WILL SATAN DIE?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

by

Steven Greene

 

Website: https://sabbathreflections.org

 

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture

is from the King James Version or its revisions.

Contents

CHAPTER 1  5

The Law of God is Universal 5

Life Within. 6

Changed from Spirit to Physical 8

Lake of Fire & Brimstone. 14

When Are Satan & the Demons Punished?. 15

Summary. 17

CHAPTER 1 

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

— Romans 6:23

The Law of God is Universal

The idea that Satan never dies was a common teaching decades ago but there is no proof of that in Scripture. Notice what the Bible does say, beginning with the fact that spirit beings, in contrast with physical beings, do not die:

[NET 2.1] LUKE 20:35-36 But those [physical beings] who are regarded as worthy to share in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. 36 In fact, they [physical beings] can no longer die because they are equal to angels [who are spirit beings] and are sons of God, since they are sons of the resurrection.

Spirit beings do not die because they are not susceptible to the decay of physical bodies. But physical beings can be changed to immortal spirit and no longer be subject to death:

[NET 2.1] 1 CORINTHIANS 15:42, 52-54 It is the same with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. … 52 in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we [physical beings] will be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 Now when this perishable puts on the imperishable, and this mortal puts on immortality, then the saying that is written will happen, “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

Immortality is the foundation of many religions. The promise of eternal life from God; however, is not simply handed out to everyone. Physical beings who sin by transgressing the Law of God[1] will die[2] (unless they repent):

ROMANS 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

EZEKIEL 18:4 “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; the soul who sins shall die.

What about spirit beings? The Law of God is clear and unambiguous—“the wages of sin is death.” The soul directly refers to physical beings that draw breath; it does not apply to spirit beings. But all living beings whether physical or spiritual are subject to the Law and its penalty for sin. If that were not the case, then how could Satan have sinned?

1 JOHN 3:8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. …

The Law of God is universal. It applies in heaven as well as on the earth; therefore, the penalty of death for sin must apply to both physical and spirit beings. Note that Scripture never states that the death penalty does not apply to spirit beings. Satan and the demons have certainly sinned and, since the Law applies to them as well, the penalty of death is required. They may have bodies that will continue forever but spirit beings that sin must be destroyed or killed as demanded in the Law of God.

Life Within

The question is not whether spirit beings die, because they do not on their own. The issue is whether spirit beings who sin can be killed as the Law demands, and if so, how? To answer that, begin with what the Bible says about created spirit beings:

JOHN 1:2-3 He [Jesus Christ] was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

“All things” includes life; not only physical mankind but angels who are spirit:

REVELATION 4:11 “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.”

NEHEMIAH 9:6 You alone are the LORD; You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host [of spirit beings], the earth and everything on it [including physical beings], the seas and all that is in them, and You preserve them all [including LIFE]. The host of heaven worships You.

God not only created life but He PRESERVES life—both physical and spiritual. What does “preserve” mean and why would God need to preserve spirit beings? The Hebrew word is chayah and it means to live, revive, or bring back to life. Most Bibles translate it as preserve but one translates it as keep them alive[3]. It makes sense that God preserves physical beings[4] but what dependency do created spirit beings have for God to preserve their lives? The fact that God preserves created spirit beings indicates there must be a difference between the spirit life in God and the spirit life in created spirit beings. It turns out that only God the Father and Jesus Christ[5] possess life within Themselves:

JOHN 5:26 “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself,

JOHN 1:2-4 He [Jesus Christ] was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him [Jesus Christ] was life, and the life was the light of men.

God the Father and Jesus Christ both possess life within Themselves. Jesus was a human being when He said this and physical beings do not possess life within them so this refers to His existence as a spirit being. They created all spirit life so it must be that Their existence is not dependent upon any other being—They are, instead, a source of life. From this it can be deduced that possessing life is required to create other life. In other words, any being who does not inherently have life within their being cannot create other life. If this were not true, then Satan surely would have filled the universe with more demons.

Changed from Spirit to Physical

Only physical beings have a limited lifespan but clearly physical beings can be changed into immortal beings—that is the point of the resurrection. So the question is can created spirit beings be changed into physical beings so they become subject to death? Yes, it has already happened. Jesus Christ willingly gave up His spiritual life and not only became a physical being but also died:

JOHN 10:17-18 “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I [Jesus Christ] lay down My life that I may take it again. 18 “No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”

Jesus said He chose to die. He possessed life within Himself but chose to become a mortal, physical man so that mankind could be offered immortality. Some might argue being born as a human is different from being changed into a man. However, does it really matter if God changes a spirit being into a physical zygote or a physical man? Regardless, the example of Jesus shows there is no reason that created spirit beings could not be changed into physical beings. In that regard, notice an interesting and often overlooked mention about Satan in the Garden in Eden:

GENESIS 3:14 So the LORD God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.

Most will agree that serpent is an epithet of Satan. What stands out is that the life of Satan is measured in “days.” Someone whose days are limited number always points to a pending death and this verse implies that the days of Satan are limited. But limited how? Does this simply point to the time when he will be cast into the Lake of Fire?

REVELATION 20:10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

NOTE: The phrase “forever and ever” is literally “into the ages of the ages.” Age refers to a span of time. In English, there words define different divisions of time. From longest to shortest they are: eon à era à period à epoch à age. Whether or not the translators of the Bible were aware of these technical distinctions, “ages of the ages” is a long time but the phrase does not always mean eternity. One example is Revelation 19:3 where the smoke of the Great Whore “rises up forever and ever.” It is doubtful that the Lake of Fire will exist for all eternity much less the smoke from the destruction of the wicked. It would be a stain of past sin upon the New Heavens and New Earth. In that context, it makes more sense that “forever and ever” in this verse refers to the time span of this “present evil age”[6] and not eternity.

It seems that the end of Satan’s days occurs when he is cast into the Lake of Fire; however, does he continue to live? Even if he does, it is hard to believe the Lake of Fire will exist in the coming Kingdom of God, so what happens to Satan then? What is even more puzzling is that fire cannot torment, much less destroy, spirit beings. The Bible even records an angel standing in the sun:

REVELATION 19:17 Then I [John] saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather together for the supper of the great God,

Some might suggest the Lake of Fire has a ‘special’ fire but that is an assumption not supported by biblical facts. Regardless, spirit beings cannot be tormented or destroyed by fire so why then are wicked spirit beings cast into the Lake of Fire? Some might suggest it is a prison, but the Bible clearly distinguishes between the Lake of Fire and the prison abyss[7]—they are not one and the same. So if Satan cannot be killed in the Lake of Fire, then why not put him back in the prison abyss instead? Then again, like the Lake of Fire, there is no indication that the prison abyss will exist in the New Heavens and New Earth. So the question remains, does Satan continue to live forever or does he die? Notice this verse about unjust spirit beings:

PSALMS 82:1-4, 6-7 GOD stands in the congregation [assembly] of the mighty [H0410 = ‘el]; He judges among the gods [H0430 = ‘elohiym]. 2 How long will you [the gods] judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked? Selah 3 Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy. 4 Deliver the poor and needy; free them from the hand of the wicked. … 6 I [God] said, “You are gods [H0430 = ‘elohiym], and all of you are children of the Most High. 7 But you shall die like men [H0120 = ‘adam = physical beings], and fall like one of the princes [of men].”

Here, God is judging other gods because they themselves judge “unjustly;” the condemnations against them being listed in verses 3-4. It is hard to reason that God is talking about physical beings. While ‘elohiym in rare cases refers to physical men[8], it is doubtful in this case because it makes no sense to say that men “shall die like men” That is obvious so what else could it mean? Many scriptures prove there are spirit beings called gods[9] subject to the Most High God:

PSALMS 96:4-5 For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. 5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.

The point here is that false gods who are eternal spirit beings will “die like men.” In a strictly literal sense, this means they will be changed into flesh and blood.

ASIDE: Created spirit beings do not possess life within them and likely cannot create life as mentioned before. But notice the last part that says the “the LORD made the heavens.” No other “gods” or spirit beings made any part of it so it suggests that created spirit beings cannot create anything like the heavens.

Satan is also described, at some point, as “a man”:

ISAIAH 14:12- “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer [H1966 = heylel = radiantly splendid], son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground [compare with Ezek. 28:17], you who weakened the nations! 13 For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ 15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol [H7585 = sh’owl = grave, hell, pit], to the lowest depths of the Pit. 16 “Those who see you will gaze at you, and consider you, saying: ‘Is this the man [H0376 = ‘iysh = male human] who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, 17 who made the world as a wilderness and destroyed its cities, who did not open the house of his prisoners?’ 18 “All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house; 19 But you are cast out of your grave [H6913 = qibrah = grave, sepulcher] like an abominable branch, like the garment of those who are slain, thrust through with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a corpse trodden underfoot. 20 You will not be joined with them in burial [H6900 = qbuwrah = also, burial place], because you have destroyed your land and slain your people. The brood of evildoers shall never be named.

The Hebrew word for man only refers to a male human. Only physical beings can be “thrust through with a sword” or are buried after they die. Another translation says:

[NET 2.1] ISAIAH 14:19-20 But you have been thrown out of your grave like a shoot that is thrown away. You lie among the slain, among those who have been slashed by the sword, among those headed for the stones of the Pit, as if you were a mangled corpse. 20 You will not be buried with them, because you destroyed your land and killed your people. “The offspring of the wicked will never be mentioned again.

Here are more details regarding the end of Satan and the demons:

EZEKIEL 28:12-16 “Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created. 14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you; you were on the holy mountain of God; you walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. 15 You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity [sin] was found in you. 16 “By the abundance of your trading you became filled with violence within, and you sinned; therefore I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God; …

The “King of Tyre” is Satan who was “created,” a “cherub,” and in the Garden in Eden. He also sinned. Continuing:

EZEKIEL 28:16-19 … and I [the Lord GOD] destroyed you [caused to perish], O covering cherub, from the midst of the fiery stones. 17 “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor; I cast you to the ground, I laid you before kings, that they might gaze at you. 18 “You defiled your sanctuaries by the multitude of your iniquities, by the iniquity of your trading; therefore I [the Lord GOD] brought fire from your midst; it devoured [lit. eats] you, and I turned you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who saw you. 19 All who knew you among the peoples are astonished at you; you have become a horror [or terrified], and shall be no more [H5704 = `ad = terminus] forever [H5769 = `owlam = eternity].” ’ ”

This clearly states that Satan will be “destroyed,” literally, caused to perish. Specifically, God will bring fire from within that will “devour”—literally, eat—him until he becomes ashes. As a result, Satan shall be “no more forever” or “cease to be forever” (TS2009). Spirit beings cannot be burned with fire, much less turned into ash. That is only possible with physical beings. The only conclusion, then, is that Satan will be changed from spirit to physical. Isaiah also records that Satan will be destroyed:

ISAIAH 29:20 For the terrible one [or tyrant] is brought to nothing [ceases], the scornful one [or taunter] is consumed [ceased, perished, ended], and all who watch for iniquity are cut off–

Isaiah does not name the “terrible” and “scornful” being but they likely refer to Satan who, again, will be killed. The Bible strongly suggests that Satan and the demons will be changed into physical beings so they can be killed. But the idea that Satan and the demons are destroyed or killed is captured in their own words:

MARK 1:23-24 Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 24 saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us [cause to perish]? I know who You are–the Holy One of God!”

They also expect to be tormented:

MATTHEW 8:28-29 When He [Jesus Christ] had come to the other side, to the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two demon-possessed men, coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no one could pass that way. 29 And suddenly they [the demons] cried out, saying, “What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here to torment [torture] us before the time?”

Spirit beings cannot be tortured and do not die; however, their judgment is to be tormented and destroyed; they will not live forever burning in hellfire. Only if Satan and the demons are changed from spirit to flesh and blood does it make sense that they will be tormented and killed.

Lake of Fire & Brimstone

There is one last indicator that Satan and the demons will be changed from spirit to flesh and blood. Every human being who receives a judgment unto eternal death is also tormented and destroyed in the Lake of Fire:

REVELATION 14:9-10 Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 “he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.

The Lake of Fire is the Second or Eternal Death:

REVELATION 21:8 “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Scripture clearly states that everyone not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life[10] will be cast into the Lake of Fire:

REVELATION 20:15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.

The Bible is very clear about those who will be cast into the Lake of Fire; it specifically mentions “murderers, … and all liars.” Jesus once said of Satan that he is both:

JOHN 8:44 … He [the devil] 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, for he is a liar and the father of it.

The punishment of wicked spirit beings is exactly the same as wicked physical beings. If wicked physical beings will be killed, then why should wicked spirit beings live forever? While identical punishments are not proof that wicked spirit beings will be killed, it certainly cannot be ignored, especially since Psalm 82:7 clearly states that wicked spirit beings will “die like [wicked physical] men!” Can anything prevent God from killing created spirit beings? Perhaps when the Bible says that God preserves created spirit beings, it means He simply does not change them into physical beings who can die.

When Are Satan & the Demons Punished?

Now the question is when are Satan and the demons punished?

ISAIAH 24:19-22 The earth is violently broken, the earth is split open, the earth is shaken exceedingly. 20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall totter like a hut; its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again. 21 It shall come to pass in that day that the LORD will punish [the host of high ones that are on high], and on the earth the kings of the earth. 22 They will be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and will be shut up in the prison; after many days they will be punished.

God will punish “the host of high ones” in heaven as well as “the earthly kings on the earth.” When? The phrase “in that day” typically refers to the Day of the LORD’s vengeance at the Seventh Trumpet. During the Day of the LORD, wicked spirit beings will be gathered into a pit and imprisoned to await their punishment, which happens “after many days.” This almost perfectly mirrors Revelation 20:

REVELATION 20:1-3, 7, 10 Then I [John] saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while. … … 7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison … 10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Revelation shows that “after many days” means after the thousand year reign of Jesus Christ. When the Millennium concludes, Satan and the demons are released from prison for an unspecified “little while,” after which they will be judged:

2 PETER 2:4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;

JUDE 1:6 And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;

The angels will be cast into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone where they will be tormented and then destroyed (killed). The judgment and punishment of Satan and the demons occurs at, or prior to, the beginning of the Great White Throne Judgment when the “rest of the dead”—physical mankind—are resurrected to a physical life and judged according to the Law of God[11].

The Law of God is universal. As both a murderer and liar, Satan will be cast into the Lake of Fire, which is the Second Death. Nowhere are created spirit beings exempt from the justice of the Law of God. Judgment only exists because of the Law so the statutes that determine the judgment and subsequent punishment of wicked spirit beings is the same as for wicked physical beings—“the soul that sins shall die” (Ezek. 18:4) and “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23).

Summary

The Bible is consistent. All wicked beings will be judged and punished with torments followed by death. Since spirit beings cannot be tormented and do not die, how can wicked spirit beings be punished? Scripture is unambiguous that wicked spirit beings are destroyed (killed)—they will be changed from spirit into flesh and blood. The idea that Satan and the demons will never die is not supported in the Bible. The destruction of wicked physical beings instead of them burning forever in hell is an act of God’s mercy. The same is true for wicked spirit beings being killed is an act of mercy. If Satan and the demons were forever tormented, eventually, in the span of eternity, the punishment exceeds the crime. As for Satan and the demons being “tormented day and night forever and ever,” it does not mean an eternity of suffering because the Bible clearly states that they will “die like men.”