End of Satan

Isaiah 14:4–23 KJV 1900

4 That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased! 5 The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers. 6 He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, He that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth. 7 The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing. 8 Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us. 9 Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: It stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; It hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. 10 All they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us? 11 Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: The worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. 12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. 16 They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; 17 That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; That opened not the house of his prisoners? 18 All the kings of the nations, even all of them, Lie in glory, every one in his own house. 19 But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, And as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, That go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet. 20 Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, Because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: The seed of evildoers shall never be renowned. 21 Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; That they do not rise, nor possess the land, Nor fill the face of the world with cities. 22 For I will rise up against them, saith the Lord of hosts, And cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, And son, and nephew, saith the Lord. 23 I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water: And I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the Lord of hosts.

Introduction

Isaiah uses the real-life fall of Babylon to illustrate the fall of an even greater enemy.

Babylon has not yet risen to power when Isaiah writes this chapter.

Their influence in the region was growing.

Isaiah writes as though they have already swept the world creating one of the great world empires of history.

Babylon would be a vicious force.

They would conquer and destroy many cultures in their expansion.

Though this has not yet happened, Isaiah writes about the fall of Babylon representing good news to the world.

The world breathes a sigh of relief when Babylon falls.

Our society tends to romanticize ancient world powers like Egypt, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome.

What we forget is that many of these empires were built off of the enslavement of other smaller nations.

Babylon, to the people of Judah will be viewed as an oppressor.

The fall of Babylon would give reason for rejoicing.

God will be the cause of Babylon’s fall.

He will break the staff, the strength, of the empire.

He will break the sceptre, the authority of the empire.

Why does God get involved?

God judges the Babylonians because they abandoned their primary role.

They took the gifts that God had given them and used them in pride.

Many of the prophets speak of God raising up Babylon as His instrument of judgment.

If you study the book of Daniel, specifically Nebuchadnezzar, you see that there was a window of opportunity for the nation to turn to God.

Instead they became puffed up with pride and viewed themselves as invincible.

Isaiah writes that they will fall by God’s hand because they ruled in anger, they were continually striking at people.

They will be persecuted, and no one will stand up for them.

Once Babylon is no longer a factor on the world stage, Isaiah sees a time of rest, quiet, and singing.

We certainly see this in the events following Babylon’s fall.

The people of Judah begin to return and rebuild their homeland.

Isaiah even sees nature recovering from the mismanagement of natural resources.

All of this came to pass in 539 BC when Darius the Mede overthrew the capital city and killed Belshazzar who had been weighed in the balance and found wanting.

When you think of an oppressor whose fall gives reason for rejoicing, who do you think of?

The deeper meaning to this passage is found in reading into this a picture of the fall of Satan.

God will frequently mirror future events in current events throughout the Bible, especially in prophecy.

You are not a citizen of Judah, so the fall of your Babylonian oppressors doesn’t mean much to you.

But, you are a follower of God and a human so the inevitable fall of the one who seeks to oppress all humans ought to be an exciting thought for you.

That doomed oppressor is, of course, the Devil.

He was defeated at the cross and one day he will finally be removed from power.

As we move through the rest of this passage, remember this all applies to both Babylon and Satan.

Vss 9-11: The oppressors entrance into hell.

Hell is a real place.

Satan is not in Hell today.

One day he will be sent to the place of eternal judgment, which the NT tells us is the Lake of Fire.

There is no end of existence for anyone.

Every personality that God has ever created will either spend eternity in His presence or removed from it.

Look who Isaiah sees in hell.

The chief ones of the earth arise to meet the oppressor as he is ushered into his reward.

No amount of money or power can save a person who rejects God.

Death is the great equalizer.

Regardless of your position in life, a rejection of God will send everyone to the same place.

Whether you are a Babylonian monarch or Satan, himself, it is inescapable.

We are even given a glimpse into the reception that the oppressor receives.

Those who preceded the oppressor in death, or were sent there by the oppressor greet him with mocking and derision.

Are you become weak like us?

Oh how the mighty have fallen.

You are just like us now.

For all of your pomp and celebrity you have joined us in the place of the dead.

No one is immune from the judgment of God.

Next, we see a collection of verses that really bring the dual intent of this prophecy into focus.

If Babylon was the primary audience and Satan was secondary to this point, those roles have now been reversed.

Isaiah addresses Lucifer himself.

Lucifer is a latin name which means “morning star.”

The morning star shines for a short time before it’s light is overruled by the sun.

Lucifer’s influence will seem very short-lived in the light of eternity.

Lucifer’s power will seem very weak when seen in light of God’s power.

Isaiah brings up Lucifer’s fall from heaven.

Satan’s failed uprising has not prevented him from weakening the peoples of earth.

He may be a failed rebel, but he is still dangerous.

It’s like Peter warned us, he is a roaring lion.

Why was he cast out of heaven?

Simply, pride.

5x in these verse we read about Satan’s boasts of “I will.”

These all culminate in the exposure of Satan’s primary strategy in v. 14.

Satan said that he would be “like the most High.”

The key here is the word “like.”

Satan runs a strategy of imitation.

He creates nothing.

He can only imitate, poorly.

He desperately wants to unseat God and be like Him.

Instead of being elevated, Satan will be cast down.

Isaiah details the 5-step humiliation of Babylon and Satan.

It starts in v 16...

The oppressor becomes the laughingstock.

The one that had previously made the world shake with fear is now humbled.

He was a destroyer now his power is destroyed.

It continues in verse 18...

The kings of the earth are granted glorious burials in their cities.

Most kings are remembered fondly after enough time passes.

Look at Jimmy Carter.

But, not Satan and not the kings of Babylon.

They will be cast out and trodden under foot.

They will not be remembered fondly by the ones they oppressed.

Their fate extends to their seed in verse 20...

God will cut off their seed.

Their lives will be cut off because of the sins of their father.

Satan definitely has children.

They are not just the demons that follow him.

It is also the people of earth who reject God and His salvation.

They will suffer the same fate as their father the devil.

Their presence is also wiped from history in verse 22...

Can anyone take a map and point me to the country of Egypt? Greece? Rome?

What about Babylon, does Babylon exist today?

One day, that will be the way we talk about the principalities of Satan.

He will have no place in humanity’s future.

Utterly eradicated, can you imagine it?

Finally they will face the broom of destruction.

God will make a clean sweep of their work and possessions.

He will sweep them away with the broom of destruction.

Think about this, there will come a day in the life of every believer where we will go through our life everyday without any thought for sin, temptation, or spiritual conflict.

Victory will be won.

Satan will be eternally banished to the lake of fire.

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