The Fall And Rise And Fall Of Satan

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THE FALL AND RISE AND FALL OF SATAN (REVELATION 9)

After Ray Stedman, one of the most outstanding graduates from my alma mater Dallas Theological Seminary, preached on Revelation 8, he received an unsigned note in the offering which he read to the congregation exactly as it was written: "Kindly see to it that your sermon presentation is more entertaining and concise."

Revelation 9 is considered by some as one of the most difficult chapters of the book. It introduces the fallen star of heaven, the embodiment of evil, wickedness and godlessness, and the falsehood, fear, frustrations, friction and futility he brings.

What makes people turn to How can we be strong in a world of sin? How are we to protect ourselves against evil and evildoers, wickedness and wrong doing? Why is are we to turn to God and not to Satan for answers?

Be Wise to Satan

1 The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. 2 When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. 3 And out of the smoke locusts came down upon the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth.

(Martin) Luther had a maid in his house named Elizabeth, who, contrary to his wishes, left his service and became so wicked that she gave her soul to the devil. Not long after, she was stricken with a serious disease and became very despondent. At her request, Luther was called to her bedside. When he arrived, Elizabeth confessed to him that she felt for what she had done and also revealed to him her greater grief, namely, that she had given her soul to the devil.

“That is nothing,” replied Luther. “Listen, if you had given my clothes to a stranger when you were still in my service, would that have been a valid transaction?” “No,” answered the maid. ‘Well, Luther replied, “thus it is here. Your soul does not belong to the devil, but to Jesus. You cannot give away what does not belong to you. Go therefore to your Lord and ask Him to receive again what belongs to Him, but cast the sin that you have committed back on the devil, because that belongs to him.” The maid did as Luther advised and soon thereafter was found calm and happy. (A Layman’s Daily Devotional, Curt Donahue)

Satan promises the best, but pays with the worst;

He promises honor and pays with disgrace;

He promises pleasure and pays with pain;

He promises profit and pays with loss;

He promises life and pays with death.—Thomas Brooks

Satan is Fallen

V 1 star defeated No lifeline to Satan

V 2 smoke + sun darkened No light in Satan

V 3 scorpions locust death No life from Satan

Chapter 9 is a smorgasbord of angels, star (v1) and sun (v 2), locusts and scorpions (v 3), grass and tree (v 4), men (v 6) and women (v 8), lions, horses and serpents. Verse 1-2 begin with an “out” (ek, v 1 fallen “from” the sky to the earth) preposition. Who is this noun “star” in the masculine form? The fallen star refers to none other than Satan - the greatest star, the superstar and the fallen star of heaven, who eventually was cast out of heaven at the beginning of the Great Tribulation (Rev 12:9), but was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss (v 2, "bottomless pit," KJV).

The verb “fall” (star) occurs an astonishing 23 times in Revelation, more than any New Testament book. The first occurrence in the Bible refers to the magi who bowed down and worshiped Jesus (Matt 2:11) and the second occurrence to the devil who promised Jesus the world if He were to “fall down” and worship the devil (Matt 4:9). Similarly, Christmas time reminds us from “O Holy Night” to “fall on your knees.” It has a dropping (to the ground), downhill and dependent effect. The verb “had fallen” is in the perfect tense and points to an unchanging fallen condition or state, from past occurrence to present results. Satan is a depraved, defeated and deceptive creature. Revelation 9:1-11 does not record the fall itself, but the aftermath of Satan’s fall to earth in the middle of the Tribulation. Knowing that his time is short, he will do all he can to bring about bewilderment, brainwashing and backsliding along with scourging, struggling and suffering on earth

Here the star (Satan), however, is not willing to give up in a flash without a fight, a face-off or a fuss, so he/it used the key given to him to allow locusts (in reference to demons) in the Abyss to come out and afflict the earth. These locusts, however, did not eat vegetation, but had the power to torment people for five months (cf. Rev 9:10).