which are the prayers of the kedoshim.

9 And they are singing a new song,[e] saying,

“You are worthy to take the scroll

and to open its seals.

For You were slain,

and by Your blood

You redeemed for God

those from every tribe and tongue

and people and nation.[f]

10 You have made them for our God

a kingdom and kohanim,

and they shall reign upon the earth.”

11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders—their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. [g] 12 They were chanting with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,

to receive power and riches

and wisdom and might

and honor and glory and blessing!”

13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea and everything in them, responding,

“To the One seated on the throne

and to the Lamb

be blessing and honor

and glory and power forever and ever!”

14 And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped.

7-Genesis 3:3 But the serpent was shrewder than any animal of the field that ADONAI Elohim made. So it said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from all the trees of the garden’?”

2 The woman said to the serpent, “Of the fruit of the trees, we may eat. 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat of it and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

4 The serpent said to the woman, “You most assuredly won’t die!

Zechariah 3:2 ADONAI said to the satan, ‘ADONAI rebukes you, the satan. Indeed ADONAI, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebukes you.[b] Is not this man a brand plucked out of the fire?’

Matthew 4:4 Then Yeshua was led by the Ruach into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

1 Peter 5:8 Stay alert! Watch out! Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, searching for someone to devour.

1 John 3:8 The one who practices sin is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. Ben-Elohim appeared for this purpose—to destroy the works of the devil.

Revelation 12:7 And war broke out in heaven, Michael and his angels making war against the dragon.[a] The dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they were not strong enough, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down—the ancient serpent, called the devil and satan, who deceives the whole world.[b] He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. [c] 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Anointed One, for the accuser of our brothers and sisters—the one who accuses them before our God day and night[d]—has been thrown out. 11 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives even in the face of death.

12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you with great rage, knowing that his time is short.

8-Isaiah 14:12 How you have fallen from heaven,

O brighstar[a], son of the dawn![b]

How you are cut down to the earth,

you who made the nations prostrate!

13 You said in your heart:

“I will ascend to heaven,

I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.[c]

I will sit upon the mount of meeting,

in the uttermost parts of the north.

14 I will ascend above the high places of the clouds—

I will make myself like Elyon.”

Ezekiel 28:12 “Son of man, lift up a lament for the king of Tyre. Say to him, thus says ADONAI Elohim:

‘You were the seal of perfection,

full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

13 You were in Eden, the garden of God.

Every precious stone was your covering

—ruby, topaz and diamond, beryl, onyx

and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and emerald—

your settings and your sockets a workmanship of gold

—in the day you were created they were prepared.

14 You were an anointed guardian cheruv.

I placed you on the holy mountain of God.

You walked among stones of fire.

15 You were perfect in your ways

from the day that you were created,

until unrighteousness was found in you.

16 By the abundance of your trade

they filled you within with violence.

So you have sinned.

So I threw you out as a profane thing

from the mountain of God.

I made you vanish, guardian cheruv,

from among the stones of fire.

1 Timothy 3:6 He must not be a new believer,[a] or he may become puffed up and fall into the same judgment as the devil.

9-Patriarchs and Prophets 33-43

Chapter 1—Why was Sin Permitted?

“God is love.” 1 John 4:16. His nature, His law, is love. It ever has been; it ever will be. “The high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity,” whose “ways are everlasting,” changeth not. With Him “is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” Isaiah 57:15; Habakkuk 3:6; James 1:17. {PP 33.1}

Every manifestation of creative power is an expression of infinite love. The sovereignty of God involves fullness of blessing to all created beings. The psalmist says: {PP 33.2}

“Strong is Thy hand, and high is Thy right hand.

Righteousness and judgment are the foundation of Thy throne:

Mercy and truth go before Thy face.

Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound:

They walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance.

In Thy name do they rejoice all the day:

And in Thy righteousness are they exalted.

For Thou art the glory of their strength: ...

For our shield belongeth unto Jehovah,

And our king to the Holy One.” Note: Psalm 89:13-18, R.V. [In this text and in some other Bible quotations used in this book the word “Jehovah” is employed instead of “Lord,” as rendered in the American Supplement to the Revised Version.] {PP 33.3}

The history of the great conflict between good and evil, from the time it first began in heaven to the final overthrow of rebellion and the total eradication of sin, is also a demonstration of God’s unchanging love. {PP 33.4}

The Sovereign of the universe was not alone in His work of beneficence. He had an associate—a co-worker who could appreciate His purposes, and could share His joy in giving happiness to created beings. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.” John 1:1, 2. Christ, the Word, the only begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father—one in nature, in character, in purpose—the only being that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. “His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6. His “goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” Micah 5:2. And the Son of God declares concerning Himself: “The Lord possessed Me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old. I was set up from everlasting.... When He appointed the foundations of the earth: then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him: and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him.” Proverbs 8:22-30. {PP 34.1}

The Father wrought by His Son in the creation of all heavenly beings. “By Him were all things created, ... whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him.” Colossians 1:16. Angels are God’s ministers, radiant with the light ever flowing from His presence and speeding on rapid wing to execute His will. But the Son, the anointed of God, the “express image of His person,” “the brightness of His glory,” “upholding all things by the word of His power,” holds supremacy over them all. Hebrews 1:3. “A glorious high throne from the beginning,” was the place of His sanctuary (Jeremiah 17:12); “a scepter of righteousness,” the scepter of His kingdom. Hebrews 1:8. “Honor and majesty are before Him: strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.” Psalm 96:6. Mercy and truth go before His face. Psalm 89:14. {PP 34.2}

The law of love being the foundation of the government of God, the happiness of all intelligent beings depends upon their perfect accord with its great principles of righteousness. God desires from all His creatures the service of love—service that springs from an appreciation of His character. He takes no pleasure in a forced obedience; and to all He grants freedom of will, that they may render Him voluntary service. {PP 34.3}

So long as all created beings acknowledged the allegiance of love, there was perfect harmony throughout the universe of God. It was the joy of the heavenly host to fulfill the purpose of their Creator. They delighted in reflecting His glory and showing forth His praise. And while love to God was supreme, love for one another was confiding and unselfish. There was no note of discord to mar the celestial harmonies. But a change came over this happy state. There was one who perverted the freedom that God had granted to His creatures. Sin originated with him who, next to Christ, had been most honored of God and was highest in power and glory among the inhabitants of heaven. Lucifer, “son of the morning,” was first of the covering cherubs, holy and undefiled. He stood in the presence of the great Creator, and the ceaseless beams of glory enshrouding the eternal God rested upon him. “Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering.... Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” Ezekiel 28:12-15. {PP 35.1}

Little by little Lucifer came to indulge the desire for self-exaltation. The Scripture says, “Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness.” Ezekiel 28:17. “Thou hast said in thine heart, ...I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.... I will be like the Most High.” Isaiah 14:13, 14. Though all his glory was from God, this mighty angel came to regard it as pertaining to himself. Not content with his position, though honored above the heavenly host, he ventured to covet homage due alone to the Creator. Instead of seeking to make God supreme in the affections and allegiance of all created beings, it was his endeavor to secure their service and loyalty to himself. And coveting the glory with which the infinite Father had invested His Son, this prince of angels aspired to power that was the prerogative of Christ alone. {PP 35.2}

Now the perfect harmony of heaven was broken. Lucifer’s disposition to serve himself instead of his Creator aroused a feeling of apprehension when observed by those who considered that the glory of God should be supreme. In heavenly council the angels pleaded with Lucifer. The Son of God presented before him the greatness, the goodness, and the justice of the Creator, and the sacred, unchanging nature of His law. God Himself had established the order of heaven; and in departing from it, Lucifer would dishonor his Maker and bring ruin upon himself. But the warning, given in infinite love and mercy, only aroused a spirit of resistance. Lucifer allowed his jealousy of Christ to prevail, and became the more determined. {PP 35.3}

To dispute the supremacy of the Son of God, thus impeaching the wisdom and love of the Creator, had become the purpose of this prince of angels. To this object he was about to bend the energies of that master mind, which, next to Christ’s, was first among the hosts of God. But He who would have the will of all His creatures free, left none unguarded to the bewildering sophistry by which rebellion would seek to justify itself. Before the great contest should open, all were to have a clear presentation of His will, whose wisdom and goodness were the spring of all their joy. {PP 36.1}

The King of the universe summoned the heavenly hosts before Him, that in their presence He might set forth the true position of His Son and show the relation He sustained to all created beings. The Son of God shared the Father’s throne, and the glory of the eternal, self-existent One encircled both. About the throne gathered the holy angels, a vast, unnumbered throng—“ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands” (Revelation 5:11.), the most exalted angels, as ministers and subjects, rejoicing in the light that fell upon them from the presence of the Deity. Before the assembled inhabitants of heaven the King declared that none but Christ, the Only Begotten of God, could fully enter into His purposes, and to Him it was committed to execute the mighty counsels of His will. The Son of God had wrought the Father’s will in the creation of all the hosts of heaven; and to Him, as well as to God, their homage and allegiance were due. Christ was still to exercise divine power, in the creation of the earth and its inhabitants. But in all this He would not seek power or exaltation for Himself contrary to God’s plan, but would exalt the Father’s glory and execute His purposes of beneficence and love. {PP 36.2}

The angels joyfully acknowledged the supremacy of Christ, and prostrating themselves before Him, poured out their love and adoration. Lucifer bowed with them, but in his heart there was a strange, fierce conflict. Truth, justice, and loyalty were struggling against envy and jealousy. The influence of the holy angels seemed for a time to carry him with them. As songs of praise ascended in melodious strains, swelled by thousands of glad voices, the spirit of evil seemed vanquished; unutterable love thrilled his entire being; his soul went out, in harmony with the sinless worshippers, in love to the Father and the Son. But again he was filled with pride in his own glory. His desire for supremacy returned, and envy of Christ was once more indulged. The high honors conferred upon Lucifer were not appreciated as God’s special gift, and therefore, called forth no gratitude to his Creator. He gloried in his brightness and exaltation and aspired to be equal with God. He was beloved and reverenced by the heavenly host, angels delighted to execute his commands, and he was clothed with wisdom and glory above them all. Yet the Son of God was exalted above him, as one in power and authority with the Father. He shared the Father’s counsels, while Lucifer did not thus enter into the purposes of God. “Why,” questioned this mighty angel, “should Christ have the supremacy? Why is He honored above Lucifer?” {PP 36.3}

Leaving his place in the immediate presence of the Father, Lucifer went forth to diffuse the spirit of discontent among the angels. He worked with mysterious secrecy, and for a time concealed his real purpose under an appearance of reverence for God. He began to insinuate doubts concerning the laws that governed heavenly beings, intimating that though laws might be necessary for the inhabitants of the worlds, angels, being more exalted, needed no such restraint, for their own wisdom was a sufficient guide. They were not beings that could bring dishonor to God; all their thoughts were holy; it was no more possible for them than for God Himself to err. The exaltation of the Son of God as equal with the Father was represented as an injustice to Lucifer, who, it was claimed, was also entitled to reverence and honor. If this prince of angels could but attain to his true, exalted position, great good would accrue to the entire host of heaven; for it was his object to secure freedom for all. But now even the liberty which they had hitherto enjoyed was at an end; for an absolute Ruler had been appointed them, and to His authority all must pay homage. Such were the subtle deceptions that through the wiles of Lucifer were fast obtaining in the heavenly courts. {PP 37.1}

There had been no change in the position or authority of Christ. Lucifer’s envy and misrepresentation and his claims to equality with Christ had made necessary a statement of the true position of the Son of God; but this had been the same from the beginning. Many of the angels were, however, blinded by Lucifer’s deceptions. {PP 38.1}

Taking advantage of the loving, loyal trust reposed in him by the holy beings under his command, he had so artfully instilled into their minds his own distrust and discontent that his agency was not discerned. Lucifer had presented the purposes of God in a false light—misconstruing and distorting them to excite dissent and dissatisfaction. He cunningly drew his hearers on to give utterance to their feelings; then these expressions were repeated by him when it would serve his purpose, as evidence that the angels were not fully in harmony with the government of God. While claiming for himself perfect loyalty to God, he urged that changes in the order and laws of heaven were necessary for the stability of the divine government. Thus while working to excite opposition to the law of God and to instill his own discontent into the minds of the angels under him, he was ostensibly seeking to remove dissatisfaction and to reconcile disaffected angels to the order of heaven. While secretly fomenting discord and rebellion, he with consummate craft caused it to appear as his sole purpose to promote loyalty and to preserve harmony and peace. {PP 38.2}

The spirit of dissatisfaction thus kindled was doing its baleful work. While there was no open outbreak, division of feeling imperceptibly grew up among the angels. There were some who looked with favor upon Lucifer’s insinuations against the government of God. Although they had heretofore been in perfect harmony with the order which God had established, they were now discontented and unhappy because they could not penetrate His unsearchable counsels; they were dissatisfied with His purpose in exalting Christ. These stood ready to second Lucifer’s demand for equal authority with the Son of God. But angels who were loyal and true maintained the wisdom and justice of the divine decree and endeavored to reconcile this disaffected being to the will of God. Christ was the Son of God; He had been one with Him before the angels were called into existence. He had ever stood at the right hand of the Father; His supremacy, so full of blessing to all who came under its benignant control, had not heretofore been questioned. The harmony of heaven had never been interrupted; wherefore should there now be discord? The loyal angels could see only terrible consequences from this dissension, and with earnest entreaty they counseled the disaffected ones to renounce their purpose and prove themselves loyal to God by fidelity to His government. {PP 38.3}

In great mercy, according to His divine character, God bore long with Lucifer. The spirit of discontent and disaffection had never before been known in heaven. It was a new element, strange, mysterious, unaccountable. Lucifer himself had not at first been acquainted with the real nature of his feelings; for a time he had feared to express the workings and imaginings of his mind; yet he did not dismiss them. He did not see whither he was drifting. But such efforts as infinite love and wisdom only could devise, were made to convince him of his error. His disaffection was proved to be without cause, and he was made to see what would be the result of persisting in revolt. Lucifer was convinced that he was in the wrong. He saw that “the Lord is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works” (Psalm 145:17); that the divine statutes are just, and that he ought to acknowledge them as such before all heaven. Had he done this, he might have saved himself and many angels. He had not at that time fully cast off his allegiance to God. Though he had left his position as covering cherub, yet if he had been willing to return to God, acknowledging the Creator’s wisdom, and satisfied to fill the place appointed him in God’s great plan, he would have been reinstated in his office. The time had come for a final decision; he must fully yield to the divine sovereignty or place himself in open rebellion. He nearly reached the decision to return, but pride forbade him. It was too great a sacrifice for one who had been so highly honored to confess that he had been in error, that his imaginings were false, and to yield to the authority which he had been working to prove unjust. {PP 39.1}

A compassionate Creator, in yearning pity for Lucifer and his followers, was seeking to draw them back from the abyss of ruin into which they were about to plunge. But His mercy was misinterpreted. Lucifer pointed to the long-suffering of God as an evidence of his own superiority, an indication that the King of the universe would yet accede to his terms. If the angels would stand firmly with him, he declared, they could yet gain all that they desired. He persistently defended his own course, and fully committed himself to the great controversy against his Maker. Thus it was that Lucifer, “the light bearer,” the sharer of God’s glory, the attendant of His throne, by transgression became Satan, “the adversary” of God and holy beings and the destroyer of those whom Heaven had committed to his guidance and guardianship. {PP 39.2}

Rejecting with disdain the arguments and entreaties of the loyal angels, he denounced them as deluded slaves. The preference shown to Christ he declared an act of injustice both to himself and to all the heavenly host, and announced that he would no longer submit to this invasion of his rights and theirs. He would never again acknowledge the supremacy of Christ. He had determined to claim the honor which should have been given him, and take command of all who would become his followers; and he promised those who would enter his ranks a new and better government, under which all would enjoy freedom. Great numbers of the angels signified their purpose to accept him as their leader. Flattered by the favor with which his advances were received, he hoped to win all the angels to his side, to become equal with God Himself, and to be obeyed by the entire host of heaven. {PP 40.1}

Still the loyal angels urged him and his sympathizers to submit to God; and they set before them the inevitable result should they refuse: He who had created them could overthrow their power and signally punish their rebellious daring. No angel could successfully oppose the law of God, which was as sacred as Himself. They warned all to close their ears against Lucifer’s deceptive reasoning, and urged him and his followers to seek the presence of God without delay and confess the error of questioning His wisdom and authority. {PP 40.2}

Many were disposed to heed this counsel, to repent of their disaffection, and seek to be again received into favor with the Father and His Son. But Lucifer had another deception ready. The mighty revolter now declared that the angels who had united with him had gone too far to return; that he was acquainted with the divine law, and knew that God would not forgive. He declared that all who should submit to the authority of Heaven would be stripped of their honor, degraded from their position. For himself, he was determined never again to acknowledge the authority of Christ. The only course remaining for him and his followers, he said, was to assert their liberty, and gain by force the rights which had not been willingly accorded them. {PP 40.3}

So far as Satan himself was concerned, it was true that he had now gone too far to return. But not so with those who had been blinded by his deceptions. To them the counsel and entreaties of the loyal angels opened a door of hope; and had they heeded the warning, they might have broken away from the snare of Satan. But pride, love for their leader, and the desire for unrestricted freedom were permitted to bear sway, and the pleadings of divine love and mercy were finally rejected. {PP 41.1}

God permitted Satan to carry forward his work until the spirit of disaffection ripened into active revolt. It was necessary for his plans to be fully developed, that their true nature and tendency might be seen by all. Lucifer, as the anointed cherub, had been highly exalted; he was greatly loved by the heavenly beings, and his influence over them was strong. God’s government included not only the inhabitants of heaven, but of all the worlds that He had created; and Lucifer had concluded that if he could carry the angels of heaven with him in rebellion, he could carry also all the worlds. He had artfully presented his side of the question, employing sophistry and fraud to secure his objects. His power to deceive was very great. By disguising himself in a cloak of falsehood, he had gained an advantage. All his acts were so clothed with mystery that it was difficult to disclose to the angels the true nature of his work. Until fully developed, it could not be made to appear the evil thing it was; his disaffection would not be seen to be rebellion. Even the loyal angels could not fully discern his character or see to what his work was leading. {PP 41.2}

Lucifer had at first so conducted his temptations that he himself stood uncommitted. The angels whom he could not bring fully to his side, he accused of indifference to the interests of heavenly beings. The very work which he himself was doing, he charged upon the loyal angels. It was his policy to perplex with subtle arguments concerning the purposes of God. Everything that was simple he shrouded in mystery, and by artful perversion cast doubt upon the plainest statements of Jehovah. And his high position, so closely connected with the divine government, gave greater force to his representations. {PP 41.3}

God could employ only such means as were consistent with truth and righteousness. Satan could use what God could not—flattery and deceit. He had sought to falsify the word of God and had misrepresented His plan of government, claiming that God was not just in imposing laws upon the angels; that in requiring submission and obedience from His creatures, He was seeking merely the exaltation of Himself. It was therefore necessary to demonstrate before the inhabitants of heaven, and of all the worlds, that God’s government is just, His law perfect. Satan had made it appear that he himself was seeking to promote the good of the universe. The true character of the usurper and his real object must be understood by all. He must have time to manifest himself by his wicked works. {PP 42.1}

The discord which his own course had caused in heaven, Satan charged upon the government of God. All evil he declared to be the result of the divine administration. He claimed that it was his own object to improve upon the statutes of Jehovah. Therefore God permitted him to demonstrate the nature of his claims, to show the working out of his proposed changes in the divine law. His own work must condemn him. Satan had claimed from the first that he was not in rebellion. The whole universe must see the deceiver unmasked. {PP 42.2}

Even when he was cast out of heaven, Infinite Wisdom did not destroy Satan. Since only the service of love can be acceptable to God, the allegiance of His creatures must rest upon a conviction of His justice and benevolence. The inhabitants of heaven and of the worlds, being unprepared to comprehend the nature or consequences of sin, could not then have seen the justice of God in the destruction of Satan. Had he been immediately blotted out of existence, some would have served God from fear rather than from love. The influence of the deceiver would not have been fully destroyed, nor would the spirit of rebellion have been utterly eradicated. For the good of the entire universe through ceaseless ages, he must more fully develop his principles, that his charges against the divine government might be seen in their true light by all created beings, and that the justice and mercy of God and the immutability of His law might be forever placed beyond all question. {PP 42.3}

Satan’s rebellion was to be a lesson to the universe through all coming ages—a perpetual testimony to the nature of sin and its terrible results. The working out of Satan’s rule, its effects upon both men and angels, would show what must be the fruit of setting aside the divine authority. It would testify that with the existence of God’s government is bound up the well-being of all the creatures He has made. Thus the history of this terrible experiment of rebellion was to be a perpetual safeguard to all holy beings, to prevent them from being deceived as to the nature of transgression, to save them from committing sin, and suffering its penalty. {PP 42.4}

He that ruleth in the heavens is the one who sees the end from the beginning—the one before whom the mysteries of the past and the future are alike outspread, and who, beyond the woe and darkness and ruin that sin has wrought, beholds the accomplishment of His own purposes of love and blessing. Though “clouds and darkness are round about Him: righteousness and judgment are the foundation of His throne.” Psalm 97:2, R.V. And this the inhabitants of the universe, both loyal and disloyal, will one day understand. “His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He.” Deuteronomy 32:4. {PP 43.1}

10-The Great Controversy 492-504

Chapter 29—The Origin of Evil

To many minds the origin of sin and the reason for its existence are a source of great perplexity. They see the work of evil, with its terrible results of woe and desolation, and they question how all this can exist under the sovereignty of One who is infinite in wisdom, in power, and in love. Here is a mystery of which they find no explanation. And in their uncertainty and doubt they are blinded to truths plainly revealed in God’s word and essential to salvation. There are those who, in their inquiries concerning the existence of sin, endeavor to search into that which God has never revealed; hence they find no solution of their difficulties; and such as are actuated by a disposition to doubt and cavil seize upon this as an excuse for rejecting the words of Holy Writ. Others, however, fail of a satisfactory understanding of the great problem of evil, from the fact that tradition and misinterpretation have obscured the teaching of the Bible concerning the character of God, the nature of His government, and the principles of His dealing with sin. {GC 492.1}

It is impossible to explain the origin of sin so as to give a reason for its existence. Yet enough may be understood concerning both the origin and the final disposition of sin to make fully manifest the justice and benevolence of God in all His dealings with evil. Nothing is more plainly taught in Scripture than that God was in no wise responsible for the entrance of sin; that there was no arbitrary withdrawal of divine grace, no deficiency in the divine government, that gave occasion for the uprising of rebellion. Sin is an intruder, for whose presence no reason can be given. It is mysterious, unaccountable; to excuse it is to defend it. Could excuse for it be found, or cause be shown for its existence, it would cease to be sin. Our only definition of sin is that given in the word of God; it is “the transgression of the law;” it is the outworking of a principle at war with the great law of love which is the foundation of the divine government. {GC 492.2}

Before the entrance of evil there was peace and joy throughout the universe. All was in perfect harmony with the Creator’s will. Love for God was supreme, love for one another impartial. Christ the Word, the Only Begotten of God, was one with the eternal Father,—one in nature, in character, and in purpose,—the only being in all the universe that could enter into all the counsels and purposes of God. By Christ the Father wrought in the creation of all heavenly beings. “By Him were all things created, that are in heaven, ... whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers” (Colossians 1:16); and to Christ, equally with the Father, all heaven gave allegiance. {GC 493.1}

The law of love being the foundation of the government of God, the happiness of all created beings depended upon their perfect accord with its great principles of righteousness. God desires from all His creatures the service of love—homage that springs from an intelligent appreciation of His character. He takes no pleasure in a forced allegiance, and to all He grants freedom of will, that they may render Him voluntary service. {GC 493.2}

But there was one that chose to pervert this freedom. Sin originated with him who, next to Christ, had been most honored of God and who stood highest in power and glory among the inhabitants of heaven. Before his fall, Lucifer was first of the covering cherubs, holy and undefiled. “Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering....Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” Ezekiel 28:12-15. {GC 493.3}

Lucifer might have remained in favor with God, beloved and honored by all the angelic host, exercising his noble powers to bless others and to glorify his Maker. But, says the prophet, “Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness.” Verse 17. Little by little, Lucifer came to indulge a desire for self-exaltation. “Thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God.” “Thou hast said, ... I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation....I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.” Verse 6; Isaiah 14:13, 14. Instead of seeking to make God supreme in the affections and allegiance of His creatures, it was Lucifer’s endeavor to win their service and homage to himself. And coveting the honor which the infinite Father had bestowed upon His Son, this prince of angels aspired to power which it was the prerogative of Christ alone to wield. {GC 494.1}

All heaven had rejoiced to reflect the Creator’s glory and to show forth His praise. And while God was thus honored, all had been peace and gladness. But a note of discord now marred the celestial harmonies. The service and exaltation of self, contrary to the Creator’s plan, awakened forebodings of evil in minds to whom God’s glory was supreme. The heavenly councils pleaded with Lucifer. The Son of God presented before him the greatness, the goodness, and the justice of the Creator, and the sacred, unchanging nature of His law. God Himself had established the order of heaven; and in departing from it, Lucifer would dishonor his Maker, and bring ruin upon himself. But the warning, given in infinite love and mercy, only aroused a spirit of resistance. Lucifer allowed jealousy of Christ to prevail, and he became the more determined. {GC 494.2}

Pride in his own glory nourished the desire for supremacy. The high honors conferred upon Lucifer were not appreciated as the gift of God and called forth no gratitude to the Creator. He gloried in his brightness and exaltation, and aspired to be equal with God. He was beloved and reverenced by the heavenly host. Angels delighted to execute his commands, and he was clothed with wisdom and glory above them all. Yet the Son of God was the acknowledged Sovereign of heaven, one in power and authority with the Father. In all the councils of God, Christ was a participant, while Lucifer was not permitted thus to enter into the divine purposes. “Why,” questioned this mighty angel, “should Christ have the supremacy? Why is He thus honored above Lucifer?” {GC 495.1}

Leaving his place in the immediate presence of God, Lucifer went forth to diffuse the spirit of discontent among the angels. Working with mysterious secrecy, and for a time concealing his real purpose under an appearance of reverence for God, he endeavored to excite dissatisfaction concerning the laws that governed heavenly beings, intimating that they imposed an unnecessary restraint. Since their natures were holy, he urged that the angels should obey the dictates of their own will. He sought to create sympathy for himself by representing that God had dealt unjustly with him in bestowing supreme honor upon Christ. He claimed that in aspiring to greater power and honor he was not aiming at self-exaltation, but was seeking to secure liberty for all the inhabitants of heaven, that by this means they might attain to a higher state of existence. {GC 495.2}

God in His great mercy bore long with Lucifer. He was not immediately degraded from his exalted station when he first indulged the spirit of discontent, nor even when he began to present his false claims before the loyal angels. Long was he retained in heaven. Again and again he was offered pardon on condition of repentance and submission. Such efforts as only infinite love and wisdom could devise were made to convince him of his error. The spirit of discontent had never before been known in heaven. Lucifer himself did not at first see whither he was drifting; he did not understand the real nature of his feelings. But as his dissatisfaction was proved to be without cause, Lucifer was convinced that he was in the wrong, that the divine claims were just, and that he ought to acknowledge them as such before all heaven. Had he done this, he might have saved himself and many angels. He had not at this time fully cast off his allegiance to God. Though he had forsaken his position as covering cherub, yet if he had been willing to return to God, acknowledging the Creator’s wisdom, and satisfied to fill the place appointed him in God’s great plan, he would have been reinstated in his office. But pride forbade him to submit. He persistently defended his own course, maintained that he had no need of repentance, and fully committed himself, in the great controversy, against his Maker. {GC 495.3}

All the powers of his master mind were now bent to the work of deception, to secure the sympathy of the angels that had been under his command. Even the fact that Christ had warned and counseled him was perverted to serve his traitorous designs. To those whose loving trust bound them most closely to him, Satan had represented that he was wrongly judged, that his position was not respected, and that his liberty was to be abridged. From misrepresentation of the words of Christ he passed to prevarication and direct falsehood, accusing the Son of God of a design to humiliate him before the inhabitants of heaven. He sought also to make a false issue between himself and the loyal angels. All whom he could not subvert and bring fully to his side he accused of indifference to the interests of heavenly beings. The very work which he himself was doing he charged upon those who remained true to God. And to sustain his charge of God’s injustice toward him, he resorted to misrepresentation of the words and acts of the Creator. It was his policy to perplex the angels with subtle arguments concerning the purposes of God. Everything that was simple he shrouded in mystery, and by artful perversion cast doubt upon the plainest statements of Jehovah. His high position, in such close connection with the divine administration, gave greater force to his representations, and many were induced to unite with him in rebellion against Heaven’s authority. {GC 496.1}

God in His wisdom permitted Satan to carry forward his work, until the spirit of disaffection ripened into active revolt. It was necessary for his plans to be fully developed, that their true nature and tendency might be seen by all. Lucifer, as the anointed cherub, had been highly exalted; he was greatly loved by the heavenly beings, and his influence over them was strong. God’s government included not only the inhabitants of heaven, but of all the worlds that He had created; and Satan thought that if he could carry the angels of heaven with him in rebellion, he could carry also the other worlds. He had artfully presented his side of the question, employing sophistry and fraud to secure his objects. His power to deceive was very great, and by disguising himself in a cloak of falsehood he had gained an advantage. Even the loyal angels could not fully discern his character or see to what his work was leading. {GC 497.1}

Satan had been so highly honored, and all his acts were so clothed with mystery, that it was difficult to disclose to the angels the true nature of his work. Until fully developed, sin would not appear the evil thing it was. Heretofore it had had no place in the universe of God, and holy beings had no conception of its nature and malignity. They could not discern the terrible consequences that would result from setting aside the divine law. Satan had, at first, concealed his work under a specious profession of loyalty to God. He claimed to be seeking to promote the honor of God, the stability of His government, and the good of all the inhabitants of heaven. While instilling discontent into the minds of the angels under him, he had artfully made it appear that he was seeking to remove dissatisfaction. When he urged that changes be made in the order and laws of God’s government, it was under the pretense that these were necessary in order to preserve harmony in heaven. {GC 497.2}

In His dealing with sin, God could employ only righteousness and truth. Satan could use what God could not—flattery and deceit. He had sought to falsify the word of God and had misrepresented His plan of government before the angels, claiming that God was not just in laying laws and rules upon the inhabitants of heaven; that in requiring submission and obedience from His creatures, He was seeking merely the exaltation of Himself. Therefore it must be demonstrated before the inhabitants of heaven, as well as of all the worlds, that God’s government was just, His law perfect. Satan had made it appear that he himself was seeking to promote the good of the universe. The true character of the usurper, and his real object, must be understood by all. He must have time to manifest himself by his wicked works. {GC 498.1}

The discord which his own course had caused in heaven, Satan charged upon the law and government of God. All evil he declared to be the result of the divine administration. He claimed that it was his own object to improve upon the statutes of Jehovah. Therefore it was necessary that he should demonstrate the nature of his claims, and show the working out of his proposed changes in the divine law. His own work must condemn him. Satan had claimed from the first that he was not in rebellion. The whole universe must see the deceiver unmasked. {GC 498.2}

Even when it was decided that he could no longer remain in heaven, Infinite Wisdom did not destroy Satan. Since the service of love can alone be acceptable to God, the allegiance of His creatures must rest upon a conviction of His justice and benevolence. The inhabitants of heaven and of other worlds, being unprepared to comprehend the nature or consequences of sin, could not then have seen the justice and mercy of God in the destruction of Satan. Had he been immediately blotted from existence, they would have served God from fear rather than from love. The influence of the deceiver would not have been fully destroyed, nor would the spirit of rebellion have been utterly eradicated. Evil must be permitted to come to maturity. For the good of the entire universe through ceaseless ages Satan must more fully develop his principles, that his charges against the divine government might be seen in their true light by all created beings, that the justice and mercy of God and the immutability of His law might forever be placed beyond all question. {GC 498.3}

Satan’s rebellion was to be a lesson to the universe through all coming ages, a perpetual testimony to the nature and terrible results of sin. The working out of Satan’s rule, its effects upon both men and angels, would show what must be the fruit of setting aside the divine authority. It would testify that with the existence of God’s government and His law is bound up the well-being of all the creatures He has made. Thus the history of this terrible experiment of rebellion was to be a perpetual safeguard to all holy intelligences, to prevent them from being deceived as to the nature of transgression, to save them from committing sin and suffering its punishments. {GC 499.1}

To the very close of the controversy in heaven the great usurper continued to justify himself. When it was announced that with all his sympathizers he must be expelled from the abodes of bliss, then the rebel leader boldly avowed his contempt for the Creator’s law. He reiterated his claim that angels needed no control, but should be left to follow their own will, which would ever guide them right. He denounced the divine statutes as a restriction of their liberty and declared that it was his purpose to secure the abolition of law; that, freed from this restraint, the hosts of heaven might enter upon a more exalted, more glorious state of existence. {GC 499.2}

With one accord, Satan and his host threw the blame of their rebellion wholly upon Christ, declaring that if they had not been reproved, they would never have rebelled. Thus stubborn and defiant in their disloyalty, seeking vainly to overthrow the government of God, yet blasphemously claiming to be themselves the innocent victims of oppressive power, the archrebel and all his sympathizers were at last banished from heaven. {GC 499.3}

The same spirit that prompted rebellion in heaven still inspires rebellion on earth. Satan has continued with men the same policy which he pursued with the angels. His spirit now reigns in the children of disobedience. Like him they seek to break down the restraints of the law of God and promise men liberty through transgression of its precepts. Reproof of sin still arouses the spirit of hatred and resistance. When God’s messages of warning are brought home to the conscience, Satan leads men to justify themselves and to seek the sympathy of others in their course of sin. Instead of correcting their errors, they excite indignation against the reprover, as if he were the sole cause of difficulty. From the days of righteous Abel to our own time such is the spirit which has been displayed toward those who dare to condemn sin. {GC 500.1}

By the same misrepresentation of the character of God as he had practiced in heaven, causing Him to be regarded as severe and tyrannical, Satan induced man to sin. And having succeeded thus far, he declared that God’s unjust restrictions had led to man’s fall, as they had led to his own rebellion. {GC 500.2}

But the Eternal One Himself proclaims His character: “The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty.” Exodus 34:6, 7. {GC 500.3}

In the banishment of Satan from heaven, God declared His justice and maintained the honor of His throne. But when man had sinned through yielding to the deceptions of this apostate spirit, God gave an evidence of His love by yielding up His only-begotten Son to die for the fallen race. In the atonement the character of God is revealed. The mighty argument of the cross demonstrates to the whole universe that the course of sin which Lucifer had chosen was in no wise chargeable upon the government of God. {GC 500.4}

In the contest between Christ and Satan, during the Saviour’s earthly ministry, the character of the great deceiver was unmasked. Nothing could so effectually have uprooted Satan from the affections of the heavenly angels and the whole loyal universe as did his cruel warfare upon the world’s Redeemer. The daring blasphemy of his demand that Christ should pay him homage, his presumptuous boldness in bearing Him to the mountain summit and the pinnacle of the temple, the malicious intent betrayed in urging Him to cast Himself down from the dizzy height, the unsleeping malice that hunted Him from place to place, inspiring the hearts of priests and people to reject His love, and at the last to cry, “Crucify Him! crucify Him!”—all this excited the amazement and indignation of the universe. {GC 501.1}

It was Satan that prompted the world’s rejection of Christ. The prince of evil exerted all his power and cunning to destroy Jesus; for he saw that the Saviour’s mercy and love, His compassion and pitying tenderness, were representing to the world the character of God. Satan contested every claim put forth by the Son of God and employed men as his agents to fill the Saviour’s life with suffering and sorrow. The sophistry and falsehood by which he had sought to hinder the work of Jesus, the hatred manifested through the children of disobedience, his cruel accusations against Him whose life was one of unexampled goodness, all sprang from deep-seated revenge. The pent-up fires of envy and malice, hatred and revenge, burst forth on Calvary against the Son of God, while all heaven gazed upon the scene in silent horror. {GC 501.2}

When the great sacrifice had been consummated, Christ ascended on high, refusing the adoration of angels until He had presented the request: “I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am.” John 17:24. Then with inexpressible love and power came forth the answer from the Father’s throne: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” Hebrews 1:6. Not a stain rested upon Jesus. His humiliation ended, His sacrifice completed, there was given unto Him a name that is above every name. {GC 501.3}

Now the guilt of Satan stood forth without excuse. He had revealed his true character as a liar and a murderer. It was seen that the very same spirit with which he ruled the children of men, who were under his power, he would have manifested had he been permitted to control the inhabitants of heaven. He had claimed that the transgression of God’s law would bring liberty and exaltation; but it was seen to result in bondage and degradation. {GC 502.1}

Satan’s lying charges against the divine character and government appeared in their true light. He had accused God of seeking merely the exaltation of Himself in requiring submission and obedience from His creatures, and had declared that, while the Creator exacted self-denial from all others, He Himself practiced no self-denial and made no sacrifice. Now it was seen that for the salvation of a fallen and sinful race, the Ruler of the universe had made the greatest sacrifice which love could make; for “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself.” 2 Corinthians 5:19. It was seen, also, that while Lucifer had opened the door for the entrance of sin by his desire for honor and supremacy, Christ had, in order to destroy sin, humbled Himself and become obedient unto death. {GC 502.2}

God had manifested His abhorrence of the principles of rebellion. All heaven saw His justice revealed, both in the condemnation of Satan and in the redemption of man. Lucifer had declared that if the law of God was changeless, and its penalty could not be remitted, every transgressor must be forever debarred from the Creator’s favor. He had claimed that the sinful race were placed beyond redemption and were therefore his rightful prey. But the death of Christ was an argument in man’s behalf that could not be overthrown. The penalty of the law fell upon Him who was equal with God, and man was free to accept the righteousness of Christ and by a life of penitence and humiliation to triumph, as the Son of God had triumphed, over the power of Satan. Thus God is just and yet the justifier of all who believe in Jesus. {GC 502.3}

But it was not merely to accomplish the redemption of man that Christ came to the earth to suffer and to die. He came to “magnify the law” and to “make it honorable.” Not alone that the inhabitants of this world might regard the law as it should be regarded; but it was to demonstrate to all the worlds of the universe that God’s law is unchangeable. Could its claims have been set aside, then the Son of God need not have yielded up His life to atone for its transgression. The death of Christ proves it immutable. And the sacrifice to which infinite love impelled the Father and the Son, that sinners might be redeemed, demonstrates to all the universe—what nothing less than this plan of atonement could have sufficed to do—that justice and mercy are the foundation of the law and government of God. {GC 503.1}

In the final execution of the judgment it will be seen that no cause for sin exists. When the Judge of all the earth shall demand of Satan, “Why hast thou rebelled against Me, and robbed Me of the subjects of My kingdom?” the originator of evil can render no excuse. Every mouth will be stopped, and all the hosts of rebellion will be speechless. {GC 503.2}

The cross of Calvary, while it declares the law immutable, proclaims to the universe that the wages of sin is death. In the Saviour’s expiring cry, “It is finished,” the death knell of Satan was rung. The great controversy which had been so long in progress was then decided, and the final eradication of evil was made certain. The Son of God passed through the portals of the tomb, that “through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” Hebrews 2:14. Lucifer’s desire for self-exaltation had led him to say: “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: ... I will be like the Most High.” God declares: “I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth, ... and never shalt thou be any more.” Isaiah 14:13, 14; Ezekiel 28:18, 19. When “the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;....all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.” Malachi 4:1. {GC 503.3}

The whole universe will have become witnesses to the nature and results of sin. And its utter extermination, which in the beginning would have brought fear to angels and dishonor to God, will now vindicate His love and establish His honor before the universe of beings who delight to do His will, and in whose heart is His law. Never will evil again be manifest. Says the word of God: “Affliction shall not rise up the second time.” Nahum 1:9. The law of God, which Satan has reproached as the yoke of bondage, will be honored as the law of liberty. A tested and proved creation will never again be turned from allegiance to Him whose character has been fully manifested before them as fathomless love and infinite wisdom. {GC 504.1}

11-Job 4:12 Now a word was secretly brought to me,

and my ear caught a whisper of it.

13 Amid unsettling visions in the night,

when a deep sleep falls on men,

14 dread and trembling seized me,

and made my bones shake.

15 Then a spirit brushed over my face,

and the hair of my flesh stood on end.

16 It stood still,

but I could not recognize its appearance,

A form was before my eyes

and I heard a murmur, a voice:

17 ‘Can a mortal be righteous before God;

or a man pure before his Creator?

18 If He puts no trust in His servants

and accuses His angels of error,

19 how much more those

who dwell in houses of clay,

whose foundation is in the dust,

who are crushed before the moth?

20 From morning until evening they are beaten into pieces—

unnoticed, they perish forever.

21 Is not their tent cord pulled out,

so that they die without wisdom.’”

12-Job 9:2 “Truly I know it is so,

but how can one be righteous before God?

25:4 How then can a man be righteous with God?

How can one born of a woman be pure?

Job 15:15 If He puts no trust in His holy ones,

if even the heavens are not pure in His eyes,

13-John 12:31 Now is the judgment of this world! Now the prince of this world will be driven out! 32 And as I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all to Myself.”

Revelation 12:7 And war broke out in heaven, Michael and his angels making war against the dragon.[a] The dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they were not strong enough, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down—the ancient serpent, called the devil and satan, who deceives the whole world.[b] He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. [c] 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Anointed One, for the accuser of our brothers and sisters—the one who accuses them before our God day and night[d]—has been thrown out. 11 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives even in the face of death.

12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you with great rage, knowing that his time is short.

Romans 3:25 God set forth Yeshua to bring at-one-ment,[b] through faith in His blood, to show His righteousness in passing over sins already committed. 26 Through God’s forbearance, He demonstrates His righteousness at the present time—that He Himself is just and also the justifier of the one who puts his trust in Yeshua.[c]

Hebrews 2:14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared the same humanity—so that through death He might break the power of the one who had the power of death (that is, the devil) 15 and free those who by fear of death were in bondage all their lives.

14-Isaiah 33:10 “Now I will arise,” says ADONAI.

“Now I will be exalted.

Now I will lift Myself up.

11 You conceive chaff,

you will give birth to stubble.

My breath is a fire that will consume you.

12 Then peoples will be burned as lime,

like thorns cut down, burned in the fire.

13 Hear, you who are afar off, what I have done,

and you who are near, acknowledge My might.”

14 Sinners in Zion are afraid.

Trembling has seized the godless:

“Who among us can live with the consuming fire?”

“Who among us can live with everlasting burnings?”

15 One who walks righteously, and speaks uprightly,

who refuses unjust gain by extortion,

who shakes his hands free of bribes,

who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed,

and shuts his eyes from looking on evil.

16 He will dwell on the heights—

his refuge will be an impregnable cliff.

His bread will be provided,

his water assured.

15-2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.[a] On that day the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the elements will melt and disintegrate, and the earth and everything done on it shall be exposed. 11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what kind of people should you be? Live your lives in holiness and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God. In that day the heavens will be dissolved by fire, and the elements will melt in the intense heat.

16-Evangelism 694-697

The Reason for the Delay

Deferred in Mercy—The long night of gloom is trying, but the morning is deferred in mercy, because if the Master should come, so many would be found unready. God’s unwillingness to have His people perish, has been the reason of so long delay.—Testimonies For The Church 2:194 (1868). {Ev 694.2}

The Work Might Have Been Done—Had the purpose of God been carried out by His people in giving to the world the message of mercy, Christ would, ere this, have come to the earth, and the saints would have received their welcome into the city of God.—Testimonies For The Church 6:450 (1900). {Ev 694.3}

I know that if the people of God had preserved a living connection with Him, if they had obeyed His Word, they would today be in the heavenly Canaan.—The General Conference Bulletin, March 30, 1903. {Ev 694.4}

Satan Has Stolen a March on Us—If every watchman on the walls of Zion had given the trumpet a certain sound, the world might ere this have heard the message of warning. But the work is years behind. While men have slept, Satan has stolen a march upon us.—Testimonies For The Church 9:29 (1909). {Ev 694.5}

No Failure of God’s Promises—The angels of God in their messages to men represent time as very short. Thus it has always been presented to me. It is true that time has continued longer than we expected in the early days of this message. Our Saviour did not appear as soon as we hoped. But has the Word of the Lord failed? Never! It should be remembered that the promises and the threatenings of God are alike conditional. {Ev 695.1}

God had committed to His people a work to be accomplished on earth. The third angel’s message was to be given, the minds of believers were to be directed to the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ had entered to make atonement for His people. The Sabbath reform was to be carried forward. The breach in the law of God must be made up. The message must be proclaimed with a loud voice, that all the inhabitants of earth might receive the warning. The people of God must purify their souls through obedience to the truth, and be prepared to stand without fault before Him at His coming. {Ev 695.2}

Had Adventists, after the great disappointment in 1844, held fast their faith and followed on unitedly in the opening providence of God, receiving the message of the third angel and in the power of the Holy Spirit proclaiming it to the world, they would have seen the salvation of God, the Lord would have wrought mightily with their efforts, the work would have been completed, and Christ would have come ere this to receive His people to their reward. But in the period of doubt and uncertainty that followed the disappointment, many of the advent believers yielded their faith.... Thus the work was hindered, and the world was left in darkness. Had the whole Adventist body united upon the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, how widely different would have been our history! {Ev 695.3}

It was not the will of God that the coming of Christ should be thus delayed. God did not design that His people, Israel, should wander forty years in the wilderness. He promised to lead them directly to the land of Canaan, and establish them there a holy, healthy, happy people. But those to whom it was first preached, went not in “because of unbelief.” Their hearts were filled with murmuring, rebellion, and hatred, and He could not fulfill His covenant with them. {Ev 696.1}

For forty years did unbelief, murmuring, and rebellion shut out ancient Israel from the land of Canaan. The same sins have delayed the entrance of modern Israel into the heavenly Canaan. In neither case were the promises of God at fault. It is the unbelief, the worldliness, unconsecration, and strife among the Lord’s professed people that have kept us in this world of sin and sorrow so many years.—Manuscript 4, 1883. {Ev 696.2}

Charge It Not to God—We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel; but for Christ’s sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action.—Letter 184, 1901. {Ev 696.3}

We May Hasten the Day—By giving the gospel to the world it is in our power to hasten our Lord’s return.—The Desire of Ages, 633 (1898). {Ev 696.4}

It is the privilege of every Christian, not only to look for, but to hasten the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Were all who profess His name bearing fruit to His glory, how quickly the whole world would be sown with the seed of the gospel. Quickly the last harvest would be ripened, and Christ would come to gather the precious grain.—Testimonies For The Church 8:22, 23 (1904). {Ev 696.5}

When the Message Is Finished—It [the coming of the Lord] will not tarry past the time that the message is borne to all nations, tongues, and peoples. Shall we who claim to be students of prophecy forget that God’s forbearance to the wicked is a part of the vast and merciful plan by which He is seeking to compass the salvation of souls?—The Review and Herald, June 18, 1901. {Ev 697.1}

17-1 Kings 11:14 Then ADONAI raised up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad the Edomite, of the royal line in Edom.

Psalm 109:6 Set a wicked man over him,

let an accuser[a] stand at his right hand.

Zechariah 3:2 ADONAI said to the satan, ‘ADONAI rebukes you, the satan. Indeed ADONAI, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebukes you.[b] Is not this man a brand plucked out of the fire?’

Job 1:7 ADONAI said to the satan, “Where have you come from?”

The satan responded to ADONAI and said, “From roaming the earth and from walking on it.”[a]

8 ADONAI said to the satan, “Did you notice my servant Job? There is no one like him on the earth—a blameless and upright man, who fears God and spurns evil.”

9 Then the satan responded to ADONAI, saying, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 12 Then ADONAI said to the satan, “Everything he has is in your hand. Only do not extend your hand against him!” So the satan departed from the presence of ADONAI.

2:2 Again the day came when the sons of God came to present themselves before ADONAI, and the satan also arrived among them to present himself before ADONAI. 2 ADONAI said to him, “Where are you coming from?”

The satan answered ADONAI, “From roaming the earth and from walking on it.”

3 Then ADONAI said to the satan, “Have you noticed My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and spurns evil. And he still holds firmly to his integrity, though you incited Me against him to ruin him without any reason.”

4 The satan replied to ADONAI saying, “Skin for skin! A man will give up all he has for his own life. 6 ADONAI said to the satan, “Very well, he is in your hand—only spare his life!”

7 So the satan departed from the presence of ADONAI, and afflicted Job with painful boils, from the sole of his foot to the top of his head.

1 Chronicles 21:21 Then satan stood up against Israel and incited David to count Israel.

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