What motivates Satan? What makes him work so hard to trip us up? What does he get out of it?

Question

Religious folks seem to think that this Satan character is responsible for a lot of badness, but why would he bother? What good is a human soul to him anyway? I'd like to know what makes him get out of bed in the morning.

Answer 1

Your humorous question pokes fun at one of the myraid impossibilities of of the Bible. Your question falls into the silly range of asking: "Why does the Santa Clause fly around with reindeer passing out gifts?".

There is not hope, whatsoever, of making any sense of any religious dogma. You will not receive a coherent answer to your question about Satan's motives.

Nevertheless, keep asking these type questions, they make us think and chuckle.

Answer 2

Its a conundrum:

It must be that Satan is God's torture robot and has no say in the matter. In which case, theres no need to even speak of Satan, but blame God directly for the robot's evil work.

If Satan has free will and is a intelligent deity, then obviously at some point he would figure out what every little church going infant apparently knows, which is, he is supposed to "lose in the end". So, if Satan is intelligent and has free will, it can only stand to reason that at some point he would want to get straight and get out the labourious duty of torture and eventual defeat.

Solution: It must be that there is no Satan.

Answer 3

Satan's goal is obvious. Satan wants God's POWER and AUTHORITY, but he doesn't want anything to do with God's nurturing and leadership attributes. Satan wants absolute power, but without having responsibility to care for anyone but himself.

How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: "I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High." (Isa 14.12-14)

Since he knows now, that he can't win, he is trying to take as many children away from God as he can...Since God gave them free will...he is allowed to do this. People make up their own mind whom they will serve....God or Satan...just because you are a good person and do good deeds and are a good parent,,,doesn't mean you will go to Heaven...Unless you give your heart to Jesus, you are on the wrong side.

Answer 4

It's because he is lonely and spiteful, and too proud to admit that he was wrong, or that he could stand to simply take God's punishment lying down. Such traits make Satan more believable, and more human, than God (especially if God still allows Satan to exist for the sole purpose of corrupting, deceiving, destroying, polluting, supporting the Democratic party, or whatever he is doing this week).

Answer 5

Satan enjoys life just like the rest of us. Hes life is based on doing what he desires like most humans. He enjoys evil like many humans and looks forward to making people suffer. He hates Jehovah God and anyone who listens and does what God requires. His work is really not that hard, he just uses his free will to do evil. He is not very different than other living intelligent beings.

Answer 6

Satan is motivated by PRIDE>

He has said in his heart "..."I WILL be like the most High God , the possessor of heaven and earth".

Instead of being content being the most beautiful and intelligent of Gods created angels, he wanted to be LIKE God. His name actually means "reflector of LIGHT"...Lucifer. He was to reflect the very light of God...what an awesome position he held, and he threw it all away because he wanted MORE.

He works hard at tripping us up because he knows that hell wasnt made for we humans but for him and the fallen angels that followed him. He figures that if he tricks enuff people into not believing God , that maybe God will change His mind and not send anyone to hell. That aint gonna happen.

Satan is a control freak. He is a master manipulator. He is the father of LIES the bible says. He bothers because of ONE thing...PRIDE PRIDE PRIDE.

Even tho he knows his days are numbered and that God will put an end to him one day. The entire Bible is the story of how God will re establish His rightful reign and rule over both heaven AND earth, which Satan has temporarily usurped. Satan is presently the "god of this world", and the "prince and power of the air". That is fixin to change real quick! Wink

Answer 7

Jews view Satan a literally "light bringer", in Judasim, Satan shows what shouldn't be done( He's the "don't do it this way" section of an instruction manual)

as to a Christian, Satan is anti-God. He just wants to make Hell(literally)

Answer 8

Apparently, we are in the middle of a very intense argument.
We are the hmmm the contraband items over which immortal beings have fought. Satan was never given such a chance to be redeemed, even though, at His disposal was every Grace imaginable.

Or so the story goes. Apparently, when He saw what God had made in the Virgin, He was fit to be tied.

Answer 9

Well personally I dont share the Christian view that "Satan" is some bad man with a pitchfork trying to get my soul.

I view it more as a force- neither good or bad, nor has any active conciseness.


I guess the best way to explain it is like gravity, it can very harmful at times, but without it we could not exist.

Answer 10

Someone said Jews consider Satan "the light-bringer" who shows humanity how NOT to act.

*sigh* Right translation, wrong name.

"Lucifer" is the name which translates to "light-bringer." That and the smell of sulfur are why wooden matches used to be called "lucifers."

Like Prometheus, Lucifer was punished for giving humanity a great secret (fire, light, knowledge, you pick!) that made the god/gods jealous.

I know you're just doin' your Lucifer duty in asking these questions. The answers never fail to horrify and entertain.