Thursday, June 27, 2024

Paulus Wyns (Christadelphian) on the "sons of God" in Job 1-2 being members of the divine court

In his commentary on the book of Daniel, Paulus Wyns argues that the "sons of God" in Daniel and Job 1-2 are members of the heavenly court; that may be mundane, but  author is a Christadelphian, and that is a minority interpretation in the community (due to their rejection of a supernatural Satan, they often tend to interpret "sons of God" in Job 1-2 as members of the believing community or some other 'mortal' interpretation):

 

Four in the Fire

 

The three companions were cast into the furnace when to Nebuchadnezzar’s astonishment they were joined by a fourth figure “like the Son of God”:

 

“Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the from of the fourth is like the Son of God.” (Dan. 3:25)

 

The “Son of God” (NKJ) is translated more precisely as “a son of the gods” (RSV/NIB/JPS/YLT), this figure is equated with an Angel in the doxology of Dan 3:28 (God . . . sent His Angel) and is a member of the divine council (cf. Job 1:6; 2:1), perhaps this is the Angel of the presence known as the Holy one of Israel; . . . (Paulus Wyns, God is Judge: A Commentary on the Book of Daniel [Biblaridion Media, 2011], 84)