God’s Divine Council {Meg’s Notes}
Meg’s notes on our Divine Council episode
Regardless of whether you grew up in the Church or not, it is likely you know about the Trinity – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. A foundational belief in Christian faith.
Even if you did grow up in the Church, I would venture to say that it is unlikely you were taught about God’s Divine Council. Rather, the Trinity may have been used to explain certain passages from scripture such as Genesis 1:26, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” (emphasis mine).
Applying the Trinity to explain scripture that includes a group of heavenly beings becomes challenging, however, when considering certain key passages.
Consider the book of Job. The majority of scholars believe the book to be the oldest written record included in the canon, dating it approximately 1500 BC. While it still is unclear who wrote the book of Job, the author’s explanation of the Divine Council is crystal clear:
“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.” (Job 1:6, emphasis mine)
In episode one, we discuss this phrase “sons of God” as it is used in Genesis 6, to describe the rebellion of the Watchers. Elohim is plural for “eloha” or “el” meaning “God” or “god” and it is used here as well in chapters 1-2 of Job to describe a council of heavenly beings. If you have read further in Job, you will see how Satan is given permission by God to put Job to the test. God Almighty, Yahweh, is the head of his Divine Council of heavenly beings.
Later, when Yahweh finally answers Job, He references His Council of elohim:
“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements - surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4-7, emphasis mine)
Yet another example illustrating the Divine Council, this time offering an image of Yahweh’s throne room, is in Daniel’s vision:
“As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.” (Daniel 7:9-10)
We have not just one throne, but thrones. The “Ancient of Days” here is Aramaic (the book of Daniel was written in both Hebrew and Aramaic) and means “aged” and is part of one of the names of Yahweh, meaning “Aged/Ancient of Days/Time.” We also have a court or very large group awaiting judgment.
There are several other passages from scripture that illustrate Yahweh’s throne room, if you want to look some of them up you can turn to Isaiah 6:1-5, Ezekiel 1:26, Revelation 22:1, Psalm 11:4, and Revelation 5:1 to name just a few. You can also look up Revelation 4:2-10 for a beautiful description with specific details, including the number of thrones in Yahweh’s throne room.
Psalm 82 is scripture that I reference often when I talk about Yahweh’s Divine Council, and for good reason:
“A Psalm of Asaph. God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: ‘How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah. Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.’ They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. I said, ‘You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.’ Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!” (Psalm 82:1-8)
Let’s take a moment and unpack this powerhouse of a Psalm by taking a look at the Hebrew meanings to help us get an even bigger picture:
“Taken his place” is natsab meaning “take one’s stand”
“Divine Council” here is edah which means “congregation, assembly” and is derived from the Hebrew word ya’ad which means “to appoint”
“In the midst” here is qereb meaning “inward part”
“The gods” here is elohim
The word Selah which is often seen as a kind of pause in many Psalms means “to lift up, exalt” and is derived from the Hebrew word selal meaning “to lift up, cast up”
“Most High” is a name of Yahweh (like we saw earlier with “Ancient of Days”) and in Hebrew is Elyon, derived from alah meaning “to go up, ascend, climb”
The word for “men” in “like men you shall die” is adam, which if you didn’t know, now you know, means “mankind”
“Fall” is naphal meaning “to fall, to lie” (interesting use of this word in the description of Cain in Genesis 4:5-6)
“Prince” is sar (or sarim when plural; some translations give us “fall like princes” instead of “fall like any prince” - either way there is a reference to and understanding of more than one “prince”)
I want to point out the Greek word used for “prince” or “princes” in verse 7: archo/archon (singular) or archonton (plural) which means “ruler” or “rulers” respectively; it can also mean “to rule.” I point this out because writers of the New Testament, like Paul, Peter, and John, were writing in Greek and many scholars believe these writers also used a Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint. The use of archonton is significant here, and demonstrates how Bible writers were quite aware of God’s Divine Council, and the rulers of territories (in another episode, and in another article, we’ll discuss the Division of the Nations, illustrating this further).
“God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: ‘How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah. Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.’ They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. I said, ‘You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.’ Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!” (Psalm 82:1-8)
Consider Ephesians 6:12, when Paul is explaining to the people of Ephesus that turning away from sin is not simply a fleshly fight, it’s very much spiritual warfare with the rulers of territories, and so we must equip ourselves for this battle (every day!) with the Whole Armor of God:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12, ESV, emphasis mine)
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual [forces] of wickedness in the heavenly [places].” (Ephesians 6:12, NASB, emphasis mine)
I provide two translations here (there are many, depending on which translation of the Bible you are using; later we will do an episode on translations and history of the Bible and I can provide further explanation) because we can see “rulers” and “powers” in the NASB correspond to “cosmic powers” in the ESV - indicating a territorial reign by a spiritual being. The Greek word used here for “rulers” is archas or arche meaning “origin, beginning” also meaning “beginning, corners, domain, first, first preaching, principalities, rule, rulers” (see NAS Exhaustive Concordance) and is derived from archo which we know from Psalm 82:7 means “to rule; ruler.”
Yahweh’s Divine Council is not a new concept, at least it wasn’t to people in the days of the Bible. People then understood what it meant to communicate on spiritual warfare - of course being witness to miracles and literal acts of God helped this understanding. The Greek word “archas” used for “rulers” indicates an original - from the beginning - structure of law and order.
Interesting related note: the Greek word used in Ephesians 6:12 for “darkness” (the “world forces of this darkness” in NASB and “cosmic powers over this present darkness” in ESV) is skotos. Contextually, remember, this “darkness” is in reference to the governing body (the “rulers, powers, world forces” and “cosmic powers”) making decisions over a territory. The word skotos is interesting if we consider SCOTUS: The Supreme Court of the United States. I plan to write something about acronyms at a later date because there are SO MANY “convenient” ones that have deeper meaning (if you’re curious, look up the gaulic/celtic god Cernunnos and Hindu god Shiva then consider CERN; also the Hebrew word nasa is especially interesting when we think about space exploration).
Let’s return a moment to Daniel 7. We know from verses 9-10 that Daniel sees thrones and the fiery wheeled throne of God (“Ancient of Days;” also consider Ezekiel 1:26-27). In the next several verses we also have a cloud rider who receives dominion and authority:
“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:13-14)
There are many intentional references in scripture to the cloud rider. As Dr. Michael Heiser pointed out in his book “The Unseen Realm” biblical writers included this imagery to “make the point that Yahweh, the God of Israel, deserved worship instead of Baal” (see Deuteronomy 33:26, Psalm 68:32-33, Psalm 104:1-4, Isaiah 19:1). Dr. Heiser continues to explain that “the literary tactic made a theological statement. The effect was to ‘displace’ or snub Baal and hold up Yahweh as the deity who legitimately rode through the heavens surveying and governing the world.” A similar tactic is employed by John when sharing the revelation of Jesus in Revelation 1:8, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega’ says the Lord God ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’” Pagan gods, like Zeus (Greek) and Jupiter (Roman) and Baal (Canaanite) - all the same god just different names in different cultures - were often quoted as saying just this. John was relaying the truth that only God Almighty is the beginning (Alpha) and the end (Omega).
Yahweh’s Divine Council is not a new concept, at least it wasn’t to people in the days of the Bible. People then understood what it meant to communicate on spiritual warfare.
The phrase “son of man” is used often in the Old Testament (e.g. Ezekiel uses it a lot). As Dr. Heiser points out, the phrase means “human one” and so in Daniel 7 the one “like the son of man” was someone appearing to be human. Dr. Heiser also reminds us of chapter 17 in the book of Luke, where we can connect Jesus Christ (the anointed) with the phrase “son of man:”
“For just as the lightning shines forth, flashing from one place under heaven to another place under heaven, so the Son of Man will be in his day. But first it is necessary for him to suffer many things, and to be rejected by this generation.” (Luke 17:24-25)
Dr. Heiser astutely points us to Matthew 26, where we can understand Jesus quoting Daniel 7 as a means of illustrating His role in the Divine Council (and confirming to Jewish leaders that He is the Messiah):
“This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it within three days.’ And the high priest stood up and said to him, ‘Do you reply nothing? What are these people testifying against you?’ But Jesus was silent. And the high priest said to him, ‘I put you under oath by the living God, that you tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘You have said it. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.’ Then the high priest tore his robes, saying, ‘He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have just now heard the blasphemy! What do you think?’ And they answered and said, ‘He deserves death!’” (Matthew 26:61-66)
As Dr. Heiser explains for us, “Jesus’ answer provides the high priest with the accusation he needs for a death sentence, but also gives us a clear testimony of Jesus as the final son of David, Yahweh incarnate, through whom Yahweh will reclaim the nations disinherited at Babel.” (As I mentioned earlier, we will do an episode, and I will have notes to share, on the Division of Nations at Babel).
As believers, we can find comfort and peace knowing that our seat is saved at the family table in the Kingdom of God. We will become the Divine Council, not because we earned it, but because of God’s grace, mercy, and because of the blood of Jesus Christ that paid our debt of sin.
To consider how we, as believers, will become part of Yahweh’s Divine Council, let’s again lean on Dr. Michael Heiser’s scholarship, and his explanation of the Hebrew word qedoshim:
“The phrase “holy ones” is a translation of Hebrew qedoshim (or qedoshin in the case of the Aramaic in Daniel 7). The term can refer to the members of the divine council in heaven (e.g. Psalm 89:5-7). However the term can also refer to people. Several times in Leviticus the people are referred to collectively as qedoshim. This again is not unexpected, since the imagery of the priesthood, tabernacle, and temple creates an analogy to the sacred space of God’s throne room and those who have access to Yahweh in heaven - his divine family, the divine council.”
Qedoshim means “holy ones” but is in fact a kind of plural adjective. In the English language adjectives do not “agree” with nouns based on gender or number like in other languages (e.g. “beautiful women” in French is “belles femmes” and the singular “beautiful woman” would be “belle femme”). However, in English there are adjectives that are kind of plural because the word itself is plural. This is like saying “fourteen people” and “fourteen” is the adjective that describes the noun “people” (also plural, so it seems like there’s an agreement rule; confusing, I know! Imagine learning English as a second language!). You would not say, however, “I see some oranges hats over there,” rather you say “I see orange hats over there;” the adjective here remains singular. In French, you would in fact make “orange” plural to “agree” with the noun “hats”: chapeaux oranges. With the example of qedoshim we have a plural representation of the adjective “holy” which is qedosh or qadosh and this derives from the Hebrew root word qodesh meaning “apartness, sacredness.” The verb that is derived from this root is qadash which means “to be set apart, consecrated” and is used often in Exodus when discussing dvine law.
As believers, we can find comfort and peace knowing that our seat is saved at the family table in the Kingdom of God. We will become the Divine Council, not because we earned it, but because of God’s grace, mercy, and because of the blood of Jesus Christ that paid our debt of sin.
In Paul’s letters, he encourages this truth - that as believers, we become the new Divine Council:
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:4-10)
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba, Father!’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs - heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Romans 8:12-17)
By now you have probably realized that I like to unpack scripture and examine the original language to help deepen my understanding. Let’s take a moment and do that here for that passage from Romans:
“Debtors” in Greek is opheiletés meaning someone in obligation to pay back; the NASB (a formal equivalent translation, or word-for-word approach in translating) provides the following for verse 12: “So then, brethren, we are under obligation…”
“Sons” is huios meaning “son, descendant”
“God, or god” is theos (like in Hebrew, elohim/eloha/el)
“Adoption” here is a beautiful representation of God’s Divine Family (and a word used in other places in Paul’s letters): huiothesia meaning “adoption” within the context of “adoption as son into the Divine Family.” You will notice the combination of the word huios meaning “son, descendant” and theos meaning “God, or god.” The noun is also a feminine (many languages, like Greek, have male and female nouns that require adjective agreements), which is beautiful if we consider our relationship to Christ: the marriage of Christ and His Church; being reborn in our faith to Him
“Abba” in Greek is in fact “Abba” and would understand this word being Aramaic in origin, and also meaning “father.” It derives also from ab which means “father.” Jesus used this proper noun when addressing His father as recorded in the Gospels (e.g. Mark 14)
“Testify” is martureo which is “to bear witness, testify” and is derived from the root martus meaning “witness.” You can see where we get the word martyr from.
“Children” is teknon meaning “child, descendant, inhabitant” and is derived from tikto which means “to bring forth, to beget, to give birth, labor.”
“Heirs” is kleronomoi also keleronomos meaning “an heir, inheritor” and is derived from both kleros meaning “allotted your charge, lot, inheritance, portion, share” and nomos meaning “that which is assigned, hence use, law, principle.”
“Christ” is Christos which means “The Anointed One, Messiah, Christ” and the root is chrio meaning “to anoint.”
It is worth pointing out the Greek word for “holy” which is hagios has a same application for “holy ones” as we saw with qedoshim. The English translation of hagio is “saints.”
Let’s briefly return to Ephesians 2, and consider the preceding verses to the aforementioned passage:
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” (Ephesians 2:1-3)
There’s the Greek word archon again for “prince” that we saw in Psalm 82. This time we have a specific territory and assignment: “prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience” (verse 2). Zeus was worshiped as a creator god (Greek) whose dwelling was in the sky; his attribute being the lightning bolt. Let’s unpack a couple of these verses further:
“Dead” is nekros; recall verses in the Old Testament that describe how necromancy is prohibited
“Trespasses” is paraptoma and it means “a falling away, a false step, lapse, slip, trespass, sin” and derives from root parapipto which means “to fall in, into or away, to fail.” Application of the root is usually to describe “a falling away, a falling back (into unbelieving and godless ways)”
“Sin” is hamartia meaning “sin, failure” and is from the root hamartano meaning “to miss the mark, do wrong, sin.” In Hebrew “to sin” is chata meaning also “to miss, go wrong, sin” (the noun for “sin” is chet and is from the verb root chata)
“Walk” here is peripateo and does in fact mean “to walk” but in the sense of how one conducts one’s life; from the roots peri meaning “about, concerning” and pateo meaning “to tread, tread on.” I had to look up the use of the Hebrew word halak which also means “to go, come, walk” in the broader sense of how someone lives his or her life; for example in Genesis 5:24 halak describes Enoch as one who “walked with God.” I was thinking maybe the Greek here would be peripateo but it is in-fact euaresteo which means “to be well-pleasing” (and this explains the Septuagint English translation for Genesis 5:24 which indicates Enoch as being “well-pleasing” to God).
“Following” is “according to” here, the Greek word used is kata
“The course” is aion and means “a space of time, an age” and contextually: “an age, a cycle (of time), especially of the present age as contrasted with the future age, and of one of a series of ages stretching to infinity.”
“World” is kosmos and it means “the world; order” or an “ordered system”
“Prince” is archon, mentioned previously and indicates a ruler of a territory and/or (divine) assignment
“Power” here is exousia and means “power to act, authority” and contextually can mean “power, authority, weight, especially: moral authority, influence”
“Air” is aer meaning “air” and is from aemi meaning “breathe, blow”
“Spirit” is pneuma meaning “wind, spirit” and is from pneo meaning “to blow”
“At work” is energeo meaning “to be at work, work, to do” and is from energes meaning “at work, active” indicating “effective”
“son(s)” here is huios like we saw in Romans 8
“Disobedience” is apeitheia meaning “disobedience, willful unbelief, obstinacy” and is from apeithes meaning “disobedient, unbelieving, one who will not be persuaded”
I don’t know about you, but I am getting a picture of spiritual warfare, assignment as it relates to heavenly beings - elohim (sons of God; gods) and sarim (princes; elohim with territorial assignments) - who exercise their authority in not so nice ways. But it’s through the grace of God that we are saved from the deceptive works of the enemy (Ephesians 2:5) and raised up with Christ to sit with Him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6).
Our next podcast episode and my next article will look into these kinds of assignments - a division of nations. Foundational scripture for this is found in Deuteronomy 32 and in Genesis 11.