Who Is the Accuser of the Brethren? A Biblical Response to Attacks on Whistleblowers and Victims of Abuse

In the wake of growing reports of moral failure and spiritual abuse among high-profile Charismatic leaders, a troubling trend has emerged: those calling for accountability are being labeled the “accuser of the brethren.” Charisma House is publishing a book by IHOPKC Board Member, Malachi Obrein, about the accuser spirit. Others who have been caught in sexual sin have been quick to blame people who have been motivated by “the accuser of the brethren.”

This phrase, drawn from Revelation 12:10, is often weaponized to shame and silence concerned believers who are calling for transparency, repentance, and justice. But does this use of Scripture align with its original context and intent? More importantly, who is actually acting like the accuser?

The True Accuser: Satan

Revelation 12:10 declares:

“Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.”

The accuser here is clearly Satan. His goal is not restoration, but condemnation. He accuses the saints before God, seeking their destruction. In contrast, the Holy Spirit convicts believers of sin to bring them into repentance and righteousness (John 16:8). Satan’s accusations are rooted in hatred and deception. God's discipline, however, is born from love (Heb. 12:6).

When Christians expose sin in leadership, particularly when it involves harm to others, they are not acting in the spirit of Satan but in obedience to Scripture. Paul explicitly commands the church:

“As for those [elders] who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear” (1 Tim. 5:20).

Public correction of leaders is not only permitted—it is required when those leaders persist in sin. It not only puts the fear of God in the saints, but it also marks those who could be manipulative predators.

False Equivalence: Accountability Is Not Accusation

To equate biblically grounded calls for justice with satanic accusation is a grave misuse of Scripture. It fails to distinguish between malicious slander and godly reproof. The former seeks to destroy; the latter seeks to protect the flock and honor the Messiah.

Church leaders are held to a higher standard:

“Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness” (James 3:1).

Covering up abuse or dismissing allegations as “attacks of the enemy” or claiming that those bringing allegations are under the influence of “the accuser” undermines the integrity of the Church. Worse, it weaponizes grace to shield the unrepentant while wounding the abused.

Let’s take the case of Mike Bickle. His first accuser was Deborah Perkins. Almost immediately, rumors began to spread about Deborah and what her motives could be. Many people, some friends of mine, were sympathetic to Bickle’s position. Bickle, allegedly, spread a carefully designed narrative regarding Deborah. She even said that some of her own family members were sympathetic to Bickle.

“As Deborah explains, many sought to minimize and silence her, including leaders at the IHOPKC—people Deborah thought were friends. These leaders stonewalled and protected Mike, she says, and tragically, so did some of her own family.”

Just to remind everyone, the investigation uncovered 17 different females who came forward to report abuse at the hands of Mike Bickle. Deborah Perkins was a credible witness whom Bickle sought to shame and destroy her credibility. Ironically, it was during this time that he was being privately accused of sexual sin that he was publicly giving fake prophetic messages about the coming accusations and “the accuser of the brethren.”

To this day, there are many high-profile ministers and leaders, such as Eric Metaxes, who initially defended him and have not retracted that defense.

Who’s Really Acting Like the Accuser?

When those who expose wrongdoing are vilified, shamed, or ostracized—especially for speaking the truth in love—it is not they who act like the accuser of the brethren. Instead, it is those who seek to silence them, protect power, and suppress accountability who mirror the adversary. For instance, initially, Bickle sought to portray advocates as bitter, jealous former colleagues. This was the same with a former dear friend of mine. When I asked him about allegations against him, he told me that they were coming from angry and bitter former employees or students. But the accusations were true in both cases.

To reject accountability is to reject one of the most loving acts the Church can offer to a fallen minister: the opportunity to repent and be restored. However, to attack those people as agents of Satan is classic gaslighting. Gaslighting is when you seek to turn a narrative from reality to spin. The term comes from an old movie, where a husband convinces his wife that what she is seeing with her own eyes is not real, convincing her that she is crazy.

When leaders who face their moral failures by calling the whistleblower or victims “accuser of the brethren,” they are gaslighting. And often their powerful friends in leadership will help them evade accountability through their silence.

As Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned, "Silence in the face of evil is itself evil."¹

What is and isn’t the accuser?

We would be remiss if we didn’t clearly distinguish between biblical confrontation and the actions of the accuser of the brethren. One of the most telling differences lies in the matter of motives. The accuser often attacks what cannot be seen—the intentions of the heart.

Just this morning, someone posted publicly on Twitter, accusing me of being a horrible person who exploits others’ tragedies to grow his influence. Why does this reflect the spirit of the accuser? Because the person making the accusation doesn’t know me. They’re judging the motives of my heart—something only God can rightly do. Now, could they be right? I hope not. But that’s beside the point. If that same individual had a relationship with me and came to me personally, saying, “Ron, I’m concerned. Have you searched your heart in this area?”—that would be biblical confrontation. Or if they felt a prophetic burden to correct me, and did so in love, that too could be legitimate. But launching accusations at someone's unseen motives, without relationship, context, or compassion, is the work of the accuser.

Another tactic of the accuser is this: he lures you into sin, and once you fall, he rushes in to condemn you. About a year ago, I was unkind to a flight attendant. I usually go out of my way to honor those in the service industry, but in a moment of weakness, I spoke sharply. I immediately apologized—several times, in fact. But for days afterward, I heard that accusing voice: “Look at you. You’re a terrible person. That’s who you really are.” The accuser doesn’t care that you’ve repented. He ignores your track record. His goal is to bury you in shame.

That voice can come in many forms—your own thoughts, demonic influence (as we’ll see in the case of Job), or even through other people, sometimes those closest to you. The goal is always the same: condemnation without hope, accusation without redemption. The accuser seeks to attack the very essence of your character and being, without hope for repentance or restoration.

Biblical Examples

Some accurate examples of biblical confrontation would be:

Nathan Before David

Nathan rebukes King David for adultery and murder with a parable, aiming for repentance. David responds with humility and confession (Psalm 51). 

Paul Confronting Peter (Galatians 2:11–14) 

Paul publicly rebukes Peter for hypocrisy when he withdrew from Gentile believers. The confrontation was clear, courageous, and aimed at correcting theological inconsistency.

Jesus Confronting the Pharisees (Matthew 23) 

Jesus exposes the spiritual pride and injustice of religious leaders—not out of malice, but to call for genuine repentance and protect the vulnerable. Regarding Church discipline (Matthew 18:15–17), Jesus outlines a process for addressing sin: private confrontation, then small group correction, and finally, church-wide involvement if needed. This process is slow, relational, and restorative.

Here are a few examples where we would see the accuser of the brethren at work:

Satan Accusing Job (Job 1–2) 

Satan suggests Job is only righteous because he is blessed. This accusation is unfounded and aims to harm.

David and His Brother

Just before David killed Goliath, his brother accused him saying, “I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.” (1 Sam. 17:28). David was seeking to do something righteous and his brother interpreted it as evil. David had to recover quickly from that accusing spirit in order to do what God had called him to do—killed the giant.

The devil accusing Joshua the high priest (Zechariah 3:1–2) 

Satan stands to accuse Joshua, but the Lord rebukes him. The priest is clothed with filthy garments—symbolic of sin—but God provides cleansing, not condemnation.

Religious leaders accusing Jesus (Luke 23:1–2)

They bring false accusations to Pilate to have Jesus crucified. Their intent is political and malicious, not truth-seeking.

Let’s go back to the woman caught in adultery. She had to face two groups of people: Yeshua and the religious leaders: The religious leaders were quick to remind Yeshua that she deserved to be stoned to death.

• Jesus offered redemption and told her to go and sin no more.

• Both identified her sin, but one offered death and the other redemption.

But what we are seeing today is likely the treatment that the man caught in adultery received. What man? That’s my point. As I shared the other day, the religious leaders certainly did not catch her having adultery by herself. Yet the man is covered and protected. And that is what we are seeing often when people are crying, “accuser of the brethren.” It is an attempt to shield the powerful from accountability.

Conclusion

We can see that the accuser of the brethren has nothing to do with confronting legitimate sexual sin amongst leaders. It is a voice that condemns without hope. It suggests that one acting with pure motives is evil, as seen in David's encounter with Goliath. However, what is truly evil is when leaders lie to conceal their disqualifying sins. What is wicked is when leaders cover for each other at the expense of silencing victims or ruining the reputations of whistleblowers. What is vile is when a group of elders, such as at Gateway Church, are aware that the goose who lays the golden egg—the senior pastor bringing in all the money—raped² a 12-year-old girl. And when we are silent about these issues or discourage open discussion by labeling it as gossip, we are aiding and abetting the accuser.

The Church must reject the misuse of Revelation 12:10 to shut down biblical correction. To confront sexual sin is not to accuse in the spirit of Satan, but to love in the truth of Messiah. Let us remember that exposing evil is a work of the light, not of darkness:

“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them”(Eph. 5:11).

However, hiding and covering sin and attacking those who expose it is the work of the evil one—aka, the Accuser of the Brethren. 

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[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers from Prison, ed. Eberhard Bethge (New York: Macmillan, 1972), 281.  [2] Under U.S. law, digital penetration (using a finger or object) of a 12-year-old by an adult is legally treated as rape or a similarly severe sexual offense, even if statutes might use different terminology.