Who are the Biblical Angels? – A Critical Perspective, (# 3)
As I was nearing the end of paper #2, I was discussing the visibility and the invisibility of angels, and of Yahshua Christ in His resurrected body – which is the kind of immortal body we will receive in our next life. Whether or not, in our new immortal bodies, we will be able to disappear and, then reappear at our own discretion in a different location is not fully clear. If such should be the case, our present mode of travel (i.e., automobiles, trains, airplanes, even horseback) would become obsolete! But for moving materials and merchandise, it would seem we might still need roads, bridges, railroad tracks, ships, airplanes, along with airports. But all of this is simply conjecture.
Imagine a woman being resurrected, who lived during the middle-ages in a dark, damp, cold hut of one or two rooms heated by a crude fireplace which served for cooking in a cast-metal pot over the fire, with no running water, but wooden buckets were used for bringing in water for drinking, cooking and washing dishes, suddenly finding herself in an evenly heated home with a kitchen with hot and cold running water, automatic dishwasher, refrigerator, electric or gas kitchen range with a thermostat controlled oven, and an electric powered food-mixer, and many other kitchen appliances.
Concerning this, I should cite 1 Corinthians 2:9:
“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which the Almighty hath prepared for them that love him.”
Be this as it may, there is the very important matter of RANK between Almighty Yahweh and His angels, and the RANK of Adam-man as compared with the angels and Almighty Yahweh. It might seem simple at first, but as we continue, it becomes quite complex between celestial entities, but also between entities making up a nation, city, tribe or a family! Speaking of Christ, the KJV states at Psalm 8:5:
“For thou hast made him [Christ] a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.”
Charles Thomson’s LXX on Psalm 8:5: “Thou madest him [Christ] a little lower than angels, with glory and honour Tho hast crowned him ...”The Modern Language Bible has: “Yet Thou hast made him a little less than heavenly beings ....”
[Notice that The Modern Language Bible has changed “angels”, the Hebrew Mal’akh or Greek ang´-el-os, from a selective Noun to a vague nondescript Adjective-Pronoun, “heavenly beings”, or Verb if “living thing” is meant. We must ask which heaven? And what about Michael and Gabriel, each of whom is a Noun? This is an intentional effort to change “angels” into mere nothingness, or a figment of one’s imagination! How can the Hebrew Mal’akh or Greek ang´-el-os be rightly translated as “heavenly beings”?]
Charles Thomson’s LXX on Psalm 97:7: “Let all the worshippers of graven images, who boast of their idols, be confounded. Worship Him all ye His angelsG32.” The Masoretic Text has “gods” instead of “angels”, at Psalm 97:7!
[Notice: Where the KJV has “gods”, we have to ask, which “gods”? The word “gods” at Psalm 97:7 is the Strong’s #H430 “Elohim”, but the context is the “graven images” of the Canaanites! Sometimes the plural “gods” is the Strong’s #410, “... ’êl, ale;Shortened from H352; strength; as adjective mighty; especially the Almighty (but used also of any deity):– KJV renderings: God (god), X goodly, X great, idol, might (-y one), power, strong ...”] Strong’s overlooked the plural “gods” at Psalm 97:7 in the KJV. However, the LXX used ’êlôhîym, the same as Strong’s #430 to translate “angels” at Psalm 97:7!
Adam Clarke, in his 6-volume Commentary, who is generally quite good at several languages but poor with church doctrine, has the following to say at vol. 3, p. 529:
“Verse 7. Confounded be all they] Rather, They shall be confounded that boast themselves in idols. There is a remarkable play on the letters here, ... hammithhalelim, who move like madmen; referring to the violent gestures practised in idolatrous rites.
“Of idols] ... baelilim, in vanities, emptinesses; who, ‘make much ado about nothing,’ and take a mad and painful pleasure in ridiculous and unprofitable ceremonies of religion.
Worship him] Who? Jesus [sic Yahshua]: so says the apostle, Heb. i. 6. Who will dare to dispute his authority?
All ye gods.] ... his angels: so the Septuagint and the apostle: ‘Let all the angels of God worship him:’ and the words are most certainly applied to the Saviour of the [kosmos, society] world by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews; ... The Chaldee says: ‘All [Israel] nations who worship idols shall [change and] adore him.’ [v. 8] .” [all in full brackets mine]
It should be coming quite clear that there are three distinct entities involved here, each on its own separate level. It is similar to the three lower ranks in the army, (1) Sergeant, (2) Corporal, and (3) Private. But in our analogy it would be: (1) Yahweh Almighty. (2) The Angels under Yahweh. (3) The White Adamic Man.
Therefore, at Christ’s Incarnation, when “the Word (i.e., Yahweh) was made Flesh” at John 1:14 is the event where the Holy Spirit of Yahweh caused Mary to become pregnant with child without any sexual intercourse being involved. At that point, Yahweh Almighty, being #1, temporally lowered Himself to become #3, or a White Adamic Man with the name of Yahshua (i.e., Yah is salvation) & Christ (i.e., meaning, Anointed). At the time of Yahshua’s conception, Yahweh Almighty became a God-man, and so it remains until this very day, and will never be changed at any future time, although after His death and resurrection He resumed His position of being #1!
Also, after His death and resurrection this God-man, Yahshua Christ, with His glorified body suddenly appeared in a closed room with His disciples (John 20:19 & Luke 24:36-37):
John 20:19: “Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Yahshua and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.”
Luke 24:36-37: “36 And as they thus spake, Yahshua himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. 37 But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit.”
It should be very clear that Yahshua Christ in His resurrected glorified body, was able to suddenly appear and disappear like the “angels” we have been researching! Did Yahshua come invisibly through one of the locked doors, or through the solid wall for that matter? Or did He come into the room invisibly through an unlocked door sometime before His disciples arrived, and remain there in an invisible state until all of them had arrived and gathered together and locked the doors, and then He suddenly appeared unto them? Anyway we look at it, we have to admit that Yahshua suddenly appeared out of thin air, or from a different dimension other than height, width and depth!
What is very interesting about all of this is that those who are worthy of being resurrected from the dead, or those who are worthy to be changed in a moment will have the same kind of body that Yahshua received at His resurrection which brings up a great number of tantalizing questions.
From the last two Biblical passages I just quoted, it is recorded two times that Yahshua said to His disciples in His resurrected body, “... Peace be unto you ...” and it is an indisputable fact that one cannot speak a single word unless one is exhaling. Nor could His disciples have heard a single word had not the words which Yahshua uttered turned into vibrating sound waves in the room where His disciples were gathered! This suggests quite strongly, when we receive new or glorified bodies, we will be earthbound, where there is an atmosphere. This does not prove that in our glorified bodies, that we will need to breathe to stay alive, but this is strong evidence we will need an atmosphere to breathe in order to carry on a conversation! This probably rules out carrying on a conversation in space, unless we are in a spaceship and bring some of our atmosphere along with us.
MORTAL vs. IMMORTAL BODIES
Before Yahweh came in Adam’s flesh, He was entirely Spirit, John 4:24 (Christ’s own red-letter words):
“Yahweh is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.”
But after Yahweh became flesh He became a God-man, John 1:14:
“And the WordG3056(i.e., Yahweh in Spirit) was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”
The important thing that we should consider is the fact that when Yahweh was “... made flesh, and dwelt among us ...”, He came to us in a mortal body, subject to death. But after he was crucified and resurrected, He received an immortal glorified body not subject to death! Yet, there are several instances where mortal male and female Adamites were resurrected from death to life. However, they didn’t receive an immortal body, and would have to die a second mortal death! An example of this can be found at John 11:43-44:
“43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. 44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.” Thus, Lazarus had died as a mortal man, and he was resurrected as a mortal man, only to die as a mortal man once more. Another example of a dead mortal being resurrected to life as a mortal can be found at Matt. 9:18-19, 23-26; Mark 5:35-42; Luke: 8:49-54, and I will quote only one of these references:
Matt. 9:18-19, 23-26 states:
“18 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler [named Jairus], and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live. 19 And Yahshua arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples ... 23 And when Yahshua came into the ruler’s house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, 24 He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. 25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose. 26 And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.”
Jairus’s daughter, like Lazarus, had died as a mortal young maiden, and she was resurrected as a mortal young maiden, only to die as a mortal female once more. The reason for choosing Lazarus and Jairus’s daughter is the fact that they were resurrected BEFORE Yahshua Christ was crucified and resurrected, for only those who were or who will be resurrected AFTER Yahshua Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection will receive a glorified body. It is evident that both Lazarus and Jairus’s daughter died a mortal death the second time as Yahshua Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection hadn’t yet occurred, but they will receive a glorified body at Yahshua’s Second Coming. The turning point for this situation is found at Matt. 27:52-53 thusly:
“52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, 53 And came out of the graves after his [Yahshua Christ’s] resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.”
It should be stated here that these “... saints which slept arose ...” would have had glorified bodies like Yahshua Christ had on His resurrection, as they arose after His Resurrection! Evidently, having a glorified body like Yahshua, they disappeared into the same dimension that Yahshua disappeared into upon His Ascension!
Romans 8:29-30: “29 For whom he [Yahweh as Yahshua] did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn [i.e., first resurrected] among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”
Although the word “glorified” is in the past tense, in the Almighty’s eyes if we are genetically one of His, our future resurrection is already a concluded fact beforehand, for we are already bought with a price, and we have no choice in the matter, one way or another, but to accept His generous gift.
It should be noted that in the Old Testament there were two resurrections from the dead, one by Elijah at 1 Kings 17:20-24, and the other by Elisha at 2 Kings 4:18-37. These two, like Lazarus and Jairus’s daughter, would suffer a mortal death a second time, and did not receive a glorified body at that time as Christ’s resurrection was still in the future.
Just what features a glorified body might have we really are not fully informed in Scripture, but Yahshua Christ indicated we would be like the angels, at Matt. 22:25-32:
“25 Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother: 26 Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh. 27 And last of all the woman died also. 28 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her. 29 Yahshua answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of Yahweh. 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. 31 But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by Yahweh, saying, 32 I am the Almighty of Abraham, and the Almighty of Isaac, and the Almighty of Jacob?” Yahweh is not the Almighty of the dead, but of the living.”
It is simply amazing how Yahshua Christ masterly responded to this argument put forward by the Sadducees, as they didn’t believe in angels or resurrection or spirit; Acts 23:8! Here Yahshua was using a tactic that Paul would employ later, at Acts 23:6:
“6 But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question. 7 And when he had so said, there arose a dissension between the Pharisees and the Sadducees: and the multitude was divided.”
Amid the first arguments we hear on this passage is: “the angels are sexless”! However, that is not true, but all of the angels are of the male gender, and Yahweh didn’t create any female angels for the male angels to marry. Yet there are many other characteristics which the angels have that we might attain when we receive our glorified bodies. Some go so far with the remark, “... but are as the angels of God in heaven” to mean that all Adamic women will be resurrected as men as all of the angels are of the male gender. Others make the claim that both male and female Adamites, plus the angels will be sexless. Yet there are others who claim the statement, “... they neither marry, nor are given in marriage ...” that somehow the family unit will be abolished. In the usual marriage vow, the phrase “until death” is included, but Christ clearly stated, “... I am the Almighty of Abraham, and the Almighty of Isaac, and the Almighty of Jacob?” Yahweh is not the Almighty of the dead, but of the living.” If one will check at Matt. 22:25-28, Christ was clearly answering the Sadducees concerning the Biblical Levirate law, in which they hoped to trap Him. Had Yahshua Christ explained the Levirate law to the Sadducees and the rest of the gathering there, no one would have fully understood it, causing much confusion. The object of the Levirate law was to maintain a family intact. Since all the brothers in a family have the same father and same mother, all the brothers will have identical DNA sperm banks. So if one of the brothers marries, and somehow dies before impregnating his wife, another brother is obligated to impregnate her for him, and when the child is born it would be named after the brother that died, and it wouldn’t be considered incest. Ruth’s marriage to Boaz was a Levirate marriage. So Christ’s answer to the Sadducees must be taken in that context!
Luke makes the Levirate law clearer at 20:28:
“Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man’s brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.”
The question that must be asked is: if at the death of our mortal body, while our spirit continues to live, would that annul our marriage in the next life? One thing is for sure, if a man divorced his wife, by law he cannot return to her in this world or the next! The proof that all of the angels had the faculties for having sexual intercourse can be grasped by a perusal of Genesis 6:1-2, 4:
“1 And it came to pass, when menH120 began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 2 That the sons of the Almighty saw the daughters of menH120 that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose ... 4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of the Almighty came in untoH935 the daughters of menH120, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.”
It is quite clear here that it is speaking of the “Sons of God”having sexual intercourse with White Adamic women! These angels could only have been part of the angels that rebelled at some time in the ancient past, at Rev. 12:7-9, where it states:
“7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angelsG32 fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angelsG32, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 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 angelsG32 were cast out with him.”
This event is further illustrated at v. 4:
“And his [the great red dragon’s] tail drew the third part of the stars [rebellious angels] of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon [in the person of the Edomite, Herod the Great] stood before the woman [Mary] which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child [Christ] as soon as it was born.”
This surely demonstrates to us that the heavenly host of innumerable “Sons of God”or “angels of Yahweh” actually does exist, and that it is just a matter of identifying some of them, both of the good and of the bad.
It may be conjecture on my part, but I can envision Yahweh creating all of His host of angels in the male gender, which is Biblical. Although, on the other hand, Yahweh didn’t create these male angels a counterpart, or a female angel. As we have already observed, the angels could, and did have sexual intercourse with White Adamic women. The only thing that I can imagine is, Yahweh must have given His male angels all of the abilities of His male creations, except the part of the brain that produces natural opiates which stimulates the sex drive. And without the opiates, the male angels would have no desire for sexual intercourse. Evidently, the third of the angels that rebelled against Yahweh and fell, found opiates in some type of vegetation to jump-start their sexual desire! Does anyone else have a better hypothesis?
