The way I usually "visualize" this system is pretty simple: I suppose it is based on my religion's Trinitarian dogma.
Let us assume there are 3 global players, who we will name as:
A is the grand architect of the system, similar to the matrix architect. Symbolically, A is synonymous to "God" for practical purposes. He is responsible for the entire conundrum and all the facilities you and I use throughout our lifetimes. He possesses unsurpassed knowledge about everything scientific and can alter the system at will.
B is A's main companion. He is well aware of A, and in terms of power he is only second to him. He possesses incredible knowledge as well and can also alter the system.
C is human consciousness as you and I know it. Finite, bounded, incapable of "perfection" and dependent on large doses of faith and morality.
The Game
The object of the game for A and B, is to keep C, consciously and continuously "blind", for as long as they can. In other words, C mustn't ever become aware of the presence of A and B. If this happens, A restarts a new game with different rules, AGAIN keeping his and B's presence concealed.
Society has gone through different phases of this game, with occasional interventions by A and B, but which serve not only to "enlighten", but to "confuse" as well. For example, for every "revelation", there can also be found a "numbing down" of the senses or another "revelation" by someone else. For every "prophet", there is another one. For every religion, a different one. For every scientific discovery, a new non-scientific paradox. In other words, for almost everything in existence, both its "proof" and its "disproof" can be found in this schema, creating thus a virtual infinity of contradictions, which serve perfectly the object of the game: To keep C, "blind".
If and whenever C manages to sort through this whole mess, A and B dissolve the old system and design a new one, but after its application, C AGAIN is "blinded". You could say that in effect, A and B always try to keep C out of "their game", by using reality as a cloak.
It takes an unknown amount of time for C to figure this out, because by definition, he is neither perfectly knowledgeable nor is there enough time to learn all the rules, the way they have been set by A.
For all practical purposes, the whole Game can be seen as either a very elaborate conspiracy by A and B to keep C distracted infinitely long. It appears as though it is vital for C to be kept distracted, for as long as possible.
This way, A and B always have an edge over C, because by definition they always know much more than C, regardless whether C realizes who he is.
For practical reasons B can be seen as either "The Devil" or "The Son of God", depending on interpretation. B is often called "The Satan" or "The Adversary" in Kabbalah and in the Bible, respectively.
The moment C "understands" a piece of the scenario, B immediately tries to "blind" C by using further contradictory techniques. For example, your doubt in reading this article's truth, is exactly a way that B can use to distance you from the actual TRUTH. Certain movies are good examples of these attempts: Dark City, The Matrix, The Truman Show, etc.
This way, C has an objective in life and a PURPOSE. The objective of C, therefore, is to either discover the rules of this Game, or be ignorant and live a comfortable life oblivious to the rules of the game. If C's interested in "enlightenment", religious memeplexes help him out, by propagating certain beliefs and dogmas which often lead to C's enlightenment. The reason therefore that such events are recorded in history, is to "remind" C's that choose "enlightenment" as a purpose. For C's that choose ignorance and a comfortable life, such events are useless.
For a C that's interested in "enlightenment", the safest strategy for him therefore is to allow historical "bread crumbs" to be revealed, so he can "wake up" as fast as possible, without needing to amass huge amounts of knowledge, similar to those of A and B. These "bread crumbs" are all the things C is interested in doing during his lifetime.
For a C that's interested in a comfortable ignorant life, the PURPOSE of his Game is to STAY ignorant for as long as possible. Both kinds of purposes are acceptable and give C's life MEANING.
You may ask, why is it that C cannot coexist along with A and B, with ALL three beings aware of who they are simultaneously? Because this would be the very definition of boredom: Three beings sitting together to discuss WHAT? Since they all know ALL, then.
If C figures out B's ploys, thereby revealing B, B is forced to reveal A, thus C in a sense "becomes" aware of A's presence. Therefore C, inevitably reaches "Oneness". Not all C's desire to reach this state.
Why should some C's try to avoid "Oneness" and continue living in blissful ignorance? Because the state of Oneness is boring. There is nothing else to do, since all vanish and all knows all. There, C arrives into the First Mind, which is either "The End" or "a New Start", anyway C desires to define it.
The Adversary therefore will oppose any and all attempts by C's who desire UNDERSTANDING to achieve "enlightenment" or attempts to cause other C's to become "enlightened". The sooner C figures out everything, the sooner B's attempts against C will start manifesting.
When C is interested in understanding, B's efforts are mainly aimed at making C forget his own scenario by using contradictory information and carnal obstacles, thus preventing him from reaching the state of A. So, in a sense, the game is almost equivalent to having only 2 players, either A and B or B and C. When C is "awake", C=A, so we have players A and B. When A is "asleep", A=C, so we have players B and C.
The above schema is a good metaphor for what happened during Jesus' times, symbolically: A (God) became C(Jesus) and let B(The Satan) kill him, in order to disseminate vital information about a possible powerful scenario to other C's. Jesus was able to restrain B for 33 years. At the moment of his death, Jesus returned to the Father, so C=A and the players on Earth again became B and C.
Should C, choose to transform into A seeking understanding or should C seek blissful ignorance? This is a personal choice. C may choose to stay such as he is, forever. This gives B an incredible edge over the scenario of course, but lets C have an otherwise comfortable and pleasant life.
C may choose to seek A, by collecting information throughout C's life. This will draw the attention of B, who will immediately move against C in order to make him forget his objective, which is to become A.
Why is this? Because that's the role of B in The Game. That's why B is called "The Adversary". B is also called "The Opposer". He "opposes" C's efforts to become A (or find out about A).
How can B be stopped from opposing C? By having C abandon any attempts to become A and seek blissful ignorance. But then B again has an edge on The Game.
Either way C looks at it, B (and A) seem to always have an edge over C. This is the nature of THE DIVINE PREDICAMENT. It is both a way to make sure that C passes time in an "interesting" way and a way that gives C some long term PURPOSE in life, depending on how C chooses to view life: He may choose to view life as a "challenge" to become A (or equivalently "enlightened"), or he may choose to view life as a set of passive "interesting"/"challenging" experiences while living in blissful ignorance.
A new parameter enters the game, WHEN and IF C realizes that he's been had, either way. This parameter, is knowing The Divine Predicament. Once C knows this, he effectively "jumps" out of the Game/System and writes about it. When C realizes the Predicament he is in, he immediately realizes the existence of both A and B and thus, the Game ends.
Life continues to make demands on C socially, and B continues to actively oppose C's
efforts. But now C knows. He knows that everything is an illusion, created by A and
shuffled by B, in order to keep him confused. He has now the power to identify himself
as the POSSESSOR of the TRUE KNOWLEDGE and thus transforms from a passive pawn into an
active PLAYER, who's now FREE to do as he pleases.