During a recent worship service held in New York City, Apostle Alexander Pagani rebuked the demonic spirit that controls the city, Charisma News reports.

Pagani is a best-selling Christian author based in New York and did this during a service led by New York City Pastor, Mike Signorelli.

As part of this, Pagani also addressed the replica of the Baal arch that was temporarily set up in the city in 2016. It was patterned after the arch that stood at the Baal temple in Palmyra, Syria, which was destroyed by ISIS in 2015.

“Not too far from here they erected an altar to Baal,” Pagani told the large crowd. “And not too far from there, they erected a statue to the beast. But God sent us here today to confront the ruling principality called Baal, and to tell you, you will not have New York City.“

“We come against the spirit of Baal. We command you in the name of Jesus, loose yourself. Get off of New York City. Every demon, spirit of witchcraft, spirit of new age, we command you in the name of Jesus, we order you, go back to hell where you came from, in Jesus’ name,” Pagani proclaimed during the service.

Ruling principalities or territorial spirits are a controversial topic because the teaching implies that satanic angels have been set up over countries and even significant cities. The goal of these fallen angels is to negatively influence the politics and culture of these jurisdictions.

The first reference to these territorial spirits is found in Deuteronomy 32 which addresses the day that God divided the nations.

However, this connection to angels is not immediately clear as our modern translations, such as the NASV, read that the boundaries of the nation were set “according to the number of the sons of Israel.”

“When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,
When He separated the sons of ^[a]mankind,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the ^[b]sons of Israel.” (Deuteronomy 32:8).

It is difficult to understand how the nations were set up according to the number of Israelis, but this verse reads differently in the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible created around 200 BC.

The Septuagint states the nations were established according to the number of angels of God:

“When the Most High divided the nations, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the nations according to the number of the angels of God.” (Deuteronomy 32:8 Jerome’s version of the Septuagint)

The Septuagint was translated from Hebrew scriptures that were hundreds of years older, than the ones used by our modern English Bibles. Because it was based on older Hebrew manuscripts, many believe the Septuagint is the more accurate translation.

Also, portions of Deuteronomy found among the Dead Sea scrolls confirmed the Septuagint rendering by stating that the boundaries of the nations were set according to the ‘sons of God’ a reference to angelic beings (Job 1:6). The Dead Sea scrolls were again hundreds of years older than the Hebrew scriptures used for our modern translations.

Because of this, the NASV footnoted the phrase ‘sons of Israel’ with this citation: “Deuteronomy 32:8 As in MT; DSS sons of God; LXX angels of God.”

With many accepting the Septuagint as the more accurate rendering of this verse, it significantly changes our understanding of what is going on in the spiritual realm.

It suggests that angels were originally set over the nations. Famed Bible scholar FF Bruce writes “This reading implies that the administration of the various nations has been parceled out among a corresponding number of angelic powers.”

Though these angels were originally set up to be a godly influence, that dramatically changed when Satan fell, taking with him a third of the angels. He not only became the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4), but Satan was also given all the kingdoms of the world (Luke 4:5-6).

This hierarchy continues with satanic angels or territorial spirits now set over the nations who seek to influence the politics and culture of a nation in demonic ways.

In response, many believe that Christians need to bind these satanic strong men over the nations in order to plunder the house (Mark 3:27-29).

READ: Charisma News Brief: Alexander Pagani Rebukes Demonic Spirits Over New York City