Who is this enemy of ours?

“Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light”

(II Corinthians 11:14)

Shiney stuff.  It can attract our attention and draw us in with just a sparkle.  Did you know that is exactly how Satan works.  When you conjure up a mental picture in your mind of Satan tempting Adam and Eve, what exactly do you see?  Adam and Eve under a tree with a large serpent coiled around a wide branch above them?  I want us to see who this master of deception really is, and how he can appear to us.

The Hebrew word rendered serpent in Genesis chapter three is the word Nahash.  Though it does mean snake, the word comes from a root word that means “to shine.” It carries with it descriptions of metals such as “copper, brass, and bronze.”   In the ancient world serpents were often described as shining.  Hence, the word Nahash, for Satan, can also be interpreted as “the shining one” or “the one who shines.”  Some bible translations even refer to Satan in the Garden as “the shining one” rather than “serpent.” 

Consider the fact that neither Adam or Eve were not alarmed when approached by the Nahash.  Also, remember that Satan was at one time an angel.  Could it be that if Adam and Eve were familiar with conversing with angels, which they most likely were, talking to the deceitful one would have been normal to them if he appeared to them as an angel, which we know he was when he fell from heaven?  And could it even be that Adam and Eve were not yet aware of his fall?  In the book of Daniel, Daniel describes his own encounter with angels as them having “a face like lightening and eyes like flaming torches.”  They appeared as shining beings.  Therefore, could it be that a conversation with Satan could have seemed to be as normal to Adam and Eve as a conversation with any angel?  Now you know why Paul wrote in II Corinthians 11:14 that “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.”  One last thought to chew on – could it be that Satan was not in the form of a crafty snake until God cursed him and sent him crawling on his belly? 

But there is one more thing to think about regarding Satan.  The Hebrew word Nahash also means “whisperer.”  Thus, our enemy is one who whispers in our ear any lie in order to tempt us.  And we may not be aware of what he is doing until it is too late.  He can subtly suck us into his snare by whispering a thought into our mind that then can fester into a sinful attitude, or even action.  All he needs to do is appear to us as something harmless, perhaps even beautiful and shiny.  And before we know it, we are in his web of sin and self-destruction.

Don’t expect Satan to slither his way up to you in snakeskin with a rattle on his tail.  We must be very cautious of the shiny things we watch, and the lies that might be subtly whispered to us.  So how are we to know the difference whether what we allow to influence us is from God or the evil one?  Well, thankfully God has taken care of that by giving us the discerning Holy Spirit.

                                                                  Darlene