Supernatural RSM Series – Part 3.5
Refton Student Ministry Series:
Supernatural Part 3.5: Three Part Rebellion
We’ve finally come to the part of this series that had the most impact on me when I first began studying this topic. The book that introduced me to the biblical author’s worldview was Dr. Michael Heiser’s, The Unseen Realm. His other book, Supernatural, is a filtered version of the former, and it has been what I’ve been recommending to the students and parents. All of the material in this study and his books are peer reviewed by numerous Bible scholars. That just means other scholars have read the material and interacted with it. In today’s world, if it’s not peer reviewed, it’s not taken seriously. What I’m saying is that none of this is Dr. Heiser’s original thoughts. This is the stuff that scholars are talking about today, and he is simply making it more accessible to those of us who are not Bible scholars. His Unseen Realm book is a product of 15+ years of research. To date, Heiser has compiled over 6,000 resources on this topic!
What’s my point? In the world of biblical scholarship, this topic isn’t new! It seems new to us because it’s not usually taught in our churches. It’s time we changed that. I believe it’s time to teach the next generation how the biblical authors viewed the world. Once we allow their worldview to shape ours, we will never read the Bible or see the world around us the same again.
Recap:
Last week we talked about The Watchers from Genesis 6 and that this narrative was only one of three rebellions in the Bible. We’ve seen that Genesis 3 (Fall of Man), Genesis 6 (Fall of the Watchers), and Genesis 11 (The Tower of Babel) are foundational for understanding the entire Bible. We looked at some (not all) of the real bad guys of the Bible and we learned that demons are just low level evil spirits. We also saw that Jesus followers are called sons of God, which was the Old Testament phrase for Yahweh’s divine council, which is now the New Testament phrase for Jesus followers! Believers are the ones who will be judging angels (the bad guys) and also will share the throne that Jesus occupies! The point was made that when we realize exactly who we are in Christ Jesus, we then can know we have nothing to fear. We’re not invincible, but we share in the power of the resurrection and therefore already have the victory over the lord of the dead, Satan.
We will see in this lesson how the Genesis 11 event drastically changed the world, and how it explains a lot of what’s going on today. This lesson will inevitably fill in some blanks for you (as it did for me) regarding the things we’ve been taught about the Bible and our faith. Here are some questions that will be directly answered through this lesson:
Why are there so many religions?
Is there any truth to the other religions?
Why is sin such a big deal to Yahweh God?
These are questions that our students have been asking for years. Honestly, these are questions that I’ve been asking my entire life! I’m excited to say that we can finally give solid biblical answers! To be blunt, I’m convinced that this Supernatural series will have a life long impact on them, because I know it did for me, and I pray it will do the same for you as well.
The Three Part Rebellion, Continued
“What you know may not be so.” ~ Dr. Michael Heiser
Heavy Hitters
We talked about the real bad guys of the Bible during our last lesson. These are the heavy hitters that you never hear about in church (pardon the picture pun!). Ancient Jewish literature dubbed them as “The Watchers,” however, Peter tells us that Yahweh God threw them in Hell and bound them in chains, at least for now. So we’re good right? Not quite. I mentioned during RSM last week that The Watchers weren’t the only group of heavy hitter bad guys in the Scriptures. There is yet another group of rebellious spiritual beings from Yahweh’s divine council. Paul calls them the rulers, authorities, powers, and spiritual forces of evil [this has geographical significance which we’ll talk about in a future lesson]. So, Giants’ fans can relax. Pablo Sandoval has nothing to do with this particular group of biblical bad guys; well, at least to my knowledge! Unlike the Genesis 6 Watchers, these guys are not currently bound in Hell. Their story begins at the Tower of Babel.
The Tower
After Noah’s flood, Yahweh God mandated that human beings were to multiply and spread over the earth. Yahweh was essentially rebooting the plan of Eden. So what did mankind do? They congregated into one place. Rather than heed Yahweh’s command, they decided to build a city for themselves. They also began to build a tower that was to reach to the heavens.
Why would they do that?
Scholars tend to agree that this tower was likely a ziggurat. The one pictured to the left is a 3D representation of what this tower may have looked like. Ziggurats are found all over the world. Their purpose “was to provide places where people could meet the gods. They were part of temple zones. Rather than make the world like Eden – to spread the knowledge and rule of God everywhere – the people wanted to bring God down at one spot” (Heiser, Supernatural, 48). In other words, these towers were a place that you would summon the gods, as if somehow you were in control of them. So what does Yahweh do? He gives them over to the rebellious spiritual beings and divides them up into nations according to the number of the sons of God (more on this below).
The story continues with an interesting divine council moment where Yahweh says, “Come, let us go down and confuse their language, so they will not understand each other” (Genesis 11:7, NIV). This is not Yahweh talking to His Triune Self. We will soon see that He is talking to the spiritual beings that represent His divine council. So they confuse the language of the people, because until this point in history, everyone spoke the same language. Then “the LORD [Yahweh] scattered them over the face of the whole earth” (11:8, 9, NIV). If human beings weren’t going to listen to Yahweh by multiplying and spreading over the earth, then He was going to force them to do so, and He wasn’t happy about it. This is where our knowledge of this narrative tends to end. However, the Bible has a lot more to say on this matter. Let’s fast forward to the book of Deuteronomy.
Moses Gives His Last Ted Talk
The last words of a person before they die hold a lot of weight for the rest of us who are left behind. Deuteronomy 32 is Moses’ last speech to the Israelites before he dies (not including his final blessing). His purpose was to encourage the Israelites to not waver in their allegiance to Yahweh. He makes it clear that Yahweh is Israel’s father, their Creator and their Guide. He also calls it how it is because he sees them “repaying” Yahweh with their unfaithfulness. He urges them to remember exactly how they were established. This is where things get interesting. Moses said:
“7 Remember the days of old; consider the years of many generations; ask your father, and he will show you, your elders, and they will tell you. 8 When the Most High [Yahweh] gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God” (Deuteronomy 32:7-8, ESV).
When did Yahweh God “divide mankind?” The only story that fits this description is Genesis 11, the Tower of Babel. Moses is asking the Israelites to remember their origin story. When Yahweh God divided humanity into nations [“fixed the borders”], He did so “according to the number of the sons of God.” How many “sons of God” is Moses talking about? Depending on the translation you use, it’s either 70 or 72. This number comes from the table of nations list in Genesis chapter 10. If you count all the nations, you will come up with one of these numbers. The varying numbers are inconsequential because the larger of the two is due to the translators splitting two regions in half. Either way we’re talking about the same nations. The real question is who are these “sons of God”?
Wait a second! Hold on! Back the truck up…
What if my Bible doesn’t say “sons of God”? Instead, it says, “sons of Israel.” If your translation says “sons of Israel,” it probably has a footnote next to it. That footnote should explain that “sons of Israel” comes from the Masoretic Text (MT). Allow me to geek-out for a moment. The MT was put together by a group of people called the Masoretes, as early a the 7th century AD. This was the primary text that was used to produce English versions of the Old Testament in the King James and American Standard Versions. Thanks to the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) at Qumran, we now have thousands of copies of the Bible that predate the MT by about 1000 years! So prior to the initial discovery of the DSS between 1946 and 1947, no one in recorded history picked up on the “sons of Israel / sons of God” variation. The reason I say initial discovery is because archeologists are still discovering new DSS texts today. Since the DSS say “sons of God” in Deuteronomy 32:8, we know that this phrase is by far the oldest and therefore likely the most accurate to the original text (aka the “autographs”). [Pictured: Pastor Chris Shelly of Lampeter Church of the Brethren, member of The LS Collective Podcast, checking out a replica of a complete DSS manuscript of Isaiah at The Bible Museum in Washington D.C.]
If that historical “babel” didn’t convince you, then consider this: During the time that the nations were divided, Israel didn’t exist yet! Further proof of this is the fact that Israel is not mentioned in the Genesis 10 table of nations list.
The Story Continues…
Who are these “sons of God”?
If you’ve kept up with this series you should now be familiar with the phrase “sons of God.” This is an Old Testament phrase that refers to Yahweh’s heavenly host, aka: His divine council. However, just like in Genesis 6, we’re not talking about all of Yahweh’s divine council. This time we know it is about 70 members of His divine council, since each of the 70 nations were given over to these spiritual beings. Why would God do that? Well, these spiritual beings had apparently become rivals of Yahweh, so Yahweh decided to give mankind over to them. Yahweh was essentially giving mankind what they wanted, and then He would start over with a certain human being in which He would make His own nation, Israel. The plan was that He would use Israel to bring the other nations back to Him. This is where Yahweh finds Abraham, pulls him out of Ur which was located in Mesopotamia [the very region of Babel!], and promises him that He will make a nation out of his descendants. Abraham eventually has a son named Isaac, and Isaac has a son named Jacob. None of these men were perfect, but because of Yahweh’s promise to Abraham, he renamed Jacob, Israel. This is why Jacob’s 12 sons become the 12 tribes of Israel. Below is a chart of events that illustrate the flow of the narrative through this point in history.
At some point in history, the 70 divine council members rebelled against Yahweh. Why? It seems that they wanted power over Yahweh. The Bible tells us that Yahweh renders judgment to them due to their actions. This is what Psalm 82 is all about. I listed it during the first lesson, but I’ll list it again now that we have the context:
Psalm 82, ESV
1 God [*Yahweh] has taken his place in the divine council;
in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
2 “How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked?
3 Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
4 Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
5 They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6 I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High [*Yahweh], all of you;
7 nevertheless, like men you shall die,
and fall like any prince.”
8 Arise, O God [*Yahweh], judge the earth;
for you shall inherit all the nations!
*I’ve designated Yahweh for clarity*
Some scholars will argue that these “gods” are actually human rulers. Rather than geek-out on you again, let me ask this: If the “gods” are mortal human kings, then why would God give a judgment saying “like men you shall die”?
Are these human kings unaware of their mortality? Well, as I’ve alluded to in previous posts, that view just doesn’t hold water. Besides that, from what I can tell, every time the Old Testament refers to “sons of the Most High” or “sons of God”, it refers to spiritual beings who are or were in Yahweh’s divine council. I know this because I spent one Saturday morning checking all of their occurrences for myself (I also checked out the New Testament, but we’ll get to that in a later lesson). So, what we have here are divine council members that at some point rebelled against Yahweh and were given authority over the nations that Yahweh set in place. Like the Watchers, these are the top tier bad guys of the Bible. I’d rather not put the cart before the horse, but in a future lesson we will see that Satan somehow gained a following, which were these rebellious former council members.
Dramatic Reversal
We talked about dramatic reversal last time. This is where the writers of the Bible are purposely pointing out the reversal work that Jesus is doing on a cosmic level. The Fall narratives from Genesis 3, 6, and 11 all have dramatic reversal parallels in the New Testament. The events at the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11 can be directly compared to the events in Acts 2, Pentecost. Check it out…
The Tower of Babel – Genesis 11:1-9
Everyone was together and used the same language
Their coming together was the direct opposite of what God told them to do
Yahweh God divided them across the whole earth to confuse their languages
This act of dividing was the result of punishment for their disobedience
This event split the world into 70+ nations
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost – Acts 2
Many people from different nations with different languages came together to celebrate Pentecost
Their coming together was mandated by God
Divided “tongues” [represents real, established languages] rested on them so that they would understand each other
This act of coming together and receiving the Holy Spirit was an act of grace due to Jesus’ obedience
This event was the continuation of Jesus’ work in taking the nations back, now accomplished through His Church
Why Does This Matter?
Bible scholars call everything we just discussed The Deuteronomy 32 Worldview. Have you ever wondered why there are so many religions? If Genesis 1-3 is true, which I believe it is, then the world began with one “religion”. At some point in history other religions began to develop. A Deuteronomy 32 worldview answers this question quite well. As mankind continued to fall away from Yahweh and worship other “gods” (the divine council members who rebel), the trajectory of worship began to shift in all different directions as humans recognized these rebellious divine council members as their gods. These same rebellious spiritual beings still have influence over the nations of the world today, however, their authority has been stripped (see Daniel 7 & Psalm 82); we will talk about this in a future lesson.
An interesting thing to note about this topic is that people in biblical times did not view “religions” as we view them (McDermott, God’s Rivals). We tend to put all religions in a box, as if they were separate from each other. Some might go as far to say that the religions are not only separate things, but they’re equal. This is not how the ancient people, especially the biblical writers, viewed other religions. They had a Deuteronomy 32 worldview. People were perfectly okay with knowing that there were other gods. For them, it wasn’t necessarily a matter of “belief” as we think of it. When we think of belief, we think of believing that something or someone exists. In the case of Yahweh God, we believe that you not only need to know that Jesus existed, but that He was the Son of God who died for our sins. The problem with this is that even the demons believe, and shudder. For the people of the bible, having faith in a deity was more about allegiance – which inherently indicates belief in existence and a trust in whatever the deity taught.
It was a matter of believing loyalty.
This is why we have kingdom language throughout the entire Bible. This is also why just about every time the gospel is mentioned in the New Testament, it is within the context of the kingdom of God! So if Jesus is King of kings, and Lord of lords, as Revelation 19:16 states, then how do our lives reflect this fact? Think about it:
Do we really live as though we are under a King?
We tend to live as though Jesus is our best friend, but King? Well, there is something to this whole friendship with God idea. James even says that Abraham was a friend of God. Isn’t it incredible that the God of the universe, the Almighty Creator, the King of kings and Lord of lords, wants us to get to know Him? What King does this? King Jesus does. King Jesus not only came and died for us out of His love, but He even raises us up with Him so that we can reign with Him.
Examples of believing loyalty are all throughout the Bible. King David comes to mind when he not only committed adultery with another man’s wife, but he had her husband killed in a vain attempt at covering up his sin. God definitely dished out some consequences, but notice that David is still considered a man after God’s own heart? How can this be? It’s because while David was a sinner, he never once wavered in his allegiance to Yahweh. He never once bowed down and worshiped another god. So Yahweh spared him, and forgave him of his sins. Do you see a reflection of the gospel in there?! That’s because being made right with Yahweh God (righteousness) has always been about faith – or in other words, believing loyalty.
If it’s about believing loyalty, then why is sin such a big deal?
Believing loyalty to Jesus alone has everything to do with the severity of sin. When we sin, we are turning our backs on Jesus. We are essentially acting out of self interest that ultimately says we are in control. Sinning is a power grab. It’s no different than when the sons of God decided to accept worship from the nations. They sought power. You may be thinking, “yeah but sometimes when I sin it really doesn’t effect others.” Sin affects you, those around you, the unseen spiritual realm, and your relationship with Jesus. It is a big deal. The reason we think it’s not is because we have this idea that there is some middle ground. The biblical worldview says that there is no middle ground – you’re either for Jesus, or your not. Yes, I believe that due to our human nature we certainly will sin, but do you now see the gravity of God’s forgiveness that He offers through His Son Jesus? This is why Jesus says that “no one is good except God alone.” I am certainly not perfect, but I do feel that understanding a Deuteronomy 32 worldview has helped me to avoid sin even more because I understand the unseen ramifications.
So when we talk to others about our faith, it’s not enough to just say to them that they need to “believe in Jesus so that they can be saved.” Saved from what? “You need to be saved so that you don’t go to hell.” Whoa. Why do we start there? Rather than telling people you’re saved, as though you’ve earned some special gift they don’t have yet, why not tell them that you’ve given your allegiance to Jesus? You’ve decided to recognize Him as King of your life and He is the only One you will serve. They may ask what that looks like, so then you tell them. Hopefully the Holy Spirit will guide them to the Kingdom of Jesus through your words and actions. No one in the Bible ever said a “sinners prayer.” Every single one of the biblical people who followed Yahweh, followed Jesus, gave their allegiance to Him because they viewed the world from a Deuteronomy 32 perspective. It’s time we follow suit.
– Side Note –
It occurred to me today that one of the last things that happens in the Bible directly applies to this lesson. If you turn to Revelation 22 beginning at verse 6 you’ll read that John wrote down what he heard and saw from an angel. When the angel finished showing John everything, John fell down at his feet to worship him. The angel quickly told John in verse 9, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” I always thought this was a weird thing that John did, however, it now makes sense because we know John had a Deuteronomy 32 worldview. He knew other “gods” (elohim) existed and now, most likely for the first time, one of them was standing in front of him. While it wasn’t John’s finest moment, I think he includes this story to remind people that we are to give our allegiance to Yahweh alone. Humans have already been down the long road of worshiping other spiritual beings and it didn’t work out for them.
Our believing loyalty belongs to King Jesus.