Why doesn't God destroy Satan now?

The Bible doesn't give a full explanation, but it does show God's timing is deliberate rather than careless—and it points toward an ending where Satan's defeat is already certain.

In the story of Job, Satan can only act within limits God sets: "he is in your power; only spare his life," God tells him (Job 2:6). Even at his most active, Satan operates on a leash, not a free hand.

Revelation describes Satan's final judgment as already settled, even if not yet carried out: thrown "into the lake of fire and sulfur... tormented day and night forever and ever" (Revelation 20:10). So this isn't a question of whether Satan will be dealt with—Scripture treats that as certain—but why the timing includes this present stretch of history.

One consistent biblical theme is God's patience: he's "not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). That's offered as a reason for delay in judgment generally, though Scripture doesn't spell out every detail of how that connects specifically to Satan.