ANGELS IN HEBREWS 1-2

Since the previous post used “devil” as an example of etymology being misused, let's go to the opposite extreme: “angel.” The Greek word aggelos is usually translated as “angel” in the Bible. A past member of our church once told his Sunday school class, which was studying the Book of Hebrews that this is a poor translation since the original meaning of the word is simply “messenger,” such as one of God's human messengers, the prophets. We can look at all the appearances of this word in Hebrews 1-2 and try to determine from the contexts which meaning makes the most sense in each case. Is it a supernatural being or a human messenger from God such as a prophet?

Two general considerations: (1) If it is a human messenger that the author is talking about, he has already used a perfectly good word for that in 1:1 (prophet) and (2) the meaning in each case must almost certainly be the same throughout these two chapters since they constitute one long continuous argument.

Some of the appearances of “angel” in Hebrews could be ambiguous, but at least three verses clearly refer to what we would call angels.

    1. “Are not all angels spirits in the divine service...?” (Hebrews 1:14) Spirit beings are always contrasted with flesh and blood creatures in the Bible.

    2. “What are human beings that you are mindful of them?...You have made them for a little while lower than the angels.” (Hebrews 2:6-7)  The meaning “prophets” makes absolutely no sense here.

    3. “For it is clear that he (Jesus) did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham.” (2:16) Whether “descendants of Abraham” means the Jewish people or the community of faith, “prophets” again makes no sense here.

There is only one usage of aggelos in which “prophets” appears on the surface to make more sense. “For if the message declared through angels was valid, and every transgression or disobedience received a just penalty...” (Hebrews 2:2)  But that verse is explained by looking at some parallels elsewhere in the Bible.

    Stephen says to the Jewish crowd, “You are the ones that received the law as ordained by angels...” (Acts 7:53)

    “Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions...and it was ordained through angels by a mediator.” (Galatians 3:19)

This idea arose in NT times from the Septuagint (LXX) version of the description of the law being given on Mt. Sinai. “The LORD came from Sinai, and dawned from Seir upon us; he shown forth from Mount Paran. With him were myriads of holy ones (“angels” in LXX); at his right, a host of his own.” (Deuteronomy 33:2)