Silas
Beloved of All
The verse you are asking about is found in John 10 where Jesus answers those who accused Him of blasphemy for saying I and the Father are one and for saying He is the Son of God.
He responds by quoting Psalm 82:6, Have ye not written in your law, I said, ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken, say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
To understand this you have to see Psalm 82 in its context. Do not start at verse six. Start at the beginning of the psalm. There God stands in the congregation of the mighty and judges among those who are called gods. These are not heavenly beings and they are not all people in general. They are the judges of Israel who were given responsibility to judge the people justly according to the law of God.
In the Hebrew language the word translated gods there is also used for judges. That is because a judge acts in the place of God over the people. He controls in a sense the destiny of those who come before him as he enacts judgment. He is to represent God and apply the word of God to the people. You see this same use in Exodus chapter 21 and chapter 22. In our English Bibles the word is often translated judges, but in Hebrew it is the same word translated gods in Psalm 82. For example, when a matter was to be brought before the judges for decision, it was literally brought before the gods, meaning before those who stood in God's place to judge.
So when Psalm 82 says I have said, ye are gods, and all of you are children of the most High, it is a quotation. God is speaking to those judges to whom the word of God came for the governing of the people. Yet the psalm goes on to rebuke them because they judged unjustly, they favored the wicked, and all the foundations of the earth were out of course. And it reminds them that though they hold this high title, they will die like men.
Some groups today try to take the phrase ye are gods out of context to teach that men can ascend to become gods themselves. That is not what either Psalm 82 or John 10 is teaching. The title is a functional one for those called to judge under the law, not a promise of deity for everyone.
Jesus then builds His argument from the lesser to the greater. His point is this. If the scripture, which cannot be broken or set aside or proven false, could give that title gods to mere men who received the word of God to act as judges, how can you accuse Him of blasphemy for saying He is the Son of God? He is not merely one to whom the word came. He is the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world. The Father set Him apart and sent Him. His claim to be one with the Father is far greater and far more true than that borrowed title given to the judges.
When He says the scripture cannot be broken, He is affirming the absolute authority and truthfulness of the written word. What God has said stands. It cannot be annulled or undone. Even that small phrase ye are gods must be accepted as true in its proper context, and therefore His opponents cannot dismiss it when it suits them and then condemn Him when He speaks of His true relationship with the Father.
In short, Jesus was not teaching that all people are gods. He was using their own law to show their inconsistency. If corrupt judges could be called gods because they represented God in judgment, how much more is it right for Him, who was sanctified by the Father and sent from heaven, to say He is the Son of God and to say I and my Father are one.
He responds by quoting Psalm 82:6, Have ye not written in your law, I said, ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken, say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
To understand this you have to see Psalm 82 in its context. Do not start at verse six. Start at the beginning of the psalm. There God stands in the congregation of the mighty and judges among those who are called gods. These are not heavenly beings and they are not all people in general. They are the judges of Israel who were given responsibility to judge the people justly according to the law of God.
In the Hebrew language the word translated gods there is also used for judges. That is because a judge acts in the place of God over the people. He controls in a sense the destiny of those who come before him as he enacts judgment. He is to represent God and apply the word of God to the people. You see this same use in Exodus chapter 21 and chapter 22. In our English Bibles the word is often translated judges, but in Hebrew it is the same word translated gods in Psalm 82. For example, when a matter was to be brought before the judges for decision, it was literally brought before the gods, meaning before those who stood in God's place to judge.
So when Psalm 82 says I have said, ye are gods, and all of you are children of the most High, it is a quotation. God is speaking to those judges to whom the word of God came for the governing of the people. Yet the psalm goes on to rebuke them because they judged unjustly, they favored the wicked, and all the foundations of the earth were out of course. And it reminds them that though they hold this high title, they will die like men.
Some groups today try to take the phrase ye are gods out of context to teach that men can ascend to become gods themselves. That is not what either Psalm 82 or John 10 is teaching. The title is a functional one for those called to judge under the law, not a promise of deity for everyone.
Jesus then builds His argument from the lesser to the greater. His point is this. If the scripture, which cannot be broken or set aside or proven false, could give that title gods to mere men who received the word of God to act as judges, how can you accuse Him of blasphemy for saying He is the Son of God? He is not merely one to whom the word came. He is the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world. The Father set Him apart and sent Him. His claim to be one with the Father is far greater and far more true than that borrowed title given to the judges.
When He says the scripture cannot be broken, He is affirming the absolute authority and truthfulness of the written word. What God has said stands. It cannot be annulled or undone. Even that small phrase ye are gods must be accepted as true in its proper context, and therefore His opponents cannot dismiss it when it suits them and then condemn Him when He speaks of His true relationship with the Father.
In short, Jesus was not teaching that all people are gods. He was using their own law to show their inconsistency. If corrupt judges could be called gods because they represented God in judgment, how much more is it right for Him, who was sanctified by the Father and sent from heaven, to say He is the Son of God and to say I and my Father are one.
