Satan’s power

Why did God make the world belong to the devil when He was able to defeat the devil?

Because God is all-powerful, he certainly could have prevented the fall of the angels and the subsequent fall of Adam and Eve. God does not explain why he did not prevent those fallsā€”nor is he obligated to do so (Romans 11:33-36).

After the devil led Adam and Eve into sin, God promised a Savior (Genesis 3:15). That Savior would crush Satan one day. By his holy life, sacrificial death and glorious resurrection, Jesus did crush Satan. The devilā€™s final defeat will take place on the Last Day, when he will be confined to hell forever (Revelation 20:10).

Until the Last Day, Satan retains power and influence as allowed by God (Job 1:12; 2:6). Because of his power and influence, the devil has the title ā€œthe prince of this world.ā€ (John 12:31). As mentioned previously, the day will come when that ā€œprinceā€ will be crushed completely and be unable to bother Godā€™s people anymore.

Until that time, Godā€™s people recognize the power and evil intent of Satan (1 Peter 5:8), and they use the spiritual weapons God has given them to be successful in warding off the old evil foe (Ephesians 6:10-18; James 4:7).