Page 99 - Foundations

John 16:11
Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

Repeatedly, Yahshua referred to Satan as “the prince of this world.” In the Greek language in which
the New Testament was originally written, the word that appears in English as “prince” is “archon.”
This Greek word means to be first in rank, or place. Christ was testifying that Satan occupies the chief
seat of authority over this world. A question that should be answered is “How did Satan come to
receive this authority?”

Some have proposed that Satan gained this authority over the world when Adam yielded his will in
obedience to the serpent in the garden of Eden. There is some truth to this. In the following words,
the apostle Paul declares a spiritual principle that is at work in the creation.

Romans 6:16
Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves
of the one whom you obey...

When Adam chose to obey Satan rather than God, he consigned himself, and all who would be born
of his seed, to subjugation to Satan. Yahweh had given to man sovereign authority over the earth. The
terrestrial world with all that grew out of its soil, all that moved upon its surface, all that swam in the
seas, and all that flew in the heavens, was placed under the authority of man.

Genesis 1:26
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over
the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over
every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

Genesis 2:15
Then Yahweh God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.

This world was placed under the dominion of the man. Yet man did not keep it. By yielding himself
to obey the beast, rather than subduing the beast and ruling over it, man came to be ruled by another.
Adam’s sovereignty over this world was forfeit. Adam became a slave to sin, and the creation fell
under the curse of sin and death. The Bible tells us that Satan holds the power of death, and by
exercise of this power he has held humanity captive through fear.

Hebrews 2:14-15
Since then the children share in flesh and blood, [Yahshua] likewise also partook of the same, that
through death He might render powerless him who has the power of death, that is, the devil; and
might deliver those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.

Some Bible translations render this statement in the past tense as if to say that Satan “had” the power
of death. In the Greek, however, the word denotes a present, ongoing, action. Young’s Literal
Translation of the Bible provides the following interpretation.