All About Angels

By Rev. Christopher Hall

When we hear the word “angel,” all sorts of images may come to mind. Popular depictions of angels include fat babies flying with tiny wings who smile sweetly at young couples, or pretty women with wings like a dove unfurling behind them. During the season of Advent, we might think of the angel Gabriel, a more masculine version of the person in white with large wings. But usually our artistic imaginations don’t fit well with how Scripture depicts angels. In fact, even calling these supernatural invisible beings “angels” does not stay true to the bigger picture of these distinct creatures that we receive in the Word. Scripture uses many different titles and words to describe what we put under the category “angel.” Paul references “thrones, dominions, rulers” (Colossians 1:6), “authorities” (Colossians 2:15), and in the Old Testament we hear about cherubim (Exodus 25:18-20) and seraphim (Isaiah 6:1-6). A better way of describing these beings is what we confess in the Nicene Creed, calling them “invisible” creatures.The word “angel” comes from the Greek word (transliterated as “angelos” with a hard “g”) and means messenger. Likewise, in the Old Testament the Hebrew word translated “angel” also refers to a messenger.

Learning about these invisible creatures will not only clarify our thinking and knowledge of what God’s Word actually says, but also will help us understand how God still blesses creation and how we fit into creation through our own vocations. We’ll take a closer look at the two main angelic beings featured in the Old Testament, the cherub and seraph, and then see how that plays out in the New Testament.

Cherubim

The word “cherub” may have been borrowed from the Akkadian people of ancient Mesopotamia, who believed in creatures called “kerubu.” These were mythological beings with human faces, the body of a bull, and wings. It was their job to guard the throne and temple of the false gods whom the Akkadian people worshipped. As with many false gods, they are inspired by created beings and angels are no exception to that. Of course, God reveals the truth of this in His Word, where we see the holy cherubs (or cherubim) guarding the tree of life from Adam and Eve after the Fall (Genesis 3:24). Psalm 18:10 says, “He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.” Their close presence with God is best seen in the Ark of the Covenant, where God commanded Moses to put two images of these creatures on the mercy seat, or lid, and make them so their wings touched one another.

The Bible doesn’t provide any detail about their appearance until later, when Ezekiel saw a vision of them and wrote about them in detail. He saw four creatures with feet like a calf, four wings with human hands, and four faces: a man, a lion, an ox, and eagle. (Ezekiel 1:4-16). In fact, it is from this appearance that early Christians began associating those faces with the four Gospel writers. They are called tetramorphs, which now play a special role at every Higher Things summer conference. The image is also found in Revelation, where they surround Christ on His throne (Revelation 4:7). The cherubim present an alarming appearance, and this raises an important question. Is this what these beings look like in fact, or is this only how they appear to us sinful and limited people? Many Church fathers understood this appearance to be more symbolic and poetic, but we cannot know for certain until we see them face to face after our own deaths. Either way, it is clear that they point us to Christ in His glory and not to themselves.

Seraphim

Another invisible creature that was revealed in the Old Testament is the seraph. Isaiah saw seraphim (plural for seraph) attending the throne of God in his vision in Isaiah 6. When we sing the “Sanctus” before communion during the liturgy, we are singing with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven, for Isaiah said he heard them calling to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” (Isaiah 6:3) They had multiple wings like the cherubim, but the wings covered their faces, their bodies, and their feet. They join us around the throne and direct us toward the Giver of the gifts in the Sacrament.

However, there are two other places in the Old Testament that mention a seraph. In Numbers 21:6-8, the people of Israel had sinned, and “Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.” Yet the word for “fiery serpents” in Hebrew is literally “seraphim serpents.” And in verse 8, the Lord tells Moses to make “a seraph” and put it on a pole.

The picture gets a little stranger when you look at Isaiah 14:29, which says, “for from the serpent’s root will come forth an adder, and its fruit will be a flying fiery serpent.” That phrase “flying fiery serpent” in Hebrew is simply, “flying seraph.” The Bible seems to use the word “seraph” for both these heavenly creatures at God’s throne and also snakes. St. John puts all the pieces together for us when he sees the vision of Satan, appearing like a winged serpent, or dragon. “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, 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” (Revelation 12:9). Together, these passages paint a picture of some of God’s invisible creatures appearing to humans as winged serpents, most infamously the chief fallen angel, the Devil. Based on this passage and others, we know that some of the invisible creatures rebelled against God and were cast out of heaven. We know them as demons, or devils, and their leader is Satan.

Another notable fact about angels can be found in the New Testament, in the book of Acts. First century Jews believed in guardian angels, and Jesus seems to affirm this in Matthew 18:10, “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.” In Acts 12, an angel appeared and broke St. Peter out of prison, and he went to the home of Mary, mother of John Mark. A servant girl answered the door, and “Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!” But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed (Acts 12:14-16). This references the belief that one’s guardian angel could take on the appearance of the one they were guarding.

Scripture doesn’t answer many of the questions we may have about angels, or the invisible creatures, yet we cannot deny their role in God’s will and salvation for His people. They are part of the heavenly court, attending and accompanying God. They surround the throne of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, glorifying Him constantly. And in many places they are described as doing God’s will, announcing His Word, giving messages (angels in the strictest sense), protecting humans, and pointing us to Christ. “Are [angels] not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14)

Angels fascinate us. And it’s perfectly fine to be intrigued. After all, the existence of angels reminds us that God has ordered our world in such a way that His creation takes part in His care and will. As angels serve Him in various ways, so we carry out His will and act as His instruments, too. This is such a great honor, that God would choose His creatures to participate with Him as stewards of His world.

Rev. Chris Hall is the pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His article is based on the breakout session he taught at Sanctified 2018 in Illinois.