1. “The dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority”; “The coming of whom is according to Satan’s operation in all power and signs and wonders of a lie” (Rev. 13:2; 2 Thes. 2:9).
When the devil is thrown out of heaven to earth at the end of this age, he will realize that his time is short (Rev. 12:9-10, 12). At this time he will raise up Antichrist, the beast, who will embody his evil element with all its poison. The devil will give his power, throne, and authority to Antichrist and cause Antichrist to willfully do evil on the earth. The appearance of Antichrist will be according to Satan’s operation, and Antichrist will do wondrous miracles in order to deceive people. Through Antichrist, the devil will do everything that he can to inflict harm on the saints of God and the people on earth. He will vent all his hatred and fury on them. His actions through Antichrist will reflect the intention behind his first rebellion against God; that is, he will cause Antichrist to stand against the Lord, to uplift himself, and to proclaim himself God. This is his fifth action in the universe.
1. “Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth” (Rev. 20:7-8).
At the end of the millennial kingdom the devil will be temporarily released from his imprisonment, and he will deceive the nations on the earth. He will cause them to surround and attack God’s saints and God’s people, but fire will come out of heaven and devour them. This is his sixth action in the universe, and it will be his last. After this, he will be thrown into the lake of fire to be punished for eternity.
1. “He who deceives the whole inhabited earth”; “Deceive the nations” (Rev. 12:9; 20:3).
The first work of the devil in relation to man is to deceive man. His deception extends to the whole inhabited earth and to all the nations on earth. He uses all kinds of people and things to deceive man. There is no person, matter, or thing that cannot be used in order to deceive people, and there is no one who cannot be deceived by him. He uses money, enjoyment, vainglory, fame, knowledge, and position to deceive man. He also uses spouses, children, clothing, food, dwelling, and transportation to deceive man. He uses wealth, leisure, sophisticated living, and modern culture to deceive man, and he also uses poverty, hard work, simple living, and traditions to deceive man. He can use secular things that are unrelated to serving God to deceive man, and he can use religious things involving zealous service for God. He deceives us by using the people and things that we like and enjoy. He uses the things that are personally associated with each of us in order to deceive us. People all over the earth and throughout all the ages—whether rich or poor, noble or lowly, wise or foolish, strong or weak—have been snared in his deceptions. Who has not been deceived by him? He deceives the entire inhabited earth. He deceives all the nations.
2. “Has blinded the thoughts” (2 Cor. 4:4).
The devil blinds man’s thoughts so that man cannot know God or see the origin, meaning, and purpose of his existence, thus preventing him from receiving the gospel and being saved. Many Ph.D.’s and college professors are very bright and thoughtful. But even though they are filled with scientific knowledge and understand many principles, they do not know the reason and purpose of their existence. What little knowledge of God and of the things related to Him that they have is considered by them to be foolish superstitions with no meaning or value. This proves that the devil has blinded their thoughts so that they would not have the inward sight to see God. The devil does not want the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ to shine in them to bring them out of darkness into the light. These worldly people are under the devil’s blinding covering, and they are living a dull, confused, sightless existence, not knowing either their origin or their destination.
3. “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes and snatches away” (Matt. 13:19).
When people hear the word of God, the devil works to snatch it away. The word of God enlightens the eyes of man’s heart and causes him to see spiritual things concerning God. It regenerates his spirit and causes him to obtain the life of God and participate in the spiritual things of God. Consequently, the devil comes to snatch away the word of God from man’s heart in order to keep him in darkness and death.
4. “The tares are the sons of the evil one; and the enemy who sowed them is the devil” (Matt. 13:38-39).
The devil also works to damage the church by mixing false believers, or tares, into the church. This causes the church to lose her purity outwardly.
5. “The whole was leavened” (Matt. 13:33).
The devil not only mixes false believers into the church but also mixes heretical teachings as evil leaven into the church. This causes the church to be corrupted inwardly. With respect to the faith, he fills the church with heresies that are not according to the truth, and with respect to living, he fills the church with evil things that go against the Lord’s righteousness and holiness.
6. “The devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pet. 5:8).
This devil is like a roaring lion who walks about the whole earth seeking someone to devour, that is, someone who will accept his tempting, misleading, and ensnaring influence.
7. “Satan himself transfigures himself into an angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14).
Although the devil comes to devour people as a roaring lion, he can also transfigure himself into a lovely angel of light in order to deceive people. Even believers who are on guard against him as a roaring lion sometimes receive him as an angel of light. They escape his terrible devouring but accept his bright deception. Therefore, the devil in his brightness often can do more damage to the saints and the church than he can through his roaring and devouring. For three centuries the Roman Empire roared like a lion and damaged the church, but that damage was nothing compared to the damage done by the Roman government’s acceptance of Christianity as the state religion in the fourth century. When the church is under the devil’s roaring persecution, we do not need to fear too much for the church, but when she receives the devil’s welcoming face as an angel of light, we must truly be in fear.
8. “Tempted you” (1 Thes. 3:5).
Since the devil can transform himself into an angel of light, he can tempt people. His transformation is for his temptation. This is another aspect of his work.
9. “You are about to suffer” (Rev. 2:10).
When the devil is not successful in tempting the saints, he causes them to suffer. His work is varied, and he always changes his methods.
10. “Satan has asked to have you all to sift you as wheat” (Luke 22:31).
The devil sifts the believers like people sift wheat. If a believer does not have strong faith, it is hard to pass through this sifting and remain firm. Therefore, the Lord constantly prays for us concerning this matter so that we would not lose faith (v. 32).
11. “The stratagems of the devil” (Eph. 6:11).
The devil uses stratagems. He is crafty, and he has many schemes and deceptive works to help him arrive at his evil goal.
12. “A messenger of Satan, that he might buffet” (2 Cor. 12:7).
The devil buffets the saints through their circumstances and situations.
13. “Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel” (1 Chron. 21:1).
Moving the saints is another aspect of the devil’s work. Whenever the saints are moved, regardless of the reason, the devil is behind their movement. Sometimes if we would only wait for five minutes, we would escape the devil’s attempts to move us.
14. “Satan hindered us” (1 Thes. 2:18).
The devil often hinders the Lord’s workers in order to slow down and damage the Lord’s work.
15. “Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary” (Zech. 3:1).
The devil takes advantage of every opportunity to be an adversary to the saints. He points out our mistakes so that we will be embarrassed, and he traps us in difficult situations so that we will be discouraged.
16. “The accuser of our brothers” (Rev. 12:10; see also Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7).
Because the devil is the adversary of the saints, he is always accusing us. He accuses us before God and in our conscience. He can go before God to accuse us as he accused Job, and he can accuse and condemn us in our conscience in order to interrupt our fellowship with the Lord. The Lord’s blood is the only thing that enables us to overcome his accusations (Rev. 12:11).
17. “Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh” (1 Cor. 5:5; see also 1 Tim. 1:20).
When the believers sin and are unwilling to repent, they bring Satan’s destruction of their flesh upon themselves. Therefore, the devil also harms the believers’ bodies.
18. “The snare of the devil, having been caught alive by him” (2 Tim. 2:26).
The devil works upon man in order to catch alive the man whom God created and redeemed for Himself.
19. “The tempter came” (Matt. 4:3).
Temptation is a constant work of the devil; therefore, the Bible calls him the tempter.
20. “Satan filled your heart to deceive the Holy Spirit” (Acts 5:3).
Satan fills people’s hearts and causes them to deceive the Holy Spirit. This is one of the devil’s devious works in man’s hearts.
21. “Son of the devil, enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?” (Acts 13:10).
The devil uses men to pervert the straight ways of the Lord and to damage the Lord’s work.
22. “Satan has bound” (Luke 13:16).
The devil causes people to suffer because of his binding work. He binds them with sickness, and he binds them with affairs. The goal of his binding is to limit man’s pursuit of God.
23. “An unclean spirit” (Mark 5:2).
The devil possesses people through demons and causes them to suffer indescribable horrors.
The preceding items relate to the works of the devil. They are truly varied, and the devil can use them at will to attack from any direction.