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1 Peter 5:8
Satan is called "your adversary, the devil." Here the word "adversary" is not satanas, but antidikos, and though similar in meaning, antidikos is more explicit. It specifically refers to "an opponent in a lawsuit." This word was originally used in legal matters, and the particular imagery it evokes is of a court, and more specifically, the making of an accusation. Using this kind of language, we can say that God has indicted Satan for his sin, found him guilty, and sentenced him to the Lake of Fire. Satan, not accepting the verdict, holds out hope of overturning it, calling God unfair, unjust, and unloving. He stands as the defamer of God's character, the accuser of believers, and the adversary of all humanity. Several Bible writers call this being "the Devil." In the Bible, this title is the Greek word diabolos, which means "slanderer, defamer." The underlying sense is that he is constantly working to malign the character of God and His people.
Clyde Finklea
Behind Enemy Lines (Part Two)
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