A spirit being who opposes God. Satan seeks to stop God's plans and lead his people into rebellion.
Satan in the Old Testament
Satan is not mentioned often in the Old Testament. In early parts of the Old Testament, he appears as an angel in heaven who brings charges against people before God (Job 1:6–12; 2:1–7; Zechariah 3:1–2). Referred to as “the satan” or “the accuser,” there is no indication that the angel is evil.
The concept of Satan as a tempter appears late in the Old Testament. In 1 Chronicles 21:1, the story of 2 Samuel 24:1 is retold with Satan, who is named for the first time and pictured as an evil figure. The Old Testament has no concept of Satan but provides the foundation for the later doctrine. Some interpret "Lucifer" in Isaiah 14:12 as referring to Satan, but it actually refers to the king of Babylon.
Development of Satan in Jewish Thought
Between the time of the Old and New Testaments, Jewish writers developed new ideas about Satan. They also gave him other names like Belial, Mastema, and Sammael. These writings present three main views of Satan.
Satan as the Accuser
In the first view, Satan appears much like he does in the Old Testament. He tempts people to do wrong things. He also stands in heaven before God and accuses people of their sins. These writings also show Satan trying to stop God's plan to save people (Jubilees 11:5; 17:16; Assumption of Moses 17; 1 Enoch 40:7).
Satan as the Evil Leader
The second view comes from ancient writings called the Dead Sea Scrolls. These scrolls describe Satan (called Belial) as the leader of evil forces who attacks good people. This idea may have been influenced by Persian religion (Zoroastrianism), which believed in an evil god. However, the Dead Sea Scrolls are clear that there is only one true God. They teach that God created both Belial and the Prince of Light (a good spiritual being) The Prince of Light will win in the end because God is on his side.
New Stories About Satan
The third view adds Satan to stories where he was not mentioned before. For example:
These writings say Satan desired Eve and caused humans to first sin against God (Wisdom of Solomon 2:24)
They say Satan controls the angels who sinned, as described in Genesis 6:1–4 (Jubilees 10:5–8; 19:28)
Some writings describe Satan himself as an angel who turned against God (2 Enoch 29:4)
Satan in the New Testament
In the New Testament, Satan is fully developed and given many names:
Satan (Hebrew for “accuser”)
Devil (the Greek translation of Satan)
Belial
Beelzebul
the Adversary
the Dragon
the Enemy
the Serpent
the Tester
the Wicked One
He is seen as:
the ruler of a host of angels (Matthew 25:41)
the controller of the world (Luke 4:6; Acts 26:18; 2 Corinthians 4:4)
the controller of all non-Christians (Mark 4:15; John 8:44; Acts 13:10; Colossians 1:13)
Satan is the enemy of God and wants to separate all people from God. He is an especially dangerous enemy of Christians (Luke 8:33; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Peter 5:8), who have to resist him and not be tricked by his tricks (2 Corinthians 2:11; Ephesians 6:11; James 4:7).
Satan carries out his evil plans by:
hindering God’s workers (1 Thessalonians 2:18)
accusing Christians before God (Revelations 12:10)
controlling the evil persons who resist the gospel (2 Thessalonians 2:9; Revelation 2:9, 13; 13:2).
The New Testament teaches us that Satan has always been evil (1 John 3:8). But Jesus changed everything. Through Jesus's work, Satan was bound and thrown out of heaven (Luke 10:18; Revelation 12). Despite being a dangerous enemy, Christians have powerful weapons—prayer, faith, and the effectiveness of Jesus’s blood. Satan can still cause physical illness if allowed by God (2 Corinthians 12:7). God may use Satan to punish people who have done wrong (1 Corinthians 5:5; 1 Timothy 1:20). Satan will always be under God’s control, who will eventually destroy him (Romans 16:20; Revelation 20:10).