Satan's fate was sealed at the cross, and that is why the last days began with Christ's death and resurrection rather than lying only in the future. Satan held mankind captive through sin, fear, and death, but Jesus shared in flesh and blood so that "through death He might destroy him who had the power of death" (Hebrews 2:14-15). By nailing the penalty of sin to the cross, He disarmed principalities and powers and triumphed over them (Colossians 2:13-15). Revelation 12 pictures the dragon, "that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan," waiting to devour the Child at His birth. When the Child is caught up to God, war breaks out in heaven and Satan is cast down to earth. The accuser of the brethren is thrown out, and salvation and Christ's authority have come. Believers overcome him by the blood of the Lamb. Satan now has great wrath because he knows his time is short, a limit the demon's question in Matthew 8:29 also reflects. John 12:31 and John 16:11 say that the ruler of this world is cast out and judged. The name Satan means "adversary," like an opponent in a court of law, and he has already been judged and sentenced. His ultimate penalty will be death. He is still the ruler of the empires symbolized by the seven-headed dragon, and he works through deception, which Jesus warns against in Matthew 24 as the end approaches.

Satanas is the Greek form of the Hebrew satan, meaning adversary, and the title appears 53 times in 47 verses. It identifies him as the opponent of God, of believers, and of all that is right and good, even when he disguises himself as an angel of light (II Corinthians 11:14). Because he is the covering cherub who rebelled and now holds earth as his prison, God's elect live behind enemy lines and must understand his names and methods in order to resist him. A related word in I Peter 5:8, antidikos, is more explicit, picturing an opponent in a lawsuit who makes accusations. God has judged and sentenced Satan, yet he refuses the verdict, defaming God's character and accusing believers. His other titles confirm this: diabolos (slanderer), the great red dragon, the serpent of old, the wicked one (poneros, actively destructive), and prince of the power of the air, who heads the demonic hosts and shapes the evil atmosphere of the world. He works continuously in the sons of disobedience. His most characteristic trait is deception, carried out by lying against, denying, counterfeiting, and distorting the truth. Believers share in Christ's victory by putting on God's armor and resisting the Devil, and Satan is a defeated foe whom God will soon crush under their feet (Romans 16:20).

Satanas is the Greek form of the Hebrew satan, meaning adversary, and marks him as the opponent of God, of believers, and of all that is right and good. The title occurs 53 times in 47 verses. It is a name given after his fall: he was originally the anointed cherub Helel, perfect in his ways until iniquity was found in him (Ezekiel 28; Isaiah 14). Helel is related to halal, "praise" or "boast." He was meant to praise God but sought glory for himself, and God renamed him for what he truly is. "Lucifer" is a Latin term from Jerome's 405 AD translation, equivalent to the Greek phosphoros (light-bearer), which in II Peter 1:19 refers to Christ, not to Satan. The apostles never knew him as Lucifer. Related titles show his character: antidikos (an opponent in a lawsuit, already indicted and sentenced to the Lake of Fire), diabolos (slanderer), the great red dragon, the ancient serpent, the evil one (poneros), and prince of the power of the air, who energizes disobedience in human attitudes and impulses. He disguises himself as an angel of light (II Corinthians 11:14), and his defining trait is deception of the whole world (Revelation 12:9). Believers are behind enemy lines and need to know his schemes, put on God's armor, and draw near to Christ, the true Light-bearer. They are already victors in Christ, and God will soon crush Satan under their feet (Romans 16:20).