What is the Divine Council? Part 1: Who are the Elohim?

In previous posts, we explored theories that attempt explain why Elohim, one of the names used for God, is plural in Genesis 1. As we briefly mentioned previously, a close reading of the Bible reveals that the term Elohim is used not only for God, but for other supernatural beings as well. 

While at first glance, this idea seems a little strange, on further reflection, it is not so unusual. Angles and demons, both supernatural creatures, are clearly present in the Bible. It is not much of a stretch then, to see that Elohim could be a term used for any supernatural being.  This view, known as the Divine Council view, was popularized by the late Old Testament scholar, Dr. Michael Heiser. In his writings, Heiser proposed that God was served by a vast array of supernatural beings, who make up his council, a Divine Council. While these beings, like mankind, were created to serve God, some of them, also like mankind, rebelled against God at several distinct times in the Bible.

To support his theory, Heiser points to several key passages in the Bible. He begins with Psalm 82:

A Psalm by Asaph.

God presides in the great assembly.
He judges among the gods.
“How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked?
Selah
“Defend the weak, the poor, and the fatherless.
Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.
Rescue the weak and needy.
Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.”
They don’t know, neither do they understand.
They walk back and forth in darkness.
All the foundations of the earth are shaken.
I said, “You are gods, all of you are sons of the Most High.
Nevertheless you shall die like men, and fall like one of the rulers.”
Arise, God, judge the earth, for you inherit all of the nations.

Psalm 82

In Psalm 82, God seems to be judging other gods. A key point is the Hebrew word translated as God and gods is, in both cases, Elohim.

God (Elohim) presides in the great assembly.
He judges among the gods (elohim).

This psalm seems to indicate that God, an Elohim, is displeased with other gods, who are a part of his “great assembly.”

Later is the Psalm, the other Elohim are described as beney elyon, or sons of Elyon, the Most High. The Most High is a term that is only used for the God of Israel, so by calling these other beings sons of the Most High, the Psalm is establishing that God, the Most High, is the father, or creator, of these other gods, elohim. Another interesting point is these elohim seem to have been given authority over the nations of men, but they have promoted evil, and not the will of God. In the psalm, God warns the elohim of His judgment. This establishes that at least some of the elohim, what we would call angels in modern thought, have rebelled against God, yet still retain authority over the nations of man.

Heiser goes on to point out other uses of the term Elohim in the Bible. In 1 Kings, chapter 33, the prophet Ahijah confronts Jeroboam when he was away from Jerusalem. Ahijah tells Jeroboam that God is displeased with Solomon and that God will give ten of the twelve tribes of Israel to Jeroboam. The prophet tells Jeroboam that God has decided to do this because the Israelites have worshipped foreign gods.

Because they have forsaken me, and have worshiped Asthoreth the goddess (elohe) of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god (elohe) of Moab, and Milcom (elohe) the god of the children of Ammon
1 Kings 11:33

The Hebrew word Ahijah uses to describe the foreign gods is elohe, a form of elohim. Since this is the same word used in Psalm 82, it raises an interesting question. Are the supernatural beings that God is judging in Psalm 82 the same as the gods of pagan nations? This interpretation might explain why God was angry with the Elohim and felt the need to judge them. The elohim in psalm 82 had been given authority over the nations of mankind, but chose to lead the nations away from the worship or El Elyon, God Most High. By subverting the worship and will of God, they placed themselves as the object of worship, assuming the form of a pagan god. 

From archeology, we know each of the ancient Mesopotamian cities had their own patron god, and an image of that god was represented by an idol that was placed on top of a temple, usually a ziggurat, or a tower. This interpretation would imply that by worshipping the city idols, ancient near-eastern cities were not worshipping an imaginary god, but were instead worshipping a real, supernatural being.

Deuteronomy 32 is the song of Moses, a warning Moses gave to the tribes of Israel before his death.

They sacrificed to demons (shedim), not God,
to gods (elohim) that they didn’t know,
the new gods (elohim) that came up recently,
which your fathers didn’t dread.

Deuteronomy 32:17

Shedim is a plural of a Hebrew root that means to act violently or to destroy. In the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible translated around the 2^nd Century BC, shedim was translated as daimon, or in English, demon.

Deuteronomy 32 is interesting because it draws a link, although arguably tenuous, between shedim and Elohim. This brings up the question, “What is the connection between the ancient gods and demons?” Are the demons today the gods of ancient times?

This topic was the subject of a recent book, The Return of the Gods, by messianic Rabbi Jonathan Cahn. In the book, Cahn proposes that many recent cultural trends could be explained by the reemergence of three ancient gods: Ba’al, Ishtar, and Molech. All of three of these gods are mentioned prominently in the Bible and are often portrayed as rivals for Israel’s worship. 

The next passage that Heisner points to is 1 Samuel 28, verses 11-13. In this passage, Saul, the first king of Israel, is about to do battle with the Philistines. 

When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. When Saul inquired of Yahweh, Yahweh didn’t answer him by dreams, by Urim, or by prophets. Then sault said to his servants, “Seek for me a woman who has a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and inquire of her.”

His servants said to him, “Behold, there is a woman who has a familiar spirit at Endor.”

Saul disguised himself and put on other clothing, and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night.

…

Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up to you?”

He said, “Bring Samuel up for me.”

When the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice, and the woman spoke to Saul, saying, “Why have you deceived me? For you are Saul!”

The king said to her, “Don’t be afraid! What do you see?”

The woman said to Saul, “I see a god (elohim) coming up out of the earth. 

2 Samuel 28: 11-13

In this passage, the dead spirit of the prophet Samuel is described as an elohim.

When we take these passages together, a picture begins to emerge of the meaning of Elohim. It can be used to refer to God, foreign gods, evil spirits (shedim or demons) and the spirits of dead humans (Samuel). When these various usages are taken together, it appears that the term Elohim can be applied to any disembodied, supernatural being.

Polytheism?

Critics of this theory suggest this is a polytheistic view of the world, that multiple Elohim, or gods, argues against monotheism. Heiser explains that God is differentiated between the other supernatural beings by the title Elyon, or the Most High. He proposes that God, or God with a capital G, is the creator God, the source of all creation. The elohim, or gods with a little g, are supernatural beings, originally created by God to serve Him. In modern thought, we would call these elohim angels.

Under the Divine Council view, when God (Elohim) says in Genesis, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness” (Gen 1:26) he is not necessarily speaking to himself as the trinity, but is also addressing his council of supernatural beings, his divine council.

The strength of this theory is it explains many puzzling passages in the Bible. The implied story line is at different times, some of the supernatural beings rebelled against God and began to oppose God’s plan. Rather than being forces of creation and life, they became forces of de-creation and death.

In the next post, we will explore the three events that Heiser points to as acts of supernatural rebellion.

Next: Supernatural Rebellion

Additional Reading

Heiser, Michael S. The Unseen Realm. Lexham Press. Bellingham ,Washington. 2015.

Cahn, Jonathan. The Return of the Gods. Frontline. Lake Mary, Florida. 2022.