AN ANGELIC SURVEY
By way of introduction, and since the volume of material in the Bible concerning angels is both diverse and substantial, a general angelic survey is in order to lay the groundwork for our study. The word angel, in one form or another, occurs 297 times in 283 verses. 117 of these instances are in 108 verses of the Old Testament, while the New Testament makes mention of angels 180 times in 175 verses. Angels can be found in seventeen books of the Old Testament and eighteen of the New. The classification and characterization of angels is found throughout the Scripture, but often times no further description is given other than the bare mention of an angel or angels. Since the biblical references to angels are varied and recurrently ambiguous, this survey is necessarily informative and inaugurative, rather than interpretive and instructive.
The angel of the Lord
As stated previously, the angel of the Lord is mentioned in the Bible fifty-nine times in fifty-eight verses, and is found throughout eleven books of the Old Testament and three of the New. This denotation of an angel is the most frequent one appearing in the Bible. The are twenty-one distinct presentations of the angel of the Lord, the most common being a direct appearance:
And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. -- Exo 3:2
And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. -- Judg 6:12
Additional manifestations of the angel of the Lord include something he does or says:
And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. -- 2 Ki 19:35
And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. -- Gen 22:11
At times the angel of the Lord is also designated or referenced with some other angelic term and
occasionally he is described without the use of the word angel at all. These will not be
considered generally here, but in particular later.
An angel of the Lord
The Bible also furnishes us with nine occurrences in eight verses of an angel of the Lord. Although this angel spake to the children of Israel (Judg 2:1-4), he customarily appeared to individuals:
And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face. -- Judg 6:22
But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was an angel of the LORD. -- Judg 13:21
But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, -- Mat 2:19
Whether or not this angel of the Lord is one individual, as well as his relationship to the angel of the Lord, remains to be seen.
Angels in General
Like the existence of God, the reality of angels is presupposed by the Bible. Although the angel of the Lord is mentioned initially in Genesis 16, the first reference to angels in general occurs in Genesis 19:
And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; -- Gen 19:1
Here we see the fact that these were angels was known and accepted without any explanation of who they were, where they were from, or what their intended purpose was. This is commonplace throughout the Bible, where forty times the bare actuality of angels is recorded. This broad use of angels can be put into two categories. Besides the two angels who visited Lot, there are several other places where a definite number of angels is mentioned in a general, nondescript fashion:
And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. -- John 20:12
And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. -- Rev 7:1
And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: -- Rev 21:12
The prevailing manner, however, in which angels are presented throughout the Bible is indefinite and indistinct:
And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him. -- Mark 1:13
And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; -- Luke 16:22
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. -- Heb 13:2
Although still spoken of in a general fashion, there are numerous passages where a single angel in particular is mentioned indiscriminately. This takes one of two forms. Ten times we read of simply an angel with no further descriptive information given. Only two of these are in the Old Testament:
Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. -- Exo 23:20
He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him. -- 1 Ki 13:18
The rest, which are distributed among the Gospels, Acts, and Revelation, thrice concern a vain reference such as found in the Old Testament:
The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. -- John 12:29
And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel. -- Acts 6:15
And there arose a great cry: and the scribes that were of the Pharisees' part arose, and strove, saying, We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against God. -- Acts 23:9
Twice, however, actual events that do in fact take place are described:
And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. -- Luke 22:43
For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. -- John 5:4
And three times it is a future, albeit certain, event that is to occur:
And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound! -- Rev 8:13
And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; -- Rev 19:17
And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. -- Rev 20:1
The second type of appearance of a lone angel is that in which another angel is referred to. Naturally, this usually involves the connection of another angel to one or more angels previously alluded to:
And, behold, the angel that talked with me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him, -- Zec 2:3
And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, -- Rev 7:2
There are eight other occurrences, all in Revelation, of another angel, plus one case where the
addition of two other angels labels the last the third angel (Rev 14:9).
Specific angels
In contrast to the often ambiguous general mention of angels throughout the Bible, there are twenty-one occasions in which a specific angel (or angels) is introduced, although perhaps not described, and sometimes never to be referred to again. In the Old Testament we find two examples that are candidates for the angel of the Lord:
The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. -- Gen 48:16
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 bare them, and carried them all the days of old. -- Isa 63:9
There are also three situations where an angel termed his angel is distinctively associated with God:
The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. -- Gen 24:7
Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. -- Dan 3:28
My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt. -- Dan 6:22
Twice, however, the possible identification is cryptic and puzzling:
Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands? -- Eccl 5:6
Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will show thee what these be. -- Zec 1:9
Confining ourselves to the New Testament, we are introduced eight times to heretofore unknown angels. Two are mentioned either by name or association:
And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, -- Luke 1:26
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: -- Rev 1:1
But it is in the book of Revelation that we are really presented with a diverse company of angels:
The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches. -- Rev 1:20
And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. -- Rev 8:2
And they 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. -- Rev 9:11
Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. -- Rev 9:14
And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God. -- Rev 15:1
And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. -- Rev 16:5
There is one case of a specific angel who transcends both Testaments, but whether or not this angel is one and the same everywhere he his mentioned remains to be determined:
And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is. -- Gen 21:17
And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I. -- Gen 31:11
And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them: -- Exo 14:19
And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so. -- Judg 6:20
And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again unto the woman as she sat in the field: but Manoah her husband was not with her. -- Judg 13:9
For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, -- Acts 27:23
The relationship of this angel to the angel of the Lord is also apropos and demands further
inquiry.
Descriptive angels
Although their general mention is the chief occurrence of angels in the Bible, there are several passages that describe a certain class of angels by particular characteristics without hinting as to their number or organization. The most numerous case of descriptive angels are those depicted as holy:
And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee. -- Acts 10:22
The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: -- Rev 14:10
Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. -- Mark 8:38
This representation of angels is found five times with three of these references appearing in parallel passages in the Gospels.
Another graphic term concerning angels speaks of their potent nobility:
And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire: -- Rev 10:1
And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. -- Rev 18:21
And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, -- 2 Th 1:7
The portrayal of angels as mighty occurs but three times in the Scripture.
There are three occasions in which there is but one instance of an angel being termed in a specific fashion:
I charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality. -- 1 Tim 5:21
He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them. -- Psa 78:49
And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? -- Rev 5:2
The hitherto mention of descriptive angels does not exemplify any angel as an individual. There is one appellation, however, that applies to a particular angel and him alone:
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: -- 1 Th 4:16
Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. -- Jude 1:9
Although there are three other instances where Michael is referred to, these are the only two occasions in the Bible where this archangel is so named.
Designative angels
Reciprocal to the descriptive characteristics of angels, excepting the adjectival form, are those biblical verses that associate various angels with someone or some location or action. Once again their quantity and order remains a mystery. Of those relating angels to someone, the use of the pronoun his or their is employed. The most numerous of these is that of angels connected with God:
Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly: -- Job 4:18
For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. -- Psa 91:11
Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word. -- Psa 103:20
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: -- Psa 104:4
Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts. -- Psa 148:2
And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. -- Mat 4:6
For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee: -- Luke 4:10
And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. -- Heb 1:7
He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. -- Rev 3:5
A similar situation concerns those angels said to be identified with the Lord Jesus Christ:
The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; -- Mat 13:41
For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. -- Mat 16:27
And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. -- Mat 24:31
And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. -- Mark 13:27
And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, -- 2 Th 1:7
The devil likewise has his angels:
Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: -- Mat 25:41
And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, -- Rev 12:7
And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. -- Rev 12:9
The other two cases of his angels refer respectively to Michael and the supposed apparition of a dead man:
And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, -- Rev 12:7
And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. -- Acts 12:15
The sole instance of the pronoun their as designating an angel involves the idea of a guardian angel:
Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. -- Mat 18:10
Since God has his angels, it is therefore natural that they should be termed the angels of God. This designation is found in the Bible eight times:
And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. -- Gen 28:12
And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. -- Gen 32:1
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. -- Mat 22:30
Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: -- Luke 12:8
But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God. -- Luke 12:9
Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. -- Luke 15:10
And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. -- John 1:51
And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. -- Heb 1:6
When an individual angel of God makes an appearance, he is instinctively called an angel of God. This occurs five times in the Old Testament where each instance is presented in the context of a simile:
Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible: but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name: -- Judg 13:6
And Achish answered and said to David, I know that thou art good in my sight, as an angel of God: notwithstanding the princes of the Philistines have said, He shall not go up with us to the battle. -- 1 Sam 29:9
Then thine handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: therefore the LORD thy God will be with thee. -- 2 Sam 14:17
To fetch about this form of speech hath thy servant Joab done this thing: and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth. -- 2 Sam 14:20
And he hath slandered thy servant unto my lord the king; but my lord the king is as an angel of God: do therefore what is good in thine eyes. -- 2 Sam 19:27
There are also two examples of an angel of God in the New Testament:
He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius. -- Acts 10:3
And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. -- Gal 4:14
There are found exclusively in the New Testament five references relating angels to a location. This location is always heaven; the relationship is just expressed in different ways:
For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. -- Mat 22:30
But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. -- Mat 24:36
For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven. -- Mark 12:25
But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. -- Mark 13:32
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. -- Gal 1:8
The last three cases of designative angels are all related to some evil connotation:
For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; -- 2 Pet 2:4
And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. -- Jude 1:6
And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. -- 2 Cor 11:14
There are a total of forty-three occasions where an angel is designated by association with
someone or some location or action.
Referring angels
In addition to the aforementioned descriptions and designations of angels in general and specific angels in particular, there are certain references in the Bible to angels that merely allude to an angel previously mentioned or refer to an angel introduced in the context. These are typically articular in nature and include the bare article, the article with a description, as well as the article with a numerical denomination. Twenty-nine times we find the angel or the angels mentioned alone with no further graphic data. The bulk of these in the Old Testament refer to the angel of the Lord:
So Manoah took a kid with a meat offering, and offered it upon a rock unto the LORD: and the angel did wonderously; and Manoah and his wife looked on. -- Judg 13:19
And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, It is enough: stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD was by the threshingplace of Araunah the Jebusite. -- 2 Sam 24:16
And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat. -- 1 Chr 21:20
And the LORD commanded the angel; and he put up his sword again into the sheath thereof. -- 1 Chr 21:27
Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us; -- Hosea 12:4
Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. -- Zec 3:3
The lone reference to the angels in the Old Testament (Gen 19:15) can be ascribed to the first occurrence of angels in the Bible: ''And there came two angels to Sodom'' (Gen 19:1). The last instance of this type (Zec 6:5) refers to the specific angel that Zechariah affirmed ''talked with me'' (Zec 6:4).
On three occasions in the New Testament the angel of the Lord is mentioned and subsequently cited by the term the angel:
And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. -- Mat 28:5
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. -- Luke 2:10
And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision. When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him. -- Acts 12:8-10
There are eight articular references in Luke chapter one that relate directly to ''the angel Gabriel'' (Luke 1:26) and one in Luke 2:15 that refers to ''a multitude of the heavenly host'' (Luke 2:13). The rest are in Revelation and advert once each (Rev 8:5, 14:19) respectively to the angel ''having a golden censer'' (Rev 8:3) and the one with ''a sharp sickle'' (Rev 14:17), twice (Rev 17:7, 21:17) to ''one of the seven angels which had the seven vials'' (Rev 17:1), and three times (Rev 10:9,10, 11:1) to the angel that John saw stand ''upon the sea and upon the earth'' (Rev 10:5).
Frequently the angel is given with a further explanation so as to better determine what it is in reference to. The angel of the Lord is alluded to five times.
And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, It is enough: stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD was by the threshingplace of Araunah the Jebusite. And David spake unto the LORD when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly: but these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father's house. -- 2 Sam 24:16-17
And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite. -- 1 Chr 21:15
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 bare them, and carried them all the days of old. -- Isa 63:9
This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush. -- Acts 7:35
This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us: -- Acts 7:38
Twice we read of angelic events that occurred in the past:
For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; -- 2 Pet 2:4
And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. -- Jude 1:6
Other instances of this explanatory referral include ''the angel which spake unto Cornelius'' (Acts 10:7), the angel that Zechariah said ''talked with me'' (Zec 1:13,19, 2:3, 4:1,4,5, 5:5,10, 6:4) or ''communed with me'' (Zec 1:14), the angel that John saw stand ''upon the sea and upon the earth'' (Rev 10:5,8), another angel that John maintained ''shewed me these things'' (Rev 22:8), and the ''angels of the seven churches'' (Rev 1:20) found in Revelation chapter two and three.
It is the book of Revelation, since it abounds with the mention of angels, that furnishes us with the only cases of the numerical elucidation of angels. The main angels detailed are as follows:
And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. -- Rev 7:1
And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. -- Rev 8:2
Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. -- Rev 9:14
And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God. -- Rev 15:1
The ''four angels standing on the four courners of the earth'' (Rev 7:1) are cited one time (Rev 7:2), as are (Rev 9:15) ''the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates'' (Rev 9:14). The ''seven angels which stood before God'' (Rev 8:2) are referred to once as a group (Rev 8:6), once as a portion of the whole: ''the three angels, which are yet to sound'' (Rev 8:13), and once each as individuals: ''the first angel'' (Rev 8:7), ''the second angel'' (Rev 8:8), ''the third angel'' (Rev 8:10), ''the fourth angel'' (Rev 8:12), ''the fifth angel'' (Rev 9:1), excepting the sixth (Rev 9:13,14) and seventh (Rev 10:7, 11:15), which are alluded to twice. The ''seven angels having the seven last plagues'' (Rev 15:1) are addressed four times as a group (Rev 15:6,7,8, 16:1), and likewise, excepting the first, as individuals: ''the second angel'' (Rev 16:3), ''the third angel'' (Rev 16:4), ''the fourth angel'' (Rev 10:8), ''the fifth angel'' (Rev 16:10), ''the sixth angel'' (Rev 16:12), ''the seventh angel'' (Rev 16:17). There are also two occasions in which an unidentified ''one of the seven'' is mentioned (Rev 17:1, 21:9).
The anarthrous use of angel to refer back to an angel previously mentioned or introduced is analogous to the articular usance. This time all of the references in the Old Testament are to the angel of the Lord:
And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: -- Exo 33:2
And when we cried unto the LORD, he heard our voice, and sent an angel, and hath brought us forth out of Egypt: and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the uttermost of thy border: -- Num 20:16
And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. -- 1 Ki 19:5
And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite. -- 1 Chr 21:15
And the LORD sent an angel, which cut off all the mighty men of valour, and the leaders and captains in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he was come into the house of his god, they that came forth of his own bowels slew him there with the sword. -- 2 Chr 32:21
Of the two occurrences in New Testament, one averts back to the familiar burning bush in Exodus where the angel of the Lord appeared, although here he is termed ''an angel of the Lord'' (Acts 7:30). The other concerns Peter recounting his trip to Cornelius: ''And he showed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter'' (Acts 11:13), and refers to ''an angel of God'' (Acts 10:3).
The third and final way in which an angel is referenced is through the use of a personal pronoun. The first case concerns an angel denominated as his angel:
And he said unto me, The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house: -- Gen 24:40
And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews. -- Acts 12:11
And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. -- Rev 22:6
The first of these is Eliezer quoting Abraham, who previously had made mention of God's angel (Gen 24:7). The first New Testament reference is to the angel of the Lord (Acts 12:7) while the second looks back to an initial mention at the beginning of the book of Revelation.
The other description employed is mine angel:
For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off. -- Exo 23:23
Therefore now go, lead the people unto the place of which I have spoken unto thee: behold, mine Angel shall go before thee: nevertheless in the day when I visit I will visit their sin upon them. -- Exo 32:34
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. -- Rev 22:16
Both of the references in the Old Testament to the angel that was to go before the children of Israel concern an unidentified angel mentioned earlier: ''Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared'' (Exo 23:20). The angel sent by the Lord Jesus Christ is the one he introduced at the beginning of the book of Revelation: ''The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John'' (Rev 1:1).
Emphasized angels
Three instances in Old Testament present to us an angel emphasized in the form of an initial capital letter:
The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. -- Gen 48:16
Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. -- Exo 23:20
For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off. -- Exo 23:23
Obviously, this is no ordinary angel. As mentioned previously, the angel in Exodus 23:23 refers back to Exodus 23:20. This leaves two cases of an unidentified angel (or angels), who, due to the nature of his emphasis, demands an explication. This concludes our angelic survey. The characterizations of angels being so diverse, a fuller treatment that is both interpretive and instructive will be necessary before presenting the angel of the Lord.
