Who is the ‘God of this World’ in II Corinthians 4:4?

Most of us would agree that God and Satan are about as different as you can get. That they are such polar opposites that it would be virtually impossible to confuse one with the other. That it would be tantamount to heresy to try to compare the two. 

And yet, there’s a mystery to the identity of the figure called the “God of this World” in II Corinthians chapter 4. 

Verse 4 of that chapter says

In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 

So, the conventional wisdom or assumption that most Christians make is that the “god of this world” must be Satan. The reason being, this figure is said right here to be blinding the minds of unbelievers to prevent them from hearing the Gospel. Sounds like a not-good thing to do, right?

However- that raises the question: if unbelievers have had their minds blinded by Satan, then how is it their fault that the don’t obey the Gospel? How can God hold it against them that they don’t believe if it’s not their fault?

And is it really true that Satan would have the power to blind people to God’s truth?

But then if it’s not Satan, if it’s actually God, then that raises another question: why would God blind people to the truth about Himself? 

It’s not clear-cut any way you look at it. And it’s strange that this one mysterious figure could potentially either be God or Satan. 

That kind of mistake isn’t like mixing up the ranch dressing with the caesar dressing. This is like mixing up the ranch dressing with boiling hot lava that melts your face off. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure out…yet it kinda is.

I find this to be weird, and I’d like to explore why it’s in the Bible. 

Turn to II Corinthians 4, and let’s get weird.

0:00 - Introduction

2:30 - The Context

5:15 - Is it Satan?

10:40 - is it God?

16:45 - Hardenings and Delusions

20:20 - The Abandonment Wrath of God

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Hosted by Luke Taylor