If you were Satan....

[Athetotheist]

I remember a TV preacher once asking his broadcast audience, "If you were Satan....." I don't remember the rest of the question, but I seem to remember that he was talking about prophecy and arguing that Satan was up to some diabolical mischief ("If you were Satan, isn't that what you would do?").

A lot of detail in Christian scripture about what is to happen before Jesus returns is tied to the activity of "Satan". The appearance of the "antichrist", in particular, is supposed to be part of Satan's last gambit before he goes down to utter defeat.

Since it was asked of me how I would react if I were Satan, I think it's fair for me to answer. I know that "Satan" is supposed to be a being of superhuman intelligence, but I can't help thinking that if such a being actually existed and if I were that being, I could do a lot better.

If I were "Satan", I would scrap the antichrist plan. If it's all laid out in the Bible, then everyone knows what to expect and you've lost the element of surprise. With that one simple deviation from the prophetic scenario, the whole thing would be gummed up. No antichrist, no mark of the beast, no abomination of desolation, no anything I was supposed to do as Satan to set the stage for the return of Jesus. And without those prophetic components in place, Jesus couldn't return to fulfill prophecy. And how could anyone stop me? I wouldn't be taking some action which could be prevented; I would be defeating prophecy by not taking action.

So let me pass the preacher's question on to you. If you were "Satan", what would you do----or not do----to thwart prophecy?

[Willum]

[Replying to Athetotheist in post #20]

Or… or… we could say it was God pulling Satan’s strings, ad absurdum, and be confronted with the observation that God is an evil ass.

Either way, I am satisfied.
Both paths lead to the same end.

Can you deal with it?

Both verses seem to be consistent with the freewill of all parties.

Of course the three sects of Judaism conflict on freewill, so… which fairytale do you choose?

[Athetotheist]

[Replying to Athetotheist in post #20]

Or… or… we could say it was God pulling Satan’s strings, ad absurdum, and be confronted with the observation that God is an evil ass.

Either way, I am satisfied.
Both paths lead to the same end.

Can you deal with it?

Both verses seem to be consistent with the freewill of all parties.

Of course the three sects of Judaism conflict on freewill, so… which fairytale do you choose?

What I choose is to take the wheel and steer back onto the course of my OP, which is to ask how readers would go about defeating Christian prophecy if they were "Satan".

Can you deal with it?

[Willum]

[Replying to Athetotheist in post #22]

Love it!

[The Nice Centurion]

Hi, the OP rises a really interesting Pseudo-Scientific Question, and I believe that for the Sake of argument We should answer it in a context where Satan is real.

We can do This the same way as Holmesians Pseudo-Scientifically try to find answers to riddles like : " Was Sherlock Holmes a Homosexualist ?"
They do This in earnest, and of course in a context where the Sherlock Holmes Universe is real.

Now that "If you were Satan - Would you not act to prove biblical prophecy wrong ?" Question is really something !

It comes to my mind that in the dull but voluminous "Left Behind" Book Series, which was written by two Christians and spawned several Films and PC Games (It is a 13 novel series about Second coming, Antichrist, Plagues, 1000 year Jesus reign and Satans Last Stand = Robert Price eben found it in himself to extend the series by one more Chapter.) the OPs Problem is lightly touched and as explanation given: "Somehow Satan thinks he will/can win at the end!"

A rather dumb explanation of course, for the authors avoid going further into what that s o m e h o w means of course!

It comes also to my mind that different christian sects do read their Bible Endtime prophecy different of course.

So as examples; Mormons have no Jesus 1000 year reign and also leave out other things
while Catholics also cut and minize the Endtime story.
And though the "Left Behind" authors were evangelicals and choosed for their series the most prolonged and colorful endtime exegesis Story, some other evangelical churches felt offended 'cause theyr theologys dictated that This or That in the series will not really happen dringend the second coming.

So there isnt such a thing as a General Endtime exegesis, and Satan it seems would be obliged to read the Endtime exegesis of many different christian sects if he really wished to avoid a l l things the different sects expect him to do.

Kind of makes you think ! Doesnt it ?

[Goat]

[Replying to Goat in post #17]

Wow! What a silly and preposterous explanation. Did you even read it?
Someone obviously without any understanding of the Torah's history re-interpretinging conveniently, impressing his own weak and wacky opinion on it. And a rabbi no less.
Strange.

The angels rebelled. An act of freewill. Stepping into the fire as it will. Not even Rabbi Yitzchak Schwart's aloof and wacky opinion can over turn that.
Just like Adam and Eve.

That was fun.

Yes, I read it. I noticed you didn't actually address it, but merely scorned it. That is not reasonable or rational.

You are using the Christian concepts and ideas. Judaism is a totally different religion. Judaism is not based on Christianity.

[Athetotheist]

[Replying to The Nice Centurion in post #24

the OPs Problem is lightly touched and as explanation given: "Somehow Satan thinks he will/can win at the end!"

The problem with this argument of theirs is Rev. 12:12----

"....Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has but a short time."

Satan it seems would be obliged to read the Endtime exegesis of many different christian sects if he really wished to avoid a l l things the different sects expect him to do.

I'd say all he would have to do is avoid anything like what the Christian Bible itself says he is to do.

[Willum]

[Replying to Goat in post #25]

I did actually address it.

And yet it was unworthy of more than scorn.

How can one rebel without freewill?
Silli rabbi, tricks are for sins.

[Goat]

[Replying to Goat in post #25]

I did actually address it.

And yet it was unworthy of more than scorn.

How can one rebel without freewill?
Silli rabbi, tricks are for sins.

You addressed it by being dismissive to the Jewish religion.

You are also missing the point that in the Jewish religion, angels did not rebel.

[Willum]

[Replying to Goat in post #28]

I don't think I did.
And in one of the three Judaic religions, they did, of course.
In one of the two that says there are angels, as opposed to the one that claims there aren't any angels at all.

Is this your first experience of Judaism? Do you really not know Sadducee, Pharisee, Essene (and other) religions?
Peculiar that you speak with such authority on them.

[Goat]

[Replying to Goat in post #28]

I don't think I did.
And in one of the three Judaic religions, they did, of course.
In one of the two that says there are angels, as opposed to the one that claims there aren't any angels at all.

Is this your first experience of Judaism? Do you really not know Sadducee, Pharisee, Essene (and other) religions?
Peculiar that you speak with such authority on them.

It just so happens, I am Jewish.

It's not for nothing that I chose my avatar.