The loyal angels hasten speedily to the Son of God, and acquaint him with what is taking place among the angels. They find the Father in conference with his beloved Son, to determine the means by which, for the best good of the loyal angels, the assumed authority of Satan could be forever put down. The great God could at once have hurled this arch deceiver from Heaven; but this was not his purpose. He would give the rebellious an equal chance to measure strength and might with his own Son and his loyal angels. In this battle every angel would choose his own side, and be manifested to all. It would not have been safe to suffer any who united with Satan in his rebellion to continue to occupy Heaven. They had learned the lesson of genuine rebellion against the unchangeable law of God; and this is incurable. If God had exercised his power to punish this chief rebel, disaffected angels would not have been manifested; hence God took another course; for he would manifest distinctly to all the heavenly host his justice and his judgment. {1SP 21.1}

De gode engle hastede hurtigt til Guds Søn og underrettede ham om det som sker blandt englene. De finder Faderen i samtale med sin elskelige søn, for at afgøre ved hvilke midler den autoritet som Satan havde anmodet sig kunne for evig blive omstyrtet, til bedste for de gode engle. Den almægtige Gud kunne på en gang have udstødt denne ærkebedrager fra himmelen; men dette var ikke hans fortsæt. Han ville give de oprørske engle en passende anledning til at måle styrke og kraft med sin egen søn og de gode engle. I denne kamp kunne enhver engel vælge sin egen side og således åbenbares for alle. Det ville have været farligt at tillade nogen af dem som deltage med Satan i hans oprør at vedblive i at bo i himmelen. De havde lært en lektie af ægte oprør imod Guds uforanderlige lov, som er ulægeligt. Dersom Gud havde bragt sin magt til at straffe denne hovedoprør, så ville de misfornøjede engle ikke være blevet åbenbarede; derfor valgte Gud en anden fremgangsmåde, thi han ville klarlig vise sin retfærdighed og sin dom, for hele den himmelske hær.