Lies and Deception

6. What have Satan and his demons done in the past, and how should we regard their powers?

⁶ It is true that Satan and his demons are dangerous enemies of humans. They have power to influence the minds and lives of men, and in the past they have even entered and possessed humans and animals. (Matthew 12:43-45) While we should not minimize their powers, we should not overestimate those powers either.

7. What does Satan want us to believe, and how is this illustrated?

⁷ Satan is a master of deception. He fools people into thinking that he has more power than he really does. To illustrate: During recent fighting in one African country, soldiers used sound equipment to terrify their enemies. Before attacking, the soldiers would play loud recordings of heavy artillery and gunfire. They wanted the enemy to think that they were being attacked by an army with many powerful weapons. In the same way, Satan wants people to believe that his power is limitless. His purpose is to frighten people into doing his will and not the will of Jehovah. Let us now consider three lies that Satan wants people to believe.

8. What is one lie that Satan promotes?

⁸ One lie that Satan promotes is this: Nothing harmful happens by chance; everything bad that is not directly caused by someone occurs through mystical power. For example, suppose that a child dies of malaria. His mother may know that malaria is a disease carried by mosquitoes. But she may also believe that someone used witchcraft to send a mosquito to bite her child.

9. How does the Bible show that Satan does not cause every problem?

⁹ While Satan has the power to cause some problems, it is wrong to believe that he has the power to cause every problem. The Bible says: “The swift do not have the race, nor the mighty ones the battle, nor do the wise also have the food, nor do the understanding ones also have the riches, nor do even those having knowledge have the favor; because time and unforeseen occurrence befall them all.” (Ecclesiastes 9:11) One runner in a race may be faster than the others, but he may not win. Some “unforeseen occurrence” may make him lose. Perhaps he stumbles and falls or he becomes ill or he pulls a muscle. These things could happen to anybody. They are not necessarily caused by Satan or through witchcraft; they just happen.

13. (a) Is white magic good? (b) What do the Scriptures say about magic?

¹³ A third lie is this: White magic​—magic that is supposed to counter black magic—​is good. The Bible does not make a distinction between black magic and white magic. It condemns all magic. Consider the laws Jehovah gave to the nation of Israel concerning magic and those who practiced it:

• “You must not practice magic.”​—Leviticus 19:26.

• “As for a man or woman in whom there proves to be a mediumistic spirit or spirit of prediction, they should be put to death without fail.”​—Leviticus 20:27.

• “There should not be found in you . . . a practicer of magic or anyone who looks for omens or a sorcerer, or one who binds others with a spell or anyone who consults a spirit medium.”​—Deuteronomy 18:10-14.

14. Why did Jehovah make laws against magic?

¹⁴ These laws made it clear that God did not want his people to practice magic. Jehovah gave these laws to his people because he loved them and did not want them to become enslaved to fear and superstition. He did not want them to be oppressed by the demons.

15. How does the Bible show that Jehovah is more powerful than Satan?

¹⁵ Though the Bible does not go into detail concerning what the demons can and cannot do, it does show that Jehovah God is far more powerful than Satan and his demons. Jehovah had Satan cast out of heaven. (Revelation 12:9) Notice, too, that Satan asked permission to test Job and obeyed God’s warning not to kill Job.​—Job 2:4-6.

16. To whom should we look for protection?

¹⁶ Proverbs 18:10 says: “The name of Jehovah is a strong tower. Into it the righteous runs and is given protection.” So we should look to Jehovah for protection. God’s servants do not look to charms or medicines to protect them against the evil deeds of Satan and the demons, nor do they fear the spells of sorcerers. God’s servants believe what the Bible says: “As regards Jehovah, his eyes are roving about through all the earth to show his strength in behalf of those whose heart is complete toward him.”​—2 Chronicles 16:9.

17. Of what does James 4:7 assure us, but what must we do?

¹⁷ You too can have this confidence if you serve Jehovah. James 4:7 says: “Subject yourselves, therefore, to God; but oppose the Devil, and he will flee from you.” If you serve the true God, subjecting yourself to him, you can be sure that Jehovah will protect you.