“And having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:15).
Although they are invisible to us, there does exist a great host of evil spirits, organized by the arch-rebel, Satan, into a vast conspiracy against their Creator. The angelic creation had originally been organized by God into a hierarchical structure—“principalities and powers”—for the purpose of most efficiently serving God. Those who now serve Satan apparently still retain their primeval ranking and have become a hierarchy of evil, so that “we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12).
No matter how powerful these dark princes may be, however, our resurrected Savior is mightier than they—“far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come” (Ephesians 1:21). As a matter of fact, it was “by Him” that all things were created in heaven and earth, “visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: All things were created by Him, and for Him” (Colossians 1:16).
Eventually, He will “put down all rule [same word as ‘principality’] and all authority and power” (I Corinthians 15:24). This mighty triumph is all because the Lord Jesus “spoiled principalities and powers,” that “through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14).
Because of Calvary, we can be persuaded “that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers . . . nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38,39). HMM
