Lesson 6: A War of Dirt
Here is a lesson which will be the most challenging for those coming from Christian traditions, but hopefully enlightening for beginners to the faith as well as stalwarts looking to break the molasses filled webs of churchianity from their minds. In the wake of the Tower of Babel it becomes necessary to take a closer look at these rebellious spiritual beings I’ve been referring to in the last few lessons. Let’s start with a shotgun blast to the face with a verse I almost guarantee you’ve either never read or only ever glossed over without giving the passage much thought:
Let his mind be changed from a man’s, and let a beast’s mind be given to him; and let seven periods of time pass over him.
The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.’
Daniel 4:17-18
Now what the heck is a Watcher, and why are they declaring things with authority by their own authority in God’s name? This is a pretty striking verse as we see beings of power serving God, but with significant power in their own right. We can get further clues in Daniel chapter 10.
I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.
His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude…
…And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly loved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for now I have been sent to you.” And when he had spoken this word to me, I stood up trembling.
Then he said to me, “Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and humbled yourself before your God, your words have been heard, and I have come because of your words.
The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days, but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I was left there with the kings of Persia,
and came to make you understand what is to happen to your people in the latter days. For the vision is for days yet to come…”
…Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I go out, behold, the prince of Greece will come.
But I will tell you what is inscribed in the book of truth: there is none who contends by my side against these except Michael, your prince.
Daniel 10:5-21
This passage is overflowing with knowledge and implications as such we will be revisiting it multiple times as we progress through this very brief dalliance through the Bible. Daniel chapter ten to the end of the book is a rare glimpse beyond the spiritual veil of combat in the metaphysical realms, and as such is very enlightening.
The Prince of Babylon here is obviously not a man as he is contenting with powerful angelic beings, or as our next verse refers to as gods, and battling them to a standstill in an attempt to halt the word of the lord from being shared with Daniel. The frightening thing about this is how effective the tactic was. This Prince is so powerful he can hold the messenger of God whose mere presence causes earthquakes and sends men running and screaming like little girls in the kiddie pool when a code brown is announced. This freak’s attack is so intense he makes this powerhouse of an angel call for backup. That’s a level of power and combat we humans won’t fully grasp until we ascend ourselves.
It’s important to point out that this wayward god prince of darkness ruling over Babylon fails at his task, but is able to delay the prophecy for 21 days. I share this as a side note when dealing with spiritual warfare, and why prayer and active prayer is so important. As we can see, and have mentioned in previous lessons, though the enemies of God are unable to challenge the Almighty and have been defeated multiple times, that doesn’t mean they are powerless.
Imagine that you are in Daniel’s position, but now are in a life and death struggle perhaps in war or a disaster. Now you are unfortunate enough to gain the erie of the enemy and they focus on delaying God’s servants from acting on your behalf. Do you think you can survive long enough? Can you survive 21 days, a number we have proof in the Bible is possible when the powers of darkness put their mind to destruction and disruption, waiting on God’s aid?
I say this to mean you should have been praying for protection over yourself, and your loved ones at least that far in advance. You should be praying as if your life depends on it. Because, if you are fighting the good fight, it does depend on your connection to the Almighty and the Kingdom of Heaven. Without that protection the enemy wouldn’t hesitate to kill all the servants of God who he viewed as incorruptible. The Devil doesn’t play fair, and he doesn’t mess around. Only God’s protection keeps us alive in this war of gods and Heavenly Beings. Never forget that.
Now let’s get back to Watchers and Principalities of darkness. We can see that people groups are put under the authority of Heavenly Beings or gods as the ancient called them, or in the case of Fallen Watchers and dark gods given over to them because of the people’s rebellious desires. We can see this with the lines about “The prince of Greece” and “Prince of Persia” as well as Micheal who is the only named principality in this fight who is loyal Son of God, and whose authority is over Israel and thus Daniel’s Prince which is why he joined the combat to aid the messenger’s fight.
With that there seems to also be a physical territory element to the principalities authority as the Prince of Persia is the one that acts before the Prince of Greece since Daniel is physically in enemy territory, in Persia. We can bolster this idea of Principalities’ authority being tied not just to people groups, but with the physical creation as well in other passages.
Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and he came and stood before him. And he said, “Behold, I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel; so accept now a present from your servant.”
But he said, “As the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will receive none.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused.
Then Naaman said, “If not, please let there be given to your servant two mule loads of earth, for from now on your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god but the LORD.
In this matter may the LORD pardon your servant: when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, leaning on my arm, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon your servant in this matter.”
Tools
He said to him, “Go in peace.”
2 Kings 5:15-19
As you can see Naaman seems to think he needs physical dirt from Israel to worship God properly. This is because at this point in the Biblical Narrative God has chosen his portion to watch over as Israel, his portion of the nations the descendants of Abraham, and their physical territory in old Palestine. So Naaman living in Syria is in the physical territory of a Principality in rebellion to God which seems to go by the nam Rimmon, and thus feels the need to bring a portion of God’s territory back with him to worship properly as well as a pardon for walking in the dark god’s temple when with his king. Hence bringing dirt from Israel with him.
Moreover, if we apply what we learned in the first few chapters of Genesis we can see the ties to territorial combat and control. Remember what mankind was made to do. We were made to expand the Kingdom of Heaven, God’s authority, over the entirety of the Earth so that all would be God’s portion like the Garden of Eden, God’s center of power in the physical realm.
This war started over a territory dispute, and remains one of territory as much as souls. A fact further demonstrated in Psalms as God brings the rebellious principalities, dark gods, and Fallen Watchers to judgment.
A Psalm of Asaph.
God has taken his place in the divine council;
in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
“How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, like men you shall die,
and fall like any prince.”
Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for you shall inherit all the nations!
Psalms 82
“You are gods and the son of the most high” connects neatly to the rebellious entities that mixed with mankind like horny aliens out of a B rated horror movie. They are being brought to account for their poor treatment of the nations under their authority, and God is passing judgment. To make them die “like men” or “any prince”, and then God will “inherit all the nations” their peoples and territory. Earth and her nations are coveted by God their creator. His rebellious sons act as gods to these peoples in an attempt to claim creation for themselves.
What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything?
No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons.
You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.
Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?
1 Corinthians 10:19-22
Here we see Paul finish our puzzle. He makes it clear, even in the New Testament, that though idols are fake the beings they represent are very much real and in conflict with God. If we apply this to what we just learned about watchers, territory, and spiritual warfare from the Old Testament we get a picture of pagan gods not being fake, but rather rebellious sons of God the Almighty usurping the Lord’s authority.
This idea is reflected in many pagan traditions themselves including the Greeks who’s mythology revolves around the three major gods, Zues, Hades, and Poseidon, turning on their father Kronos. In their false narrative they win and manage to destroy their father creating the Titans in the process most of whom are destroyed and whose essence is mixed with mankind.
These lies are almost as sinister as they are laughable. I’d often wondered why the Greek gods in the narrative would do this as this obviously gives man the essence of their enemy, but if we see this as them attempting to explain away why man is made in the image of the God they supposedly destroyed the story makes much more sense. You can almost hear the preening of the gamma insisting he won. Secret god king wins again!
So who are the fallen Watcher cronies of the Devil who live in this world at his beck and call? They are rebellious gods who have stolen the Almighty’s glory and praise for themselves as well as his creation taking on the persona of gods in mythologies across the world in their given territories to do so.
You literally do face the old pagan gods and their minions when you contend with evil. That isn’t to say these mythologies are gospel. As we just pointed out they are ridden with lies, but they can be telling as you see themes sprinkled throughout the mythologies of similar beings demanding the same types of worship under different names and guises. This is why a distrust of foreign religions should be practiced. Whether they are nice, tolerant, or seem cool to you doesn’t matter. They serve a god who is at war with yours and hates you, and are not just after your souls but the land you stand on. Never forget that.
At Babel the nations were given over to their desire to be free of God and thus were taken over by the rebellious sons of god. This however will not be the end of the story. God still has a savior to bring into the world to crush the Devil’s head, and slap his rebellious watchers to the curb. So now God will claim from the nations his portion through which the salvation of the world will be birthed. Next week we get introduced to a fellow named Abraham in a world disowned by it’s creator and claimed by freaks.
Question 1: With the possibility of demonic and fallen angelic beings acting as gods to mankind can you think of any mythological story that takes on a far more sinister air in your eyes with this knowledge?
Question 2: Ancient cultures often didn’t believe that idols were alive themselves, but rather were possessed by the entity that they represented during certain ceremonies and rights. Can you think of some urban legends about possessed dolls and such that take on a far more sinister tone in retrospect?
Question 3: Does realizing that the spiritual battle is as much tied to the dirt beneath your feet as your soul change the way you perceive the world? The way you pray? Or how you see historical events?
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