Does God love Satan? What does God say about Satan?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

God does not love Satan because he embodies everything God hates—pride, lies, evil, and hatred for God’s people—and has rejected God without repentance. Satan’s pride led to his fall, and his lack of repentance led to his eternal judgment. Satan is described as a liar, deceiver, and enemy of God and humanity. While God is love, His love is not extended to Satan or those who reject Him but only to those who repent and trust in Jesus. God graciously offers salvation to humanity through Jesus, calling people to turn from sin and receive His love. Those who persist in prideful rebellion like Satan face eternal punishment, but those who humble themselves and trust Jesus receive eternal salvation and love.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• Though God is love, He does not extend that love to all creatures without exception (Deuteronomy 7:7–8; Psalm 5:4–5; Jeremiah 31:3).
• Isaiah 14:12–15 describes the pride and fall of the "morning star" (often associated with Satan), highlighting his rebellion against God. Satan is the single most prideful creature (Isaiah 14:13) and this passage affirms that Satan is the type of creature God hates.
• Psalm 5:4–5 declares that God hates wickedness and those who do evil, which includes Satan.
• God hates those who love violence, fitting Satan’s nature (Psalm 11:5).
• Jeremiah 31:3 shows that God’s everlasting love is not universal to all creatures.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Satan clearly stood against Jesus’ mission. In Matthew 4, Satan tried to tempt Jesus to sin to ruin humanity’s one chance for salvation. After resisting him, Jesus finally exclaimed, “Go, Satan!” (Matthew 4:10a). Satan is God’s enemy, and God has no love for him.
• Jesus came because His Father loved the world (John 3:16) for the purpose of destroying the one who stands against that love (Satan).
• Jesus calls Satan a liar and the father of lies, revealing his evil nature (John 8:44).
• 1 John 3:8 says the devil has sinned from the beginning and that the Son of God appeared to destroy the works of the devil.
• In 1 John 4:8b states, “God is love.” Some have taken that to mean that God loves indiscriminately, meaning that God must love Satan, but that is not true. God does not love what is evil and opposed to Him.
• Revelation 12:9 describes Satan as the deceiver who is ultimately judged and eternally punished by God.
• Satan is wicked (1 John 3:12), evil (Matthew 13:19), a liar (John 8:44), and prowling with the intent of destroying people (1 Peter 5:8). He is everything that God is not. From the beginning, God prepared hell for Satan and the demons (Matthew 25:41) and we read that “the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet were; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10). That is, Satan’s end is God’s eternal wrath (hatred).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

When Satan fell, God did not offer him a chance to repent because Satan defiantly desired to be like God and rejected repentance. As a result, Satan and his followers were cast down from heaven (Revelation 12:9) and are destined to face eternal punishment in hell (Matthew 25:41).

Though God is just, He graciously extended His love to humanity. Instead of condemning us immediately after Adam and Eve’s sin, He delayed His justice (Romans 3:25) and demonstrated His love for humanity by sending His Son to save all who would believe in Him (John 3:16). We are called to respond to this love by repenting and trusting in Jesus’ death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins. To receive this love, we must repent and place our trust in Jesus as the only escape from God’s righteous judgment (Romans 5:9).

Rejecting repentance means we reject God, just like Satan. God warns us of what awaits those who continue in the same prideful rebellion as Satan: an eternity in hell facing the consequences for our sins (Psalm 5:5; 1 Timothy 3:6). Because of this, it is crucial to humble ourselves while there is still time. When we do, Jesus promises He will never reject us but will save us eternally (John 6:37; John 10:28).

UNDERSTAND

• God is love but He hates Satan for his pride, lies, and evil.
• Satan would not repent and therefore God has reserved eternal judgment for him.
• God’s love is for those who repent and trust Jesus, not for Satan or those who reject Him.

REFLECT

• How do you respond personally to the fact that God hates what Satan represents—pride, lies, and rebellion—and reserves judgment for him?
• How does the reality of Satan’s ultimate defeat encourage you to respond to sin in your own life?
• What steps can you take to guard your heart against pride and deception, knowing these are characteristics God hates?

ENGAGE

• What does it mean for us that God’s love is not extended to Satan or evil, but only to those who repent and trust Jesus?
• How do the biblical descriptions of Satan’s pride and fall help us understand the seriousness of pride and rebellion in our own lives?
• What are the differences between living like “children of Satan” and living as God’s beloved children?