The Prince of Lies

Right before the Supreme Court decision on equal marriage, a church in Virginia posted a sign reading, "Remember Satan was the first to demand equal rights" and a scripture, Isaiah 14:12-17:

Photo and info from WAVY.com.

Liz Palka at WAVY writes that the pastor

said the message doesn’t target a specific group. He said it’s about evil, referencing Satan trying to be equal with God, and he said he stands up for what scripture says.

Well, let's assume that's correct, and not touch on the obvious equality implications (which might make us assume blacks and women are evil in this pastor's eyes).  What does the passage say?

How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? (KJV)

Yet... that's not exactly what it says.  That is, the word translated "Lucifer" in the KJV was not a proper name - instead, it was the Latin word "lucifer" meaning "light-bringing" or "morning star," AKA the planet Venus (source).

Seeing that, we can and should read the rest of Isaiah 14 for context:

That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased!  (Isaiah 14:4, KJV)

Ohhhh, it's talking about the king of Babylon, not Satan.  That makes much more sense, especially since it says "you shalt be brought down to hell," which we would assume had already happened to Satan if he had challenged God and desired to be equal.

This is the only place in the Bible that has been mistranslated to be about Satan's origins showing him as an angel cast out of Heaven.  The passage even says "I will ascend into heaven," meaning the person in question didn't start out there - impossible if Satan was an angel.

Rather, our belief that Satan was an angel who defied God, got cast out of Heaven, and wound up as prince of Hell, comes from John Milton.  The KJV version of the Bible came out right around the same time as Milton was born, and heavily influenced his work (source).  Paradise Lost is where we get the concept of an army of angels, too, as explained in this summary:

It also includes the story of the origin of Satan. Originally, he was called Lucifer, an angel in heaven who led his followers in a war against God, and was ultimately sent with them to hell. Thirst for revenge led him to cause man's downfall by turning into a serpent and tempting Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. 

Raphael recounts to them how jealousy against the Son of God led a once favored angel to wage war against God in heaven, and how the Son, Messiah, cast him and his followers into hell. (source)

No such thing occurred in the Bible.  Satan is not a fallen angel, is not someone who went up against God and lost.  Sorry, but your entire concept of Satan is wrong.

And a church pastor should know better.