Hello everyone, thanks for joining us again on the primeval podcast. We are covering Genesis chapter one. I was at church camp last week for junior high and high school students all week at beautiful Palo Duro Canyon. Most of you know where that's at. If you don't, it's just south of Amarillo, Texas. It's the second largest canyon system in the Western hemisphere. It's beautiful. So I wasn't able to produce a podcast last week and I also picked up a little bit of a cold.
So my voice is a little bit off, but in spite of that, we're going to pick up where we left off continuing with Genesis chapter one. It's a section of scripture often referred to as primeval history because the events were written down or recorded well after they actually happened. So the chapters of Genesis one through 11 are addressing the mythological worldview of the ancient Near East. It's setting the record straight by that corrupted account of earthly and human origins.
So there was a corrupted account that prevailed in the ancient Near East. We call it mythology today. It was their real understanding of how the world came into being and how it was managed by the gods. So that being said, it's correct to say that while the accounts of Genesis one through 11 were recorded for us, they were not written to us. They were written to the people living in the ancient Near East and they were preserved for our benefit. That's an important point.
When we're interpreting the text, we have to keep in mind what people in that timeframe were thinking, what they had in their minds that the text is addressing versus what we have in our minds. We bring both questions and answers to the text all the time from a modern point of view that the text does not intend to address. So with that being said, let's take a look at what the text we will be covering today says and likely the next episode as well. This is Genesis one twenty six.
Then God said, let us make man in our image after our likeness and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Verse twenty seven. So God created man in his own image. In the image of God, he created him male and female. He created them as we have in past episodes.
We will be drawing heavily from the recently deceased Dr. Michael Heiser's book, The Unseen Realm. We will also be sharing some of Biola University's Dr. Carmen I'm perspective. Both scholars specialize in the Old Testament. So let's talk first of all about the use of the us and our language in the text. God, singular, refers to himself as us and our plural. There are three possible explanations for the use of those plural pronouns.
We all know what a big deal pronoun pronouns are nowadays, right? So we'd better not mess this up or we'll get canceled. So there are three possible interpretations for the use of the plural pronouns. Number one, Genesis is using the royal language of the ancient Near East to identify God as a king. So that would be how kings spoke of themselves in the plural. They kind of magnified themselves. It also identified themselves with a people group. The king doesn't just represent himself.
He represents everyone. The problem identified with this interpretation is that the we of majesty does not exist in Hebrew for pronouns. And so Heiser cites this from two textbooks of Hebrew language. The first one is a grammar of biblical Hebrew and the second one is the encyclopedia of Hebrew language and linguistics. So both of those make the point that that's not identifiable anywhere else. And that's why it's probably not a correct interpretation of that text.
Number two, the second option, it is intended to identify God as the triune God or that it's referring to the Trinity. That thinking, that interpretation has been criticized as reading the New Testament into the Old Testament. Just like we shouldn't bring our own modern ideas and questions to the text, we shouldn't bring New Testament thinking and ideas to the Old Testament when the text is addressing, again, ancient Near Eastern people.
The rest of the Old Testament has no such Trinitarian phrases and it's not even a transparent idea anywhere else in the Old Testament. So that's why that interpretation of God using the plural pronouns is probably not correct either. The third option is a reference to what Heiser and other Old Testament scholars refer to as the divine council. This interpretation is the most consistent with what would have been in the mind of the original hearers or readers of the text.
And so first of all, I'm going to be citing heavily from Heiser's book here. What we have is a single person God addressing a group, the members of His divine council. So it would be like me going into a room full of friends and saying, hey, let's go get some pizza. I'm the one speaking. A group is hearing what I say. Similarly, God comes to the divine council with an exciting announcement. Let's create humankind.
So in the analogy, if I'm the one paying for the pizza, making the plan happen after announcing it, then I retain both the inspiration and the initiative for the entire project. That's how Genesis 1.26 works. And Genesis 1.27 tells us clearly that only God Himself actually does the creating. In the Hebrew, all the verbs of creation in the passage are singular in form. So God created humankind in His image in the likeness of God He created Him.
The other members of the council do not participate in the creation of humankind. They watch. Just as they did when God laid the foundations of the earth, remember from Job chapter 38. This would have been a common idea in the ancient Near East. Heiser continues, the rulers of ancient Egypt were called pharaohs. In the language of ancient Egypt, the title pharaoh was actually two words, which meant great household.
The household concept for the ruling families of ancient Egypt was that of a dynastic bureaucracy. Pharaohs typically had large extended families. They frequently appointed family members to key positions of authority in their administration. The elite staffing of the king's governing bureaucracy typically came from pharaohs' household. They were administrators, not lowly managers or messengers. This concept and structure was well known throughout the ancient Near East.
It spoke of layered authority, a high king, elite administrators who were often related to the king, and low level personnel who served the higher levels of authority. Everyone in the system was part of the government, but authority and status were tiered. So the most clear biblical reference to this idea of a divine council is found in Psalm 82.
We're going to read it in its entirety because it has some important implications later on for our interpretation of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11 when we get to that story. And really it has important implications for all of scripture for that matter. So here's Psalm 82, starting in verse 1. God, now the Hebrew word for God being used here is Elohim, and it's singular. So God, singular, has taken his place in the divine council.
In the midst of the gods, now that's the same word, Elohim, the Hebrew word, only it's plural there. In the midst of the gods, he holds judgment. He holds court. Verse 2. How long will you judge unjustly, God's addressing the other members of the court, and show partiality to the wicked? Say law, which means pause and reflect. Verse 3. Give justice to the weak and the fatherless. Maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Do 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. Verse 6. I said you, now that's a plural you, meaning y'all, as we would say it in Texas, y'all are gods. Again, Elohim plural. Ones of the most high, all of you. Nevertheless, like men, you shall die and fall like any prince. Arise, O God, judge the earth.
The psalmist is saying, arise, O God, you judge the earth, because these beings are failing. Arise, O God, judge the earth, for you shall inherit all the nations. In other words, authority over the nations will be taken from these beings and it will be reclaimed by the uncreated God.
So Heizer again here commenting on this passage says the idea of Elohim, that's the plural word for gods, ruling the nations under the singular Elohim's authority is a biblical concept that is described in other passages, which we will cite here in a minute. For now, it's sufficient that you see clearly that the sons of God are divine beings under the authority of the God of Israel.
So once again, just like we've said in other episodes, the uncreated God, who is one, has created other divine beings. They are created divine beings by the work of the uncreated God. And God has created them to be a part of His family, to function with Him in administering the affairs of the universe. We're going to show you in scripture where that's described, a few different verses of scripture. First of all, we're going to be in Daniel chapter 10.
In this scene, an angel is coming to deliver a message to the Old Testament figure Daniel. And so this being is describing his encounter with another divine being as he is being sent on his way to deliver the message. So this is one of these beings speaking who's coming to deliver the message to Daniel. This is him speaking.
Daniel 10 verse 12, then he said to me, fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard and I have come because of your words or because of your prayers. Verse 13, the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me 21 days. Let me say that again, as this being is delivering a message.
Verse 13, the prince of the kingdom of Persia, that would have been one of the world's superpowers of the time withstood me 21 days. He was delayed in delivering the message. There was spiritual warfare happening.
Moving on with the text, but Michael, one of the chief princes, one of the archangels, one of the high ranking members of God's council came to help me for I was left there with the kings of Persia and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days for the vision is for days yet to come. So here the text is describing someone who's in charge of a territory which happens to be one of the world's superpowers.
So probably a high ranking being who's been put in charge of administering the affairs of the earth, likely in rebellion against the one true God. There's conflict in the heavenly realm and assistance has to be sent from another high ranking being who's loyal to God to help break through that resistance and deliver the message. Now there are many verses in the New Testament that refer to this concept of rulers, authorities, principalities and thrones.
So I'm not going to read all of these verses. I'm just going to cite them for you. You can look them up for yourself. You're found in passages like Romans chapter eight verses 37 through 39 Colossians chapter one verse 16 Colossians chapter two verse 15 Ephesians chapter three verses 10 through 11 and Ephesians chapter one verses 20 through 21. Again the Bible describes rulers and authorities in the heavenly realm among his heavenly imagers.
So God has heavenly beings created in his image and in his likeness that he refers to as the sons of the most high and God has earthly rulers and authorities created in his image that he refers to as his family members. And so this will be God's primary assignment for humans in the following verses from Genesis chapter one to have dominion, which means to rule or to govern. But continuing on with our topic today.
Here's a couple more example of God's heavenly imagers exercising governance in partnership with God's plans and purposes. This again is from the book of Daniel chapter four. In this scene we're dealing with King Nebuchadnezzar. He's the king of Babylon. Again that would have been the world superpower at the time.
The book of Daniel covers a couple of different transitions of power from Babylon to Persia, etc. So in this scenario, King Nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of Babylon, the world superpower of the time, is under the judgment of God because of his arrogance. And so this passage is going to describe how that sentence is decided and handed down. Daniel 4.16, let his mind be changed from a man's and let a beast's mind be given to him and let seven periods of time pass over him.
So that's the sentence handed against King Nebuchadnezzar. Verse 17, the sentence is by decree of the watchers. The decision by the word of the Holy Ones. Now that is a reference to the members of God's divine council. Interestingly enough, that word Holy Ones refers to the angelic host throughout the Old Testament and it's applied to the New Testament believers in the New Testament. It's the word we know as saints.
Continuing on with the verse, to the end that the living may know that the most high rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men. Here's another example from 1 Kings chapter 22 of God's divine council members participating in the decision making process. A sovereign God invites members of his family to participate in his decision making. So here it is, 1 Kings 22 starting in verse 19.
In this scene, the kings of Judah and Israel are trying to decide whether or not to go to war. They're all kinds of false prophets telling them what they want to hear but they want to hear from a real prophet, Micaiah, and hear what he has to say. And so here's what Micaiah's word to these kings is, 1 Kings 22, 19, and Micaiah said, therefore, hear the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord sitting on his throne and all the host of heaven standing beside him on his right hand and on his left.
And the Lord said, who will entice Ahab that he may go up and fall at Ramoth Gilead? And so the Lord isn't making an assignment, he's inviting someone to volunteer. And here's what it says, and one said one thing and another said another. So a lot of different ideas are presented just like you would in any meeting. Verse 21, then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord saying, I will entice him. Verse 22, and the Lord said to him, by what means?
And he said, I will go out and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, you are to entice him and you shall succeed. Go out and do so. Verse 23, now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets. The Lord has declared disaster for you.
These are just a couple of examples that we get from scripture as to how the uncreated God upon completion of his work of creation that he does all by himself at his own initiative, but he chooses to administer the affairs of his creation with his other family members. So once he's created it, he invites his family members to participate in deciding how things go. They are to put their stamp on what God has created.
That's true of his heavenly family members and it's true of his earthly family members. God chooses to allow his kids to participate by playing a real role and having a say in his governance. We are created in the image and likeness of God. God has a creative will that he gives expression to by creating something as a component of being image bearers. We're like our dad. That's what that means. And we'll cover that more in the next episode. We have a creative will as well.
We have a creative energy and we have a creative will that God gives us freedom to give expression to on what he has created. And so the way we see God govern in his heavenly council, that exact same method of governance will be demonstrated for humans in Genesis chapter two, when God commissions Adam to name the animals. God creates the animals. He parades them before Adam and says, Adam, you give them a name.
So that actually has a lot to say with our original purpose and with our eternal purpose. As God moves forward, eventually into a new heaven and a new earth, God creates human beings in his image who have a creative energy and a creative will that we will forever get to give an expression to upon what he created. So that'll do it for today's episode.
Hopefully my voice will be back to normal next week and we're going to continue with the same verse, but the topic this time is going to be specifically the image of God. What is it? What does it mean? What are the implications of that? So we'll cover that in the next episode and I will see you then. Be blessed. Amen.