In several biblical descriptions is the setting of a royal court. There are explicit references to gods and a divine council in second temple period jewish literature. Michael heiser the divine council of the elohim and the. Divine council a term used by hebrew bible scholars for the heavenly host, the assembly of divine beings who administer the affairs of the cosmos under yahweh, the god of israel. Michael heiser, an expert in the ancient near east and author of the bestseller the unseen realm, explores the most unusual, interesting, and least understood parts of the bible and offers insights that will inspire, inform, and surprise you on every page. Heiser shows how important it is to understand this world and appreciate how its contribution helps to make sense of scripture.
Fundamental to heisers work is recognizing the real existence of other elohim other gods whilst maintaining the uniqueness and supremacy of yahweh. Recently, i read michael heiser s book the unseen realm. The religious crisis of israels early sixth century b. Part 2 examines concepts such as the divine council, the role of eden, and the image of god. Nov 17, 2015 now michael heiser has put out another book on the same theme, but with a more popular level audience in mind. No, im not a mormon as my academic mormon friends will tell you. Spirits, heavenly powers, angels, princes, gods, the host of heaven, prince of the host, and elements are all terms. Michael heiser examines the ancient context of scripture, explaining how its supernatural worldview can help us grow in our understanding of god. Heiser is an american biblical old testament scholar and christian author who has criticized ancient alien astronaut theorists. Michael heiser the divine council of the elohim and. Analysis of the hebrew text demonstrates that several of the most common phrases in the hebrew bible allegedly used for denying the existence of other gods e. The topic of his dissertation was, the divine council in late canonical and noncanonical second temple jewish literature, a topic of importance to the book.
I remember listening intently to his lectures on the divine council and reading with amazement his articles on the angel of yahweh or the word of yahweh in the old testament. The book of job does not identify the satan in this. Bashan is an important part of the foe from the north motif in the ot. Michael heiser s the unseen realm seeks to unmask this world. A divine council is an assembly of deities over which a higherlevel god presides. In a pdf on his divine council heiser writes, there are other references to the corrupt gods of the nations and not idols outside immediate divine council contexts. Ive just become aware that michael heiser has finally responded to an old piece of mine, in which i critique his reading of deuteronomy 32 and psalm 82. The specific goal of heisers book is to explain the notion of the divine council. He illuminates intriguing and amazing passages of the bible that have been hiding in plain sight. Heiser, divine council, the lexham bible dictionary, john d.
Sometimes i do a soliloquy or write out my thought process when there is subject matter or information that i need to digest, especially if i find. Ive converted it to pdf from my digital edition of book theres no prohibition that i can see in it patrick d. Heiser talks about this in this lecture as well btw. Heiser breathes new life into a biblical concept commonly misunderstood and misapplied in the evangelical world. They affirm that other gods were part of the worldview of israel in the hebrew bible. Heiser, phd to this point weve learned that even before the very beginning of creation god was not alone. Mar 23, 2009 here i reproduce a portion of heisers introduction to the divine council.
A few years ago a mormon friend of mine who teaches at byu asked if i would publish a paper of mine in their journal. The heavenly divine council here a little, there a little. Apr 28, 2017 all material in this video belongs to its respective owner. My lay analysis of michael heiser s divine council theory discussion in controversial christian theology started by ecclectic79, apr 28, 20.
To be completely honest, i preferred the unseen realm over supernatural, but that is probably because i prefer more detail and scholarly research rather than less. This is the idea that when the bible speaks of gods divine council psalm 82, the host of heaven 1 kings 22, the plural uses of elohim in genesis, references to the gods of other nations, etc, these are all references to actual. Apr 04, 2012 introduction to the divine council michael s. Michael heiser s the unseen realm has been a long time coming. Aug 23, 2016 part 2 examines concepts such as the divine council, the role of eden, and the image of god. This post links to an article i had published in a mormon journal explaining why i think the mormon understanding of psalm 82 is wrong really how refreshingly openminded. In his response, heiser has tried to display that my critique is full of bad logic and straw men, but he has only succeeded in displaying that trouble with logic and fair representation of an interlocutor are problems he. In his response, heiser has tried to display that my critique is full of bad logic and straw men, but he has only succeeded in displaying that trouble with logic and fair representation of an interlocutor are problems he himself struggles with. Heiser is a conservativeleaning scholar who is especially critical of the works of zecheria sitchin. The first list below contains passages where the word elohim or haelohim is in the. Heiser is certainly willing to debate zecharia sitchin or anyone else who promotes. This section comments on the nature of monotheistic statements in the bible.
The people of israel were to avoid the gods of other nations and any practice that. Sometimes these divine beings report their activities to god. Israel as a divine council, part 4 the divine sanhedrin when the holy one, the eternal creator of those worshiped as gods by the nations, entered into covenant with abraham, isaac, and jacob, and ratified that covenant with their multitude of sons at sinai, it must have shaken the powers of heaven cf. As this study will establish, a heavenly council of spirit beings has exercised rule over our world for millennia. This writer received an acrobat pdf file directly from the author. Heisers commitment to illuminating and expounding on the truth of the word of god.
Really the main points of the myth that is true is the divine council and how one day believers will be a part of the divine council. So is the essence of the biblical data for this book. Ive been following his articles and blog posts on this subject for quite a few years and have developed quite a few thoughts on the role of israel based on his thesis. Heiser a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of doctor of philosophy hebrew and semitic studies at the university of wisconsinmadison 2004. The divine assembly or divine council soon became a focus of biblical scholars, beginning in 1939 with j. Here we see mention of the host of heaven tzeva hashamayim which stands before the ancient of days. All writing and teaching regarding the bible should be well researched and thought out. Biblical scholarship has reached a consensus with respect to the presence of a divine assembly of gods in israels faith. Heiser, phd excerpted from mikes book in progress chapter 3. His dissertation was entitled, the divine council in late canonical and noncanonical second temple jewish literature english translation. F or nearly the past two millennia, there has been a general misunderstanding of the way god governs the earth. Those divine council sons of god watchers,holy ones that became corrupt lost their seats and will be replaced by the human sons of god born from the resurrection of a new life that was made possible by jesus.
The divine council in late canonical and noncanonical second temple jewish literature by michael s. Michael heisers the unseen realm seeks to unmask this world. I first discovered his work when i was doing research for my th. The paper was a critique of mormonisms use of psalm 82, a key divine council passage. The concept of a divine assembly or council is attested in the archaic sumerian, akkadian, old babylonian. Dec 15, 2015 published on jan 22, 2014 michael heiser ph. The old testament response to ancient near eastern pagan. Youll find yourself engaged in an enthusiastic pursuit of the truth, resulting in a new. In many ways, heiser was the one who introduced me to study of the old testament in the first place. This page details the biblical teaching about the divine council that currently rules over the earth. He illumines the meaning of strange things in the scriptures that christians shy away from. The bible is mysterious, surprisingand often deeply misunderstood.
Nov, 2015 the topic of his dissertation was, the divine council in late canonical and noncanonical second temple jewish literature, a topic of importance to the book. The divine council of israelite religion, known primarily through the psalms, was distinct in important ways. Morgensterns lengthy article on psalm 82, likely the clearest biblical attestation to an israelite divine assembly. The divine council is the jewish theological idea that yahweh holds court in heaven and consults other divine beings best understood as spirits and angels. In the qumran sectarian material alone, there are approximately 185 occurrences of yhil oa, yhil oa h. The old testament refers to gods divine council and calls them elohim which is a familiar hebrew term translated either as god or gods. In a pdf on his divine council heiser writes, there are other references to the corrupt gods of the nationsand not idolsoutside immediate divine council contexts. The divine council in late canonical and noncanonical. Jan 08, 2015 the divine council of israelite religion, known primarily through the psalms, was distinct in important ways. The jewish trinity by michael heiser logos mobile ed my. The meaning of this term depends on the hebrew root from which it derives. The term divine council is used by hebrew and semitics scholars to refer to the heavenly host, the pantheon of divine beings who administer the affairs of the cosmos.
Here i reproduce a portion of heisers introduction to the divine council. Heiser, divine council, in dictionary of the old testament. The unseen realm by michael heiser my digital seminary. Ill simply be evaluating what i can sense of the internal logic of what the existence of a divine council of elohim as mike lays out a case for would mean as he interprets it in reference to the events of the tower of babel and the turf war that ensued thereafter.
Now michael heiser has put out another book on the same theme, but with a more popular level audience in mind. Heiser, the divine council in late canonical and non. Dec 01, 2011 ive just become aware that michael heiser has finally responded to an old piece of mine, in which i critique his reading of deuteronomy 32 and psalm 82. A term used by hebrew and semitics scholars for the heavenly host, the pantheon of. Sitchin is the author of the earth chronicle series and is one of the most popular proponents of the socalled ancient astronaut theory. The divine council and israelite monotheism macsphere. Heisers online material should give you a good idea of what to expect from this book.
Heiser, mormonism, and the divine council of psalm 82. Sep 25, 2017 the specific goal of heisers book is to explain the notion of the divine council. Another element of the israelite divine council is that, at times, the lord of the council, the god of israel, appeared in human form, creating a dyadic or binitarian coregent structure to the council. God has a throne room and his subjects approach him. There was a second, uncreated person with him, who shared his own essence and was an independent, but not autonomous, being. Michael heisers the unseen realm has been a long time coming. Heiser introduction moses farewell song in deuteronomy 32. Clearly this is speaking of angelic beings, including those on the heavenly divine council.
Ever since i learned michael heiser was writing the unseen realm i was excited to read it. I appreciate his expounding on often overlooked biblical topics such as the unseen realms of heavenly beings. The book is clear and well done, treating many ideas and themes that often go unseen themselves. My lay analysis of michael heisers divine council theory. May 21, 2015 heiser begins by establishing a biblical definition of monotheism one that incorporates the ots own recognition of divine plurality.
All material in this video belongs to its respective owner. Heiser, mormonism, and the divine council of psalm 82 dr. I finally bought this book having been a listener of the naked bible podcast for a while. If youve spent serious time in scripture, you know that there are many odd passages, curious phrases, troubling paradoxes, echoes of one event in another, connections within and between the testaments that cant be coincidental michael s. Since the idea comes as a surprise not only to jews but even christians, he spends significant time establishing this from texts such as deut 32. I mentally wrestled with his prospect of the divine council. There is no adjective that might be translated divine like a phrase mlkm elohim. Michael heiser the divine council of the elohim and the gods of the bible bible, christianity, esoteric, religion, spirituality, truthseekah podcast. Hang on tight my belovedhang on tight to the anchor of your soul, because youre going for a ride. So in this time before time began, which we refer to as from everlasting to everlasting, there was the ancient of days, the logos, and they were sitting at the head of the council with the twenty four elders and others. Heiser much of the old testaments recounting of the salvation history of the people of god concerns the disastrous effects of israelite adoption of the beliefs and practices of the surrounding nations.
His work on the divine council paradigm, culminating in his book the unseen realm, is first rate. Namely, his understanding of the divine heavenly council, also however his perspective on the spirit realm. A response to michael heiser concerning the lds use of psalm 82. His area of expertise is the nature of the spiritual realm in the bible, namely the divine council and hierarchy of the spiritual order. What i actually think about mormonism and the divine council is readily available online. Pdf a biblical theology of the divine council christopher d kou. So in this time before time began, which we refer to as from everlasting to everlasting, there was the ancient of days, the logos, and they were sitting at the head of the council with. Recovering the supernatural worldview of the bible. The divine council in late canonical and noncanonical second. It will be released on september 1 and i highly recommend it and the companion book that will be released in december.