Satan, agents of

Satan works in this world through people and through those spiritual beings who acknowledge his authority. His agents oppose God's will and purposes.

Satan works through people

Satan's human agents pursue his evil desires

John 8:44 Jesus Christ speaking of the relationship of some unbelieving Jews to Satan. See also Acts 13:10; 1 John 3:8–10, 1 John 3:12

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

Satan works through people to oppose God's purposes

Acts 5:1–9 Ananias and Sapphira; Matthew 16:23 parallel Mark 8:33 Simon Peter; Luke 22:3; John 6:70, John 13:2, John 13:27; Acts 13:8–10 Elymas, the sorcerer

Examples of people doing Satan's work

False prophets

Deuteronomy 13:5; Jeremiah 23:26–27, Jeremiah 28:15, Jeremiah 29:21; Ezekiel 13:6–9; Matthew 7:15, Matthew 24:24; 2 Peter 2:1–3

Others who lead people away from God

Deuteronomy 13:13; 2 Kings 21:9–26 Manasseh and his son, Amon; Proverbs 7:21 the adulteress; Isaiah 3:12; Jeremiah 50:6; 2 Peter 2:18–19

Satan works through his spiritual agents

Satan's angels

Matthew 25:41 See also 2 Peter 2:4; Revelation 12:7 “angel” and “messenger” are the same word in Greek

Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

Satan's demons

Luke 13:11–16 See also Matthew 12:22; Luke 11:14–15

and a woman there had been disabled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was hunched over and could not stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said, “Woman, you are set free from your disability.” Then He placed His hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and began to glorify God. But the synagogue leader was indignant that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. “There are six days for work,” he told the crowd. “So come and be healed on those days and not on the Sabbath.” “You hypocrites!” the Lord replied. “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it to water? Then should not this daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be released from her bondage on the Sabbath day?”

Satan's agents are identified by various images and titles

The little horn

Daniel 8:9–12 This probably represents Antiochus Epiphanes.

The prince of Persia

Daniel 10:13 probably representing a demon with influence over the Persian kingdom

The king of the North

Daniel 11:28 probably representing Antiochus Epiphanes

The antichrist

1 John 4:1–4; 2 John 1:7

The man of lawlessness

2 Thessalonians 2:3–10

The beast

Revelation 11:7, Revelation 13:1–8, Revelation 13:11–18, Revelation 14:9–11, Revelation 16:13, Revelation 17:8, Revelation 19:20, Revelation 20:10

The false prophet

Revelation 16:13, Revelation 19:20

The prostitute or Babylon the Great

Revelation 14:8, Revelation 16:19, Revelation 17:1–18, Revelation 18:1–10, Revelation 18:18, Revelation 19:2