The Nations on Trial: Rosh Hashanah and the Divine Council
A close reading of the Book of Job provides an overlooked connection between the nations, judgment, and the fall holidays of the Bible.
At the beginning of the Book of Job, we are given a rare glimpse of the Heavenly court in session. We read:
One day the Divine beings presented themselves before G_D, and the Adversary came along with them. - Job 1:6
The impulse is to explore the identity of the Adversary (השטן the Satan), or philosophize on the life and worldview of Job.
Instead, there is something more enduring, and often overlooked, to take notice of.
When: Yom HaDin
The text gives us important details on the when, who, and why, and they are still as relevant today as ever.
Two details matter for context.
First, Jewish tradition identifies the day mentioned as Rosh Hashanah. Also known as Yom haDin (the Day of Judgment¹), this is the day the world is brought into yearly judgment.
This is a major holiday on the Jewish calendar, which is preceded by a 40-day period of repentance and soul-accounting². As far as I know, the Christian calendar has no equivalent holiday in this fall timeframe.
Who: The Divine Council
The second detail: the text tells us the Divine beings were assembled in the courtroom. The Divine beings are Angels:
"and the angels of G_D came to stand beside the Lord" to contend with Him, because the expression of standing refers only to judgment - Rashi on Job 1:6
But these are not just any Angels. The Hebrew tells us these are the Benei Elokim (האלה-ים). They are known as the Divine Council, and we've covered them in more depth in a separate work³.
To summarize, these are the s Angelic rulers assigned to govern the nations after the incident at the Tower of Bavel⁴.