Who Are Elohim In The Bible? by Dennis Regling

Who Are Elohim In The Bible?

The word most often used for God in the Hebrew Bible is Elohim. Many think elohim is a name for God, but as we shall see, the word and its usage in the Bible is not a name for God.

"Elohim" is found 2602 times in the Hebrew Old Testament. The Hebrew word elohim can be singular or plural, just as our English word “deer” can denote one or several deer. When referring to the creator God elohim is capitalized.

Elohim is used to denote the true God. (Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 2:3; Psalm 50:1) It is also used in reference to false or foreign gods and goddesses. (Exodus 20:3; 32:1 Psalm 82:1) It is used of angels (supernatural spirits) in Psalm 8:6; 97:7; 138:1.

In 1 Samuel 28:13, Samuel's afterlife appearance before the witch of Endor was called an elohim. “And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods (elohim) ascending out of the earth. “

Moses was referred to as an elohim in Exodus 4:16 and 7:1. Moses was not a god, but he was God’s representative and in this role, he was considered to be standing in the role of an elohim. Exodus 7:1 ”And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god (elohim) to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.”

The shoftim (judges-governors) were called elohim in Exodus 21:6; 22:7, 8, 27. ”Then his master shall bring him unto the judges (elohim); he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.” Exodus 21:6

In Psalm 45:7, the Messianic king is referred to as an elohim. Then again, we know that Jesus was God. He was not just an elohim, he was the Elohim, the creator God.

When we see the word God (capital G), we tend to assign certain attributes to that word. The attributes of the highest God, the God of Genesis 1:1. However, as already shown, the word itself does not carry those attributes, rather the context of its usage determines who or what is being discussed.

When used of the true God, "Elohim" denotes what is called by linguists a plural of majesty, honor, or fullness. That is, he is GOD in the fullest sense of the word. He is "GOD of gods" or literally, "ELOHIM of elohim" (Deut 10:17; Ps 136:2). “For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward: “ Deuteronomy 10:17

About 250 times elohim designates angels (non-human servants of the one God) or foreign, pagan deities. The Bible affirms that many beings exist in the same "elohim class" as the one supreme Elohim. That is, there are supernatural, semi-divine beings other than God. So "elohim" seems to mean simply "Deity" or "deity(ies)." And the term does not, inherently, tell us if they are good or evil.

The first of the Ten Commandments says, "I am YHVH your Elohim . . . you shall have no other elohim in my presence" (Exod 20:2-3).

In Scripture individual gods and one goddess, such as Dagon, Chemosh, Baal, Ashtoreth, can be called an elohim (1 Samuel 5:7; 1 Kings 11:33; 18:24; 1 Kings 11:5).

In the Bible, God is the fulness, greatness, or totality of deity. In him reside all the powers and manifestations embodied in the word "God." To call him Elohim emphasizes his supreme stature as deity. He is also supreme Lord (Adonim) over all human creation. But his sovereignty is also personally experienced by a faithful child of his, who can call him "my LORD" (Adonai).

Throughout the Hebrew Bible, God is known as Elohim in relation to non-Israelites. To his covenant people he further revealed himself through his personal name (YHVH). Then, in the New Testament, he expanded the revelation of his covenant name through his Messiah who wore his name in person.

God is the Elohim of elohim. Only he is worthy of praise and worship. However, understanding the meaning and usage of the word “elohim” is important to understanding the Bible.

Dennis Regling is available to teach and preach at your church or event. Dennis is an evangelist and author. His webpage is https://www.bibledefender.com

The Danger of Patchwork Preaching by Dennis Regling

The Danger of Patchwork Preaching by Dennis Regling

Like a patchwork quilt, many preachers take a piece of scripture here and a piece of scripture there and sew them together into what passes as a sermon.
The method is simple and common. The preacher decides what topic he would like to preach on. He decides what points he wants to make. Then, he goes through the Bible(or uses his concordance) and finds verses on that subject which he can use to make his points.
For example, he may decide his church needs to hear about hospitality, so he'll look for verses about hospitality and build a sermon about them. Taking them out of context, but because he is quoting scripture, his audience will believe they have heard a message from God's Word.
Almost every sermon about hell includes Jesus' account of the Rich Man & Lazarus.  Yet, if you look at the context, you will see Jesus was not warning about hell. He was teaching about, and exposing the religious leaders' hypocrisy. Yes, hell is real and is mentioned, but hell is not the message. Does this mean we can't learn anything about hell from this account? No. But, we also need to teach what is being taught, and not build messages around the periphery.
When writing a sermon, or doing a study, verses need to be looked at in their complete context. It must be established what the topic of the passage the verse is found in is. The audience needs to be identified, and how they would receive the message. Other portions of scripture where the writer uses the same phrases should be examined, in order to understand what the writer is saying.
One of the worst types of patchwork preaching only uses one patch. This is called textual preaching. A textual sermon allows you to teach themes that are important to you, but that the Scripture does not specifically address.
Textual preaching will take one verse, or one small section of scripture, and turn it into a message that has no relationship to the context of the scripture. One example, and sadly a popular one, is  1 Samuel 17:29 "And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?"  One example of this method is here: Is There Not A Cause ?
Preachers will take this one verse and then preach for an hour on whatever cause is dear to them at the moment.  Perhaps raising money for a building project or starting a new ministry in the church. Maybe teaching men they need to find their cause. All these things may be noble, but they in no way reflect the message of 1 Samuel 17.
This type of preaching is very dangerous to the listener and to the health of the church. It can cause the preacher to hold onto pre-conceived ideas, even if they are wrong. These ideas are then passed on to the congregation.
Many times  when patchwork preaching is used, the preacher will ignore the parts of the Bible that are messy and not as clean as “life topics”. Not only does the quality of the preaching suffer, but the depth of the preaching, too.
When patchwork sermons are regularly preached in a church, people may think that this is how you find God’s truth. If you’re struggling with something, you open the concordance, grab five verses and try to apply them even if they don’t fit. Weird theology develops as a result, and the individual has only learned how to improperly read the Bible. As preachers, pastors and teachers, our goal should be to give people the tools to study the Bible themselves and learn the truth that God intended there to be.
Patchwork preaching also presents the danger of people not relying on the Bible for truth. Too often, patchwork sermons rely on humorous stories, anecdotes, and cute illustrations for the meat of a sermon. If most of what is said is coming from sources outside of the Bible, then the person listening is probably hearing that it’s okay to look outside the Bible for truth for their lives.
We see way too many Christians getting their theology from Christian best-sellers rather than from the Bible. The pastor is quoting extra-biblical authors, so that becomes the method used by the congregation. The best illustrations for preaching will always come from the Bible itself, not from the local Christian bookstore.
Additionally, patchwork preaching creates a congregation that is Biblically illiterate. Fifty years ago, talking about a Bible story would have instant familiarity in our culture. Today, that is no longer the case. People do not know about certain stories, histories, or even famous biblical characters.
As preachers stop preaching scripture, in context, with appropriate background instruction, Bible illiteracy grows in the church. We end up with anemic Christians, never growing in the Spirit and failing to have a rock-solid scriptural foundation for their lives.
When the preaching suffers, the entire church suffers. We see churches start compromising on truth and individuals compromising on sin. We see churches become nothing more than social clubs, tossed around by the waves of popular culture, rather than standing firm on truth.
Let us put away patchwork preaching.

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Can we know our Bible accurately records what the writers wrote?

Can we know our Bible accurately records what the writers wrote?

We have over 5600 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, more than any other ancient work. Add to that the early translations into other languages of the New Testament and the early commentaries of the "church fathers," quoting the Bible. The entire New Testament could be reconstructed just from these commentaries.
The average classical Greek authors have fewer than 20 copies of their work still in existence, (usually less than 6).
We have manuscripts that date back to within a 100 years or so of the original writing. Other ancient manuscripts have no copies closer than 800 years, more or less, from original authorship. No other book is more widely attested to than the Bible.
There is no doubt that we can know what the originals said with great certainty. The influence of the Bible is also clearly demonstrated by the vast number of manuscripts.

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Why Did Jesus Refer To Himself As The "Son of Man?"

Who Is The Son Of Man?
If Jesus was the Son of God, why did He call Himself the Son of Man (Matthew 20:18; 24:30)?
This sounds like some kind of contradiction at first glance, but in fact there is no contradiction. An examination of Scripture reveals that the phrase "Son of Man" carries broad significance.

Matthew 24:30-31  "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

Matthew 20:18 "Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death,"

Matthew 20:28 "Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."

Matthew 16:13 "When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?"

When questioned by the high priest as to whether he was the Christ, Jesus again referred to himself as the Son of Man. A statement the priest instantly recognized as Jesus saying he was more than a man, he was the very Son of Man referred to in the Book of Daniel.

Mark 14: 60-65 "And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, saying, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witnesses?  Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.  And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands."

Daniel 7:13-14  "I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed."

This Son of Man was to rule and be glorified. Jesus was saying he was this Son of Man. It actually is a claim to deity, since all these things given to the Son of Man belong only to God. Indeed, Jesus was saying he was equal with God. As Christians we understand this as part of the Trinity of God. The Jews were not Trinitarian, but they were binatarians. They saw the "Angel of God,," in the Old Testament as God, incarnate. Such as when God visited Abraham, and in several other parts of the Bible. See: http://twopowersinheaven.com

This was blasphemy, in the eyes of the religious leaders who did not recognize Jesus was exactly who he said he was.

Enemies of the faith say that Jesus never claimed a special heavenly status or kingship for Himself. But, as we have seen, when Jesus calls Himself “Son of Man,” He is claiming to be sovereign over all things.

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All scriptures from the KJV

When The Whole World Heard The Gospel: Matthew 24 Fulfilled.

In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 24, known as the Olivet Discourse, the disciples have asked Jesus when the temple would be destroyed. Jesus said the destruction of the temple, and Jerusalem, would come when the gospel of the kingdom had been preached to all the world.
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." Matthew 24:14
Has this prophesy been fulfilled? Was the gospel of the kingdom preached "in all the world" before the destruction of Jerusalem?
I’ve checked the Olivet Discourse in all three gospels, and the disciples never ask about when Jesus is going to establish His kingdom. They ask about when the temple will be destroyed, and in Matthew’s gospel, additionally, about the end of the age, which was in the process of passing away (Heb. 1:1-2; 9:26-27; 1 Cor. 10:11).
Hebrews 1:1-2  "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;"
Hebrews 9:26-27 "For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:" This is the end of the world as the Jews knew. The end of the age - the end of the old covenant and the beginning of the new covenant.
1 Corinthians 10:11 "Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come." The ends of the "world," or the age, was coming on those who were the recipients of Paul's letter. "The ends of the world are come," not "will come." It was a present and looming event. (Emphasis mine.)
The word translated "world" in Matthew 24:14 is oikoumenē not kosmos. The same word is used in Luke 2:1, where it says, "And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed." Comparing the scriptures, it is clear that the understanding of the word "world" does not mean the world as we know it, but rather, the known world of Jesus' time.
"The ecumene (US) or oecumene (UK; Greek: οἰκουμένη, oikouménē, lit. "inhabited") was an ancient Greek term for the known world, the inhabited world, or the habitable world. Under the Roman Empire, it came to refer to civilization and the secular and religious imperial administration." Ecumene - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecumene
So we must ask, was the gospel of the kingdom preached in all the world?
We know from the epistles that this prediction had been fulfilled before the destruction of Jerusalem that took place in AD 70 (Rom. 1:8; Rom. 16:25–26; Col. 1:6, 23; 1 Tim. 3:16).
Romans 1:8 "First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world." When Paul wrote to the Romans, he commended them that their faith was known and spoken of "throughout the whole world." Does this mean that the Chinese and the natives of the Americas had heard of the faith of the Romans? No. It spoke of the known world, the same one Jesus spoke of. This is the only way the first century disciples could have understood these words.
Romans 16:25-26 "Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:"  Again, Paul says that the gospel was made known to all nations. Not "will be," but "now is made manifest." It was finished then, not in the future.
Colossians 1:6 "Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth:" Again, as it is in all the world. It was a present and known thing, not a future event.
1 Timothy 3:16 "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." Christ had been preached unto the Gentiles and believed on "in the world," not in part of the world. Certainly, not the world as we know it today, but the world as known to those who received Paul's letter. The world as known to Jesus' audience.
Luke’s version does mention the kingdom. But notice the audience reference: “So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.” (Luke 21:31). The kingdom of God was near to them: “when YOU see these things.” Jesus said that those very disciples hearing his words would see these things that were leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. He did NOT say, "when THEY see these things."
John the Baptist had proclaimed, as the forerunner to Jesus’ ministry, “And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2). We know that the word “near” means “near,” not some distant time in the future. In fact, the context of Luke 21 confirms this.
Luke 21:30 "When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand." Jesus wasn't saying that when the leaves appeared on the fig tree that summer is at some undisclosed, far future time. He said it was coming then.
Jesus follows this promise with the following: “Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.” Luke 21:32. "This generation" is always a reference to the generation to whom Jesus was speaking.
It is certainly a sad tragedy that hysterical speculators on Bible prophecy would take those signs of Matthew 24, that have to do solely with the destruction of ancient Jerusalem, and attempt to give them a modern application in the context of a world war!
Jesus was addressing the people of his time. The end of the age was when the temple was destroyed by the Romans in A.D 70. This was a pivotal time in age of the Sadducees , the Pharisees and fledgling Christianity. The Sadducees eventually faded out, the Pharisees morphed in Rabbinical Judaism and dispersed. Christianity ceased to be seen as a sect of Judaism, but as a distinct religious system.
Jesus' words were true and came to pass as he prophesied.

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All scriptures from the KJV

Where Will You Be When Jesus Shuts The Door?

The Bible is clear, Jesus Christ will return for his church. Yet, there is much confusion about what happens when Jesus returns.
When studying eschatology, the end times, it seems most folks want to go straight to the books of Daniel and Revelation. They go to books filled with prophetic language, and tend to skip over the plain words of Jesus and the apostles.
I am all for studying the whole Bible, but prophetic language is often confusing. To the average reader, it can be difficult to differentiate between literal and symbolic language.
I believe it is better, by far, to read the Gospels and epistles first. Read the plain words and get an understanding of what they say about the end times and use that understanding when we move into the prophetic books.
"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.  But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.  Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." Matthew 25:1-13
You will notice, when the bridegroom came, "they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. " The door was shut.
This reminds me of the account of Noah's ark. "And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord shut him in." Genesis 7:16 As soon as Noah and his family had entered the ark with the animals, God shut the door. That was the end of opportunity for those outside the ark.
Notice in Matthew 25, the bridegroom says,"Verily I say unto you, I know you not."
In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus says, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
Of course, Genesis never says anyone else even had the chance to enter the ark. The world was filled with unrighteousness and they could not enter in. God could say even to them, "Depart from me, I never knew you."
Jesus identifies himeself as the bridegroom. When the Lord comes, those with the oil in the lamp, those who love the Lord and are prepared and anxious for his coming will be with him. Then the door will shut. The scripture is clear, there is no second chance.
When Jesus comes, the door will be closed. This world ends. There remains only eternity. Those who Christ knows, those who are saved will enter into eternity with Christ. Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us that when he returns, we will be with him forever.
"And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." John 14:3
Those who are not his, those who have lived their lives in iniquity and rejected the Gospel of Jesus Christ will be shut out for eternity. No second chance. They have no oil in their lamp and will depart into eternal darkness. The Bible is clear.
Some folks have a convolated eschatology that teaches Jesus returns for the church and then those that remain have a period of time where some folk will still have the opportunity to believe and be saved. Then Jesus returns once more. There is no place in scripture that teaches this. There are only two ages, in scripture. The present age and the age to come.
"But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life." Mark 10:30
Jesus makes it clear their are only two ages: this age and the age to come. The KJV uses the word "world." This is translated from the Greek word "aiōni." Aiōni merans age. It's the word we get eon from. The KJV is correct, there are two worlds. This present world and the new heavens and earth.
In Matthew 12:32, Jesus also makes it clear their are only two ages or worlds. "And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come."
This current age is going to end. This tells us the next age is eternity. There is only this world, and the eternal world. When Jesus, the bridegroom comes, this world ends. The door is shut and we all step into eternity. There is no other age, no other space of time between the coming of Jesus and eternity.
Today is the day of salvation.
"Thus saith the Lord, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;" Isaiah 49:8
"For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 6:2
Will you be ready when the bridegroom returns?

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Building Bible Doctrine On The White Spaces

Are we to build our doctrine on the white spaces between verses or on what the Bible actually says?

John Macarthur, preaching on Revelation, says, "Now we come to chapter 4, and we leave the Church Age. People always say, “Where, where does the rapture come in?” it’s in the white spaces between chapter 3 and 4. Yeah, the church on earth in chapter 2 and 3, and all of a sudden, we appear in heaven, and I want you to see what happens. The theme of Heaven is worship. We go from earth to heaven."

I have a real problem when doctrine is built on the "white space" between verses. We need to compare scripture to scripture, not white space to white space. When you build doctrine on what is not said, you are building on inference and even imagination.

We need to read what the Bible says. Every word is given for a reason. If something is not clearly stated, then there is a reason for that. The devil is in the "white spaces."

Source of quote: https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/1290/a-jet-tour-through-revelation

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