The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 282

L Otm ll'OE 18 A PER!O!UL om:. (Ver. 9.) It would be of little avail to say that the personality of the evil one cannot be decided from such a chapter as this; for the e.llUBions to Satan elsewhere are so numerous and so varied that they shut us up to the conviction of his per10nality; i.e. that he is a distinct being, with a will, plan, and purpose of his own, moving in "the heavenly places,n i.e. in the realm of spirit. We often find the personal pronouns used concerning him (John viii. 44:). The names and epithet.a applied to ·him indicate the same. The name " the devil n means " the slanderer. n He is represented in Scripture as slandering God before men, and as slandering men before God. The apostle speaks of him as "going about seeking whom he may devour." Nor can there be a doubt that we are t.aught by our Lord and his apostles that to Satan's pernicious agency inuch of the evil in the world must oo traced. Let us remember our Lord's conflict with him. IL HE 1s AN OLD ONE, "The devil sinneth from the beginning" (1 John iii. 8; John viii. 44). He first sinned in heaven, and was cast out from thence ere he came to deceive the whole world. Then he tempted Adam in Eden. He came into conflict with our Lord. He hindered apostles in their work (1 Thess. ii. 18). He has. been counterplotting ·the sowings of the Son of man for eighteen hundred years (Matt. xiii. 39). And he is at work still. We well know, indeed, that there is one diffi- culty which often presses upon thoughtful minds. It is this: Can it be that God should let one being have such tremendous power for evil? Now, although the devil's power ls not so great as some people seem to think it to be, we confess that it would be a very great relief to us if we felt warranted in saying, No. But there are three remarks which have to oo set over against this question. 1. Whatever evil is in the world is .here, whether there oo a devil or no. And if evil is only a spontaneous product of man himself, then human nature is much worse than the Bible declares it to be. 2. But if we grant that some of it comes from outside, it is then merely a question whether the outside evil is led on by one single force, or by an indefinite number of agents, organized or unorganized. 3. If we accept the doctrine of the unity of leadership in the forces of ill outsid6 earth, the difficulty is merely one of degree, not of kiud ; e.g. if one pope can by his will move his organized forces at any part of the world, why may not a like power be, for aught we know, outside the limits of this globe? III. H• IB A DABING ONE, The flashes of light which we get on this point in Scripture are many. Michael and his angels. Our Lord. Peter, Judas. In heaven. In Eden. In the desert. At the last Supper. In Gethsemane. He carefully selects those on whom he will try his temptations, The greater the object, the fiercer the onset. If a man stands up for Jesus, Satan will desire to have him, that he may sift him as wheat. It is a far greater thing to bring an eagle to the ground than a sparrow. It is a vaster achievement to batter a fortress than a hut, And the greater our influence, and the higher our standing in the Church, the more fiercely will the evil one assail us. IV. HIB ATTEMPTS ABB Oll'l'EN FAILUBEB. (Ver. 8, "The dragon warred and his angel~, and th,,y prevailed twt.'') It is a relief to find that it is so; and that the evil one's most daring attempts have been the signal for most humiliating_ failnres. The supreme illustration of this is his onset upon our Lord in the desert (Matt. iv. 1-11). From heaven he was cast out, and even on this earth he is an outcast still (vers. 9-11). His power In far-off realms is at an end. Bis pride was his condemnation. He was overpowered by a Greater, when Jesus died. "Now is the prince of this world cast out" (John xii. 31), And already, in prospect of his complete, utter, and final defeat, is the heavenly song begun, "Now is come the salvation," etc. (vere. 10, 11). It is no wonder that we go on to read that- ~• V. HE IS AN J.NGBY J'OB. (Ver.12, "He has great wrath, knowing that he bath but a short time.") In what way this has been revealed to the evil one, we do not know; but we shaft do both ourselves and Scripture a wrong if we refuse to let this thought bring us its appropriate inspiration and comfort. Truly it is good to know that the end of his power ii foreseen. VL Hz IBA IIALIOIOUS oNE. (Ver. 18.) H defeated in one BCheme, he tries another. If cast out of heaven, he will plague the earth. " He warries whom he can't devour." And as he prevailed not against the Lord of the Churoh, he penecut.ea the Ohuroh of the Lord. He hu long been engaged In plotting schem• agaµmt the JMIOple 0, God. deslring te h•ve theJ!lt that be may liR them as wheat. liB. xn.1-11'.J TllE R~Vl!lLATION OF ST; JOHN THE DIVINB. 811