(Continued -Chapter III- God's Moral Government)

The anointed cherub who is now known as Satan, the devil, has never left the high plane upon which he was created to descend to a lower one, although he rebelled against the Almighty. But there are predictions that he will do that which is probably equivalent to such a thing. In the prophetic word we know that the one who is called the Antichrist, the false messiah, will appear and will gain the imperial purple of world-dominion. He will reign with almost an absolute hand during what is known as the Tribulation the last seven years with which the present dispensation closes. In the middle of this period, the devil will dominate the Antichrist--probably as he did in the case of Judas (John 13:1f.)--energizing him henceforth. The Apostle Paul refers to this unusual spiritual phenomenon in II Thessalonians 2:8,9: "And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of his coming; 9 even he, whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders ..." The Apostle John in the Book of Revelation, chapters 13 and 17,¹ likewise refers to the same thing. Satan gives life to the body of the false messiah who is slain, raises it from the dead, and becomes his absolute master. All the servile fallen spirits will follow his leadership. Thus these who rebel against God's authority in doing these things which I have just enumerated put themselves beyond the limits of His moral government. The Almighty will then be forced to deal drastically with them and the world situation when this occurs.

We may now summarize the facts which we have gathered in this section of our discussion concerning God's moral government. The omnipotent God created different types of beings, enduing each with the power of free choice. He created a sphere or a plane upon which each type should live, move, and have its being. If His creatures remain upon the level where they are by divine appointment placed, God cannot, in maintaining His moral government, interfere and deal drastically by removing them, although they may have stepped over on the negative side of His will and sinned against Him. When these rebels, however, thus keep not their own principality, but leave their proper habitation, He no longer is bound by the principles of His government to permit them to function and to continue with their nefarious activities. Moreover, whenever men, knowing God, refuse to retain Him in their knowledge and plunge into rebellion and disobedience until the very imaginations of their heart are only evil continually, they cease to be qualified to act as free moral agents. Whenever any of God's creatures reach such a point, He must, in maintaining His moral government, step in and remove the rebels, incarcerating them where they can no longer be disturbing agents in His government.

Certain fallen angels and the people of Noah's time finally reached the point where God could not tolerate their activities. He therefore brought the Flood and removed them from the stage of activity. Satan, his evil spirits, and men who rebel against God will likewise reach the limit of God's moral government and will step over and go beyond these boundaries by the time the middle of the Tribulation² is reached. God, therefore, in order to maintain His moral government, must intervene and put a stop to such a disordered chaotic civilization. That the Lord will, at the end of the Tribulation, destroy all the wicked of the earth who survive the ordeals coming upon it to that time, is foretold in the following passage:

3 This is now, beloved, the second epistle that I write unto you; and-- in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by putting you in remembrance; 2 that ye should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and the commandment of the Lord and Saviour through your apostles: 3 knowing this first, that in the last days mockers shall come with mockery, walking after their own lusts, 4 and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 5 For this they wilfully forget, that there were heavens from of old, and an earth compacted out of water and amidst water, by the word of God; 6 by which means the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: 7 but the heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men (II Pet. 3:1-7).

Then Satan and his hosts, together with the wicked ones of the earth, will be gathered in the pit of the abyss, which will be sealed over them for a thousand years:

20 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss, and shut it, and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be finished: after this he must be loosed for a little time. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as worshipped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years. The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years should be finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: over these the second death hath no power; but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:1-6)

During the reign of our Lord the world will be free from the machinations of Satan and his cohorts of evil spirits.

For good and sufficient reasons known to the Almighty, He will unloose Satan at the end of the thousand years for a little season. This short period will pass quickly. Then death and Hades will be abolished. Satan, with all the evil spirits and lost men, will be incarcerated in the lake of fire where they will be forever and ever.

7 And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall come forth to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up over the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are also the beast and the false prophet; and they shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. (Revelation 20:7-10)

This final act will bring to a close that portion of eternity which we call time. Then the new and eternal heavens and earth, together with the eternal Jerusalem, will come into existence. "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no more" (Rev. 21:1). Sin, Satan, and all evil will thus be banished from God's universe, never to reappear anywhere throughout the ceaseless ages of all eternity. Of course all the wicked men and rebellious angels will remain incarcerated in the place of their punishment forever and ever. But they will never be able to exert any influence in God's government of the universe after that.

As stated above, there is no hope and no redemption for the fallen angels. Since man was tricked and led into disobedience and transgression against God by the devil, the arch enemy of both God and man, there is hope for man. It is by means of redemption, as we shall learn, that man may be rescued from the terrible plight in which he has become involved. But in working out a scheme of redemption for man, the Lord must respect the fundamental principles of His moral regime. He must also have respect to man's nature as a free agent.

Having seen God's moral government and the fundamental principles underlying it, we are now in a position to step forward and to consider man in this moral regime of the Almighty.



Footnotes:

¹ 13 And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns, and seven heads, and on his horns ten diadems, and upon his heads names of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his throne, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as though it had been smitten unto death; and his death-stroke was healed: and the whole earth wondered after the beast; and they worshipped the dragon, because he gave his authority unto the beast; and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? And who is able to war with him? and there was given to him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and there was given to him authority to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth for blasphemies against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, even them that dwell in the heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and there was given to him authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation. And all that dwell on the earth shall worship him, every one whose name hath not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that hath been slain. If any man hath an ear, let him hear. If any man is for captivity, into captivity he goeth: if any man shall kill with the sword, with the sword must he be killed. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. And I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like unto a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the authority of the first beast in his sight. And he maketh the earth and them dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose death-stroke was healed. And he doeth great signs, that he should even make fire to come down out of heaven upon the earth in the sight of men. And he deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by reason of the signs which it was given him to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast who hath the stroke of the sword and lived. And it was given unto him to give breath to it, even to the image to the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as should not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free and the bond, that there be given them a mark on their right hand, or upon their forehead; and that no man should be able to buy or to sell, save he that hath the mark, even the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. He that hath understanding, let him count the number of the beast; for it is the number of a man: and his number is Six hundred and sixty and six. (Revelation 13:1-18)

17 And there came one of the seven angels that had the seven bowls, and spake with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the judgment of the great harlot that sitteth upon many waters; with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and they that dwell in the earth were made drunken with the wine of her fornication. And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness: and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet-colored beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and decked with gold and precious stone and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations, even the unclean things of her fornication, and upon her forehead a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I wondered with a great wonder. And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou wonder? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and the ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss, and to go into perdition. And they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, they whose name hath not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast, how that he was, and is not, and shall come. Here is the mind that hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth: and they are seven kings; the five are fallen, the one is, the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a little while. And the beast that was, and is not, is himself also an eighth, and is of the seven; and he goeth into perdition. And the ten horns that thou sawest are ten kings, who have received no kingdom as yet; but they receive authority as kings, with the beast, for one hour. These have one mind, and they give their power and authority unto the beast. These shall war against the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings; and they also shall overcome that are with him, called and chosen and faithful. And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the harlot sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. And the ten horns which thou sawest, and the beast, these shall hate the harlot, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her utterly with fire. For God did put in their hearts to do his mind, and to come to one mind, and to give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God should be accomplished. And the woman whom thou sawest is the great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth. (Revelation 17:1-18)


² The Tribulation is a period of seven years with which the present Age of Grace closes, and during which God sends His purging judgments upon the world:

14 The great day of Jehovah is near, it is near and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of Jehovah; the mighty man crieth there bitterly. 15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, 16 a day of the trumpet and alarm, against the fortified cities, and against the high battlements. 17 And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against Jehovah; and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as dung. 18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah's wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy; for he will make an end, yea, a terrible end, of all them that dwell in the land (Zeph. 1:14-18).

8 But all these things are the beginning of travail. 9 Then shall they deliver you up unto tribulation, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all the nations for my name's sake.

... 21 for then shall be great tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever shall be.

... 29 But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30 and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he shall send forth his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other (Matt. 24:8,9,21,29-31).