Angel of the Lord

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Jacob Wrestling with the Angel by Gustave Doré, 1855, Granger Collection, New York.
Jacob Wrestling with the Angel by Gustave Doré, 1855, Granger Collection, New York.

The Angel of the Lord (or the Angel of God) is a Biblical, Old Testament character often viewed as a theophany or Christophany. In most cases, the angel is understood to be a preincarnate appearance of Jesus Christ. The Angel is also considered a general representation of God the Father due to several verses stating that no one can look upon the face of the LORD and live. Some translations capitalize "Angel" to indicate the being's deity. In the New Testament, however, Luke's Gospel an angel of the Lord identifies himself as Gabriel.[1] Whether this angel is the same being as "the angel of the LORD" in the Old Testament cannot be known for sure. However, because Gabriel announces the birth of the Messiah in a way that indicates that he and the Christ are different beings, the context seems to suggest against Gabriel being the angel of the LORD of the Old Testament.

[edit] Examples

  • Genesis 16:7-14. The Angel of the LORD appears to a woman named Hagar. The Angel speaks as God in the first-person, and in verse 13 Hagar identifies the visitor as God.
  • Genesis 22:11-15. The Angel of the LORD appears to Abraham and, again, refers to God in the first-person.
  • Genesis 31:11-13. The Angel of God speaks to Jacob in a dream and tells him "I am the God of Bethel".
  • Exodus 3:2-4. The Angel of the LORD appears to Moses in a flame in verse two, and God speaks to Moses from the flame in verse four.
  • Numbers 22:22-38. The Angel of the LORD meets the prophet Balaam on the road. In verse 38, Balaam identifies the Angel who spoke to him as God.
  • Judges 2:1-3. The Angel of the LORD appears to Israel and identifies Himself as God.
  • Judges 6:11-23. The Angel of the LORD appears to Gideon. In verse 14 the Angel refers to Himself as God; in verse 21 the Angel allows Gideon to sacrifice to Him as to God, and in verse 22 Gideon fears for his life because he was in the presence of God.
  • Judges 13:3-22. The Angel of the LORD appears to Manoah and his wife, and, in verse 22, is identified as God.

[edit] Further Reading

P.E. Kretzmann. The Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament. Theological Monthly 2(2) pp.33-36. Vogel, Heinrich. The Angel Of The Lord