1. “As the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness” (2 Cor. 11:3).
When the devil works, he uses not only persons, things, and matters but also craftiness. On the one hand, he hides in persons, things, and matters to keep people from recognizing him, and on the other hand, he uses craftiness to deceive people. When he deceived Eve, he hid in the serpent and he used crafty words.
The devil’s craftiness involves mixing falsehoods with the truth. It involves falsehood masquerading as truth, wrong things appearing as right, and right things appearing as wrong. The words that he spoke to Eve were falsehoods mixed with truth. Right and wrong were turned upside down. The devil still uses this method today and will continue to do so (2 Thes. 2:9-10).
2. “Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the stratagems of the devil” (Eph. 6:11; see also 2 Cor. 2:11).
The devil uses not only crafty ways in his work but also stratagems. His stratagems are always varied. We need the whole armor of God to stand against them. He can use all kinds of persons, things, and matters as his stratagems to trap us. He can also devise stratagems to deceive us and distract us from our true status before God, our true obtainments from God, our true service to God, our true love for God, and our true enjoyment of God. All his stratagems involve some element of truth being mixed with false and evil things; therefore, it is difficult to discern and recognize his stratagems. We need to be watchful and to pray, asking God to expose the devil’s stratagems so that we would not be ignorant of his stratagems.
1. “I cast you out as profane from the mountain of God...I cast you to the ground” (Ezek. 28:16-17).
When the devil rebelled against God, he was immediately judged, condemned, and cast out of the heavens. Although God pronounced judgment against the devil at that time, He did not fully carry out His judgment.
2. “Now shall the ruler of this world be cast out”; “The ruler of this world has been judged” (John 12:31; 16:11).
Although God pronounced judgment on the devil and limited his rebellion, He did not immediately cast the devil out of the world or take back the authority that had been given to him. When the Lord died on the cross, He carried out God’s original judgment on the devil through His crucifixion, and He cast the devil out of the world. Although the Lord’s death fulfilled the legal basis for God’s judgment of the devil, this judgment has not been fully executed. Therefore, after the Lord’s crucifixion, the devil can continue to move and work until the Lord completes the execution of God’s judgment against him.
3. “That through death He might destroy him who has the might of death, that is, the devil” (Heb. 2:14).
Through His death on the cross, the Lord judged the devil; that is, by the death of His physical body, He destroyed the devil who has the might of death. The Lord also destroyed his authority, position, and power to work. Through the Lord’s judgment on the cross, the devil has no position or power before God to work in or on people.
4. “Cast down” (Rev. 12:9-10, see also v. 13).
Despite the fact that the Lord carried out and accomplished God’s judgment against the devil on the cross by abolishing his authority, position, and power, the devil will be cast to the ground only at the end of this age when he is dealt with by the overcomers in the church and the angels who did not rebel in heaven (vv. 1-9, 11). At this time the devil will have no position either in the heavens or in the air, and since he will have only a short time to move about on the earth, he will pour out all his hatred and fury on the saints and the people of God.
5. “Bound him for a thousand years and cast him into the abyss” (Rev. 20:2-3).
At the end of this age the devil will be cast down to the earth. Shortly afterward, the Lord will come from the heavens and tell an angel to lay hold of the devil, bind him with a chain, cast him into the abyss, and seal it over so that he might not deceive the nations until a thousand years are completed. Then he will be loosed for a little while. This will fulfill God’s word in Isaiah 14:15 concerning the judgment the devil will receive. After one thousand years, there will be only one step left in the carrying out of God’s judgment on the devil.
6. “Cast into the lake of fire and brimstone” (Rev. 20:10).
After the devil has been shut up in the abyss for one thousand years, he will be released. As soon as he gets out, he will begin to do evil and to deceive the nations on earth. He will gather them together and cause them to surround God’s saints and God’s people. Then God will send fire from heaven to devour them, and the devil will be thrown into the lake of fire where he will be tormented day and night forever and ever. This eternal fire has been prepared for the devil and his angels (Matt. 25:41). At this point God’s judgment against the devil will be complete.
God’s judgment against the devil is completed step by step, with each step pushing him lower than the previous one. In the first step he was cast out of the heavens to the air. In the second step he will be cast from the air to the earth. In the third step he will be thrown into the abyss, and in the fourth step he will be thrown into the lake of fire. Once he is in the lake of fire, he will be at the bottom. Because of his pride, he wanted to uplift himself and exalt his throne over all the stars. He wanted to ascend into heaven and be equal with God. Little did he know that God would cast him down step by step until he was in the lowest place, the lake of fire. This will fulfill the Lord’s word: “He who will exalt himself shall be humbled” (23:12).