232- 2 Corinthians 4:4 and the god of this world
2 Corinthians 4:4 NIV
“…the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
This scripture has two interesting aspects.First, it explicitly refers to Lucifer/Satan as “the god of this world.” Similarly, John 12:31, 14:30, and 16:11 all refer to him as the “ruler (Gr. archon) of this world.”
Second, “world” in 2 Co. 4:4 is a translation of Greek aiōn, meaning a time period or age. (Cf. other translations- NIV, NAB, NET “god of this age.” The NLT, which is more of a paraphrase than a translation, reads “Satan, the god of this evil world…”) Lucifer is thus the god of this period of fallen time, this wicked age.
This coincides well with Joseph Smith’s interpretation of Matthew 24:4, which reads “what is the sign of [Jesus’ second] coming, and of the end of the world, [which is] the destruction of the wicked?” Joseph’s interpretation thus equates the end of the “world”, (aiōn or time period) with the destruction of the wicked. The destruction of the wicked will end that aiōn.
Hugh Nibley discusses Lucifer’s claim of ownership of the world, as well as his (temporarily) usurped control of it in several of his articles.