CHRIST-APP by philtierneyblog

IV

Now let’s turn to the other story in the Hebrew Scriptures.  It’s the well-known story of Job, which occupies an entire book.  For our purposes it doesn’t really matter if Job was a historical figure or a metaphor for Israel, nor does Job’s reaction to the series of dreadful calamities that befell him.  We’re looking at the character and tactics of Satan, which, thankfully, occupies only a small portion of the tale. The first chapter of Job sets the scene.  It tells the story behind the story. This is the tale:

 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”

 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has and he will surely curse you to your face.” The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.  (Job 1: 6 – 12)

In this admittedly unappealing passage Satan challenges God.  Satan goads God.  Satan impugns Job’s character.  Satan accuses Job of mere self-interest in his faithfulness to God.  Satan enticesGod to allow him remove Job’s blessings. Satan connives, manipulates, insinuates and accuses. 

This is where Satan earned his name.  In Hebrew, “Satan” meant adversary or antagonist and accuser. Satan was something like a corrupt law enforcer, who ensnares and then accuses. Satan is one who antagonizes.  It loves conflict.  It loves to divide.  It loves to have adversaries, whether of God or humans, or whoever stands in the way of its own selfish goals.

And what are those goals?  Its goals are to divide and conquer; but toward what end?  Satan’s ultimate goal is to achieve power, fear and personal glory by using any means at its disposal.  It doesn’t actually care about the object it uses as the means of the manipulation.  It can be a perceived “good.”  Satan is one that connives and manipulates so as to instill mistrust, incites divisions and unworthy actions, and then accuses in order to destroy.That’s because, at the core, Satan is jealous.  It’s jealous that it can’t create or love, as God does, and so it does everything it can to destroy, gain fear and divide in order to have a sense of Godlike power.

Many people misunderstand Satan’s goals as they’re presented in the Bible.  Many actually think that its goals are to incite immorality so it’ll have more company in hell.  Not so. Immorality was not the Antagonist’s goal in either of the two stories. Its actual goals were to divide and diminish – to drive a wedge between the humans in the stories and their Creator.  The antagonist or adversary or accuser is most concerned to divide, by using insinuations to confuse, then accuse and destroy.  In the process, it hopes to gain power and glory for itself and diminish God.  That was the plan in the story of Job.  Satan wanted to divide God and Job.  It wanted to drive Job to abandon God because of his adversities. It wanted to accuse Job of faith rooted in self-interest.  It wanted to destroy the integrity of the relationship between God and Job.  It wanted diminish God by proving that not even Job really trusted God apart from some sort of payoff from God.  It wanted to inflate itself by diminishing God.  It’s the old tactic of advancing oneself by diminishing others, empowering oneself by disempowering others, and enriching oneself by taking advantage of others. That’s Satan’s way.  It’s an antichrist’s way.