What Happened to the Divine Council?
The Biblical authors portray God as ruling from his throne in heaven, surrounded by a council of heavenly beings. This ‘divine council’ appears in multiple Old Testament passages, functioning as God’s heavenly court intended to mediate his governance to all the nations. But by the time of the New Testament, this council was removed from power due to rebellion against God and was replaced by the sole authority of Christ. To ask what happened to the divine council is to trace the story from creation to the consummation of God’s kingdom in the end.
The Biblical authors portray God as ruling from his throne in heaven, surrounded by a council of heavenly beings. This ‘divine council’ appears in multiple Old Testament passages, functioning as God’s heavenly court intended to mediate his governance to all the nations. But by the time of the New Testament, this council was removed from power due to rebellion against God and was replaced by the sole authority of Christ. To ask what happened to the divine council is to trace the story from creation to the consummation of God’s kingdom in the end.
1. Divine Council in the Old Testament
The Old Testament clearly depicts a heavenly court. Psalm 82:1 declares, “God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment.” Deuteronomy 32:8-9 describes how God divided the nations according to the number of the sons of God, assigning spiritual powers over the nations while retaining Israel as his inheritance. Just a few verses later in Deuteronomy 32, those sons of God set over the nations are described as “strange gods” (Deuteronomy 32:16), demons, and gods the people had never known (Deuteronomy 32:17). Job 1-2 also portrays these heavenly beings presenting themselves before the Lord, with even the adversary (Satan) appearing among them.
The divine council should not point you to some kind of mythological Ancient Near Eastern superstition, but is presented as a picture of God’s extended oversight of the created world in heaven and on earth:
God is enthroned above all powers (Psalm 89:5-7). The psalmist declares, “The heavens praise your wonders, O LORD, your faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones.” This scene reflects God’s supreme kingship—he is incomparable even among the “sons of the mighty.” Although the divine assembly exists, Yahweh reigns as the unrivaled authority whose judgment and covenant faithfulness govern all things.
Spiritual beings participate in governance over the earth (1 Kings 22:19-23). The prophet Micaiah recounts his vision: “I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside him.” In this scene, God permits a lying spirit to influence Ahab’s prophets, demonstrating how members of the council can be tasked with carrying out divine judgment. Here, we see that the spiritual realm is critically engaged with human history and politics.
These “sons of God” were created to serve God. Psalm 82 describes God confronting these beings for their injustice: “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?” Instead of guiding the nations in righteousness, they promoted idolatry and oppression. This reflects Deuteronomy 32:17, where the nations sacrificed to “demons that were not God,” demonstrating how the council’s rebellion influenced the trajectory of the world. Their failure explains why the nations turned from their Creator to worship lesser deities and why God’s redemptive plan unfolds through Israel (cf. Deuteronomy 32:9) and ultimately through Christ.
The Divine Council worldview puts Israel’s story at the center of a cosmic power struggle, where God’s ultimate purpose is to reclaim the nations, judge rebellious powers, and establish his reign through his Messiah.
2. Rebellion of the Divine Council
Let’s look more at the council’s rebellion. Psalm 82 depicts God judging these heavenly rulers: “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?” The ‘so-called gods’ (or elohim, cf. 1 Corinthians 8:5) were meant to govern the nations under Yahweh’s authority, but they failed in their vocation, fostering injustice and idolatry on earth instead of reflecting God’s justice. Genesis 6:1-4 hints at the rebellious tendency of some divine beings when the “sons of God” (referring to divine beings in the Old Testament) transgressed boundaries and produced corruption that filled the world with violence. Daniel 10 similarly portrays cosmic powers opposing God’s purposes for the nations, with the “prince of Persia,” a heavenly power, resisting one of God’s angelic messengers, showing that spiritual opposition indeed influenced earthly kingdoms.
Three stages of rebellion emerge from the biblical texts:
Genesis 3 – the serpent’s deception. The divine tempter lured Adam and Eve to doubt God’s word, saying, “Did God actually say…?” (Genesis 3:1). This temptation introduced sin, death, and estrangement into the created order, corrupting humanity at its root and setting the stage for ongoing rebellion. The pattern of the serpent’s temptation to rebel against God in the Garden continues throughout the biblical narrative.
Genesis 6 – the sons of God corrupting humanity. These angelic beings overstepped their role by taking human women, for “the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose” (Genesis 6:2). Their union produced the Nephilim, symbolizing a breakdown of divine boundaries and spreading violence, pride, and corruption across the earth, leading to the flood. Genesis 6 demonstrates the extent of human wickedness under the influence of rebellious angels, that “every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5).
Deuteronomy 32 – nations placed under rebellious powers. After Babel, God “divided mankind” and allotted the nations “according to the number of the sons of God” (Deuteronomy 32:8), while keeping Israel as his inheritance (9). Yet these spiritual rulers turned the nations toward false worship, and verses 16-17, already mentioned, describe even Israel itself falling into idolatry by sacrificing to “demons” who are “gods they had never known.”
The council that should have reflected God’s justice instead became a source of oppression. Instead of leading creation in faithful worship, these beings twisted their authority and enslaved the nations. Their failure demanded God’s intervention, culminating in his promise to reclaim the nations through the Messiah, who would disarm the rulers and authorities and establish God’s reign over heaven and earth.
3. Divine Council and the Coming of the Messiah
Prophetic anticipation of God’s reign. The Old Testament prophets depict a future where God reclaims authority from the rebellious spiritual powers and earthly rulers alike (a heaven and earth redemption). Isaiah 24:21-23 declares that the Lord will punish both the “host of heaven” and the kings of the earth, showing that judgment comes upon the unseen realm as well as human thrones. For Isaiah, history involves rebellious spiritual beings who once sat in the divine council influencing human rebellion. Their projected downfall demonstrates that the day is coming when God alone will reign supreme over the nations, and no rival power will stand—heavenly or earthly.
The Son of Man and the Ancient of Days. Daniel 7 provides one of the clearest previews of this transfer of authority. In Daniel’s vision, the Ancient of Days sits in judgment while “one like a son of man” comes on the clouds and receives dominion, glory, and a kingdom that will never pass away. This passage has long been understood as messianic, pointing to the moment when God’s kingdom would be restored under his chosen ruler. The imagery demonstrates that the Son of Man shares in divine authority while at the same time fulfilling the role once abdicated by the rebellious members of the heavenly host. By placing Daniel 7 in direct conversation with the fate of the divine council, the text depicts the kingdom of God as coming through both judgment of the gods and the enthronement of the Messiah.
Jesus as the Son of Man. When Jesus repeatedly identified himself as the “Son of Man,” he was deliberately evoking this prophetic hope. In Mark 14:62, he told the high priest, “You will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven,” reflecting Daniel’s vision nearly word for word. This is why “the high priest tore his garments and said, ‘...You have heard his blasphemy’” (Mark 14:63-64). He understood the Son of Man as referring to God’s Messiah and his authority over all nations, even Israel. Jesus, therefore, claimed the authority once vested in rebellious divine beings and earthly kings. Further, just prior to his ascension, “Jesus came and said to [the disciples], ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me’” (Matthew 28:18), his reclamation of all authority for the Kingdom of God. The Gospels consistently show Jesus as confronting demonic powers, declaring the arrival of the kingdom of God, and pointing to the day when every rival throne would fall. The divine council’s corruption and rebellion are, therefore, answered in the exaltation of Christ, who now reigns as the true Son of Man, bringing to completion what the prophets long anticipated.
4. Triumph of Christ over the Divine Powers
With the death and resurrection of Jesus, the divine council’s role fundamentally changed. Christ’s exaltation places him “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion” (Ephesians 1:21). No spiritual being rivals his throne; all are subject to his kingship. The rebellious powers that once corrupted the nations were stripped of their legitimacy at the cross. Says Paul, “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him” (Colossians 2:15).
But what happened to the divine council? Where did they go? In short:
Its rebellious members were judged. As previously stated, the council that once stood in God’s presence was exposed for its corruption. Psalm 82:6-7 describes this moment: “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.” Christ’s death and resurrection enacted that judgment, ensuring their defeat. The council’s rebellion, visible in Genesis 6, Deuteronomy 32, and Daniel 10, is now condemned in light of the risen Christ.
Its authority over the nations was revoked. For ages, the nations were “handed over” to hostile spiritual powers. But through the cross, their claim was shattered. Revelation 12 depicts this cosmic shift by describing a great heavenly war. In its culmination, “The great dragon was thrown down to earth…and his angels [the divine council] were thrown down with him” (9). Where were they sent? Don’t miss this: to earth. What was once a heavenly dominion continues on earth as a desperate rebellion. The nations are no longer bound to idols as they are being reclaimed through the proclamation of the Gospel, but the so-called gods (1 Corinthians 8:5) or demons (Deuteronomy 32:17) continue to wage war against the Kingdom of God until they are cast into the lake of fire in the end (Revelation 20:9-15).
Its future is sealed under the reign of Christ. Jesus now reigns as the true Son of Man from Daniel 7, the one to whom the Ancient of Days granted everlasting dominion. The day is coming when “the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ” (Revelation 11:15). The hostile powers have no inheritance in the age to come—their destruction is certain. In their place, the saints who endure to the end will share Christ’s rule (2 Timothy 2:12), forming a renewed divine council. Followers of Christ are promised that they will reign with him and even “judge angels” (1 Corinthians 6:3), when redeemed humanity replaces the rebellious sons of God as God’s new divine council.
The nations once ruled by corrupt spiritual beings are now summoned into God’s kingdom through the Gospel (See The Gospel is Bigger than You Think, Ch. 4). Every baptism and every proclamation of Christ’s lordship is a declaration that the powers have lost their grip. The divine council, once rebellious and unjust, is reformed according to Christ’s triumph, as he unites heaven and earth under his everlasting reign.
5. Church Participation in the Divine Council
The New Testament portrays citizens in God’s kingdom as those who now share in Christ’s authority—he is first among many brothers (Romans 8:29). The church is therefore described as a “royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9) and as those who will have been given authority over the nations (Revelation 2:26-27). Further, in Revelation, the twenty-four elders representing the continuity of God’s people Old and New, surround God’s throne conveying divine council imagery, but now all of redeemed humanity (Revelation 5:13) joins in this chorus in heaven (Revelation 5:9). The very role once associated with angelic beings has been expanded to include those united to Christ by faith.
Practical implications include:
Mission: proclaiming the Gospel to the nations once ruled by hostile powers. Jesus sent his disciples to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19), reclaiming the peoples once divided at Babel and placed under rebellious sons of God. Every church plant, every translated Bible, every baptism is a blow against the former dominion of the powers, showing that Christ now has claim over the nations as his inheritance (Psalm 2:8).
Discipleship: living as those already seated with Christ in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). Christians are not merely waiting for future authority but already share in Christ’s reign. This means resisting the allure of idols, practicing holiness, and embodying God’s justice in daily life. The church is a visible sign that Christ has replaced the corrupt council with a people redeemed by his blood and empowered by his Spirit. Let us therefore live as such.
Hope: anticipating the final judgment when all rebellious beings are cast down (Revelation 20:10). Christ-followers live in expectation that Christ’s present reign will culminate in the full defeat of Satan and every hostile power. When the saints “judge angels” (1 Corinthians 6:3), the reversal of the rebellion that began in Genesis will be completed. With the Holy Spirit, this hope sustains the church through persecution and spiritual conflict, knowing that their destiny is to reign with Christ in the new creation (Revelation 21-22).
The question of what happened to the divine council finds is answered by the reign of Christ. The Old Testament depicts a heavenly assembly entrusted with mediating God’s rule, yet these beings failed in their vocation and were judged. In the New Testament, their authority is broken at the cross and displaced by the risen Son of Man. Far from disappearing into myth, the divine council is redefined; its rebellious members condemned, its power dismantled, and its role inherited by Christ and those united to him. From Psalm 82’s judgment to Revelation’s vision of redeemed humanity around God’s throne, the story is is that Christ is enthroned in glory, his people sharing in his reign, and every rival power comes to destruction. The Gospel proclaims forgiveness of sins, yes, but also the cosmic reality that Jesus has reclaimed the nations, replacing the failed council with his church as the new assembly of God.
