Satan's Access to Heaven

Biblical Evidence that Satan has access to Heaven

I. Our starting point for this study is Revelation chapter 12:

Revelation 12:7

7 And there was war in heaven:

Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

* We have here a startling revelation: “And there arose war in heaven.”

* My question I posed to you the last time we met was if there is a war in heaven, is this because Satan still has access to heaven?

* Your assignment was to see if you can verify, by other reference in the Bible, that Satan has access to Heaven.

Revelation 12:1–13:5 (KJV 1900)

And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: 2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. 3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. 4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. 5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. 6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. 14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. 16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

13 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. 3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. 4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

II. Our evidence will start with the Satan appearing before God in Job chapter 1:

Job 1:6–8 (KJV 1900)

6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them.

7 And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

8 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?

Job 2:1–3 (KJV 1900)

Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the Lord.

2 And the Lord said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

3 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.

* The story of Job is a very popular one and these verses are quite well-known. However, many people don’t stop to consider what this passage is actually saying.

* There is a surprising fact hidden in these verses that gets overlooked time and time again: Satan has access to Heaven.

* This is so obvious that it almost doesn’t need an explanation. The verses state that there came a day when the angels (which are here called the “sons of God” for reasons I’ve explained elsewhere) came to present themselves before the Lord.

* In verse 7 Satan says that he had been on the Earth, which implies that he wasn’t on Earth anymore.

* We know that God dwells in Heaven, so if Satan wasn’t on Earth and he was standing before God, then it’s pretty safe to say that he was in Heaven.

* Also, notice that these verses seem to describe something that happened on a regular basis.

* We see this scene repeat itself in Job 2:1: once again Satan made a trip to Heaven to present himself to God.

* If Satan is making regular trips to Heaven then that seems to indicate that Satan has access to Heaven.

* From these passages we glean 3 pieces of information:

1). Satan was able to stand before the Lord.

Where does the Lord dwell? Jesus taught us to pray, “our Father which are in Heaven.”

2). This meeting does not take place on the earth.

3). Satan is at this meeting to accuse the righteous before God.

III. Our next piece of evidence is found in Zechariah 3 chapter 1:

* Zechariah 3:1 says, "Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord [Jesus] and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him." Again, in this passage of Scripture, Satan is the accuser and the adversary.

Zechariah 3:1–5:1 (KJV 1900)

And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. 2 And the Lord said unto Satan,

The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; Even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?

3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. 4 And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. 5 And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord stood by. 6 And the angel of the Lord protested unto Joshua, saying,

7 Thus saith the Lord of hosts If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge,Then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, And I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by. 8 Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, And thy fellows that sit before thee: For they are men wondered at: For, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.

9 For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; Upon one stone shall be seven eyes: Behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the Lord of hosts, And I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. 10 In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, Shall ye call every man his neighbour Under the vine and under the fig tree.

4 And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep, 2 And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof: 3 And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof. 4 So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord? 5 Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be?

And I said, No, my lord. 6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying,

Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, Saith the Lord of hosts. 7 Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: And he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. 8 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; His hands shall also finish it; And thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you. 10 For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; They are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof? 12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves? 13 And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. 14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

5 Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll.

* Now remember our study earlier about the tow olive trees in the book of Revelation?

* Look now at the connection of this passage here in the book of Zachariah to our starting point in the book of Revelation:

Revelation 11:1–6 (KJV 1900)

And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. 2 But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. 4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. 6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

IV. Now let’s look at a 4th passage that will help us answer the question “Does Satan have access to heaven?”

1 Kings 22:18–23

And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil? And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. And the Lord said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner. And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will persuade him. And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so. Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee.

* Although Ahab had repented, he began backsliding on God. So the Lord determined to take him home.

* “How shall this be done?” the Lord said. There were many suggestions, and then a lying spirit said, “I’ll persuade him. I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.”

* How could a lying spirit have this kind of communication in heaven?

* From this passage, at least by inference, it appears that Satan has access to heaven, but he can do nothing without the Lord’s permission, Just like we saw with Job.

V. Now here is a passage that seems it inferres that Satan stood before God against Israel:

1 Chronicles 21:1–7 (KJV 1900)

And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.

2 And David said to Joab and to the rulers of the people, Go, number Israel from Beer-sheba even to Dan; and bring the number of them to me, that I may know it. 3 And Joab answered, The Lord make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel? 4 Nevertheless the king’s word prevailed against Joab. Wherefore Joab departed, and went throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem. 5 And Joab gave the sum of the number of the people unto David. And all they of Israel were a thousand thousand and an hundred thousand men that drew sword: and Judah was four hundred threescore and ten thousand men that drew sword. 6 But Levi and Benjamin counted he not among them: for the king’s word was abominable to Joab.

7 And God was displeased with this thing; therefore he smote Israel.

VI. Now lets look at another evidence, that infers by the context, from the New Testament, spoken by Jesus himself:

Luke 22:31–34 (KJV 1900)

31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: 32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. 33 And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death. 34 And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.

J. Vernon Mcgee:

* Jesus indicates here that Satan has access to God, and he is able to carry on a communication with God.

* I do not think that Satan sent a Western Union telegram to God or that he telephoned Him. He was able to come into the presence of God, and he requested that he might test this man Simon Peter—and he was granted that permission.

VI. One of the ways in which we resolve questions about the Bible is to see what other people that God has used say about the subject.

Quote from Charles Spurgeon:

“We are compassed about with a great cloud of witnesses;” “let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” And there are darker and yet more malignant eyes that scowl upon us. There are spirits that people this air, who are under the prince of the power of the air, who watch every day for our halting.

“Millions of spiritual creatures walk this earth,

Both when we wake and when we sleep.”

And alas! those spiritual creatures are not all good. There be those that are not yet chained and reserved in darkness, but who are permitted by God to wander through this world like roaring lions, seeking whom they may devour, ever ready to tempt us. And there is one at the head of them called Satan, the enemy, and you know his employment. He has access to the throne of God, and he makes most horrid use of it, for he accuses us day and night before the throne. The accuser of the brethren is not yet cast down—that is to be in the great day of the triumph of the Son of Man; but as Jesus stands our Advocate before the throne, so does old Satan first watch us and tempt us, and then stands as our accuser before the bar of God. O my dear brothers and sisters, if you have entered into this race, and have commenced it, let these many eyes urge you forward.

Quote from J. Vernon Mcgee:

God’s created intelligences report to God as a matter of regular routine. They are responsible creatures. The shocking fact is that Satan has access to heaven. Even he has to report. He reports that he had been up and down the earth, which is his domain (see 1 Peter 5:8; 1 John 2:13–17; Matthew 4:8, 9). He has never been in hell (Revelation 20:10, see author’s book, Reveling through Revelation, volume 2).

Conclusion:

* It is difficult to imagine that there is war in heaven, but by looking at the rest of the Bible it appears that Satan still has access to heaven.

* As long as Satan still has access to Heaven there will be this problem with Satan opposing God in Heaven.

* This problem is taken care of in Revelation 12, right before the Beast of Revelation is revealed.

* Here we find the account of a war that took place in heaven. Satan lost this war and was cast out of Heaven. However, there is a very important question to ask: just when did this battle take place? Did it happen before human history began, as some claim, or is it still in our future?

* First of all, notice that this war is recorded in the twelfth chapter of Revelation – a little more than halfway through the book.

* It is very important to realize that Revelation takes place in chronological order, which we can see from Revelation 1:19. There Jesus gave this commandment to John:

Revelation 1:19: “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;”

* This is a basic outline that explains the structure of the entire book. After this verse Jesus dictated seven letters to seven churches, which represented the things “which are”. In chapter 4 (after all the letters had been written) the scene changes, and John is caught up into Heaven to see the things “which must be hereafter”:

Revelation 4:1: “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter.”

* After this a great many things take place – all of which would happen at some point in the future.

*The seven seals were opened (Revelation 6), the 144,000 Jews were sealed (Revelation 7), the seven trumpets sounded (Revelation 8), and the two witnesses were killed (Revelation 11). All of these things are depicted in chronological order: first the first seal is opened, then the second one, and so forth.

* The war in heaven takes place between chapter 11, where the two witnesses are killed, and chapter 13, where the Mark of the Beast is instituted.

* As of the time John wrote this book it was still in the future, for Revelation 4:1 clearly says that the things John was about to see had not yet taken place.

* What this means is that the war in heaven must take place in the middle of the Tribulation. In other words, it hasn’t happened yet. This is made even more clear if you read the rest of the passage:

Revelation 12:9: “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.”

* After the devil is cast out of heaven in verse 9 a voice proclaims that “the accuser of our brethren is cast down”.

* Satan had been accusing believers “day and night”, just as he had done in the book of Job.

* Now, however, his ability to do this was stripped from him and he was cast down to the earth. Verse 12 says that he was filled with “great wrath” because he had only a short time left.

* What strikes me about this passage is verse 11, where it says that the people Satan was accusing “overcame him by the blood of the Lamb”.

* These people were clearly martyrs, because it says “they loved not their lives unto the death”.

* This creates a real problem for those who believe that the war in Heaven happened before mankind was created.

* Think about it: if that was the case then Satan was bringing accusations against people who hadn’t even been born yet! In fact, he was accusing a race that hadn’t been created yet, let alone fallen into sin!

* On top of that, verse 11 is in the past tense, speaking of people who had been martyred because they believed in Jesus.

* If the war in heaven took place before mankind was created then this makes no sense at all, because no one had yet been martyred for believing in Jesus!

* Besides, if Satan’s ability to bring accusations to God was revoked before mankind was formed then what was he doing making accusations against Job?

* These verses simply make no sense at all if they are describing something that took place before mankind sinned in the Garden of Eden.

* However, they make a great deal of sense if they are talking about a future event that takes place in the middle of the Tribulation. We know that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us:

Romans 8:26: “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”

* If Satan is indeed accusing us day and night then it is a tremendous comfort to know that there is someone else there who is speaking on our behalf. (For the record, the word “Satan” actually means “adversary”; it is more of a descriptive title than a name.)

* This does bring up another question. What about this verse? Jesus had something very interesting to say in the book of Luke:

Luke 10:18: “And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.”

* Doesn’t this imply that the war in heaven had already happened as of the time Jesus walked the earth? Not quite.

* In this passage Jesus said that He saw Satan fall from heaven. However, in Revelation 12:9 it doesn’t say that Satan fell; it says that he was cast out.

* I think Jesus is referring to the time Lucifer chose to try to exalt himself above God and fell into sin, becoming the devil, our adversary. Jesus watched that happen. This would be consistent with what we find in Job.

* So what does all of this mean?

* It means that it’s quite likely that Job was not the only person that Satan has brought accusations against.

* Revelation tells us that he accuses the brethren day and night, using his access to Heaven to try to get God to bring disaster upon believers.

* However, midway through the Tribulation war will erupt in heaven, and Satan and the rest of his fallen angels will be cast down to earth, their access permanently revoked.

* His days of accusing the brethren will be over, and he will be full of wrath because he’ll know that he only has a little more than 3 years left before Jesus returns and binds him for a thousand years.

* This knowledge fills him with rage, and he pours out his anger upon those who are still alive.

* His eviction from heaven marks the beginning of the end for Satan.

* The three years he is given on Earth are not enough to stop the return of Jesus, and when Jesus returns He will bind Satan for a thousand years and usher in an unprecedented age of peace.

* A thousand years later Satan will be released and gather an army, only to see the entire army destroyed by fire when it approaches Jerusalem.

* The devil is then cast into the lake of fire, where he is tormented day and night forever and ever.

* The bottom line is that Satan does currently have access to Heaven, but that will not last forever. His days of accusing the brethren are limited and will soon come to an end.