God and mankind, represented by Adam and Eve, enjoyed an agreeable relationship in the Garden of Eden until Satan, an uninvited intruder, a deceiver, accuser, and destroyer, disturbed the peace and ruined paradise. He has caused unbelief, fear, distrust, hatred, and division ever since. God, our Host, has prophesied in His Word that He will one day, for a time, throw the intruder out and restore peace to His fellowship with humanity. Satan is a major cause of the present separation between God and man, and his binding after Christ's return will be a vital step toward the restitution of all things, restoring conditions to the earth that will facilitate harmony between God and man during the thousand-year reign of Jesus Christ on earth. This restored relationship will open the way for astounding blessings, achievements, and advancements in the Millennium. God says plainly that Satan would be put down; the woman's Seed, Messiah, would bruise his head, signaling the ultimate end of Satan. Despite this, Satan and his demons are still around, trying to deceive and tempt human beings, especially God's children, since they have been chosen to be part of the Family destined to take over his throne with Jesus Christ. Someday soon, just after Christ's return, God will break Satan's power over humanity for a thousand years. Two important steps in God's plan will occur in quick succession: the return of Jesus Christ prompting the first resurrection and the binding of Satan. The Devil will be imprisoned for most of the thousand-year reign of Christ with His saints, allowing the earth and its inhabitants to enjoy times of refreshing. During this time, God will work with humanity through His resurrected firstfruits, and a proper relationship between man and God will be restored. What an advantage those people will have then, able to live, overcome, and grow without Satan's constant pressure to ignore or defy God! When Christ returns, the confinement of Satan for a millennium will be among the many wonderful things to come to pass, giving excellent reason to pray for the coming of His Kingdom.

Satan, once a being of great beauty and wisdom, was created by God as the sum total of all that could be fashioned by divine fiat into a living entity. Known as Helel, he was perfect in his ways until iniquity was found in him. Leading a rebellion against God, he sought to ascend into heaven and be like the Most High, desiring complete power and authority. He persuaded a number of angels to join him, leading to a war in heaven. Defeated, Satan and his angels were cast down to the earth, a place of restraint and a prison for them, as depicted in Revelation 12. This earth, where they were confined with chains of darkness, became a silo, a storage bin of judgment, where their liberty was curtailed due to their rebellion. The earth, now shared with humanity, is seen by these fallen beings as a space where humans are intruders. Satan's fall, like a great lightning bolt from the sky, placed him among us, a formidable foe with a vast army of demons, possibly numbering in the millions, as suggested by the one-third of the stars of heaven that followed him. Despite their numbers and power, they are restrained by God, facing judgment and lacking the full freedom they once had. Their presence on earth poses a constant challenge, as they are invisible, ancient, and well-versed in God's laws, making them dangerous adversaries not to be disregarded. Yet, their kingdom is divided against itself, marked by internal conflict and competition, unable to fully unite due to their rebellious nature. This disorganization is an advantage to humanity, as is the numerical superiority of good angels, at least two to one, who minister to the heirs of salvation. Above all, these demons tremble before God's ultimate power, restrained by His authority. Satan, though cast down and an outsider even when presenting himself before God, projects cynicism and deceit, believing all beings act out of selfish motives, a reflection of his own fallen nature. Despite his cunning and charm, God sets limits on what Satan and his demons can do, ensuring that their influence is bounded by divine will.

The doctrine of Satan being cast down from heaven is firmly rooted in the words of Jesus Christ Himself. In Luke 10, He declares, "I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning," providing an eyewitness account of Satan's existence and his dramatic fall. This statement leaves no doubt that Satan is a real being of great power, over whom believers now have some authority, though he remains active in seeking to destroy them. Jesus further assures that He has given protection and authority over the enemy's power, ensuring that believers will not be harmed by his schemes. This event of Satan's fall is also depicted in Isaiah 14, an Old Testament account that mirrors Jesus' testimony. The imagery portrays Satan being cut down to the ground and brought down to Sheol, a term often translated as the grave but here understood as a place of exile or restraint for a spirit being. This place of restraint, akin to the Greek term Tartarus, signifies a prison, highlighting the consequence of Satan's sin. The passage reveals that angels, including Satan, sinned, leading to his casting down from his former position. Ezekiel 28 offers another perspective on Satan's fall, describing him as he was before his rebellion—an anointed cherub who covered God's throne, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty, adorned with gems and created by God Himself. Positioned at the very throne of God, he was without excuse for his actions. Yet, his heart was lifted up by pride and vanity, corrupting his wisdom and leading to sin and violence against God. As a result, God cast him out as a profane thing from His government, throwing him down with force. Satan's rebellion stemmed from his desire to ascend above God, to sit on His throne, and to be like the Most High, not merely in resemblance but as an equal or superior. His presumptuous thoughts, recorded in Isaiah 14, reveal a madness driven by self-exaltation, ignoring the reality of God's limitless power as his Creator. Despite a titanic battle that scarred the universe, God effortlessly brought him down to the pit, demonstrating His supreme authority over this created being who forgot his own weakness in his vanity. Now known as Satan, meaning Adversary, and the Devil, meaning accuser or slanderer, he is no longer a being of light but the power of darkness, as described in Ephesians 6 and Colossians 1. Though he can disguise himself as an angel of light, as noted in II Corinthians 11, his true nature is one of deception and enmity against God and humanity. Revelation 12 further identifies him as the great dragon, the serpent of old who deceived the whole world, linking him directly to the events in the Garden of Eden and showing his ongoing assaults against heaven, both in prehistory and before Christ's return. Satan remains a powerful ruler over this world, as Jesus affirms in John 12:31, John 14:30, and John 16:11, declaring him the prince of this world. Even during the temptations in Matthew 4 and Luke 4, Jesus does not contradict Satan's claim to authority over the kingdoms of the earth, acknowledging that he still sits on a throne of influence, though it is his prison. Stripped of some authority and cast down, he continues to wield great spiritual power, ruling over nations and being the force behind the beast and the cause of the great tribulation, as seen in Revelation 9 where he is called Abaddon and Apollyon, meaning destruction and destroyer. As the accuser of the brethren, Satan slanders believers before God, seeking to trip them up and lead them to repudiate God, as illustrated in Job 1 and 2. His hatred drives him to prevent believers from becoming sons of God, a status he forfeited in becoming an angel of darkness. Yet, Revelation 12:11 provides a three-part formula to overcome him: by the blood of the Lamb, which covers sin and opens a relationship with the Father; by the word of their testimony, living out God's truth in conduct; and by not loving their lives even unto death, resisting comprom