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'''[[Angels]]''', Biblically, are creatures of unknown origin, said to be "ministering spirits" sent on behalf of the heirs of salvation.<ref>The Bible. Hebrews 1:13-14.</ref> They were said to be extremely wise, knowing all that was occurring in the earth,<ref>The Bible. 2 Samuel 14:17-20.</ref> and to be very powerful.<ref>The Bible. Zechariah 12:8.</ref>
==Etymology==
In the [[Old Testament]], angel is translated from the [[Aramaic|Hebrew]] word "''mal'ak''", pronounced "''mal-awk''", and is used 213 times in the Old Testament.<ref>Strong's Hebrew Dictionary. [http://strongsnumbers.com/hebrew/4397.htm 4397.malak]</ref> In the [[New Testament]], angel is translated from the [[Greek language|Greek]] word "''aggelos''", pronounced "''ang'-el-os''", and is used 186 times in the New Testament.<ref>Thayer and Smith. "Greek Lexicon Entry for Aggelos". [http://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/greek/kjv/aggelos.html BibleStudyTools.com].</ref> Both words, roughly translated, mean 'messenger'.
 
== History ==
The first [[Bible|Biblical]] reference to angels is in Genesis 3:24 where, following the fall of man, the outcast humans are prevented from returning to the Garden of Eden by Cherubims.
 
Angels, typical of their name, were often used to deliver messages to mankind, including Hagar,<ref>The Bible. Genesis 16:9-11; 21:17.</ref> Abraham,<ref>The Bible. 22:11-15.</ref> Zechariah,<ref>The Bible. Zechariah 1:9-6:5.</ref> Mary and Joseph,<ref>The Bible. Matthew 1:20-24; 2:19; Luke 1:26-2:21.</ref> Philip,<ref>The Bible. Acts 8:26.</ref> Cornelius,<ref>The Bible. Acts 10:7-22.</ref> Paul,<ref>The Bible. Acts 27:23-24.</ref> and John.<ref>The Bible. Revelation 1:1.</ref> They were also used to guide or protect people by God, including Abraham's servant<ref>The Bible. Genesis 24:7.</ref>, the Israelites with Moses,<ref>The Bible. Exodus 23:20-23; 32:34; 33:2; Numbers 20:16.</ref> the Israelites with Joshua,<ref>The Bible. Judges 2:1-4.</ref> Gideon,<ref>The Bible. Judges 6:12-22.</ref>, Samson's parents,<ref>The Bible. Judges 13:3-21.</ref> Daniel and his friends,<ref>The Bible. Daniel 3:28; 6:22.</ref> Jesus,<ref>The Bible. Luke 22:43.</ref> and the Apostles.<ref>The Bible. Acts 5:19-20; 12:7-11.</ref> In some cases they were also sent to punish or kill the wicked, including Baalam,<ref>The Bible. Numbers 22:22-35.</ref> Jerusalem,<ref>The Bible. 2 Samuel 24:16-17; 1 Chronicles 21:12-30.</ref> the Assyrians,<ref>The Bible. 2 Kings 19:35; 2 Chronicles 32:21; Isaiah 37:36.</ref> and Herod.<ref>The Bible. Acts 12:23.</ref>
 
As seen in the book of Revelation, angels will be used to bring plagues upon the world who, worshiping the antichrist, will be in complete rebellion against God.<ref>The Bible. Revelation 7:2; 8:7-13; 9:11-14; 16:3-8.</ref>
=== Fall ===
Biblically, the angels which did not keep their first estate, sinning, God cast into Hell and has reserved in eternal chains under darkness until the great day's Judgment.<ref>The Bible. Jude 1:6; 2 Peter 2:4.</ref> Given the account of this in Judges 9:8-15 and Ezekiel 31, 'Eden' was not only a garden for the creation of mankind, but the original dwellingplace of the angels,<ref>The Bible. Ezekiel 28:13; 31:9,16,18.</ref> with a rebellion that began by many of the angels seeking a king to reign over them. The Fig Tree, Olive Tree, and Vine, each symbolizing an angel or type of angel, refused, while the bramble, Satan, became their leader. Sometime after the fall of the angels, Eden was destroyed and turned into a "desolate wilderness".<ref>The Bible. Ezekiel 36:35; Joel 2:3.</ref>
== Symbolized As Trees ==
The following are examples where angels are symbolized by [[trees]]:
 
* In Judges 9:8-15 it tells a parable of the trees seeking to anoint a king, with the Olive Tree, Fig Tree, and Vine all refusing promotion, and the Bramble accepting, and telling them to put their trust in him or fire will come out to devour the Cedars of Lebanon.
* In Psalms 52:8, David compares himself to an Olive Tree in the house of God who trusts in the mercy of God forever and ever.
* In Isaiah 2:13-14, it speaks of bringing all the proud low, including the Cedars of Lebanon and Oaks of Bashan.
* In Isaiah 14:6-8, it refers to [[Satan|Lucifer]] the fallen angel (v. 12) and when punished by [[God]], the earth is at rest, with the Fir Trees rejoicing, and the Cedars of Lebanon saying, "since you are laid down, no feller is come up against us."
* In Ezekiel 17, it speaks a parable of the [[Mount Lebanon|Cedars of Lebanon]], ending in v. 24 by saying that the Lord has brought down the high tree, has exalted the low tree, has dried up the green tree, and has made the dry tree flourish.
* In Ezekiel 31, the entire chapter speaks of Satan as being [[Pharaoh]], who was a mighty Cedar in Lebanon, how his height was exalted above all the other Cedars of Lebanon (v. 5), and how no other trees were like him in beauty (v. 8) so that they envied him (v. 9). Because of this, he lifted himself up in height and became proud (v. 10) so that God delivered him to the mighty of the gentiles (v. 11). The result is to be that none of the trees will exalt themselves, and are delivered to death, and sent down to the lower parts of the earth and the pit (v. 14). When he went to the grave, God caused a great mourning and mourning among Lebanon, with the trees of the field fainting for him (v. 15). In verses 16-18 it calls them the "trees of Eden", including Satan among them.
* In Zechariah 4:11-14, the prophet is shown a pair of Olive Trees which are said to be the "two anointed ones that stand by the Lord of the whole earth."
* In Revelation 11:3-6, John is told God will give power to his two witnesses, and that these are the two olive trees, and two candlesticks. They also have special powers to burn assailants with fire from their mouths, prevent rain, turn water to blood, and smite the earth with plagues.
 
Also of note is that Solomon in 1 Kings 6:23-35 carved statues of the cherubims out of Olive Trees and Fir Trees.
== Cherubim ==
'''Cherubim''' is the translation of the Hebrew word, "''k@ruwb''", pronounced "''ker-oob''", and is used 91 times in the Old Testament.<ref>Strong's Hebrew Dictionary. [http://strongsnumbers.com/hebrew/3742.htm 3742.kerub].</ref> While Cherubim appear to be Angels, whether they are a distinct species of them is uncertain. The following traits about them are known, however:
 
* '''Guards''': They guarded the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve were cast out.<ref>The Bible. Genesis 3:24.</ref> They were always used, even in statue, to show the guarding of God's Mercy Seat.<ref>The Bible. Exodus 25:18-22, Exodus 37:7-9, 1 Samuel 4:4, 2 Samuel 6:2.</ref>
* '''Winged''': They are described as having huge wings which they used to cover the Mercy Seat.<ref>The Bible. Exodus 25:20, Exodus 37:9.</ref> Their wings were also used to cover the Ark of the Covenant.<ref>The Bible. 1 Kings 8:6-7, 1 Chronicles 28:18, 2 Chronicles 5:7-8.</ref> The wings appear to make sound volume comparable to a helicopter, being heard from far away.<ref>The Bible. Ezekiel 10:5.</ref>
* '''Transporters''': God used them to get around, riding on them as winged vehicles.<ref>The Bible. 2 Samuel 22:11, Psalms 18:10, Ezekiel 9:3.</ref>
* '''Huge''': Likenesses of them were made ten cubits tall, and with outstretched wings that made them ten cubits wide.<ref>The Bible. 1 Kings 6:23-27, 2 Chronicles 3:10-13.</ref> Egypt also used the cubit as a standard of linear measurement, and it was approximately 1.5-2.0 feet long, making them at least 15-20 feet tall and equally wide when their wings are outstretched.<ref>{{ Citation | title = Cubits | publisher =  Merriam Webster | url = http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cubit | accessdate = 2011-03-10 }}. {{cite book
  | last = Scofield
  | first = C.I.
  | coauthors = Rikkers
  | title = The Scofield Study Bible III
  | publisher = Oxford University Press
  | date = 2003
  | location = New York, NY
  | pages = pg. 611
  | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=FCPBVjNnF2oC&printsec=frontcover&dq=2003+scofield+study+Bible&source=bl&ots=g6N8K9Aaiy&sig=ZZZUZzgVle1B1MiFzmsiNZ0EvBs&hl=en&ei=-h15Td3ZJIjfrAGLurCABg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=2003%20scofield%20study%20Bible&f=false
  | isbn = 0195275276}}
</ref>
* '''Close to God''': God sits between two Cherubim.<ref>The Bible. 2 Kings 19:15, Psalms 99:1, Isaiah 35:16.</ref>
* '''Included Satan''': [[Satan]] was called "The Anointed Cherubim Who Encloses", and it was said God made him that way. He was on the holy mountain of God, and walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. He was perfect in all his ways until iniquity was found in him, after which he was cast as profane from the mountain of God.<ref>The Bible. Ezekiel 28:14-16.</ref>
 
== Seraphim ==
"'''Seraphim'''" is translated from the Hebrew word "''saraph''", pronounced "''saw-rawf''", a word roughly translated meaning "burned" or "to burn", and is only used 9 times in the Old Testament.<ref>Strong's Hebrew Dictionary. [http://strongsnumbers.com/hebrew/8313.htm 8313.seraph].</ref>
 
Two of these usages occur in Isaiah chapter 6, verses 2 and 6, where it states that the Seraphim had 6 wings, 2 to cover their faces, 2 to cover the feet, and 2 with which to fly, while they proclaimed, "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory."(KJV) They are also said to have hands in verse 6, with which one used tongs to take a coal from an altar.
 
Interestingly, the other 7 times the word is used, it is in relation to fiery serpents,<ref>The Bible. Numbers 21:6,8; Deuteronomy 8:15</ref> in some cases said to fly.<ref>The Bible. Isaiah 14:29; 30:6.</ref>
== "Sons of God" ==
In Job 1:6 and 2:1, it states that one day, the "''Sons of God''" (Hebrew "''ben 'elohiym''") came to present themselves before God, with Satan among them. The same phrase, Sons of God, is used in Genesis 6:2-4, in stating that the Sons of God saw the daughters of men were fair, and that they took themselves wives. Verse 4 then says their children became mighty men of renown. The phrase is also used in Job 38:4-7 where it states that when God laid the foundations of the earth, the morning stars (the name 'Lucifer' means "Morningstar" and Jesus was called the Morning Star)<ref>The Bible. Isaiah 14:12, Revelation 22:16</ref> sang together, and all the Sons of God shouted for joy.
== Further Reading ==
* [http://carm.org/angels CARM.org on Angels]
* [http://www.christiananswers.net/q-acb/acb-t005.html ChristianAnswers.net on Angels]
 
==References==
{{reflist|2}}

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