“The NT is full of accounts of
the reality of the kingdom of darkness. Our rationalistic age makes it difficult for us to see with the same eyes as the biblical writers, yet these same age-old forces are still very much at work (on which see, e.g., Eph. 6:10-17). Does part of their deception convey the notion that they do not exist? Do we really understand how to fight this activity of such forces? Do we sometimes fight only attitudes or actions they produce, rather than confronting the underlying reality? Our battle is not only against the world’s influence and the influence of our own indwelling sin and the detrimental influence of our old nature on us, but our “struggle is … against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).”
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NT observations by: Beale, G. K.; Campbell, David.
Revelation: A Shorter Commentary (pp. 351-352). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.. Kindle Edition (bold emphasis added).
