What does the power/"exsousias" of Satan mean in Acts 26:18?

Question

From Acts 26:17-18 ESV

"...I am sending you 18 to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me." [ My emphasis].

YLT, LSV and LSB put "authority" where the ESV puts "power". I am not asking about the difference between "authority" and "power".

Matthew 28:18

"And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me."

What does the power or authority/exousias of Satan mean in Acts 26:18 seeing that in Mat 28:18 all exousia has been given to Jesus?

Answer 1

The Greek word used in Acts 26:18 has the sense of "privilege, authority" according to Young's Concordance (page 765, 3rd column). This suggests that it is perfectly acceptable to translate exousia as either 'power' or 'authority'.

There is no argument as to various kinds of power and various kinds of authorities at work both in Heaven and on Earth. In the Church Christ builds, there is a clear structure of authority (or, headship' as it is spoken of). With earthly rulers and powers some are greater than others and wield more authority along with their greater power. Even in sovereign nations, they can be limited in their exercise of sovereignty by outside factors. Only God, the Creator, is absolutely Sovereign.

This might help us view the relative authority which Satan has as "god of this world" (1 Cor. 4:4) and as "prince of the power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2). This is due to his deceptions in trying to usurp the authority and power of the Creator. "The earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof", however. The Creator will expose the deceptions and the attempted usurpation of Satan at Christ's spectacular return, but until then he is allowed to hold invisible sway over all who do not belong to Christ by faith.

The Ephesians text shows that the satanic spirit of the air works in the children of disobedience, that is, those who are disobedient to the Creator. God allows Satan to have that power over those ones, which turns Satan into a puppet-master with disobedient humans, pulling their strings, and they have no idea, such is the extent of the deception Satan employs. He deceives billions of people.

This invisible influence gives him a huge amount of power, and a huge amount of authority, in the dark realm he rules over. He may, indeed, rule supreme in his satanic realm of darkness, but the very fact that Christ will come with blinding light to destroy his powers of darkness and cast him and his minions into outer, blackest darkness (Jude vs. 13) proves that all his power and authority is subject to the Sovereign will, power, and timing of the Creator.

This means that the power or authority / exousias of Satan in Acts 26:18 is relative to the over-arching power / exousia that has been given to Jesus (Mat 28:18). This conforms to God's structure of authority and power in Heaven and on Earth. He is Sovereign, and Supreme. He limits, then will destroy, everything and everyone presently blinded by "the god of this world", whose partial rule is time-limited, by God. And it will be Jesus Christ who acts to destroy Satan, who cannot usurp the place of the King of kings and Lord of lords.

Answer 2

Satan, the lower case "god of this world", has the power to keep lost souls from discovering the Light, God's love for humanity, the truth (Christ crucified for our sins), the only means by which to escape his every snare. Satan thought he was victorious at the cross, but learned later that it was his defeat (1 Cor 2:8). He is desperate to keep this truth hidden from all and, by the sovereignty of God, has been given the ability to do so. Consider his beguiling of Eve in the garden (2 Cor 11:3) and also his persecution over Job (Job 1:7-12).

2 Corinthians 4:4

In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Answer 3

The noun exousía is divided into four categories of meaning per Thayer’s Lexicon. Thayer places exousía under number 4.

1. power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases; leave or permission
2. physical and mental power
3. the power of authority (influence) and of right (privilege)
4. the power of rule or government (the power of him whose will and commands must be submitted to by others and obeyed)

The word exousía (ἐξουσία G1849) is derived from the verb exesti (ἔξεστιν G1832), meaning it is permitted or lawful. All exousía ultimately originates from God (Rom 13:1). However, when exousía is used of power that one person has over someone or something else (definitions 3 & 4 above), such use of the word is not restricted to power/authority that is conferred by God. There is also exousía that is conferred by men (cf. Mt 21:23-25, Act 26:10).

Looking at the broader context of Scripture, there’s not a clear instance of God giving Satan the kind of power/authority that is implied in Acts 26:18. While the serpent was allowed to tempt and deceive Eve, that he was later punished for it suggests that he did not have permission to do so. Not being prevented from doing something does not necessarily mean having the authority to do it.

While Satan was given permission to test and torment Job and despite the extremes that he took to do so, Job did not submit to Satan's will. I would argue that Job was never under Satan’s power in the sense of Acts 26:18. Being permitted to try something is not necessarily the same as being given the power to achieve the outcome one desires. And in John 8:44, Jesus says that his opponents wanted to, not that they had to, do the desires of the devil. Being under the power of something does not necessarily imply unwilling submission.

I conclude that the exousía in Acts 26:18 was not conferred on Satan by God, but by man. Like leaving the door open when an enemy or predator is known to be at large, men put themselves under Satan’s power through their own lack of vigilance (cf. 1 Pet 5:8, Eph 4:7, etc.) and by falling prey to his deceptions and snares (cf. 2 Tim 2:25, 2 Cor 11:33). Men also come under Satan’s authority through an alignment of their mutual propensity and interests (cf. Jn 8:44, 1 Jn 3:8).

The OP asks, “What does the power or authority/exousias of Satan mean in Acts 26:18 seeing that in Mat 28:18 all exousia has been given to Jesus?” Ultimately, what Satan desires is for men to sin. First he tempts and then he accuses (cf. Zech 3:1, Rev 12:10). Satan’s power can thus be conceived of as the power of sin.

If indeed the exousía in Acts 26:18 is power that is conferred by man, there is really nothing to compare. For the power that comes through men cannot hold a candle to that which is bestowed on and through Jesus Christ in Mt 28:18. For an illustration of Christ’s power, a more striking example could hardly be found than that of Paul’s conversion and subsequent ministry.

Answer 4

The answer to this question is actually in the same verse because Jesus' reply to Paul is in quintessential Hebrew parallelism which I set out below:

Acts 26:18 - to open their eyes,

• that they may turn from darkness to light,
• and from the power of Satan to God,

that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those having been sanctified by faith in Me.'

That is, Satan is portrayed as having power over the dominion of darkness -

Col 1:13 - who has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son

Jesus said something similar in the Garden of Gethsemane:

Luke 22:53 - Every day of Me being with you in the temple, you did not stretch out the hands against Me; but this is your hour, and the power of the darkness."

Peter even describes the new covenant is similar terms of bringing people from darkness to light:

1 Peter 2:9 - But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Thus, in Acts 26:18 we have Jesus presenting Satan as the prince of the kingdom of darkness, and, Jesus as the king of the kingdom of light. Ellicott summarizes this well when he comments on Acts 26:18 -

(18) From darkness to light.—The words gain a fresh interest if we think of them as corresponding with the Apostle’s own recovery from blindness. The imagery, though naturally common throughout Scripture, taking its place among the earliest and most widely received of the parables of the spiritual life, was specially characteristic of St. Paul. (Comp. Romans 13:12; 2Corinthians 4:6; Ephesians 5:8-13; Colossians 1:12; 1Thessalonians 5:5.)

What to make of Matt 28:18?

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.

Note that Jesus' "authority" is in heaven and on earth. Satan's authority is over the kingdom of darkness and thus, does not extend to heaven and over those who serve the kingdom of heaven. The whole purpose of Jesus' kingdom of heaven is to encourage people to change allegiance from darkness to light, from serving Satan to serving Jesus.

And that is the point - Jesus' power/authority if much greater than Satan's but Jesus does NOT force people to make such a transfer of citizenship but simply provides the power to do so by breaking people's sinful habits and wanting to be heavenly citizens.

In treating this subject, Paul talks about the "reign" of sin in our lives in Rom 5:12-19, 6:12. In 1 Cor 15:25 we have the best summary of what is going on:

1 Cor 15:24, 25 - Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. For He [Jesus] must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

Thus, it is obvious that while Jesus has "all authority" not all enemies have yet been destroyed such as Satan, the wicked, death (1 Cor 15;26), etc.