Angel of the Lord
A divine messenger speaking as God in the Hebrew Bible.
Last updated
Vyacheslav Kirillin · CC BY-SA 4.0
The term "angel of the Lord" translates the Hebrew phrase malakh YHWH, which appears 65 times in the Hebrew Bible.[1] The King James Version usually renders it as "the angel of the Lord," while the Septuagint sometimes uses the Greek article and sometimes omits it.[1] Readers of biblical passages featuring this figure frequently find themselves uncertain whether they are encountering an angel or YHWH himself.[2]
Quick Facts
- Hebrew term
- מַלְאַךְ יְהוָה (mal’āḵ YHWH)
- Occurrences in hebrew bible
- 65 times
- Related term
- Angel of God (mal'akh Elohim), 12 times
- Related expression
- Angel of the Presence, once (Isaiah 63:9)
- New testament term
- ἄγγελος Κυρίου (angelos kuriou)
- Key appearances
- Hagar
- Abraham
- Moses
- Balaam
- Gideon
- Manoah and his wife
- Zechariah
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
The Septuagint translates the Hebrew phrase as either ἄγγελος Κυρίου or ὁ ἄγγελος Κυρίου.[3] Appearances of the angel of the Lord are often presented as theophanies, appearances of God himself.[4] The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology states that in many Old Testament passages the angel of the Lord is identified with God, while in other instances a distinction is made.[5] Pope cited Augustine's statement that "the angel is correctly termed an angel if we consider him himself, but equally correctly is he termed 'the Lord' because God dwells in him".[3]
What the cited sources add
The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology notes that the angel of the Lord pronounces curses, executes judgment, commissions servants, and carries out a ministry of reconciliation.[5] The same source states that the angel accepts worship from Manoah and refers to himself as "Wonderful," the same term applied to the coming deliverer in Isaiah 9:6.[5] The Watchtower publication from 2010 states that the angel who led Israel out of Egypt, having "Jehovah's name within him," was God's firstborn Son.[6] The Watchtower also identifies the archangel Michael as the pre-existent Christ who served as angelic Leader of Israel.[6]
The same source states that God created Jesus and then used him to make everything else, including the angels.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Angel of the Lord" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Judges 2:1; 6:11, 22; 13:16, 21; Genesis 16:7–11 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Angel of the Lord" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Witherington, "The Living Word of God", Baylor University Press, 2007, p. 224 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Angel of the Lord" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pope, Hugh. "Angels" in The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. accessed 9 July 2018 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Angel of the Lord" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Douglas K. Stuart, Exodus 2006 p. 109. "Now, however, God, in the form of 'the Angel of the ' (see excursus below, 'The Angel of the Lord') appeared in a fire t (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Angel of the Lord - Elwell, Walter A. - Evangelical Dictionary of Theology. Retrieved 9 April 2012.. facts only, no text reused. biblestudytools.com
- "Your Leader Is One, the Christ", The Watchtower – Announcing Jehovah's Kingdom, 15 September 2010, p. 21. facts only, no text reused. wol.jw.org
- "Bible Questions Answered: Why is Jesus called God’s Son?", Jehovah's Witnesses. facts only, no text reused. jw.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Angel of the Lord (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Angels in Christianity
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Angel of the Lord (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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