Thanks for stopping by!

I, for one, really enjoyed an Evangelical scholar trying to understand how his research does or does not help the Mormon viewpoint.

This post was totally different from what one usually reads on apologetics blogs. Enjoyed it.

Dr. Johnson C. Philip
India

Although there are not any council scenes that are quite as dramatic as the dialogue which I referenced to above between Yahweh and Moses in Ex. 32.7-14, I would consider the depiction and actions found in Isaiah 6 to fall within the purview of the general semantic meaning I originally intended by using the verb “counsel,” especially since I would consider Isaiah himself to be a member of the council in Isaiah 6.

And thanks for your link. I am impressed by the number of comments there!

Best wishes,

TYD

http://www.millennialstar.org/2006/03/22/what-did-god-know-and-when-did-he-know-it/

That said, I’m not aware of a text with God actually seeking counsel in the council, so much as volunteers and implementation, as in Isaiah 6.

Thanks for stopping by.

There is an interesting tradition found in many biblical texts that affirms that Yahweh consults with others and considers their voice despite the fact that he is eminently more powerful and knowledgeable than they. This is especially evident in those texts where Yahweh reasons or dialogues with a prophet and, at times, even changes his intended course of action after hearing their argument(s). As one example, consider Exodus 32.7-14 (NRSV) which records a dialogue between Yahweh and Moses after the people of Israel–whom Yahweh had just powerfully delivered from Egypt–worshiped and offered sacrifices to a golden calf:

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshipped it and sacrificed to it, and said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” ’ The Lord said to Moses, ‘I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.’

But Moses implored the Lord his God, and said, ‘O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, “It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth”? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, “I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it for ever.” ’ And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.”

Here Yahweh is depicted as very angry with Israel and intends to “consume” them and to raise up a “great nation” from Moses instead; but Moses pleads with Yahweh to “turn” from his anger and to not destroy the people of Israel since the Egyptians would deride the situation and because Yahweh had made certain promises to Israel’s progenitors.

I think it is important not to commit the fallacy of historical collapse and to retroject certain modern notions of “omniscience” (whatever that might mean) onto biblical texts where no such view is held. The important question is, what view(s) did the Israelites hold concerning God’s knowledge, and did such (a) view(s) preclude Yahweh from consulting with others? I would suggest that at least some of their texts strongly suggest that it did not.

What possible information could be imparted from this assemblage of heavenly beings to an all knowing Yahweh?

Do we turn our backs on logic?