SPECIAL TOPIC: HEAVENLY COUNCIL OF ANGELIC BEINGS
- There are several places in Scripture where the concept of a council of angelic beings is implied or stated.
We must be careful here
- because of the Hebrew Bible's emphasis on monotheism (see
SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM)
- the rabbis being influenced by Zoroastrianism during the exile under Persia (i.e., dualism, God vs.
Satan). See Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah.
- one is never sure when OT authors are applying ANE mythology to YHWH. See
- G. B. Caird, The Language and Imagery of the Bible, pp. 201-271
- John H. Walton, Ancient Near Easten Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the
Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible, many references, see index.
SPECIAL TOPIC: LEVIATHAN
SPECIAL TOPIC: THE GREAT RED DRAGON
- Here are the allusions to the council of angelic beings.
- "us" passages of
- Genesis 1:26-27; 3:22; 11:7
- Isaiah 6:8
- "the sons of God" (Elohim) come before Him ‒ Job 1:6; 2:1; also note Zech. 3:1-2;
SPECIAL TOPIC: SONS OF GOD
- "the holy ones" ‒ Job 5:1; see
SPECIAL TOPIC: GODLY ONES, HOLY ONES
- "the assembly of the holy ones" ‒ Ps. 89:5,7,19
- Micaiah's vision in 1 Kgs. 22:13-18; 2 Chr. 18:18-22
- "the council of El" ‒ Ps. 82:1
- "the assembly of the holy ones," Ps. 89:5,7,19
- "all the sons of God" (Elohim ‒ Job 38:7)
- Daniel's vision of the heavenly court ‒ Dan. 7:9-10
- These angelic beings are assembled to hear and accomplish YHWH's directives. They are
not initiators but servants. This is similar to the OT's way of describing the Spirit (i.e., Gen. 1:2).
His task is to accomplish YHWH's directives. It is only in the NT that the Spirit is designated
a divine person.
SPECIAL TOPIC: THE PERSONHOOD OF THE SPIRIT
SPECIAL TOPIC: SPIRIT IN THE BIBLE
SPECIAL TOPIC: THE TRINITY
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