Ministration of Angels

BUT when we endeavor to prove that there is a real, personal, devil, the questions immediately come up. Where did he come from? Did God create him? or, How did he come into existence? Spiritualists, in particular, harp much on this point, and thus overthrow the faith of some. Dr. Hare, a Spiritualist, says: "But I conceive that the existence of a devil is irreconcilable with all goodness and omnipotency; and that, were a devil created by God, the Creator would be answerable for all the acts of the being so created. Evidently the devil could be nothing else but what the Creator should make him, and could do nothing but what Prescience would foresee. The acts of the devil would therefore be indirectly those of his Maker." God never did create a devil. Then says the objector, he cannot exist; for God created all things that do exist. But stop! do all things remain just as they were created by God? Wicked men exist, do they not? Yes. Did God ever create a wicked man? No; for "God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions." Eccl. 7:29. God created man good, but he has made himself wicked.

The same is true of Satan. God created him an angel. He rebelled and made himself a Devil.

We will now proceed to ascertain by the Bible what his origin was, and how he became what he now is. In the earthly or typical sanctuary, the symbol of God's presence was between the two cherubim which covered the mercy-seat. Ex. 25:22. So in the heavenly temple, God dwells between two covering cherubs. Proof. "The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved." "Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth." Ps. 99:1; 80:1. "O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth." Isa. 37:16. This testimony is sufficient to establish the fact that God dwells between the cherubim. These mighty and holy angels, to use a military term, are the body-guard of the Lord.

Ezekiel gives a lengthy description of these cherubims, chapters 1 and 10, and, in conclusion, says; "This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims." Verse 20. In harmony with this Zechariah says; These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth. Chap. 4:14.

God's throne is in his holy temple. Rev. 7:15. This temple is in Heaven. Chap. 11:19. There is also a city in Heaven, called the New Jerusalem. Says Paul, "But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all." Gal. 4:26. Again: "But we are come [by faith] unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels." Heb. 12:22. Probably the one on earth was named from the one in Heaven, the same as the sanctuary and temple were. So, also, we understand, the Mount Zion on earth was named from the true Mount Zion in Heaven. In the Bible we read much about the "holy mountain of God," the "hill of God," "Mount Zion," etc. That this does not refer to the earthly Mount Zion, is evident from many scriptures. Paul says, "But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the Heavenly Jerusalem." Heb. 12:22. Here he locates Mount Zion in the heavenly Jerusalem. By comparing Rev. 14:1; 15:2; and 4:6, we see that the throne of God is on Mount Zion. To sum up, we have learned that there is a city in Heaven; that in this city is Mount Zion; that on this mountain is the temple of God; and that in the temple is the throne of God, which is covered by two angels, or covering cherubs.

We now call the reader's attention to a brief description of the city, as found in Rev. 21:10-21. "And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven from God, having the glory of God. And her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; and had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels." Now mark the names of the precious stones which form the city: "And the building of the wall of it was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. Some of these precious gems would sparkle like fire, and some would emit light of themselves. In this heavenly city were the tree of life, the river of the water of life, etc., which form the Paradise, Eden, or garden of God." Rev. 22:1-3; Gen. 2; 8-17.

We are now prepared to inquire about the origin of Satan, and for this purpose will call the reader's attention to Eze. 28: "The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord God: Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a god, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God." Tyrus, or Tyre, was a rich heathen city on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. We understand that the person here called the prince or king of Tyrus is none other than Satan himself introduced under that name.

That this is so, we will now prove by what is said of him. Verse 3: "Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel; there is no secret that they can hide from thee." "Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God: Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold; the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou art the anointed cherub that covered; and I have set thee so. Thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned; therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God; and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire." Verses 12-16.

Mark the character of the person described. He is wiser than Daniel; no secret can be hid from him. "Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty." Again: "Thou hast been in Eden, the garden of God." If this refers to the earthly Eden, no mortal has ever been in it except Adam and Eve; but this personage has been there. Hence, the one here spoken of is not a man. We do read, however, that the serpent, who is also called the devil and Satan, Rev. 12:9, was in the garden of Eden when Adam and Eve were there. Gen. 3:1-6. But we think the Eden here referred to is in the city of God above, as the sequel will show. Again the Lord says, "Every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius," etc. Read the list again. Turning to Rev. 21:19,20, we have the same list of precious stones named in the description of the heavenly Jerusalem: "And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald," etc.

This shows that the personage introduced in Eze. 28, has been in that city. The Lord says to him, "Thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire." As it was stated before, many of these stones in the holy city emit light of themselves; and hence they could properly be called stones of fire. One is thus described: "Carbuncle is a very elegant gem of a deep red color, with an admixture of scarlet; from its bright, lively color, it had the name of carbunculus, which signifies a little coal."—Clarke. "Thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire." Where is this? Ans. In the heavenly Jerusalem, where God dwells. Again, "Thou wast upon the holy mountain of God." Verse 14. We have before proved that the holy mountain of God, the true Mount Zion, is in the heavenly Jerusalem. Here then, is another proof that this person was once in the city of God. How could all this apply to the king of Tyrus? We can readily see that it is another person introduced under his name. In another article we will show that this person is Satan himself.