Ephesians 6:12

For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual host of wickedness in the heavenly places.

In this verse, Paul described the spiritual enemy. He had already mentioned the "devil"; but Satan has many allies, "the spiritual hosts of wickedness." It is an unpardonable error to suppose that Paul here had any reference to the mythological gods of the Greeks and Romans, or to any of the complicated theories of vain speculators regarding the unseen creation. Of them, Paul affirmed nothing. It is a fact beyond denial that the ancient pagan world was organized along patterns of evil, and the whole pagan complex of antiquity was fitted together, dovetailed and interwoven in Such a manner as to forbid the notion that such a sprawling, powerful, effective and arrogant pagan society was merely accidental. Satan had organized it. Furthermore, evil is still organized; and organization presupposes an organizer.

Principalities ... There are various dominions of evil, that is, certain classifications of it. Paul's use of some of these words here appears to be figurative; nevertheless, there were and are genuine realities behind them.

World-rulers of this darkness ... Barry interpreted this as a "poetic expression of the idea conveyed by the expression `prince of this world,' applied by Jesus himself to Satan (John 12:31; John 14:30; John 16:11)."[20] The power of Satan is limited to them who yield themselves to do evil; and in no sense does Satan share ultimate authority with God. This whole passage, including the discussion of the armor, is figurative, setting forth the Christian's struggle against evil as a warfare; and this passage is a description of the foe.

In heavenly places ... This expression, as Paul used it, sometimes means "in the very presence of God," but in others it is limited to what might be called, loosely, the Christian religion; and it is so limited here. Satan is not conducting any war in heaven against God! However, religion, in the broad sense, provides a very extensive and convenient field of satanic operations, the great apostasy itself having been produced in the church herself.