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All about angels…

Do good people or babies become angels when they die?

No, angels are not glorified human beings. Matthew 22:30 explains that they do not marry or reproduce like humans, and Hebrews 12:22-23 says that when we get to the heavenly Jerusalem, we will be met by “myriads of angels” and “the spirits of righteous men made perfect”—two separate groups.

Angels are a company or association, not a race descended from a common ancestor (Luke 20:34-36). We are called “sons of men,” but angels are never called “sons of angels.”

DEATH—What is its origin and effects? Answer

Author: Dr. Paul Eymann.

Who or what are angels?

The word “angel” actually comes from the Greek word aggelos, which means “messenger.” The matching Hebrew word mal'ak has the same meaning.

Sometimes, the Bible uses these words for human beings:

Sometimes, it speaks figuratively of things or events as “messengers”…

But it usually describes the whole range of spirits whom God has created, including both good and evil angels, and special categories such as cherubim, seraphim, and the archangel.

Angels are mentioned at least 108 times in the Old Testament and 165 times in the New Testament (Chafer, Systematic Theology, II, 3). Hence, there is ample information available in Scripture to allow us to build a foundation for our knowledge of angelic beings.

Author: Dr. Paul Eymann.

Origin of angels

The Scripture speaks about the creation of angels, therefore, it is clear that they have not existed from all eternity (Nehemiah 9:6; Psalm 148:2,5). Colossians 1:16-17 explains:

“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

The time of their creation is never definitely specified, but it is most probable that it occurred in connection with the creation of the heavens in Genesis 1:1. It may be that God created the angels immediately after He had created the heavens and before He created the Earth—for according to Job 38:4-7, “the sons of God shouted for joy” when He laid the foundations of the Earth.

Author: Dr. Paul Eymann.

How many angels are there?

While the Scriptures give no definite figures, we are told that the number of angels is very great (Matthew 26:53—“legions”; Daniel 7:10—“thousand thousands” (millions); Hebrews 12:22—“innumerable”).

It appears that all angels were created at one time. No new angels are being added to the number. Angels are not subject to death or any form of extinction (Luke 20:36); therefore they do not decrease in number.

It seems reasonable to conclude that there are at least as many spirit beings in existence as there will have been human beings in all their history on Earth.

Author: Dr. Paul Eymann.

Do angels have bodies?

Angels are essentially “ministering spirits” (Hebrews 1:14) and do not have physical bodies like humans. Jesus declared that “a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have” (Luke 24:37-39).

The Bible does, however, make it clear that angels can only be in one place at a time. They must have some localized presence.

Angels can take on the appearance of men when the occasion demands. How else could some “entertain angels unaware” (Hebrews 13:2)? On the other hand, their appearance is sometimes in dazzling white and blazing glory (Matthew 28:2-4).

Author: Dr. Paul Eymann.

What do angels look like?

Since angels are spirits rather than physical beings, they don’t have to be visible at all (Colossians 1:16). Elisha once prayed that his servant would see the armies of angels surrounding the city, and the young man discovered that he had overlooked a lot of invisible beings (2 Kings 6:17)!

When angels do appear, they generally appear in the form of men. In Genesis 18, Abraham welcomed three angelic guests who appeared at first to be nothing more than some travellers. In the following chapter, two angels went to Sodom where they were assumed to be simply a pair of human visitors.

With the possible exception of one debatable passage in Zechariah 5:9, angels always appear as males rather than females (Mark 16:5).

Sometimes an angel appears to be a man with unusual features. Daniel saw an angel with arms and legs resembling polished metal and precious stones, and a face like lightning (Daniel 10:5-6). The angel that rolled back the stone from Christ’s tomb was radiating dazzling light (Matthew 28:3; Luke 24:4). The book of Revelation describes some highly unusual beings who may be a variety of angel in Revelation 4:6-8.

Angels in the Bible never appear as cute, chubby infants! They are always full-grown adults. When people in the Bible saw an angel, their typical response was to fall on their faces in fear and awe, not to reach out and tickle an adorable baby.

Do angels have wings?

Some special angels do (seraphims), but not most.

Some Bible passages picture angels with wings (Isaiah 6:2,6). Other verses talk about angels flying, and we assume that the wings would be useful for that flight (Daniel 9:21). However, I suspect that angels can move around without having to depend on wings.

Most references to angels in the Bible say nothing about wings, and in passages like Genesis 18-19, it is certain that no wings were visible.

Author: Dr. John Bechtle.

How do angels compare to human beings?

Author: Dr. Paul Eymann.

Editor’s Note: The Creator gave Adam and Eve, and their descendants, the wondrous ability to reproduce—ultimately creating billions of new eternal souls. In his wisdom, the ability to reproduce was withheld from angels. One might guess that this may have enraged prideful Lucifer, who led a great many angels (perhaps one third—if “stars” equals “angels” in Rev. 12:4) into rebellion against God and devoted to the deceit and destruction of mankind—rather than being encouragers, ministers and protectors to humanity (the role that God chose for them). (See: “Demons”)

Are all angels good?

Sorry! You can’t trust every angel.

The Bible classifies some angels as “elect” (1 Timothy 5:21) or “holy” (Matthew 25:31; Mark 8:38). All angels were originally holy, enjoying the presence of God (Matthew 18:10) and the environment of Heaven (Mark 13:32).

Other angels oppose God under the leadership of Satan (Matthew 25:41; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6; Ephesians 6:12). We often call these “demons.”

There is actually a great unseen conflict raging that goes beyond anything we can imagine. It is not, however, a fight between two equal and eternal forces. God who created all beings is still in charge, and once He has used wicked angels to accomplish His purposes, He will bring them to a final defeat.

What is “goodness”? Answer

What is “righteousness”? Answer

Author: Dr. John Bechtle.

What is the job description of an angel?

We don’t know whether every angel carries out the same tasks, or whether some of them specialize in certain areas. The Bible does speak about classes of angelic beings like cherubim (Ezekiel 1) and seraphim (Isaiah 6). We also know the names of two notable angels: Michael (Daniel 10:13; Jude 9) and Gabriel (Daniel 9:21; Luke 1:19,26).

The unnamed angels who appear most often in Scripture carry out a variety of tasks—all designed to serve God…

Author: Dr. John Bechtle.

More information about angels

Also see the book by Fred C. Dickason, Angels: Elect and Evil (Chicago: Moody, 1975).

Editor: Paul S. Taylor, Films for Christ.

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