What Happened to Satan After the Fall?

Hope (age 11) asks,

What happened to Satan when Adam and Eve sinned?

Good question!

We know that God created Satan as a beautiful, good angel. When God declared everything “very good,” the angel that would become Satan was included in that “very good!” However, not long after that, Satan became prideful and thought he deserved to be on the same level as God, so he fell, and he took many angels with him.

We know that Satan was the one who tempted Eve because John 8:44 says that Satan was a liar and murderer “from the beginning.” But Genesis says it was a serpent that deceived Eve. How can both Satan and the serpent be responsible for the temptation? There are different ways to explain this, but we think that Satan used the serpent to tempt Eve. This explains why it was able to speak, even though we know animals can’t normally talk.

Adam and Eve’s sin caused changes to Adam, Eve, the serpent, and even the earth itself. But what about Satan? He was already sinful and had already been judged. After Adam and Eve left the garden, we know that Satan continued to tempt people and accuse them before God. He has so much power over sinful humanity that the Bible calls him “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4). But God is much more powerful and sets limits for how much Satan can do (Job 1).

God promised that a descendant of Eve would defeat the serpent—that is, her special descendant would defeat Satan! We aren’t told about any immediate judgment, but we know that Jesus, who was a descendant of Eve, defeated Satan when he died for us on the cross and was raised on the third day. But this isn’t the end of the story!

When Jesus comes back, he will utterly and finally judge Satan.

Revelation tells us that when Jesus comes back, he will utterly and finally judge Satan, and he will be thrown into the lake of fire with death and hades, along with all the angels who rebelled and everyone who didn’t trust in Jesus to forgive their sins. Then those of us who have trusted Jesus will live forever with him on a perfect, restored earth.

This should encourage us for a few reasons. First, it means that God hasn’t given up on his creation, including us! Second, we can look forward to a world free from sin and its effects. Third, it can help us follow Jesus when we’re tempted to sin because we know that he has already defeated Satan!

Do you have a question about the Bible? Ask your parents to help you submit your question today. We’d love to hear from you!