Why couldn't Satan or any of the fallen angels repent?

[Jackson Cooper]

Just thought about this. Is it because they cannot or refuse to?

 

[A_Thinker]

Just thought about this. Is it because they cannot or refuse to?

My guess is that it's because of their original state.

They have no confusion about the reality of God ... nor what His kingdom stands for.

When they made their decision to rebel, they were fully aware of what they were doing.

They chose, with full knowledge ...

It's possible that there is no way back from such a state ...

 

[ArmyMatt]

My guess is that it's because of their original state.

They have no confusion about the reality of God ... nor what His kingdom stands for.

When they made their decision to rebel, they were fully aware of what they were doing.

They chose, with full knowledge ...

It's possible that there is no way back from such a state ...

this, pretty much. the angels were created to grow my helping man attain theosis and praise God. they knew what would happen if they rebelled, and they knew there would be no turning back if they did.

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

Pride is something we cultivate just as we cultivate love of God and prayer. Satan has spent countless millennia cultivating ego and a futile attempt to overthrow God's Kingdom at best or rule in a fallen place of misery at best. When you spend a lifetime (and his has been lengthy!) motivating humanity to cheat on spouses, murder, steal, kidnap, covet, wallow in addiction, see despair at every corner, reject Christ, hate goodness, build on lust, and turn inward, it's pretty hard to break out of that corruption. It's like Gollum. You just carry and covet that ring long enough and it perverts you to the core and warps your being to the point there is nothing of the Divine left or not enough to work with.

 

[Glaucus]

It think it's best described as, it started as "won't" and has become "can't". I like the way gurneyhalleck put it.

 

[Light of the East]

this, pretty much. the angels were created to grow my helping man attain theosis and praise God. they knew what would happen if they rebelled, and they knew there would be no turning back if they did.

Really? Wouldn't that make them just like God? Wouldn't that be a case of them being omniscient as mere created beings? How do we know they really could see the future and knew exactly what would happen? Why are they not just like Adam and Eve in that they are created beings without a full knowledge of all the repercussions of their rebellion since only God is outside of time?

 

[Light of the East]

Pride is something we cultivate just as we cultivate love of God and prayer. Satan has spent countless millennia cultivating ego and a futile attempt to overthrow God's Kingdom at best or rule in a fallen place of misery at best. When you spend a lifetime (and his has been lengthy!) motivating humanity to cheat on spouses, murder, steal, kidnap, covet, wallow in addiction, see despair at every corner, reject Christ, hate goodness, build on lust, and turn inward, it's pretty hard to break out of that corruption. It's like Gollum. You just carry and covet that ring long enough and it perverts you to the core and warps your being to the point there is nothing of the Divine left or not enough to work with.

One little spark should be enough. You are saying that there is, in essence then, nothing.

If so, that is a fearful condition for either man or spirit.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Really? Wouldn't that make them just like God? Wouldn't that be a case of them being omniscient as mere created beings? How do we know they really could see the future and knew exactly what would happen?

no, that's not omniscience. they knew because God created them that way.

Why are they not just like Adam and Eve in that they are created beings without a full knowledge of all the repercussions of their rebellion since only God is outside of time?

because angels are not humans. angels were created to help man grow in God's grace. we begin lower than the angels, but to ascend higher than them.

 

[Jackson Cooper]

this, pretty much. the angels were created to grow my helping man attain theosis and praise God. they knew what would happen if they rebelled, and they knew there would be no turning back if they did.

Since they knew what would happen, why'd they rebel? Did Satan really think he could overpower God? I suppose Hitler was blinded by pride to think he could defeat the British Empire and USSR.

 

[Light of the East]

no, that's not omniscience. they knew because God created them that way.



because angels are not humans. angels were created to help man grow in God's grace. we begin lower than the angels, but to ascend higher than them.

Father, my point is that they don't have full knowledge. None of God's creatures ever will or we would be one in essence with God. I just can't see them knowing fully where the rebellion would take them.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Since they knew what would happen, why'd they rebel? Did Satan really think he could overpower God? I suppose Hitler was blinded by pride to think he could defeat the British Empire and USSR.

pride can lead to do foolish things.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Father, my point is that they don't have full knowledge. None of God's creatures ever will or we would be one in essence with God. I just can't see them knowing fully where the rebellion would take them.

full knowledge by nature? no, that is God's. however, they can know what God chooses to reveal to them. they knew where it would lead.

 

[Light of the East]

full knowledge by nature? no, that is God's. however, they can know what God chooses to reveal to them. they knew where it would lead.

So you are saying that just as I as a father would tell my children "Don't stick that knife in the light socket" and then give them full details of what it would do to them, God did the same thing with the angels. A complete rundown of every thing that would happen and what their rebellion would bring to them and they still said, "Meaaaaaahhh......maybe" and then did their thing.

That wasn't real bright.

 

[ArmyMatt]

So you are saying that just as I as a father would tell my children "Don't stick that knife in the light socket" and then give them full details of what it would do to them, God did the same thing with the angels. A complete rundown of every thing that would happen and what their rebellion would bring to them and they still said, "Meaaaaaahhh......maybe" and then did their thing.

That wasn't real bright.

yeah, there was no ignorance on the demons part.

 

[SaNcTaMaRiA]

I mean could they honestly believe that they could over power the supreme power of the cosmos? They knew they couldn't. However they tried. Because their arrogant. Now they want us to join them in their dumb plan.

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

As Matt pointed out, Lucifer was an angel turned demon.

Could he repent? I suppose THEORETICALLY, but the problem is, we know he doesn’t! Scripture and prophecy tell us he will continue to undermine, attempt to usurp, steal away souls, and despoil God’s creation. And we know the end of salvation history from Scripture. I hate to give out spoilers, but Satan loses. He doesn’t lose by repenting and coming home to the Lord.

One little spark should be enough. You are saying that there is, in essence then, nothing.

If so, that is a fearful condition for either man or spirit.

 

[readyforachange]

Repentence is not only turningaway from sin but deeply hating the sin as well. Demons and the devil are not capable of turning away from sin nor are they capable of hating sin therefore they are not capable of repentence.

 

[A_Thinker]

So you are saying that just as I as a father would tell my children "Don't stick that knife in the light socket" and then give them full details of what it would do to them, God did the same thing with the angels. A complete rundown of every thing that would happen and what their rebellion would bring to them and they still said, "Meaaaaaahhh......maybe" and then did their thing.

Perhaps God didn't reveal ALL to them, but they knew enough of God to become convinced that they wanted something different. It didn't matter whether they thought they could overcome God or not (though their pride may have convinced that they could ...), ... they simply refused to serve Him anymore ...

 

[buzuxi02]

Since they knew what would happen, why'd they rebel? Did Satan really think he could overpower God? I suppose Hitler was blinded by pride to think he could defeat the British Empire and USSR.

Without Christ assuming humanity our repentance would mean nothing. In Irenaeous recapitulation doctrine Christ united himself to humanity went through the human phases of infancy, childhood, and adulthood giving himself as ransom and dying and freeing us. Repentance would be a moot point for angels as their is no one to assume their nature to redeem them.

 

[BoLeVi]

Because they can't forgive themselves what they did so God can't too.