Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy
Welcome to Day 971 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
I am Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
Jesus Declars War - Wisdom Wednesday


Thank you for joining us for our five days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. We are broadcasting from our studio at ‘The Big House’ in Marietta, OH.  Today is Day 971 of our Trek, and it is Wisdom Wednesday.  Creating a Biblical Worldview is important to have a proper perspective on today’s current events.  To establish a Biblical Worldview, it is required that you also have a proper understanding of God’s Word.  Especially in our western cultures, we do not fully understand the Scriptures from the mindset and culture of the authors.  In order to help us all have a better understanding of some of the more obscure passages in God’s Word, we are investing Wisdom Wednesday reviewing a series of essays from one of today’s most prominent Hebrew Scholars Dr. Micheal S. Heiser.  He has compiled these essays into a book titled  ’I Dare You Not to Bore Me With the Bible.’

While reading or listening to most news today, you would think that the world is going to hell in a handbasket.  Too many of us forget that the Lord of Heavens Armies is prevailing, even today.  Today’s essay will explore:
Jesus Declares War
Let’s start our essay with familiar verses for both Protestants and Catholics, but we will dig much deeper to the cosmic meaning behind this verse. Matthew 16:17-18 Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.

The “powers of hell”?  Why did Jesus respond to Peter's confession in Matthew 16:16 “Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
·       The Powers of Hell in Cosmic Geography
When we read “hell.” we naturally think of the realm of the unbelieving dead. But the Greek word translated “hell” (hades) is also the name for the Underworld—Hades, the realm of all the dead, not just unbelievers. The Hebrew equivalent to Hades is Sheol—the place “under the earth” where all went after this life ended.

Sheol is a place of no return (Job 17:16)  in which “ropes trap its inhabitants” (2 Samuel 22:5-6), preventing any escape (Job 7:9). Both the righteous and the unrighteous went to Sheol. The righteous believer, however, could hope for deliverance and eternity with God (Psalms 40:15) But as for me, God will redeem my life. He will snatch me from the power of the grave.

While the imagery associated with the Underworld would have unnerved the disciples, Jesus’s reference to the gates (powers) of Hades would have jolted them for another reason. If they knew their Old Testament well, they understood that they were standing before those very gates or powers as Jesus spoke.
·       The Gates (Powers) of Hell in Terrestrial Geography
Matthew 16 takes place in Caesarea Philippi, situated near a mountainous region containing Mount Hermon. In the Old Testament, this region was known as Bashan, a place with a sinister reputation.According to the Old Testament, Bashan was controlled by two kings; Sihon and Og, who were associated with the ancient giant clans: the Rephaim and the Anakim as describe in (Deuteronomy 2:10-12 and Joshua 12:1-5). The two main cities of their kingdom were Ashtaroth and Edrei, home to the Rephaim (Deuteronomy 3:1, 10-11: Joshua 12:4-5.)

These cities and their Rephaim inhabitants are mentioned by name in Canaanite (Ugaritic) cuneiform tablets. The people of Ugarit believed the Rephaim were the spirits of dead warrior-kings. They also believed that the cities of Ashtaroth and Edrei were the entry...