DIVINE COUNCIL

An understanding of biblical cosmology, popularized by Dr. Michael Heiser but not invented by him, commonly called the "Divine Council" view makes a lot of sense to me. Plus, it answers a lot of unspoken questions, especially with its connection to the Tower of Babel story in Genesis 11.

In brief, Heiser makes the case that God shares His authority in the heavenly realm with other, created spiritual beings just as he intended to share His authority on earth with humans. 

And, just like humans, His spiritual creatures vary greatly in their trustworthiness and how they choose to exercise the authority God has put in their hands. 

This is complicated for both humans and spiritual beings by the fact that many of the spiritual beings seem jealous of humans and intent on destroying their relationship with God. 

Anyway, at least according to the picture painted in Psalm 82, God operates at times through a "council" made up of spiritual beings. And, according to Deuteronomy 32, one of the biggest assignments He ever gave to these spiritual creatures was to rule over the various nations after people groups were scattered with brand new language some time after the Flood. 

They were supposed to rule in His place with justice and fairness. But many succumbed to the temptation to be worshipped and to make a name for themselves.

All of this "behind the scenes" reality, if Heiser is correct, sure does make some sense of things I have often wondered about. For instance:

• The fact that Genesis 1-11 records no instances of "foreign gods" before Babel - and then they are everywhere! And those gods become a major stumbling stone to Israel.
• The way the Bible speaks of these foreign gods as real entities, not just figments of other nations' imagination.
• The proliferation of demons in the New Testament - which can be thought of as spiritual beings prodded into direct action by the arrival of God's only begotten Son. 
• Paul's talk of "principalities and powers" and spiritual warfare.
• Paul's description of how God "disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him" on the cross.
• Christ's own focus on the arrival of the Kingdom of God - where all nations were going to be gathered together again under the authority God was now giving His Son. 

And it gives some context to Jesus telling His first disciples that "all authority" had been given to Him after His resurrection - and sharing that authority with His followers!