Henotheism and Monolatry are things you may see thrown out as descriptions (although neither are what I adhere to) when others don't know the concept of the Divine Council. Michael Heiser is with Logos Bible Software and his skills in the field of Near Eastern culture are nothing to play with, so he is very prominent within the Evangelical World.
Of course, due to some of his views which may be more controversial because it goes against a lot of the older thoughts of Fundamentalist/Dogmatic camps within Evangelical culture that had a very limited understanding, it has led to some battles. Any kind of similarity of thought to other camps which are not endorsed is automatically interpreted as being the exact same thing - similar to others saying "Birds have wing" and then seeing others say "You can't say Birds have wings to fly since that'd mean they're like PLANES or Bats - they have wings too!!!".....people can't understand nuance of thought or similarity. This has come up a couple of times whenever people in the world of Mormonism try to reference his work outside of the Judaic context he made it in when they push their ideology - and
he has addressed this a couple of times, even though many Evangelicals don't know it....so Heiser and other Evangelicals against Mormonism speak out for clarity in one camp while the Fundamentalist Evangelicals in another label Heisner/the Evangelicals with him as somehow supporting Mormonism - a radically different concept from Christianity that is Biblical/consistent on several levels (more shared here in
Search results for "Mormonism" | Dr. Michael Heiser ) since both are seeking to deal with Gnosticism and Arianism (condemned as heretical in the Church).
However, you don't see that battle as much within the world of Orthodoxy. They largely don't care since their focus is that a lot of what has happened in Evangelical Christia
nity is simply a battle of reinventing what they already laid out - yet still get no credit for. And Orthodoxy understands this concept and the immense magnitude of God in many ways stronger than other camps in Christendom. For when reading the Word, of course we realize that the language of "gods" is used to refer to those who were in authority/rank in the heavenlies (angels, spirits, etc),
Job 1:5-7,
2 Corinthians 4:4,
2 Peter 2:10-12,
Jude 1:8,
1 John 5:19,
Ephesians 2:2,
Ephesians 6:11-13,
Daniel 9:1,
John 12:30-32,
John 16:10-12,
Colossians 1:15-17,
Colossians 2:14-16 ...
I've mentioned elsewhere how I've always been fascinated with the way the TORAH often describes things within the Heavenly/Angelic realms....and when it comes to the Torah/seeing the dynamics of it, I'm amazed at how often it seems that many divorce what is discussed in the scientific realm from it as if they have no connections. To me, it has always been amazing to see how sci-fi the angelic realm can seem at times----especially when seeing the many descriptions of angels. Some to consider, starting with
Daniel 10:5-6
Isaiah 6:2
Ezekiel 1:4-14
Ezekiel 10:20-21
Revelation 10:1
2 Kings 2:11
Revelation 4:8a
2 Kings 6:17
When reading the Word, it has many of the descriptions of many angels is reminiscent of some of the critters that the science-fiction genre comes up with….as it relates to how they were described in the Word of God & how often their prescence alone was enough to inspire awe in men/to the point of worshipping them...from having wheels (As in Ezekiel,
Ezekiel 1:19-21,
Ezekiel 3:12-14 ,
Ezekiel 10:18-20 ,
Ezekiel 11:21-23, etc) to having jewels all over their bodies (as in
Daniel 9-10,
Daniel 10:1 )....from the seraphs with SIX wings in
Isaiah 6:2/
Isaiah 6:1-3to the creature in Revelation with MULTIPLE EYES (
Revelation 4:7-9 & 4
Revelation 5:5-7 ) .......Or the Angel of Death that punished David/Jerusalem (
1 Chronicles 21:15-17/
1 Chronicles 21 ) and MANY others too numerous to place here in this thread.
The point is that just as it is with Dragon Ball universe, there is IMMENSE diversity....and of course, I believe 100% Christ has dominion over them all
Colossians 2:15
. 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.[e]
Colossians 1:15-21
The Supremacy of the Son of God
15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
I am thankful for how the Orthodox people I run with understand that in the Old Testament, the heavenly or divine council is the host of angels surrounding God, “advising” Him...and we can see this theme in Job 1–2, 1 Kings 22, and so on, even though the concept was also seen in Genesis 1-2. ...and mankind is meant to become a part of that Council (T
heosis - or the idea of God in the form of Christ becoming a man so that through Him men might become gods).
A
s another noted best:
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth—but only the earth was without form, void, and dark. God spends six days forming, filling, and brightening the earth, bringing it closer to the fullness of its heavenly model.
Man is called in Genesis 2:4 the “generations of the heavens and the earth.” He is the son of the Spirit of God (heaven) and the dust of the ground (earth). As he grows in communion with God, he will pull the material creation with him. This is why Christ in 1 Corinthians 15 is the heavenly man.
God made a soulish body in Genesis 2, but the resurrected body is a spiritual body. It is fully animated by the Holy Spirit, and Christ as Last Adam brings the whole creation up with him.
Angels are the persons inhabiting the heavenly realm.
They have a single free choice, after which their will is fixed. They are fully in communion with God (angels) or fully wicked (demons). They don’t change or mature or repent. This is why, after all, they are neither married nor given in marriage. God creates them as a host.
By contrast, God creates a single man, pulls a woman from his side, and commands man to gradually multiply into a host. Hence, in the eschaton, man is “like the angels.” The human race is fully mature, it has reached the fullness of its population, and the creation is fully glorified. Christ, as in Ephesians 1, has united heaven and earth in himself. This is the goal towards which the whole Bible strains, from Genesis through Revelation. In Genesis 1, God addresses His council. This is why God says “let us.” This ought not to be opposed to the Trinitarian reading, because the plurality of God is the very foundation for God’s communion with created persons.
Created persons are incorporated into the intercommunion of the divine persons. We see another “plural” passage in Isaiah 6, where it is clearly God addressing His council. The council-reading is the foundation for what we read in Job—as God was creating the world, the angels (sons of God) were singing for joy by His side.
The Elders of the Apocalypse, 13th century fresco. The Crypt of St Magnus, St Mary Cathedral, Anagni. Italy, 13th century.