Belief in Angels Among the Jews

Angelology in Hebrews 1

Notes from William Barclay (1907– 1978)

The following is a summary of the discussion of Angelology by William Barclay in the Hebrews Commentary – Hebrews 1:4-14. Scriptural references are reproduced at the bottom of this document. Angelology is defined as “The branch of theology having to do with angels.” The Free Dictionary, et. al.

Hebrews 1:4-14 (New International Version)

4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father [a]" [b]? Or again,
"I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son" [c]? 6 And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
"Let all God's angels worship him." [d] 7 In speaking of the angels he says,
"He makes his angels winds,
his servants flames of fire." [e] 8 But about the Son he says,
"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy." [f] 10 He also says,
"In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
11 They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
12 You will roll them up like a robe;
like a garment they will be changed.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end." [g] 13 To which of the angels did God ever say,
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet" [h]? 14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Footnotes:

Hebrews 1:5 Or have begotten you
Hebrews 1:5 Psalm 2:7
Hebrews 1:5 2 Samuel 7:14; 1 Chron. 17:13
Hebrews 1:6 Deut. 32:43 (see Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint)
Hebrews 1:7 Psalm 104:4
Hebrews 1:9 Psalm 45:6,7
Hebrews 1:12 Psalm 102:25-27
Hebrews 1:13 Psalm 110:1

Belief in angels at that time among the Jews

Man was more and more impressed with the transcendence of God
Man felt more distance from, and the difference between, man and God
Came to think of angels as the intermediaries between God and man; Angels bridged the gulf between God and man
God spoke to man through the angels and angels carried the prayers of man into the presence of God
OT law was given directly to Moses without the need of an intermediary. However, NT Jews believed that God gave the law first to angels who then passed it on to Moses; direct communication between God and man was unthinkable
Isaiah 6 and 1 Kings 22:19: God lived surrounded by his angelic hosts
Joshua 5:14 angels thought of as God’s army
Greek for angels is aggeloi and Hebrew mal’akim – both mean messenger as well as angel; messenger is the more common meaning [Daniel 4:13]
Angels were the beings who were the instruments in the bringing of God’s word and the working of God’s will in the universe of men [see Daniel 10:5-11 and Zechariah 1:9]
Made of an ethereal fiery substance like blazing light
Created either on the second or fifth day of creation
Did not eat or drink and they did not beget children
Sometimes believed to be immortal; although they could be annihilated by God
Seraphim [Isaiah 6:1-3], cherubim [2 Kings 19:14-16] and the ofanim [or “Ophan;” see below] were always around the throne of God
Thought of as having more knowledge than men; especially of the future
Did not possess that knowledge by right but rather because of what they had heard behind the curtain
Thought as the entourage – the familia – of God
They were God’s senate – He made no decisions without consulting them; they objected to creation of man and likewise objected to the law being given to Moses, and were jealous.
Millions and millions of them [see Psalm 68:17]
Jews gave them names quite late
Had many duties – delivered messages, intervened for God in the affairs of men; 200 angels kept the stars in place; 1 angel controlled the never ending succession of days, months and years; 1 who oversaw the sea; angels of frost, dew, rain, snow, hail, thunder and lightening; recording angels who wrote down every word spoken by man; destroying angels; angels for punishment
Satan was the prosecuting angel who would bring charges against man every day except on the Day of Atonement
Angel of death did God’s bidding to deliver His summons on good and evil alike
Every nation had a prostasia – a guardian angel – as does every person (see: Guardian Angels)
God created new angels every day since they only lived one day

There was the danger of the belief that angels would come to intervene between God and man.

It was necessary to show that Jesus was greater far then they and he who knew the son needed no angel to be his intermediary with God.

Scriptural & Other References:

Note: All Scriptural quotations are from the New International Version of the Bible.

Isaiah 6:1-4
Isaiah's Commission

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.3 And they were calling to one another:
"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory."

4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

1 Kings 22:19 (New International Version)

Micaiah continued, "Therefore hear the word of the LORD : I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left.

Joshua 5:13-15
The Fall of Jericho

13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?"

14 "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord [d] have for his servant?"

15 The commander of the LORD's army replied, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.

Footnotes:

d. Verse 14. Or lord

Daniel 4:13 (New International Version)

"In the visions I saw while lying in my bed, I looked, and there before me was a messenger, a holy one, coming down from heaven.

Daniel 10:5-11 (New International Version)

5 I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of the finest gold around his waist. 6 His body was like chrysolite, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude.

7 I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the vision; the men with me did not see it, but such terror overwhelmed them that they fled and hid themselves. 8 So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless. 9 Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.

10 A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 He said, "Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you." And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.

Zechariah 1:9 (New International Version)

9 I asked, "What are these, my lord?"
The angel who was talking with me answered, "I will show you what they are."

Isaiah 6:1-3 (New International Version)
Isaiah's Commission

[Only reference to the seraphim in the Bible.]

2 Kings 19:14-16
Hezekiah's Prayer

14 Hezekiah received the letter [from Sennacherib, King of Assyria] from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD. 15 And Hezekiah prayed to the LORD : "O LORD, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 16 Give ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes, O LORD, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God.

[Identical to Isaiah 37:14-16. This passage is one of many in the Old Testament referring to the Cherubim. The first was Genesis 3:24: “After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.”

[The Lord God took offense to insults by Sennacherib. In verses 36-37, it is reported:

“Then the angel of the LORD went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning — there were all the dead bodies! 37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there.”]

Ophan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

One traditional depiction of the chariot vision, based on the description in Ezekiel.

An Ophan (Lat. ophan[us], pl. ophani[m] from Hebrew אְוּפַּנים) is one of a class of celestial beings called Ophanim described in the Book of Enoch with the Cherubim and Seraphim as never sleeping, but watching (or guarding) the throne of God.

The word ophan means "wheel" in Hebrew so the Ophanim have been associated with the description in Ezekiel 1:15-21 and possibly again in the Daniel 7:9 (mentioned as gagal, traditionally "the wheels of gagallin", in "fiery flame" and "burning fire") of the four, eye-covered wheels (each composed of two nested wheels), that move next to the winged Cherubim, beneath the throne of God. The four wheels move with the Cherubim because the spirit of the Cherubim is in them. These are also referred to as the "many-eyed ones" in the Second Book of Enoch.

The Ophanim are also equated as the "Thrones", associated with the "Wheels", in the vision of Daniel 7:9 (Old Testament). They are the carriers of the throne of God, hence the name. However, they appear not to be the same Thrones (Gr. thronos) mentioned by Paul of Tarsus in Colossians 1:16 (New Testament).

Excerpt from Ophan. (2010, April 11). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 22:22, May 7, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ophan&oldid=355352469

Psalm 68:17 (New International Version)

17 The chariots of God are tens of thousands
and thousands of thousands;
the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary.