Reference: Angel
American
The original word, both in Hebrew and Greek, means messenger, and is so translated, Mt 11:10; Lu 7:24. It is often applied to an ordinary messenger, Job 1:14; 1Sa 11:3; Lu 9:52; to prophets, Isa 42:19; Hag 1:13; to priests, Ec 5:6; Mal 2:7; and even to inanimate objects, Ps 78:49; 104:4; 2Co 12:7. Under the general sense of messenger, the term, angel is properly applied also to Christ, as the great Angel or Messenger of the covenant, Mal 3:1, and to the ministers of his gospel, the overseers or angels of the churches, Re 2:1,8,12, etc. In 1Co 11:10, the best interpreters understand by the term "angels" the holy angels, who were present in an especial sense in the Christian assemblies; and from reverence to them it was proper that the women should have power (veils, as a sign of their being in subjection to a higher power) on their heads. See under VEIL.
But generally in the Bible the word is applied to a race of intelligent beings, of a higher order than man, who surround the Deity, and whom he employs as his messengers or agents in administering the affairs of the world, and in promoting the welfare of individuals, as well as of the whole human race,
Mt 1:20; 22:30; Ac 7:30. Whether pure spirits, or having spiritual bodies, they have no bodily organization like ours, and are not distinguished in sex, Mt 22:30. They were doubtless created long before our present world was made, Job 38:7.
The Bible represents them as exceedingly numerous, Da 7:10; Mt 26:53; Lu 2:13; Heb 12:22-23; as remarkable for strength, Ps 103:20; 2Pe 2:11; Re 5:2; 18:21; 19:17; and for activity, Jg 13:20; Isa 6:2-6; Da 9:21-23; Mt 13:49; 26:53; Ac 27:23; Re 8:13. They appear to be of divers orders, Isa 6:2-6; Eze 10:1; Col 1:16; Re 12:7. Their name indicates their agency in the dispensations of Providence towards man, and the Bible abounds in narratives of events in which they have borne a visible part. Yet in this employment they act as the mere instruments of God, and in fulfilment of his commands, Ps 91:11; 103:20; Heb 1:14. We are not therefore to put trust in them, pay them adoration, or pray in their name, Re 19:10; 22:8-9. Though Scripture does not warrant us to believe that each individual has his particular guardian angel, it teaches very explicitly that the angels minister to every Christian, Mt 18:10; Lu 16:22; Heb 1:14. They are intensely concerned in the salvation of men, Lu 2:10-12; 15:7,10; 1Pe 1:12; and will share with saints the blessedness of heaven forever, Heb 12:22.
Those angels "who kept not their first estate," but fell and rebelled against God, are called the angels of Satan or the devil, Mt 25:41; Re 12:9. These are represented as being "cast down to hell, and reserved unto judgment," 2Pe 2:4. See SYNAGOGUE, ARCHANGEL.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
For it happened, when the flame went up toward the sky from off the altar, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on, and they fell on their faces to the ground.
that there came a messenger to Job, and said, "The oxen were plowing, and the donkeys feeding beside them,
when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
He threw on them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, and a band of destroying angels.
For he will put his angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
Praise the LORD, you angels of his, who are mighty in strength, who fulfill his word, obeying the voice of his word.
Praise the LORD, you angels of his, who are mighty in strength, who fulfill his word, obeying the voice of his word.
He makes his angels winds; his servants flames of fire.
Do not allow your mouth to lead you into sin. Do not protest before the messenger that this was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice, and destroy the work of your hands?
Above him stood the seraphim. Each one had six wings. With two he covered his face. With two he covered his feet. With two he flew.
Above him stood the seraphim. Each one had six wings. With two he covered his face. With two he covered his feet. With two he flew. One called to another, and said, "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory."
One called to another, and said, "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory." The foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.
The foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. Then I said, "Woe is me. For I am undone, because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts."
Then I said, "Woe is me. For I am undone, because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar.
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar.
Who is blind, but my servant? Or who is as deaf as my messenger whom I send? Who is as blind as he who is at peace, and as blind as the LORD's servant?
Then I looked, and saw, in the expanse that was over the head of the cherubim there appeared above them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him. Thousands of thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.
while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, came to me in my weariness about the time of the evening sacrifice. He instructed me, and talked with me, and said, "Daniel, I have now come forth to give you wisdom and understanding. read more. At the beginning of your petitions the commandment went forth, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision.
Then Haggai, the LORD's messenger, spoke the LORD's message to the people, saying, "I am with you," says the LORD.
For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.
"Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me; and the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, behold, he comes." says the LORD of hosts.
But when he thought about these things, suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to yourself Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
This is the one of whom it is written, 'Look, I send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'
So will it be in the end of the world. The angels will come forth, and separate the wicked from among the righteous,
See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels in heaven.
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels in heaven.
Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels;
Or do you think that I could not ask my Father, and he would even now send me more than twelve legions of angels?
Or do you think that I could not ask my Father, and he would even now send me more than twelve legions of angels?
The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for see, I bring you good news of great joy which will be to all the people. For there is born to you, this day, in the city of David, a Savior, who is Messiah, the Lord. read more. This is the sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth, lying in a feeding trough." Suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
When John's messengers had departed, he began to tell the crowds about John, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?
and sent messengers before his face. They went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, so as to prepare for him.
I tell you that even so there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance.
Even so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting."
It happened that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried.
"When forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.
For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve,
For this cause the woman ought to have authority on her head, because of the messengers.
For by him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers; all things have been created by him and for him.
Are not they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
Are not they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
But you have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable multitudes of angels,
But you have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable multitudes of angels, to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect,
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them down to the lower parts of hell, and committed them to chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;
"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: "He who holds the seven stars in his right hand, he who walks among the seven golden lampstands says these things:
"To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: "The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life says these things:
"To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: "He who has the sharp two-edged sword says these things:
I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the scroll, and to break its seals?"
I saw, and I heard an eagle, flying in mid heaven, saying with a loud voice, "Woe. Woe. Woe for those who dwell on the earth, because of the other voices of the trumpets of the three angels, who are yet to sound."
There was war in the sky. Michael and his angels made war on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war.
The great dragon was thrown down, the ancient serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
A mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, "Thus with violence will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down, and will be found no more at all.
I fell down before his feet to worship him. He said to me, "Look. Do not do it. I am a fellow bondservant with you and with your brothers who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God, for the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophecy."
I saw an angel standing in the sun. He shouted with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the sky, "Come. Be gathered together to the great supper of God,
Now I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. He said to me, "See you do not do it. I am a fellow bondservant with you and with your brothers, the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God."
Easton
a word signifying, both in the Hebrew and Greek, a "messenger," and hence employed to denote any agent God sends forth to execute his purposes. It is used of an ordinary messenger (Job 1:14; 1Sa 11:3; Lu 7:24; 9:52), of prophets (Isa 42:19; Hag 1:13), of priests (Mal 2:7), and ministers of the New Testament (Re 1:20).
It is also applied to such impersonal agents as the pestilence (2Sa 24:16-17; 2Ki 19:35), the wind (Ps 104:4).
But its distinctive application is to certain heavenly intelligences whom God employs in carrying on his government of the world. The name does not denote their nature but their office as messengers. The appearances to Abraham at Mamre (Ge 18:2,22. Comp. Ge 19:1), to Jacob at Peniel (Ge 32:24,30), to Joshua at Gilgal (Jos 5:13,15), of the Angel of the Lord, were doubtless manifestations of the Divine presence, "foreshadowings of the incarnation," revelations before the "fulness of the time" of the Son of God.
(1.) The existence and orders of angelic beings can only be discovered from the Scriptures. Although the Bible does not treat of this subject specially, yet there are numerous incidental details that furnish us with ample information. Their personal existence is plainly implied in such passages as Ge 16:7,10-11; Jg 13:1-21; Mt 28:2-5; Heb 1:4, etc.
These superior beings are very numerous. "Thousand thousands," etc. (Da 7:10; Mt 26:53; Lu 2:13; Heb 12:22-23). They are also spoken of as of different ranks in dignity and power (Zec 1:9,11; Da 10:13; 12:1; 1Th 4:16; Jude 1:9; Eph 1:21; Col 1:16).
(2.) As to their nature, they are spirits (Heb 1:14), like the soul of man, but not incorporeal. Such expressions as "like the angels" (Lu 20:36), and the fact that whenever angels appeared to man it was always in a human form (Ge 18:2; 19:1,10; Lu 24:4; Ac 1:10), and the titles that are applied to them ("sons of God," Job 1:6; 38:7; Da 3:25; comp. Da 3:28) and to men (Lu 3:38), seem all to indicate some resemblance between them and the human race. Imperfection is ascribed to them as creatures (Job 4:18; Mt 24:36; 1Pe 1:12). As finite creatures they may fall under temptation; and accordingly we read of "fallen angels." Of the cause and manner of their "fall" we are wholly ignorant. We know only that "they left their first estate" (Mt 25:41; Re 12:7,9), and that they are "reserved unto judgement" (2Pe 2:4). When the manna is called "angels' food," this is merely to denote its excellence (Ps 78:25). Angels never die (Lu 20:36). They are possessed of superhuman intelligence and power (Mr 13:32; 2Th 1:7; Ps 103:20). They are called "holy" (Lu 9:26), "elect" (1Ti 5:21). The redeemed in glory are "like unto the angels" (Lu 20:36). They are not to be worshipped (Col 2:18; Re 19:10).
(3.) Their functions are manifold. (a) In the widest sense they are agents of God's providence (Ex 12:23; Ps 104:4; Heb 11:28; 1Co 10:10; 2Sa 24:16; 1Ch 21:16; 2Ki 19:35; Ac 12:23). (b) They are specially God's agents in carrying on his great work of redemption. There is no notice of angelic appearances to man till after the call of Abraham. From that time onward there are frequent references to their ministry on earth (Gen 18; 19; Ge 24:7,40; 28:12; 32:1). They appear to rebuke idolatry (Jg 2:1-4), to call Gideon (Jg 6:11-12), and to consecrate Samson (Jg 13:3). In the days of the prophets, from Samuel downward, the angels appear only in their behalf (1Ki 19:5; 2Ki 6:17; Zech 1-6; 13/type/nheb'>Da 4:13,23; 10:10,13,20-21).
The Incarnation introduces a new era in the ministrations of angels. They come with their Lord to earth to do him service while here. They predict his advent (Mt 1:20; Lu 1:26-38), minister to him after his temptation and agony (Mt 4:11; Lu 22:43), and declare his resurrection and ascension (Mt 28:2-8; Joh 20:12-13; Ac 1:10-11). They are now ministering spirits to the people of God (Heb 1:14; Ps 34:7; 91:11; Mt 18:10; Ac 5:19; 8:26; 10:3; 12:7; 27:23). They rejoice over a penitent sinner (Lu 15:10). They bear the souls of the redeemed to paradise (Lu 16:22); and they will be the ministers of judgement hereafter on the great day (Mt 13:39,41,49; 16:27; 24:31). The passages (Ps 34:7; Mt 18:10) usually referred to in support of the idea that every individual has a particular guardian angel have no such meaning. They merely indicate that God employs the ministry of angels to deliver his people from affliction and danger, and that the angels do not think it below their dignity to minister even to children and to the least among Christ's disciples.
The "angel of his presence" (Isa 63:9. Comp. Ex 23:20-21; 32:34; 33:2; Nu 20:16) is probably rightly interpreted of the Messiah as the guide of his people. Others have supposed the expression to refer to Gabriel (Lu 1:19).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
The angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
The angel of the LORD said to her, "I will greatly multiply your seed, that they will not be numbered for multitude." The angel of the LORD said to her, "Behold, you are with child, and will bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has heard your affliction.
He lifted up his eyes and looked, and saw that three men stood opposite him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth,
He lifted up his eyes and looked, and saw that three men stood opposite him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth,
The men turned from there, and went toward Sodom, but Abraham stood yet before the LORD.
The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth,
The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth,
But the men put forth their hand, and brought Lot into the house to them, and shut the door.
The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house, and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, 'I will give this land to your seed.' He will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.
He said to me, 'The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with you, and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son of my relatives, and of my father's house.
He dreamed. Behold, a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Jacob was left alone, and wrestled with a man there until the breaking of the day.
Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for, he said, "I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when he sees the blood on the lintel, and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to strike you.
"Behold, I send an angel before you, to keep you by the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. Pay attention to him, and listen to his voice. Do not provoke him, for he will not pardon your disobedience, for my name is in him.
Now go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. Behold, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless in the day when I punish, I will punish them for their sin."
I will send an angel before you; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite:
and when we cried to the LORD, he heard our voice, and sent an angel, and brought us forth out of Egypt: and behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of your border.
It happened, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man stood in front of him with his sword drawn in his hand. Joshua went to him, and said to him, "Are you for us, or for our adversaries?"
The commander of the LORD's army said to Joshua, "Take your shoes off of your feet; for the place on which you stand is holy." Joshua did so.
The angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim. He said, "I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you to the land which I swore to your fathers; and I said, 'I will never break my covenant with you: and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.' But you have not listened to my voice: why have you done this? read more. Therefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you." It happened, when the angel of the LORD spoke these words to all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
The angel of the LORD came, and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained to Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. The angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."
The children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. There was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and did not bear. read more. The angel of the LORD appeared to the woman, and said to her, "See now, you are barren, and do not bear; but you shall conceive, and bear a son.
The angel of the LORD appeared to the woman, and said to her, "See now, you are barren, and do not bear; but you shall conceive, and bear a son. Now therefore please be careful and drink no wine nor strong drink, and do not eat any unclean thing. read more. For behold, you shall conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head; for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb. And he shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines." Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, "A man of God came to me, and his face was like the face of the angel of God, very awesome; and I didn't ask him where he was from, neither did he tell me his name, but he said to me, 'Behold, you shall conceive, and bear a son. And now drink no wine nor strong drink, and do not eat any unclean thing; for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb until the day of his death.'" Then Manoah pleaded with the LORD, and said, "Oh, Lord, please let the man of God whom you did send come again to us, and teach us what we shall do to the child who shall be born." God listened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again to the woman as she sat in the field: but Manoah, her husband, wasn't with her. The woman ran quickly, and told her husband, and said to him, "Behold, the man who came to me the other day has appeared to me." Manoah arose, and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said to him, "Are you the man who spoke to the woman?" He said, "I am." Manoah said, "Now let your words happen. How shall the child be raised and what is he to do?" The angel of the LORD said to Manoah, "Of all that I said to the woman let her be careful. She may not eat of anything that comes of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing. All that I have commanded her she is to observe." Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, "Please, stay a bit longer that we may prepare a young goat for you." The angel of the LORD said to Manoah, "Though you detain me, I won't eat of your bread. And if you prepare a burnt offering, you must offer it to the LORD." For Manoah did not know that he was the angel of the LORD. Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, "What is your name, that when your words come true we may honor you?" And the angel of the LORD said to him, "Why do you ask for my name? It is incomprehensible." So Manoah took the young goat and a grain offering, and offered it on the rock to the LORD, who works wonders. Then the angel did a wonderful thing as Manoah and his wife looked on. For it happened, when the flame went up toward the sky from off the altar, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on, and they fell on their faces to the ground. But the angel of the LORD did not appear again to Manoah or to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the LORD.
When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented of the disaster, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, "It is enough. Now stay your hand." The angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who struck the people, and said, "Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me, and against my father's house."
He lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."
Now it happened on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, that Satan also came among them.
that there came a messenger to Job, and said, "The oxen were plowing, and the donkeys feeding beside them,
Behold, he puts no trust in his servants. He charges his angels with error.
when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.
For he will put his angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
Praise the LORD, you angels of his, who are mighty in strength, who fulfill his word, obeying the voice of his word.
He makes his angels winds; his servants flames of fire.
He makes his angels winds; his servants flames of fire.
Who is blind, but my servant? Or who is as deaf as my messenger whom I send? Who is as blind as he who is at peace, and as blind as the LORD's servant?
In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bore them, and carried them all the days of old.
He answered, "Look, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are unharmed; and the aspect of the fourth is like a son of the gods."
Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel, and delivered his servants who trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.
I saw in the visions of my head on my bed, and behold, a watcher and a holy one came down from the sky.
Whereas the king saw a watcher and a holy one coming down from the sky, and saying, 'Cut down the tree, and destroy it; nevertheless leave the stump of its roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field, and let it be wet with the dew of the sky: and let his portion be with the animals of the field, until seven times pass over him.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him. Thousands of thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.
Behold, a hand touched me, which set me on my knees and on the palms of my hands.
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
Then he said, "Do you know why I have come to you? Now I will return to fight with the prince of Persia. When I go forth, behold, the prince of Greece shall come. But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the Book of Truth. And there is no one who contends with me against them except Michael, your prince."
"At that time shall Michael arise, the great prince who watches over the children of your people. And there shall be a time of distress unparalleled since the beginning of the nation until that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who shall be found written in the book.
Then Haggai, the LORD's messenger, spoke the LORD's message to the people, saying, "I am with you," says the LORD.
Then I asked, 'My lord, what are these?'" The angel who talked with me said to me, "I will show you what these are."
They reported to the angel of the LORD who stood among the myrtle trees, and said, "We have walked back and forth through the earth, and behold, all the earth is at rest and in peace."
For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.
But when he thought about these things, suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to yourself Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and served him.
and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.
The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather out of his Kingdom all things that cause stumbling, and those who do iniquity,
So will it be in the end of the world. The angels will come forth, and separate the wicked from among the righteous,
For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will render to everyone according to his deeds.
See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
He will send out his angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but my Father only.
Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels;
Or do you think that I could not ask my Father, and he would even now send me more than twelve legions of angels?
And suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from the sky, and came and rolled away the stone, and sat on it.
And suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from the sky, and came and rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow.
His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him, the guards shook, and became like dead men.
For fear of him, the guards shook, and became like dead men. The angel answered the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, who has been crucified.
The angel answered the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, who has been crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, just like he said. Come, see the place where he was lying. read more. Go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has risen from the dead, and look, he goes before you into Galilee; there you will see him.' See, I have told you." They departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring his disciples word.
But of that day or the hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
The angel answered him, "I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God. I was sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news.
Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. read more. Having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, you highly favored one. The Lord is with you." But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered what kind of salutation this might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And look. You will conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and will call his name 'Jesus.' He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. There will be no end to his Kingdom." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, seeing I am a virgin?" The angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born will be called the Son of God. And look, Elizabeth, your relative, also has conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible." And Mary said, "See, the handmaid of the Lord; be it to me according to your word." The angel departed from her.
Suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
When John's messengers had departed, he began to tell the crowds about John, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?
For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed, when he comes in his glory, and the glory of the Father, and of the holy angels.
and sent messengers before his face. They went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, so as to prepare for him.
Even so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting."
It happened that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried.
For they cannot die any more, for they are like the angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
For they cannot die any more, for they are like the angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
For they cannot die any more, for they are like the angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
An angel from heaven appeared to him, strengthening him.
It happened, while they were greatly perplexed about this, suddenly two men stood by them in dazzling clothing.
and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. They told her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have put him."
While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing,
While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing, who also said, "You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky."
But an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors by night, and brought them out, and said,
But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise, and go toward the south to the way that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is a desert."
At about the ninth hour of the day, he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God coming to him, and saying to him, "Cornelius."
And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side, and woke him up, saying, "Stand up quickly." His chains fell off from his hands.
Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.
For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve,
far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come.
For by him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers; all things have been created by him and for him.
Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
I command you in the sight of God, and Christ Jesus, and the chosen angels, that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing by partiality.
having become so much better than the angels, as he has inherited a more excellent name than they have.
Are not they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
Are not they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
By faith, he kept the Passover, and the sprinkling of the blood, that the destroyer of the firstborn should not touch them.
But you have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable multitudes of angels, to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect,
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them down to the lower parts of hell, and committed them to chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;
But Michael, the archangel, when contending with the devil and arguing about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him an abusive condemnation, but said, "May the Lord rebuke you."
the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches. The seven lampstands are seven churches.
There was war in the sky. Michael and his angels made war on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war.
The great dragon was thrown down, the ancient serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
I fell down before his feet to worship him. He said to me, "Look. Do not do it. I am a fellow bondservant with you and with your brothers who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God, for the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophecy."
Hastings
ANGEL
1. Old Testament.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
that God's sons saw that men's daughters were beautiful, and they took for themselves wives of all that they chose.
The Nephilim were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when God's sons came in to men's daughters. They bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
The angel of the LORD said to her, "I will greatly multiply your seed, that they will not be numbered for multitude."
She called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, "You are a God who sees," for she said, "Have I even stayed alive after seeing him?"
He took butter, milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them. He stood by them under the tree, and they ate.
The LORD went his way, as soon as he had finished communing with Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.
The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot sat in the gate of Sodom. Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth,
When the morning came, then the angels hurried Lot, saying, "Get up. Take your wife, and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city."
God heard the voice of the boy. The angel of God called to Hagar out of the sky, and said to her, "What ails you, Hagar? Do not be afraid. For God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.
The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house, and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, 'I will give this land to your seed.' He will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.
He said to me, 'The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with you, and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son of my relatives, and of my father's house.
He dreamed. Behold, a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
He dreamed. Behold, a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. When he saw them, Jacob said, "This is God's army." He called the name of that place Mahanaim.
He commanded them, saying, "This is what you shall tell my lord, Esau: 'This is what your servant, Jacob, says. I have lived as a foreigner with Laban, and stayed until now.
The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush, and said, "Moses. Moses." He said, "Here I am."
"Behold, I send an angel before you, to keep you by the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.
I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying,
and has gone and served other gods, and worshiped them, or the sun, or the moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;
And he said to him, "Truly I am the commander of the LORD's army. Now I have come." And Joshua fell facedown to the ground and worshipped, and said to him, "What does my lord say to his servant?"
He sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; and they also were gathered together after him: and he sent messengers to Asher, and to Zebulun, and to Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.
It shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then you shall stir yourself up; for then the LORD has gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines."
Then your handmaid said, 'Please let the word of my lord the king bring rest; for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad. May the LORD, your God, be with you.'"
to change the face of the matter has your servant Joab done this thing. My lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth."
When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented of the disaster, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, "It is enough. Now stay your hand." The angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who struck the people, and said, "Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me, and against my father's house."
He said to him, "I also am a prophet as you are; and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, 'Bring him back with you into your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.'" He lied to him.
He lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."
He lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."
But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, "Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and tell them, 'Is it because there is no God in Israel, that you go to inquire of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron?
The angel of the LORD said to Elijah, "Go down with him. Do not be afraid of him." He arose, and went down with him to the king.
Then Elisha prayed and said, "LORD, please open his eyes, that he may see." The LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire around Elisha.
Then Elisha prayed and said, "LORD, please open his eyes, that he may see." The LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire around Elisha.
Then Esther the queen answered, "If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request.
Now it happened on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, that Satan also came among them.
Again it happened on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, that Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
Behold, he puts no trust in his servants. He charges his angels with error.
Yes, his soul draws near to the pit, and his life to the destroyers. "If there is beside him an angel, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to show to man what is right for him;
He made darkness his hiding place, his pavilion around him, darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
Ascribe to the LORD, you sons of the mighty, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
Oh taste and see that the LORD is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Let their way be dark and slippery, The LORD's angel pursuing them.
He threw on them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, and a band of destroying angels.
a very awesome God in the council of the holy ones, to be feared above all those who are around him?
For he will put his angels in charge of you, to guard you in all your ways.
Praise the LORD, you angels of his, who are mighty in strength, who fulfill his word, obeying the voice of his word.
He makes his angels winds; his servants flames of fire.
I heard the Lord's voice, saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here I am. Send me."
The burden of Egypt: "Behold, the LORD rides on a swift cloud, and comes to Egypt. The idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence; and the heart of Egypt will melt in its midst.
It shall happen in that day that the LORD will punish the army of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth on the earth.
"To whom then will you liken me? Who is my equal?" says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these, who brings out their host by number. He calls them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power, Not one is lacking.
I have set watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they shall never be silent, day or night. You who call on the LORD, take no rest,
I have set watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they shall never be silent, day or night. You who call on the LORD, take no rest,
The Spirit entered into me when he spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard him who spoke to me. He said to me, "Son of man, I send you to the children of Israel, to a nation of rebels who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me even to this very day. read more. The children are obstinate and hardhearted. I am sending you to them, and you shall tell them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD.'
He said to me, "Son of man, eat that which you find. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel." So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat the scroll. read more. He said to me, "Son of man, cause your belly to eat, and fill your belly with this scroll that I give you." Then I ate it; and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth. He said to me, "Son of man, go to the house of Israel, and speak my words to them. For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel; not to many peoples of a strange speech and of a hard language, whose words you can not understand. Surely, if I sent you to them, they would listen to you.
Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great rushing, saying, "Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place."
"You also, son of man, take a tile, and lay it before yourself, and portray on it a city, even Jerusalem:
It happened in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell there on me.
To the others he said in my hearing, "Go through the city after him, and strike: do not let your eye spare, neither have pity;
Behold, the man clothed in linen, who had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, "I have done as you have commanded me."
The Spirit of the LORD fell on me, and he said to me, "Speak, Thus says the LORD: 'Thus you have said, house of Israel; for I know the things that come into your mind.
In the five and twentieth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, in the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after that the city was struck, in the same day, the hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me there.
He brought me there; and, behold, there was a man, whose appearance was like the appearance of brass, with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate.
These three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
I saw in the visions of my head on my bed, and behold, a watcher and a holy one came down from the sky. He cried aloud, and said this, "Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches, shake off its leaves, and scatter its fruit. Let the animals get away from under it, and the fowls from its branches.
He cried aloud, and said this, "Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches, shake off its leaves, and scatter its fruit. Let the animals get away from under it, and the fowls from its branches.
The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones; to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whoever he will, and sets up over it the lowest of men.
I heard a man's voice between the banks of the Ulai, and called out and said, "Gabriel, make this man understand the vision."
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia.
Then he said, "Do you know why I have come to you? Now I will return to fight with the prince of Persia. When I go forth, behold, the prince of Greece shall come. But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the Book of Truth. And there is no one who contends with me against them except Michael, your prince."
Hurry and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves together." Cause your mighty ones to come down there, LORD.
Hurry and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves together." Cause your mighty ones to come down there, LORD.
"I had a vision in the night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in a ravine; and behind him there were red, brown, and white horses. Then I asked, 'My lord, what are these?'" The angel who talked with me said to me, "I will show you what these are."
Then I asked, 'My lord, what are these?'" The angel who talked with me said to me, "I will show you what these are." The man who stood among the myrtle trees answered, "They are the ones the LORD has sent to go back and forth through the earth."
In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem. He who is feeble among them at that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the LORD before them.
You shall flee by the valley of my mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azel; yes, you shall flee, just like you fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. The LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with you.
But when he thought about these things, suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to yourself Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
And when they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and served him.
and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.
For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will render to everyone according to his deeds.
See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels in heaven.
He will send out his angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but my Father only.
"But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.
Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels;
Or do you think that I could not ask my Father, and he would even now send me more than twelve legions of angels?
The angel answered the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, who has been crucified.
He was in the wilderness forty days tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals; and the angels were serving him.
For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man also will be ashamed of him, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
Having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, you highly favored one. The Lord is with you."
When the devil had completed every temptation, he departed from him until another time.
For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed, when he comes in his glory, and the glory of the Father, and of the holy angels.
"I tell you, everyone who confesses me before men, him will the Son of Man also confess before the angels of God; but he who denies me in the presence of men will be denied in the presence of the angels of God.
Even so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting."
It happened that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, and was buried.
For they cannot die any more, for they are like the angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
and when they did not find his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive.
And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
But an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors by night, and brought them out, and said,
But an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors by night, and brought them out, and said, "Go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life."
"When forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.
But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise, and go toward the south to the way that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is a desert."
He said, "Who are you, Lord?" The Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
At about the ninth hour of the day, he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God coming to him, and saying to him, "Cornelius."
He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, and saying to him, 'Send to Joppa, and get Simon, whose surname is Peter,
And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side, and woke him up, saying, "Stand up quickly." His chains fell off from his hands. The angel said to him, "Get dressed and put on your sandals." He did so. He said to him, "Put on your cloak, and follow me."
They said to her, "You are crazy." But she insisted that it was so. They said, "It is his angel."
Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.
For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit; but the Pharisees confess all of these. A great clamor arose, and some of the scribes of the Pharisees part stood up, and contended, saying, "We find no evil in this man. What if a spirit spoke to him, or an angel?"
For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve, saying, 'Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. Behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.'
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
For, I think that God has displayed us, the apostles, last of all, like men sentenced to death. For we are made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and men.
You cannot both drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot both partake of the table of the Lord, and of the table of demons.
For this cause the woman ought to have authority on her head, because of the messengers.
For neither did I receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came to me through revelation of Jesus Christ.
For by him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers; all things have been created by him and for him.
Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
and to give relief to you who are afflicted with us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire,
But Michael, the archangel, when contending with the devil and arguing about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him an abusive condemnation, but said, "May the Lord rebuke you."
Now I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. He said to me, "See you do not do it. I am a fellow bondservant with you and with your brothers, the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God."
Watsons
ANGEL, a spiritual, intelligent substance, the first in rank and dignity among created beings The word angel, ???????, is not properly a denomination of nature but of office; denoting as much as nuncius, messenger, a person employed to carry one's orders, or declare his will. Thus it is St. Paul represents angels, Heb 1:14, where he calls them "ministering spirits;" and yet custom has prevailed so much, that angel is now commonly taken for the denomination of a particular order of spiritual beings, of great understanding and power, superior to the souls or spirits of men. Some of these are spoken of in Scripture in such a manner as plainly to signify that they are real beings, of a spiritual nature, of high power, perfection, dignity, and happiness. Others of them are distinguished as not having kept their first station, Jude 1:6. These are represented as evil spirits, enemies of God, and intent on mischief. The devil as the head of them, and they as his angels, are represented as the rulers of the darkness of this world, or spiritual wickednesses, or wicked spirits, ?? ?????????? ??? ???????? ?? ???? ???????????, Eph 6:12; which may not be unfitly rendered, "the spiritual managers of opposition to the kingdom of God." The existence of angels is supposed in all religions, though it is incapable of being proved a priori. Indeed, the ancient Sadducees are represented as denying all spirits; and yet the Samaritans, and Caraites, who are reputed Sadducees, openly allowed them: witness Abusaid, the author of an Arabic version of the Pentateuch; and Aaron, a Caraite Jew, in his comment on the Pentateuch; both extant in manuscript in the king of France's library. In the Alcoran we find frequent mention of angels. The Mussulmen believe them of different orders or degrees, and to be destined for different employments both in heaven and on earth. They attribute exceedingly great power to the angel Gabriel, as that he is able to descend in the space of an hour from heaven to earth; to overturn a mountain with a single feather of his wing, &c. The angel Asrael, they suppose, is appointed to take the souls of such as die; and another angel, named Esraphil, they tell us, stands with a trumpet ready in his mouth to proclaim the day of judgment.
The Heathen philosophers and poets were also agreed as to the existence of intelligent beings, superior to man; as is shown by St. Cyprian in his treatise of the vanity of idols; from the testimonies of Plato, Socrates, Trismegistus, &c. They were acknowledged under different appellations; the Greeks calling them daemons, and the Romans genii, or lares. Epicurus seems to have been the only one among the old philosophers who absolutely rejected them.
Authors are not so unanimous about the nature as about the existence of angels. Clemens Alexandrinus believed they had bodies; which was also the opinion of Origen, Caesarius, Tertullian, and several others. Athanasius, St. Basil, St. Gregory Nicene, St. Cyril, St. Chrysostom, &c, held them to be mere spirits. It has been the more current opinion, especially in later times, that they are substances entirely spiritual, who can, at any time, assume bodies, and appear in human or other shapes. Ecclesiastical writers make a hierarchy of nine orders of angels. Others have distributed angels into nine orders, according to the names by which they are called in Scripture, and reduced these orders into three hierarchies; to the first of which belong seraphim, cherubim, and thrones; to the second, dominions, virtues, and powers; and to the third, principalities, archangels, and angels. The Jews reckon four orders or companies of angels, each headed by an archangel; the first order being that of Michael; the second, of Gabriel; the third, of Uriel; and the fourth, of Raphael. Following the Scripture account, we shall find mention made of different orders of these superior beings; for such a distinction of orders seems intimated in the names given to different classes. Thus we have thrones, dominions, principalities, or princedoms, powers, authorities, living ones, cherubim and seraphim. That some of these titles may indicate the same class of angels is probable; but that they all should be but different appellations of one common and equal order is improbable. We learn also from Scripture, that they dwell in the immediate presence of God; that they "excel in strength;" that they are immortal; and that they are the agents through which God very often accomplishes his special purposes of judgment and mercy. Nothing is more frequent in Scripture than the missions and appearances of good and bad angels, whom God employed to declare his will; to correct, teach, reprove, and comfort. God gave the law to Moses, and appeared to the old patriarchs, by the mediation of angels, who represented him, and spoke in his name, Ac 7:30,35; Ga 3:19; Heb 13:2.
Though the Jews, in general, believed the existence of angels, there was a sect among them, namely, the Sadducees, who denied the existence of all spirits whatever, God only excepted, Ac 23:8. Before the Babylonish captivity, the Hebrews seem not to have known the names of any angel. The Talmudists say they brought the names of angels from Babylon. Tobit, who is thought to have resided in Nineveh some time before the captivity, mentions the angel Raphael, Tob. 3:17; 11:2, 7; and Daniel, who lived at Babylon some time after Tobit, has taught us the names of Michael and Gabriel, Da 8:16; 9:21; 10:21. In the New Testament, we find only the two latter mentioned by name.
There are various opinions as to the time when the angels were created. Some think this took place when our heavens and the earth were made. For this opinion, however, there is no just foundation in the Mosaic account. Others think that angels existed long before the formation of our solar system; and Scripture seems to favour this opinion, Job 38:4,7, where God says, "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?
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that God's sons saw that men's daughters were beautiful, and they took for themselves wives of all that they chose.
"Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if you have understanding.
when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands. The Lord is among them, from Sinai, into the sanctuary.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him. Thousands of thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.
I heard a man's voice between the banks of the Ulai, and called out and said, "Gabriel, make this man understand the vision."
while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, came to me in my weariness about the time of the evening sacrifice.
But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the Book of Truth. And there is no one who contends with me against them except Michael, your prince."
Or do you think that I could not ask my Father, and he would even now send me more than twelve legions of angels?
"When forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.
"This Moses, whom they refused, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge?'?God has sent him as both a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
They said to her, "You are crazy." But she insisted that it was so. They said, "It is his angel."
For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit; but the Pharisees confess all of these.
What then is the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the seed should come to whom the promise has been made. It was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator.
For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world's rulers of this darkness, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Are not they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for in doing so, some have entertained angels without knowing it.
Angels who did not keep their first domain, but deserted their own dwelling place, he has kept in everlasting bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day.
Angels who did not keep their first domain, but deserted their own dwelling place, he has kept in everlasting bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day.