Please comment on the fall of the devil. Was it before the creation of the world (Earth) or after the creation of the world? Where was he thrown?<\/p>\n\t
The Bible contains only a little bit of material concerning the origins of Satan. See the lesson “Satan<\/a>” in the study of Genesis<\/a><\/em> for details. If by “fall,” you are asking when Satan became corrupt, the answer would have to obviously be before the events in Genesis 3. Concerning Satan, Jesus said, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it<\/em>” (John 8:44). Therefore, Satan’s downfall into sin started shortly after the creation.<\/p>\n However, if by “fall,” you are referring to Satan’s fall from power, this occurred at Jesus’ first coming. “And He said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven’<\/em>” (Luke 10:18). By this, Jesus meant that Satan’s grip on the world was slipping rapidly, as fast as a lightning bolt. Jesus’ death on the cross destroyed his primary source of power. “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage<\/em>” (Hebrews 2:14-15).<\/p>\n The book of Revelation also describes the overthrow of Satan’s power. “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ‘Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time’<\/em>” (Revelation 12:7-12). The context of this passage is in a figurative description of the founding of the church. Notice that Christians (brethren) could overcome by the blood of the Lamb (the death of Jesus upon the cross). With the overthrow of Satan, the kingdom of God with Christ as its ruler has come. This is similar to what Jesus said concerning his church. “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it<\/em>” (Matthew 16:18). Satan was unable to keep the invading army (Jesus and his followers) out of his kingdom.<\/p>\n Though the end is certain, Satan hasn’t given up yet. That is why there is a warning to the earth that Satan is angry and pressed for time. We need to be on our guard even now. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour<\/em>” (I Peter 5:8).<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Question: Please comment on the fall of the devil. Was it before the creation of the world (Earth) or after the creation of the world? Where was he thrown? Answer: The Bible contains only a little bit of material concerning the origins of Satan. See the lesson “Satan” in the study of Genesis for details.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[235],"class_list":["post-3897","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-satan"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27732,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-did-satan-corrupt-the-world-before-the-fall-of-man\/","url_meta":{"origin":3897,"position":0},"title":"How did Satan corrupt the world before the fall of man?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 11, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi! May I ask a question, please? How is it that Lucifer was upon this earth in the Garden of Eden in an already fallen state as the serpent and deceiver or devil? Lucifer had already corrupted the whole earth, before his fall from grace, according to the Bible.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":26713,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-we-know-that-the-serpent-was-satan\/","url_meta":{"origin":3897,"position":1},"title":"How do we know that the serpent was Satan?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 15, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have started reading my Bible consistently, and have a couple of questions: Why do people say that the serpent who tempted Eve was Satan? I don't see that anywhere. Maybe I missed something? Also, someone once told me that Abram and Sarai were half-siblings, but I can't seem\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":86754,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-origin-of-the-devil\/","url_meta":{"origin":3897,"position":2},"title":"The Origin of the Devil","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 24, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Cleve Stafford A few days ago, someone asked me if I knew where the devil came from. I told her the easy answer is \"From heaven,\" but he is no longer there because of his disobedience. Of course, it is that simple, yet at the same time, it is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13391,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-the-devil-the-apple-that-adam-and-eve-ate\/","url_meta":{"origin":3897,"position":3},"title":"Is the Devil the apple that Adam and Eve ate?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 16, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: So is the Devil the apple that Adam and Eve ate? Answer: First, the Bible doesn't say Adam and Eve ate an apple. That is an old myth from the days when people assumed that red fruits were poisonous. The tree was a unique tree called the tree of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5184,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-was-the-serpent-cursed\/","url_meta":{"origin":3897,"position":4},"title":"Why was the serpent cursed?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 8, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In Genesis 3:14 it states \"And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life\" Was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":22176,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-cain-the-son-of-the-devil\/","url_meta":{"origin":3897,"position":5},"title":"Was Cain the son of the Devil?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 16, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: My Sunday school teacher says that Cain is the son of the Devil. I don't see where in the Bible this is true. Is it? Answer: If your teacher means physically, then it is time to find a better teacher. \"Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3897\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}