DESCRIPTION

A. Their Personality.

They are personal beings, and not impersonal influences, such as thoughts, ideas, etc. Paul writes that “peradventure” God will give “those that oppose themselves” “repentance to the acknowledging of the truth . . . that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will” (II Tim. 2:25, 26). See also II Samuel 14: 20; Revelation 12:9, 12; 22: 8, 9.

B. Their Origination.

They are created beings and superior to man, but they are not as the artist paints them, having wings, and the like. No doubt they have bodies, but not like our bodies. If our eyes were not blinded by the fall of man, we might be able to see them. Eve saw Satan as an angel of light. Angels are not eternal beings. While they will live forever, yet they have not lived forever, because they are created beings. They were created like man, but not as human beings. A Christian does not become an angel when he dies, but, in Christ, he is greater than angels can ever be. “By him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” (Col. 1:16). See also Nehemiah 9:6; Genesis 18:8; Luke 24:37.

C. Their Enumeration.

“Ye are come into mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels” (Heb. 12:22). “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matt. 26:53). Six thousand composed a legion; the Lord could have called for seventy-two thousand angels for aid had he so desired. See also Daniel 7:10; Psalm 68:17.

D. Their Habitation.

A great many angels dwell in the heavenlies. “In the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven” (Matt. 22:30). See also Matthew 18:10; Luke 2:13-15; John 1:15; Galatians 1:8; Revelation 5:11; 7:11.

E. Their Characterization.

1. Angels Are Spirits.

“Of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire” (Heb. 1:7). See also Hebrews 1:14; Psalm 104:4.

2. Angels are Corporeal.

Although being spirit, they have bodies of some kind and perform bodily acts. Mary “seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain” (John 20:12). See also Genesis 18:1-8; 19:1-3; Judges 6.

3. Angels Are Masculine.

It is an error to say they are sexless. They are always manifested in the form of man. Masculine pronouns are always used in connection with them. “And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: He is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him” (Mark 16:5,6). See also Matthew 28:2-4; Luke 1:26.

4. Angels are Celibates.

There is no record of angels ever marrying angels. “In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven” (Matt. 22:30). The quoted Scripture does not mean that we will be sexless, but that we will not marry.

F. Their Perfection — Attributes.

1. They Are Deathless.

They will never die, or cease to exist. They do not grow old. “They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection” (Luke 20:35, 36).

2. They are Immutable.

There is no matter in them that can change.

3. They Are Illocal.

They are not subject to limitation, or space. We are (Acts 17:26). However, they are not omnipresent.

4. They Are Mighty.

They are not omnipotent (almighty). They are mightier than we are, but are inferior to God. “To you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels” (II Thess. 1:7). See also Acts 5:19; 12:5-11, 23; Psalm 103:20; II Peter 2:10, 11.

5. They Are Wise.

They possess super-human intelligence, yet they are not omniscient (all-wise). One of the purposes of Paul’s preaching was “to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God. according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Eph. 3:10, 11). See also II Samuel 14:17-20; Matthew 24:36; Mark 13:32; I Peter 1:10-12.

6. They are Subordinate.

They are always subject to God. Even the Devil is in this category. There is nothing he can do, but by the will of God. “[Jesus Christ] is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him” (I Peter 3:22). See also Hebrews 1:4-8, 13, 14.

G. Their Gradation.

1. The Angel of the Lord.

This angel is presented as no other angel in the Scriptures. He possesses a position no other angel could occupy. He is the Lord Jesus Christ himself. He presented himself to Hagar, Abraham and Gideon.

2. The Cherubim.

This is the plural of cherub. They are mighty beings, always connected with the throne of God. They were present in the garden of Eden. They were placed there to keep Adam and Eve from re-entering the garden. According to Scripture, they seem to be more than just angelic beings, for they are connected with God as a symbol of God himself. Images of cherubims were made of gold and overlooked the mercy seat. The mercy seat is a type of Christ; thus, the cherubims are pictured as overlooking the work of Christ in love and light.

3. The Anointed Cherub.

No doubt this was Satan in his unfallen estate. “Thou are the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire” (Ezek. 28:14).

4. The Seraphim.

These angelic beings are mentioned only in Isaiah. They are attentive unto the LORD of Hosts. “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings....Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from off the altar” (Is. 6:1,2,6).

5. Archangel.

“Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses. durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee” (Jude 9). See also I Thessalonians 4:16.

6. Throne.

“By him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in the earth, visible, and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” (Col. 1:16).

7. Dominion.

God set Christ “at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world but also in that which is to come” (Eph. 1:20, 21). See also Colossians 1:16.

8. Principalities.

“I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor heighth, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38, 39). See also Colossians 1:16; Ephesians 6:12.

9. Powers.

“Unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God” (Eph. 3:10). See also Colossians 1:16; Ephesians 1:21.

10. Mighty.

“God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the Gods” (Ps. 82:1). See also Psalm 89:6.

11. Authorities.

“[Jesus Christ] is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him” (I Peter 3:22).

12. Dignities.

“These filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities” (Jude 8). See also II Peter 2:10.

H. Their Division.

Angels are divided into two great moral realms or spheres:

1. Holy Angels — Angels of God.

“Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim” (Gen, 32:1, 2). See also Matthew 25:31; Daniel 4:13.

2. Fallen Angels — Angels of Satan.

“There was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him” (Rev. 12:7-9). See also II Peter 2:4-6; Jude 6, 7. These are called the angels of Satan; they were not created by him; they became his by choice. All angels were created in holiness; possessing a free will, they could choose either to serve God or Satan. “A God very terrible in the council of the holy ones, and to be feared above all them that are round about him,” (Ps. 89:7, R.V.). See also Matthew 18:10; 13:9; Mark 8:38; John 8:34; II Peter 2:4; Jude 6; I John 5:18.

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