In our recent discussions, we’ve been exploring the roles of angelic beings described in the Bible, specifically focusing on those that reveal aspects of God’s character and nature to humanity. Since God is Spirit and invisible to the physical eye, these angelic beings help us grasp His essence and purpose by their actions and roles. The ancient Israelites connected these divine manifestations with the seven-branched Menorah in the Tabernacle, symbolizing the Seven Spirits of God (Revelation 4:5).
So far, we’ve discussed six of the seven Great Angelic Powers: the Angel of the Abyss, the Angel of Death, the Mighty Angel, the Angel of Great Authority, the Angel of the LORD, and the Angel of God’s Presence. Now, we turn to the seventh angelic power and perhaps the most challenging and complex to understand about God’s Spirit—the adversary, Satan.
Who is Satan? What is His Role in God’s Kingdom? To understand Satan’s role in the kingdom of God and how he reveals specific aspects of God’s nature, it’s essential to grasp how the Bible defines “good” and “evil.” We classify Satan as evil, but do we know the biblical definition of evil? This is often misunderstood, especially by modern audiences, and looking back to the original Jewish perspective can shed light on the meaning of evil. Defining Good and Evil in Biblical Terms: The Bible first mentions good and evil in Genesis. God declared His creation “good,” using the Hebrew word tov (Genesis 1:31), which means pleasing, beautiful, or prepared/ready — though not necessarily complete or perfect. In Genesis 2:9, we encounter the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” Here, “good” doesn’t mean morally flawless but rather something aligned with God’s purpose and sustains harmony for humanity’s flourishing.
God’s Perspective on Good and Evil: From God’s viewpoint, “good” embodies His original design, purpose, and the relational harmony He established. Evil, then, is anything that disrupts or opposes this order. In Genesis 3:6-7 Eve’s choice to seek knowledge independently of God disrupted this harmony and introduced doubt. Then, in Genesis 3:8-10, we see that doubt wasn’t merely for breaking a rule; it was evil because it disrupted God’s relational design, introducing fear, shame, and a loss of communion.
So, what does this understanding of good and evil have to do with Satan revealing aspects of God’s character? Without grasping this, we risk misunderstanding Satan’s role in God’s plan for humanity’s reconciliation and salvation. Satan’s Role in Revealing God’s Character: In the Bible, Satan is often an “adversary” or “accuser,” a role that sometimes reveals aspects of God’s character by testing or opposing actions that threaten to disrupt God’s purposes. For instance, in Numbers 22, the Angel of the LORD acts as an adversary (satan) to Balaam, opposing his plans to curse Israel, which would disrupt God’s protective order over His people. Here, the “adversary” role serves a higher purpose aligned with God’s will. This confrontation was not evil but a protective measure to uphold God’s covenant with Israel.
In this case, the adversarial spirit revealed God’s nature by promoting good through opposition. Rather than being purely a force of evil, this adversarial role sometimes serves to realign us with God’s will and purpose. This gives us A New Perspective on Satan: I’m asking us to reconsider how we think about good and evil and to view Satan through a different lens—not as a source of inherent evil but as a figure that tests and exposes what is out of alignment with God’s order. The early Jewish understanding teaches us that “good” is living in harmony with God’s creation and His commands, while “evil” is any force or action that disrupts this divine balance.
When Satan appears as an adversary in Scripture, it’s not always about pure malice. Sometimes, as with Balaam, Satan’s opposition challenges actions that would bring disorder, indirectly guiding us back to God’s order. This view helps us see that, at times, adversarial experiences in life may be God’s way of redirecting us toward His purposes and calling us back to His harmony.
The takeaway is that in our daily walk with God, we encounter challenges and forces that may oppose us, but these can be opportunities to seek and understand God’s purpose and realign with His order. Rather than immediately reacting negatively to challenges and opposition, we should recognize that God’s goodness can be reflected even in adversity, as He draws us closer to Himself and helps us discern His will. When the angel opposed Balaam, did he say, “I rebuke you, Satan? Get out of my way.” No. The opposition to his plans was there to warn him of his challenge and get the prophet to think twice about what he intended to do. God had a plan for Israel, and Balaam considered disrupting God’s plan, so Yahweh used Satan (adversity/challenge) to reveal to Balaam the character and nature of God as Israel’s provider.
In the well-known story about Joseph being sold into slavery in Egypt because of the jealousy of his brothers, we can see that evil/opposition isn’t what we think. It is just because things don’t go the way we want. His brothers hated him because their father, Jacob, favored Joseph. He was the golden child. So they tricked him and sold their brother to some slave traders who took him to Egypt, where he was sold into slavery. Joseph rose to be second only to Pharaoh through much opposition in his life and many challenges. Was what the brothers did evil? What they did brought about God’s plan for Israel to live in Egypt, where four hundred years later, God would send Moses to free them and become their God by covenant. This is why in Genesis 50:20, Joseph said to those brothers who sold him into slavery, “You meant evil (ra’ – harm and disruption), but God meant it for good (tov – pleasant and beautiful), to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.”
Do you think some people you work with have caused evil because they stand in your way or constantly challenge you? Do you think your health issues are evil because they slow you down or stop you from doing some things? Has a tragedy come into your life that you believe is evil because you’ve been oppressed by grief and sadness? Rather than consider these things evil, consider them challenges or obstacles. If we open our spiritual eyes, we can see how these challenges keep us on the path to receiving the good God has planned for us. Others may see harm and evil, but as Paul said in Romans 8:28, “We know that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” What is good? The fulfillment of God’s purpose is for us to be saved and live with him in harmony forever.
