Where Did the Devil Come From? Has He Always Existed, Like God?
Dear Rachel,
Unlike God, the devil has not always existed. He had a beginning just like you and me and everything else that exists other than God. The Bible says that Jesus created all things “that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible” (Colossians 1:16). But, that does not mean that He created the devil as an evil being. Rather, God created him good and he chose to become evil. The Bible seems to indicate that Satan was one of the angels who lived in Heaven, but he (along with other angels) became evil when they rebelled against God (read 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6). Since the Bible also refers to the devil as “the ruler of demons” (Matthew 12:24), and speaks of “the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41), it is likely that the devil is the leader of a group of rebellious angels who were expelled from heaven to eventually spend eternity in hell.
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