Angels are a very interesting topic for many Christians.
Today, I'm going to examine what the Bible actually says, as well as bust some myths.
First off, it is important to note that in both testaments, the word translated 'angel' is the same as for any other messenger.
In my opinion, the translators should have kept it as 'messenger' and let the readers figure out whether it is talking about humans or divine beings. Instead, the casual Christian gets the impression that there is some clear way to tell which is which. Of course, you can usually tell by the context, but I still think that the reader should be able to discern that for themselves.
The Bible doesn't contain 'ranks' of angels, per se, but I will use that traditional idea just for structure.
First off, the Angel of Yahweh.
This spiritual being is the second person of the Godhead, known in his human incarnated state as Jesus.
Some say that the Angel of Yahweh cannot be God, because he is an angel. This is a misunderstanding. The word angel, just like the word satan, refers to a job or position.
Besides, the phrase 'the Angel of Yahweh' comes from only two words in Hebrew: Malak Yahweh.
So a more literal rendering would just be 'Messenger Yahweh!'
To say that the Messenger Yahweh cannot be God because he is an angel is akin to saying that the Spirit of Yahweh (literally, Ruach Yahweh) is not actually God, because she is a Spirit.
In Exodus 3:2 we read- “The Angel of Yahweh appeared to him [Moses] in a blazing fire from the midst of the bush."
Verse 4: When Yahweh saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
But hold on- didn't it just say that it was the Angel of Yahweh that appeared in the bush? But now it says that it's God!
This same speaker goes on to identify himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and, in verse 14, `I Am That Which I Am.'
The Messenger Yahweh revealed his true nature to Moses, as the LORD of all the earth, the God of Gods.
But this isn't the only time when 'God' (with singular pronouns) and the Angel of Yahweh are used interchangeably.
In Genesis 32, Jacob wrestles with a man and defeats him. Though the stranger refuses to tell Jacob his name, Jacob concludes in verse 30- "I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
And yet, Hosea 12:4 says that Jacob 'struggled with the angel and overcame him.'
Who is THE angel? The angel that is also God? None other than the Messenger Yahweh, Jesus himself.
And this theological approach to the Angel of Yahweh also solves another problem. All throughout the Bible we are told that anyone who sees the face of God will die. At the same time, people are constantly seeing his face! This is where the Theophany, the Messenger Yahweh, comes in. He is the physical incarnation of God.
And that can be as an angel, or it can be as a human.
Acts 27:23 : For there stood by me this night the messenger of God, whose I am and whom I serve.
Psalm 34:7 : The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
Isaiah 63:9 : In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them
Isaiah refers to this being as 'the angel of his presence' implying that there is only one. Note that the word 'presence' can also be translated 'face' or 'person.'
I think it's pretty clear. The Angel of Yahweh is God.
But is he quite the same person?
Apparently not.
Zechariah 1:12: “Then the Angel of Yahweh said: 'O Yahweh of Hosts, how long will you have mercy on Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, against which you have been angry these seventy years?'”
This shows that the Angel of Yahweh is in some way subordinate to the 'main' Yahweh, for lack of better terms. It also shows that the Angel of Yahweh is the intercessor for humanity. Sound familiar?
We also read, in Isaiah 44:6: “So said Yahweh, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of Hosts.” In Isaiah 48:16, this Redeemer Yahweh says: “Now Yahweh Elohim has sent me and his Spirit.”
That seems to talk about both Jesus and the Holy Spirit!
There is also the clear idea of a sort of 'second Yahweh' in the divine council.
Many scholars, even secularists, agree that this is the same being called the 'Son of Man' in Jewish literature as a reference to Daniel 7:13. And since Jesus straight-up calls himself the Son of Man (Matthew 17:22, Mark 9:9, Luke 22:48, John 6:62), I'd say that we should consider the Angel of Yahweh to be the pre-incarnate Christ, the Logos.
Judges 13:17-18 (YLT): And Manoah saith unto the messenger of Jehovah, 'What is thy name? when thy words come to pass, then we have honoured thee.' And the messenger of Jehovah saith to him, 'Why is this -- thou dost ask for My name? -- and it is Wonderful.'
Though many modern translation simply translate this as 'my name is beyond understanding' or something along those lines, the literal translation lends itself to the literal name being 'Wonderful.'
Isaiah 9:6 (YLT) : For a Child hath been born to us, A Son hath been given to us, And the princely power is on his shoulder, And He doth call his name Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace
The word in Judges translated 'and it is Wonderful' is 'pili,' a form of the word 'pele' used in Isaiah 9:6 of the prophesied 'Child.' These two verse provide a three-way tie between God, Jesus Christ, and the Messenger Yahweh.
And the Messenger Yahweh, the 'Logos' of John, is more than just a messenger. In his role as the Son of Man he takes the role of God's spokesman in the Heavenly Court, his right-hand man and his prime representative.
In Exodus, an angel (probably the Messenger Yahweh) is said to have the Name of Yahweh in him. The angel is given absolute authority over the Israelites, both to command and to punish. It is as though the King of the Cosmos has handed over his seal, and told his Second-In-Command to handle the matters of the Kingdom.
Exodus 23:20-22 : “See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my Name is in him. If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you."
It was even prophesied that Yahweh would eventually be handing over the entire Earth to this Divine Spokesman.
Daniel 7:13-14: I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man [this is where the title comes from], and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
Te Greek Septuagint translation of Daniel 7:14 uses the Greek word latreuo to describe the service that is to be rendered to the “Son of Man.” Latreuo denotes the very highest form of worship, a kind that is to be ascribed only to Yahweh. This shows that the Jews at the time of Christ considered the Son of Man a deitic figure. In the original Aramaic text, the word used is palach. This word, too, is only used elsewhere of worship to a deity (Daniel 3:12,14,17-18,28; 6:17,21).
All these passages and prophecies tie into a central idea of the Old Testament- the idea that there is a Heavenly Being, God's Son, who will come to Earth as the Messiah and restore justice to the Earth. And this isn't just hinted at vaguely, and it isn't just in the canonical Bible.
1 Enoch 46:1-4 : And there I saw the One to Whom belongs the time before time, and His head was white like wool. With Him was another being, whose countenance had the appearance of a man, and his face was full of graciousness, like one of the holy angels. I asked the angel who went with me [...] concerning that whose son and who he was, and whence he was, and why he went with the One to Whom belongs the time before time. He answered and said to me: 'This is the son of man who has righteousness, with whom dwells righteousness, and who reveals all the treasures of that which is hidden, because the Lord of the spirits has chosen him, and whose lot has the pre-eminence before the Lord of the spirits in uprightness for ever. This son of man whom you have seen shall raise up the kings and the mighty from their seats and the strong from their thrones, and shall loosen the reins of the strong and break the teeth of the sinners.'
1 Enoch 48.2-10: And at that hour that Son of Man was named in the presence of the Lord of the spirits, and his name before the the One to Whom belongs the time before time. Yes, before the sun and the signs were created, before the stars of the heaven were made, his name was named before the Lord of the spirits. He shall be a staff to the righteous whereon to stay themselves and not fall, and he shall be the light of the gentiles and the hope of those who are troubled of heart. All who dwell on earth shall fall down and worship before him [...] he been chosen and hidden before Him, before the creation of the world and for ever more. [...] in the name of the Lord of the spirits: [...] the strong who possess the land because of the works of their hands, for on the day of their anguish and affliction they shall not be able to save themselves. [...] There shall be no one to take them with his hands and raise them, for they have denied the Lord of the spirits and His Messiah. The name of the Lord of the spirits be blessed.
If you want to look more into the Logos in the Old Testament, I'd recommend these articles:
(Note that the Messenger Yahweh is not mentioned as such in the New Testament. He is only mentioned by the generic term 'a messenger of the Lord.' The Greek does not really have definite articles in the same way we do.)
Next we come to another specific Heavenly Being, the Destroyer.
Actually, though, it is quite possible that the Destroyer is yet another name or role of the Angel of Yahweh (the Logos).
In 1 Chronicles 21, the Messenger Yahweh is seen holding a sword, about to destroy the people of Jerusalem. Why would Jesus be doing the Destroyer's job?
Regardless, the Destroyer is the one who passed through the land of Egypt with God, during the final plague (Exodus 12:23).
Sometimes called 'The Angel of Death' by Christians, he is the enactor of God's righteous judgment upon the evil peoples of the Earth. Jesus talks about himself coming on the clouds (Mark 13:26), which was a symbol of Judgment (Isaiah 19:1, Ezekiel 30:3, Ezekiel 30:18-19, Nahum 1:2-6, Zepheniah 1:14-17, Joel 2:1-9).
According to Proverbs 16:14 and Job 33:22, there are multiple 'messengers of Death', probably subservient to the Destroyer.
Abaddon is mentioned several times in the Old Testament as a realm of the Afterlife* and once in Revelation as an individual person.
Revelation 9:11 : And [the locust-monsters] had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
Apollyon is probably the Destroyer, since his name means 'destruction' or (more directly) 'Destroyer' and he is described as destroying evil people.
Now if we take Abaddon to be Destroyer, which I would recommend as the most logical approach, then the locust-monsters in his army could be synonymous to the messengers of death that serve the Destroyer.
If Abaddon is indeed the Destroyer, then seeing that the Destroyer may be another form of the Messenger Yahweh, Abaddon could very well be Jesus.
Now you may be thinking: "WHAT THE SHEOL? I THOUGH ABADDON WAS A DEMON, ONE OF THE PRINCES OF HELL OR SOMETHING!"
Well, that is an extra-biblical idea. The mystical symbolism of Revelation leaves this character open to interpretation, but it seems to me that this is a spirit on the 'good side', if you know what I mean. The idea of Abaddon being a demon probably came from the false idea that Hell is run by the Devil. It is not. In fact, it is his prison.
Lest you think I am some random crazy dude, the Methodist publication The Interpreter's Bible states that "Abaddon... is an angel not of Satan but of God, performing his work of destruction at God's bidding." Jehovah's Witnesses, anyway, agree with me, considering Abaddon to be post-resurrection Jesus, carrying out God's judgment on the souls of the sinners and the demons.
In light of the view, it is interesting that Jesus references himself as having the keys of Death and Hades (Rev. 1:18). In Revelation 20:1-3, an unnamed angel (possibly the Angel of Yahweh, though tradition says it is Michael) has the key to the bottomless pit.
Remember that Abaddon is the angel of the bottomless pit.
The Jesus of Revelation, firey and sword-mouthed, is certainly a more frightening picture then we are used to.
This lines up with a Christ that is not only the Savior, but also the Destroyer and executioner of God's Judgment on those who refuse to accept his gift of Salvation.
But this is all getting a bit too speculative. There isn't much information on the Destroyer, but he is an important reminder that God is also a God of wrath for sin, whether the Destroyer himself is God or not.
Anyway, that's it for part one. Come back next time for part two: the Archangel.
*Job 26:6: the grave ('Sheol') is naked before Him, and destruction ('Abaddon') has no covering.
Job 28:22: destruction ('Abaddon') and death say
Psalm 88:11: Shall thy loving kindness be declared in the grave ('Sheol') or thy faithfulness in destruction ('Abaddon')?
Proverbs 15:11: Hell ('Sheol') and Destruction ('Abaddon') are before the LORD, how much more the hearts of the children of men?
Proverbs 27:20: Hell ('Sheol') and Destruction ('Abaddon') are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.
It is possible that 'Destruction' is the Lake of Fire, Gehenna, where all the unsaved will finally be Destroyed at the end of the world.
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