Many Christian denominations believe that in the Old Testament, the appearance of angels was in fact a preincarnate Jesus. However, at no time, is this concept ever spoken of in the Old or New Testament. Neither Jesus nor the apostles ever mention the concept of Jesus being a pre incarnate angel. Let’s explore the word of God.
As we look into the New Testament, we see that Paul never states Jesus was ever an angel.
Hebrews 2:1-9 – We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2 For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3 how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4 God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
5 It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking. 6 But there is a place where someone has testified:
“What is mankind that you are mindful of them, a son of man that you care for him?
7 You made them a little lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honor 8 and put everything under their feet.”
In putting everything under them, God left nothing that is not subject to them. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them. 9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
Jesus was made lower than the angels, in that he was subject to a physical death, which angels are not subject to.
Hebrews 1:1-14 – In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways,
Meaning through God’s angels.
Galatians 3:19 – Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator.
Acts 7:53 – you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”
Hebrews 2:2 – For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment,
Cont’d Hebrews 1:2 – but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.
Paul is clearly making a distinction between angels and Jesus, the Messiah.
3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
The ‘name’ of Jesus means that the message Jesus inherited was much more superior than any message that was ever given to angels.
5 For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”? Or again, I will be his Father, and he will be my Son? 6 And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.”
7 In speaking of the angels he says, “He makes his angels spirits, and his servants flames of fire.” 8 But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. 9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.”
10 He also says, “In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.11 They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. 12 You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed.But you remain the same, and your years will never end.”
13 To which of the angels did God ever say,
“Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”? 14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
But the name of Jesus is far more superior than the angels. This means that the message Jesus was given is much more superior than any angel has ever been given.
Jesus’ message is far more clear and accurate than anyone else or any angel in the bible. There is no interpretation or message that is greater than Jesus. This is what Paul meant when he states:
Hebrews 12:24 -to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better message than Abel’s.
Hebrews 8:6 – But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.
The ministry that Jesus received was more superior than the message received by Moses through angels, which the Levitical priests followed in the Temple.
Galatians 3:19 – What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.
The law was given to Moses through angels.
Acts 7:53 – you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”
Hebrews 2:2 – For the message God delivered through angels has always stood firm, and every violation of the law and every act of disobedience was punished.
This law was to be followed until the arrival of the Messiah, the seed of Abraham. He would be the mediator of a more superior covenant and message.
Hebrews 7:22 – Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantor of a better covenant.
Physically, Jesus was made lower than the angels but in spirit, he was made more superior. However, no part of Jesus was ever an angel.
At no time, does any apostle nor Jesus, state that Jesus was an angel. Angels are spoken of many times in the bible and many people had angelic encounters. However, no one ever referred to these angels as Jesus or the coming Messiah pre-incarnate. Paul encountered angels and in fact, all of the apostles saw angels:
Acts 27:23-25 – Last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me 24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’ 25 So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.
Paul never claims that Jesus was this angel or at any time was an angel.
Acts 9:3-6 – As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
In Paul’s encounter, he heard a voice from heaven, which was Jesus. At no time, however, does the scripture state that Jesus was an angel. Which is why it goes on to explain that no one was seen speaking the voice. It was only a bright light that was seen.
Acts 9:7 – The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone.
Paul could not have seen an angel since he was blinded and nothing in the scriptures states anything about there being an angel.
Acts 9:8-9 – Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
Peter saw angels:
Acts 12:7 – Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.
At no time did Peter ever explain Jesus as this angel or as a pre-incarnate angel.
Philip saw an angel:
Acts 8:26-29 – Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
All of the Apostles saw angels in the following encounters. Yet at no time, did any of them claim it was Jesus, or that Jesus was a pre-incarnate angel.
Acts 5:17-19 – Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out.
Acts 1:9-11 – After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
Mary and Joseph experienced a similar encounter when the angel Gabriel visited them.
Luke 1:26 – In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee…
Matthew 1:20 – But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 2:13 – When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
Matthew 2:19-20 – But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20 Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child’s life.
Angels even appeared to Jesus.
Luke 22:42-43 – “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.
Matthew 4:11 – Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
However, at no time did Jesus ever state that he was an angel presently, previously or will be in the future. Even Jesus, when explaining the account of the burning bush, did not state that he was that angel.
Mark 12:26 – Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’
Luke 20:37-40 – But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 38 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”
39 Some of the teachers of the law responded, “Well said, teacher!” 40 And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
The scripture itself makes no mention of the angel of the Lord being the future Messiah.
Exodus 3:2 – There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up.
Even Stephen, when recounting the account of the burning bush, does not state Jesus was this angel.
Acts 7:30-31 – And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.
31 When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,
Acts 7:53 – 53 you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”
This coincides with Paul’s statement in:
Hebrews 1:1-2 – In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.
Galatians 3:19 – Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator.
Let’s examine an Old Testament story, where some Christians claim Jesus was an angel.
In the story of Shadrach, Meshak and Abednego, King Nebuchadnezzar states:
Daniel 3:25 ESV – He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
NASB – He responded, “Look! I see four men untied and walking about in the middle of the fire unharmed, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!”
KJV – He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
As we read the next verses, we can see King Nebuchadnezzar reveal that the fourth person he saw in the fire was an angel of the Lord, and not Jesus.
Daniel 3:28 – Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.
In the book of Job, the angels are referred to as the Sons of God.
Job 1:6 – Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.
Job 2:1 – Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
Job 38:7 – When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
Many people misinterpret the following scripture in John 8:56, to mean that Abraham saw Jesus. This is not what Jesus says. Jesus said that Abraham rejoiced at seeing his day – he saw it and was glad.
John 8:56 – Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.”
Abraham did not see Jesus in flesh and blood or as an angel. Rather, Abraham rejoiced at being told of his earthly ministry. This is what is meant by ‘seeing his day’. Jesus also speaks of this to his disciples.
Luke 17:22 – Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
Matthew 13:17 – For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
Luke 10:24 – For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
Abraham rejoiced at being told that his seed would be Jesus, who would bless all the people of the world. Meaning, Jesus the Messiah would come from Abraham’s descendants. This is how Abraham saw the day of Jesus.
Genesis 12:3 – I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
Genesis 22:18 – and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
Genesis 18:18 – Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.
Paul clearly states that Abraham never saw God’s promise come to fruition in flesh and blood.
Hebrews 11:12-13 – And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.
This is what Paul means when he states that they welcomed them at a distance, meaning they rejoiced at being told by God of His plan. So he could not have physically seen Jesus, the Messiah. Instead, he rejoiced at God’s word due to his faith, which was credited to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15:5-6 – He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Romans 4:3 – What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
James 2:23 – And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.
Paul goes on to explain what this means further:
Galatians 3:6-9 &14 & 16 – So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
7 Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. 8 Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9 So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” 11 Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.” 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, “The person who does these things will live by them.” 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.” 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit…16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ.
Paul is explaining how the Gentiles will be saved through Abraham, which is through his seed, Jesus the Messiah.
Peter confirms this also:
Acts 3:25 – And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’
This is how Abraham saw Jesus’ day. It wasn’t that he actually met Jesus face to face.
Even the Jews misinterpreted what Jesus had said.
John 8:57 – “You are not yet fifty years old,” they said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!”
Then Jesus replied:
John 8:58 – Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”
It is important to understand that before Abraham, God was known as ‘I Am’, as in ‘I Am God Almighty’.
Exodus 6:3 – I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself fully known to them.
Genesis 17:1 – When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless.
Genesis 35:11 – And God said to him, “I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants.
Genesis 48:3 – Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there he blessed me.
Even when Moses first encountered the burning bush, he did not know God’s name. God’s name was only revealed to Moses later on.
Exodus 3:13-15 – Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”
14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”
15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’
“This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation.
So Jesus was simply stating that it’s not all about Abraham being their father. It is rather about God, (who existed before Abraham was born), who showed Abraham the day of Jesus, through his promise that he would come from Abraham’s seed. Not that Abraham actually met Jesus.
This is why earlier in the story, Jesus and the Jewish people are having a discussion regarding whether they are Abraham’s descendants, Abraham’s children or God’s children.
John 8:33-47 – They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?”
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are Abraham’s descendants. Yet you are looking for a way to kill me, because you have no room for my word. 38 I am telling you what I have seen in the Father’s presence, and you are doing what you have heard from your father.”
39 “Abraham is our father,” they answered.
“If you were Abraham’s children,” said Jesus, “then you would do what Abraham did. 40 As it is, you are looking for a way to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. 41 You are doing the works of your own father.”
“We are not illegitimate children,” they protested. “The only Father we have is God himself.”
42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. 43 Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. 44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! 46 Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? 47 Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”
Jesus sets the record straight by stating the Jews were Abraham’s descendants, not his children and not children of God either. Rather, they were of the devil. They were completely forgetting about God and the promise he made to Abraham about the coming Messiah, who would bless the Gentiles. So Jesus is reminding them by stating before Abraham was ‘I Am’. Meaning the God who made the promise to Abraham according to his plan to bless the Gentiles, is not all about Abraham and his descendants. It is about the Messiah and those who are Abraham’s children.
Many Christians believe that the scripture found in John 8:56 & 58, is explained from a story in Genesis, but this is false:
Genesis 18 – The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. 2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.
3 He said, “If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. 4 Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. 5 Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”
“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”
6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”
7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8 He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.
9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him. “There, in the tent,” he said.
10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”
Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. 11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
16 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17 Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”
20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”
22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
27 Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”
“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”
29 Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”
He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”
30 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”
He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”
He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”
32 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?”
He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”
33 When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.
It may seem that Abraham calling the angel ‘Lord’ meant that the men (or one of them), were God. However, even in the account of Moses and the burning bush, the bush was the Angel of the Lord and the voice was God. It is the same thing in this case. The man was the Angel of the Lord and the words were from God.
Exodus 3:2-6 – There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”
4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.
Even though the scriptures clearly state that the burning bush was the Angel of the Lord, Moses mistook the bush to be God himself. But the Bible states:
Exodus 33:20 – But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
Some people may state that the scriptures say that Moses saw God ‘face to face’ as described in:
Exodus 33:11 – The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.
Deuteronomy 34:10 – Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face,
However, the scriptures clearly tell us what this means.
Numbers 12:8 – With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”
Now we can understand what the scriptures mean. Moses seeing God ‘face to face’ means that he understood God and His characteristics. Although Moses was clearly confused and did genuinely feel that he had seen God ‘face to face’ and lived, this was not actually the case.
The scriptures specifically state that the burning bush was the Angel of the Lord and not God. Stephen explains this also:
Acts 7:30-31 – And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.
31 When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,
Acts 7:53 – you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”
This does not make the bush or the Angel, God. No part of the scriptures mentions that the coming Messiah was the Angel of the Lord, preincarnate.
Even on Mount Sinai, Moses did not actually see God. Looking into the New Testament, Stephen explains:
Acts 7:38 – He was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to pass on to us.
Yet, the actual Old Testament scripture states:
Exodus 19:3, 7-8 – Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel:…7 So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the Lord had commanded him to speak. 8The people all responded together, “We will do everything the Lord has said.” So Moses brought their answer back to the Lord.
Exodus 19:17 – Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.
So Moses never actually saw God’s face on Mount Sinai, for no one can see God and live.
Exodus 33:20 – But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
1 Timothy 6:16 – who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.
Rather, Moses saw the angel of the Lord on top of Mount Sinai.
Here is another example regarding Abraham’s angelic visitation:
Genesis 22:6-8 – Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”
“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.
“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.
Even though Abraham states that God will provide a lamb, he does so through an angel.
Genesis 22:9-11 – When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”
It is the angel of the Lord that speaks out to Abraham.
Genesis 22:12-14 – “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”
13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
Abraham understood that it is God who provides and He can speak His words through angels but it was not some physical manifestation of himself. The angel was not God himself.
Genesis 22:15-18 – The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
As we can see, it is clearly God speaking through an angel of the Lord, and making promises that only God can make. And Abraham understood this. We can see that the encounter with the three men took place before the encounter regarding Isaac’s sacrifice. So by this time, Abraham understood more clearly, how God’s visitations work, and that is through angels. He no longer confuses angels with God himself.
There are many other Old Testament examples of biblical characters mistaking an Angel of the Lord for God.
Judges 13 – Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. 3 The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. 4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. 5 You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”
6 Then the woman went to her husband and told him, “A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God, very awesome. I didn’t ask him where he came from, and he didn’t tell me his name. 7 But he said to me, ‘You will become pregnant and have a son. Now then, drink no wine or other fermented drink and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from the womb until the day of his death.’”
8 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: “Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”
9 God heard Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was out in the field; but her husband Manoah was not with her. 10 The woman hurried to tell her husband, “He’s here! The man who appeared to me the other day!”
11 Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, “Are you the man who talked to my wife?” “I am,” he said.
12 So Manoah asked him, “When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule that governs the boy’s life and work?”
13 The angel of the Lord answered, “Your wife must do all that I have told her. 14 She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her.”
15 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you.”
16 The angel of the Lord replied, “Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the Lord.” (Manoah did not realize that it was the angel of the Lord.)
Up until this point, Samson’s father did not even know this was an angel.
17 Then Manoah inquired of the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?”
18 He replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.” 19 Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock to the Lord. And the Lord did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: 20 As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground. 21 When the angel of the Lord did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realized that it was the angel of the Lord.
Now Manoah realizes this was an angel.
22 “We are doomed to die!” he said to his wife. “We have seen God!”
However, in his confusion, he states that the angel was God, and that they were now going to die because they had seen God. Manoah held this belief because of the scriptures which state:
Exodus 33:20 – But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
John 1:18 – No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
1 Timothy 6:16 – who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.
Jacob was also confused during his encounter with an angel:
Genesis 32:24 – So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
This verse clearly refers to the one whom Jacob wrestled with, a man.
Genesis 32:25-28 – When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
27 The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered.
28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”
These verses seem to suggest that Jacob had wrestled with God himself.
Genesis 32:29-30 – Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. 30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”
Jacob then declares that he has seen God face to face. However, as we know, this could not have been possible as per God’s promise in Exodus 33:20, John 1:18 and 1 Timothy 6:16.
Exodus 33:20 – But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
John 1:18 – No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
1 Timothy 6:16 – who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.
The book of Hosea clearly states that Jacob wrestled with an angel.
Hosea 12:3-4 – In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel; as a man he struggled with God.
4 He struggled with the angel and overcame him; he wept and begged for his favor. He found him at Bethel and talked with him there—
When Daniel saw an angel of the Lord (Gabriel), he was overwhelmed with fear at both the angelic visitation and his vision.
Daniel 9:21 – while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.
Daniel 10:8-12 & 15-17 – So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless. 9 Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.
10 A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 He said, “Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.
12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them…15 While he was saying this to me, I bowed with my face toward the ground and was speechless. 16 Then one who looked like a man touched my lips, and I opened my mouth and began to speak. I said to the one standing before me, “I am overcome with anguish because of the vision, my lord, and I feel very weak. 17 How can I, your servant, talk with you, my lord? My strength is gone and I can hardly breathe.”
Here Daniel is calling Gabriel ‘Lord’ just like Abraham did.
Daniel 10:18-19 – Again the one who looked like a man touched me and gave me strength. 19 “Do not be afraid, you who are highly esteemed,” he said. “Peace! Be strong now; be strong.”
When he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Speak, my lord, since you have given me strength.”
When Hagar receives an angelic visitation, she calls the angel ‘Lord’.
Genesis 16:7-13 – The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”
“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.
9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” 10 The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”
11 The angel of the Lord also said to her:
“You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery.
12 He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.”
13 She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”
Some people claim that the angel that spoke to Joshua was Jesus pre incarnate. In no place in the bible, does any prophet, apostle or our Lord Jesus himself, ever claim this concept.
5 For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”? Or again, I will be his Father, and he will be my Son? 6 And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.”
Although God’s angels worship Jesus, this in no way states that Jesus is the captain of God’s army.
Matthew 16:27 – For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.
Matthew 26:53 – Don’t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly?
Let’s review the story:
Joshua 5:13-15 – Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
Now we can see that Joshua was told to take off his sandals just as Moses was told. However, we know now that the burning bush was not God, but rather the angel of the Lord. The voice/words were God. In the same way with Joshua, the angel is not God, but the voice/words are from God.
Furthermore, as we have already reviewed, Joshua calling the angel Lord does not mean that the angel is God, as many people in the bible called angels ‘Lord’. Lastly, the angel calls himself the Captain of the Lord’s army. This means that the angel is Michael since Jesus at no time, refers to himself as the Captain of the Lord’s army.
Joshua 5:14 – Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
Revelation 12:7-9 – Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
As we can see, it is Michael who leads God’s army of angels. Michael is also spoken of as a powerful warrior in the book of Daniel.
Daniel 10:13, 21 – But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia…21 But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.
Daniel 12:1 – “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.
Jude 1:9 – But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”
In the New Testament also, people mistaken an angel of the Lord for God and bowed down to worship them, like John.
Revelations 19:10 – At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”
Revelations 22:8-9 – I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. 9 But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”
Even though John clearly states that the being was an angel, sent by Jesus.
Revelations 1:1 – The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,
In the book of Acts, Cornelius referred to the angel who visited him as ‘Lord’.
Acts 10:3-4 – One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.
Zechariah had an encounter with an angel of the Lord in the Holy of Holies, where it says that he was gripped with fear. The angel is merely a messenger receiving his message or words from God.
Luke 1:11-12 & 19 – Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear…19 The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.
Some people feel that Paul indirectly stated that Jesus is an angel:
1 Thessalonians 4:16 – For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
But Jesus himself does not claim that he is an angel. He states that he will come with his angels.
Matthew 24:31 – And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Matthew 25:31 – “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne.
Matthew 13:41 – The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.
At no time does Jesus make the claim that he is a pre-incarnate angel or the captain of angels from the Old Testament.
Mary Magdalene experienced an angelic encounter at Jesus’ tomb. Yet at no time, does Mary Magdalene ever claim Jesus to be an angel.
Mark 16:2-8 – Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”
4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’”
8 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.
In this scripture, the angel is speaking about Jesus. He does not claim to be Jesus himself. This account is also mentioned in Luke.
Luke 24:1-8 – On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. 5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 7 ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” 8 Then they remembered his words.
Also in Matthew:
Matthew 28:1-7 – After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”
At no point do these angels refer to themselves as Jesus. They are rather speaking about Jesus. This is also spoken of in John.
John 20:1, 11-14 – Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance…Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
The scriptures clearly state that two angels appeared but in no way did it state that Jesus was one of these angels. Nor does Mary Magdalene ever claim that Jesus was an angel.
John 20:15-17 – He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). 17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
When Jesus appears to the disciples, he never states that he is an angel or a spirit, but rather a man of flesh and blood.
Luke 24:36-40 – 36As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.
Paul states this also in:
Hebrews 1:7 – In speaking of the angels he says, “He makes his angels spirits, and his servants flames of fire.”
On the road to Emaus, Jesus explained the scriptures concerning himself, meaning as the Messiah not as an angel!
Luke 24:25-27 – He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
And again, he explained this to the disciples in:
Luke 24:44-48 – He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things.
Jesus explains in the scriptures how he was the Messiah, not a pre-incarnate angel. There is no evidence in the scriptures to suggest that Jesus was ever a pre-incarnate angel. It is not scriptural and must be discounted as a myth.
2 Timothy 4:3-4 – For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
1 Timothy 1:3-4 – As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer 4 or to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. Such things promote controversial speculations rather than advancing God’s work—which is by faith.
1 Timothy 4:1-8 – The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. 4 For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5 because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.
6 If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. 7 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. 8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
Titus 1:13-14 – This saying is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith 14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth.
Titus 1:9-11 – He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
10 For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11 They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain.
2 Peter 1:16 – For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
Let us also remember the Apostle Paul’s warning about accepting a different gospel, even from angels, than the one that he preached. In no way, does Paul refer to Jesus as an angel. This notion of Jesus being a pre-incarnate angel is an example of the perversion Paul is speaking of in:
Galatians 1:8 – I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! 9As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!
If anyone tries to convince us that Jesus Christ was an angel at any time, we should reject that teaching, as it is not endorsed by the Lord himself, or any of the apostles who walked with Jesus. It is absolutely not biblical.
So then, we must continue to hold firm in the belief that Jesus was not an angel at any point in time in the Bible. There is no biblical evidence to suggest that Jesus was ever an angel. God has spoken to us in the past through prophets. He even sent messages through angels. However, in the last days, it was his son, Jesus the Messiah, whom he sent to speak to us. And when the time finally came for Jesus to arrive, he came not as an angel, but in the flesh as a man and son of God.
Hebrews 1:5 – 1 In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father” ?
The apostle John warned us to be very careful of people who falsely claim that Jesus appeared as an angel at any time.
2 John 1:7 – I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.
At no time did Jesus appear as an angel or has ever been an angel of the Lord. This concept is never mentioned at any point in the Bible. And so, this notion must be discounted entirely as a false myth/fable.
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