VI
THE DEVIL A “BLOCKADE”
“Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.”—1 Thessalonians ii. 18.
“But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days; but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me.”—Daniel x. 13.
We find another striking interpretation couched in the title of devil. The Church in its organization is called militant, because it is engaged in a moral and religious warfare. The writings of Paul bristle with military terms, as two mighty armies are contending and contesting for dominion. Each army is fighting under a leader; the surging campaign has changed its base of operation—the battle-field has been transferred from heaven to this planet. The rivalry between Christ and Satan has, many times, changed modus operandi, but the spirit of the contest and the end—all for which they contend—change not.
The title-word of this chapter is not a Bible term; we appropriate and accommodate it because of its military meaning. Strictly in keeping with the use of terms, the “blockade” belongs to naval operations; but any movement, reconnoitre, or countermarch, which interferes, hinders, or hedges up the way of progress, is a blockade. A campaign ends in failure because of obstructions thrown up, access to base of supplies cut off, reinforcements thwarted in reaching the scene of activities, etc., convey the idea set forth in the key Scriptures used giving emphasis to the chapter heading.
The Apostle Paul had all the advantages of equipment; his intellectual attainments the very best; he was a recognized leader of men, a chosen vessel of the Lord, and full of the Holy Ghost. No man besides the Master was more able to withstand the opposition of the “prince of darkness.” Yet Satan actually prevents him from going to Thessalonica to comfort and strengthen the struggling church at that place—literally hedges up the way.
A careful examination of the tenth chapter of Daniel gives us a conversation between the prophet and a “voice,”—a “vision”—having an appearance “like the similitude of the sons of men”; evidently an angel of high rank, whose mission was to encourage Daniel, but he also acknowledges that the “prince of Persia” hindered him from coming twenty days. This mighty angel, it seems, was helpless trying to reach Daniel, until Michael came upon the scene. It was Michael who led the triumphant battle against him when he was overthrown in heaven. He alone was able to meet the “prince of Persia,” the Devil.