2 Corinthians 11:14

14 And no wonder! Satan does it all the time, dressing up as a beautiful angel of light.

2 Corinthians 11:14 Meaning and Commentary

2 Corinthians 11:14

And no marvel
This need not be wondered at, nor is it any new or strange thing; nor should it be thought to be incredible that there are such persons in being:

for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light;
a good angel, one that has his abode in the regions of light; and is possessed of divine and spiritual light and understanding; who is clothed and arrayed with light, this is his form and essence. The apostle speaks agreeably to the notion, of the Jews, who say F20,

``(rwa Mh Mlk Mykalmhv) , "that all the angels are light", the clothing of God himself;''

and they have a distinction between (Mwyd Nykalm) , "angels of the day", and angels of the night F21: now Satan, the enemy of mankind, sometimes appears in the form of one of these; as he did to Eve in the garden, and to Christ in the wilderness; and by such appearances he often imposes on mankind; pretends the greatest friendship, when he designs nothing but ruin; and under a notion of good, either honest, or pleasant, or profitable, draws on into the commission of the greatest evils; and, under a show of truth, introduces the most notorious falsehoods and errors; and, under a pretence of religion, all sorts of idolatry, superstition, and impiety; it is in this way he has succeeded in his enterprises and temptations; these are his wiles, stratagems, and cunning devices.


FOOTNOTES:

F20 R. Abraham Seba, Tzeror Hammor, fol. 18. 4.
F21 Zohar in Numb. fol. 91. 1. & 93. 3.

2 Corinthians 11:14 In-Context

12 I'm just trying to keep things open and honest between us.
13 They're a sorry bunch - pseudo-apostles, lying preachers, crooked workers - posing as Christ's agents but sham to the core.
14 And no wonder! Satan does it all the time, dressing up as a beautiful angel of light.
15 So it shouldn't surprise us when his servants masquerade as servants of God. But they're not getting by with anything. They'll pay for it in the end. Many a Long and Lonely Night
16 Let me come back to where I started - and don't hold it against me if I continue to sound a little foolish. Or if you'd rather, just accept that I am a fool and let me rant on a little.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.