In heaven is God's throne---the headquarters of the vast universe. Countless angels---brilliant, intelligent, sinless beings whom God has created---bask in the joy and love of His presence. The highest angel over them all is called Lucifer---"the shining one."
At some point in the years of eternity past, the Bible says, Lucifer began to become increasingly proud of his appearance and abilities. He determined to move up in heaven's scheme of things and eventually coveted equality with Jesus Christ Himself. When God the Father made it clear to him that this would never be---could never be---Lucifer became enraged. Before long, actual warfare broke out in heaven. Lucifer, along with a third of heaven's angels, was i=ultimately banned from heaven.
Meanwhile, in seven literal days, God had created the earth and its first human beings---Adam and his wife Eve. He created for them a beautiful garden home called Eden, but warned them not to eat the fruit of a certain tree in the middle of the garden---for is they did, they would die.
One day, however, Eve wandered alone to the foot of the tree, where a wonderful talking serpent in its branches (Lucifer, now called Satan, in disguise) told her that God's prohibition was an unfair lie. Eve believed Satan and ate some of the forbidden fruit. Soon Adam followed suit. Like Satan, they had mistrusted God and insisted on their own way.
Sin, which had poisoned heaven, had now spoiled our newly created world. The great war between Christ and Satan had now moved to planet Earth.
- Ezek. 28:11-19, 11Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
- 12Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
- 13Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.
- 14Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
- 15Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.
- 16By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
- 17Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.
- 18Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
- 19All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
- Isa. 14:12-14, 12How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
- 13For 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:
- 14I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
- Rev. 12:3, 4, 7-9, 3And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
- 4And 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.
- 7And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
- 8And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
- 9And 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.
- Gen.1:1--3:24, 1In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
- 2And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
- 3And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
- 4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
- 5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
- 6And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
- 7And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
- 8And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
- 9And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
- 10And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
- 11And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
- 12And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
- 13And the evening and the morning were the third day.
- 14And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
- 15And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
- 16And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
- 17And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
- 18And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
- 19And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
- 20And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
- 21And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
- 22And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.
- 23And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.
- 24And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
- 25And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
- 26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
- 27So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
- 28And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
- 29And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
- 30And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
- 31And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
- Genesis 2
- 1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
- 2And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
- 3And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
- 4These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
- 5And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
- 6But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
- 7And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
- 8And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
- 9And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
- 10And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
- 11The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
- 12And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
- 13And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
- 14And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.
- 15And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
- 16And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
- 17But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
- 18And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
- 19And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
- 20And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.
- 21And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
- 22And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
- 23And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
- 24Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
- 25And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
- Genesis 3
- 1Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
- 2And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
- 3But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
- 4And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
- 5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
- 6And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
- 7And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
- 8And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
- 9And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
- 10And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
- 11And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
- 12And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
- 13And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
- 14And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
- 15And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
- 16Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
- 17And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
- 18Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
- 19In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
- 20And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
- 21Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
- 22And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
- 23Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
- 24So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
- Job 1:6-12, 6Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.
- 7And 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.
- 8And 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?
- 9Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?
- 10Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
- 11But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
- 12And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.
- Heb. 11:3, 3Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
- John 1:1-3, 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- 2The same was in the beginning with God.
- 3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
- Col. 1:13-17, 13Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
- 14In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
- 15Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
- 16For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
- 17And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
- Rom 5:12, 12Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
- Exod. 20:11, 11For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
- Heb. 1:2, 2Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
- Psa. 33:6-9, 6By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
- 7He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
- 8Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
- 9For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.
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