The Angel of the LORD

Illustration of The Angel of the LORD

The Angel of the LORD is a unique figure who speaks and acts as God himself, receiving worship and bearing the divine name - leading many to see him as a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ. He appeared to Hagar, wrestled with Jacob, called to Moses from the burning bush, and stood before Balaam and Joshua. Unlike ordinary angels, he accepts worship and speaks in the first person as God.

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Strongest connections in Scripture
Exodus 3

Key Passages

The Angel in the Burning Bush

Exodus 3:1-6

The Angel of the LORD appears in the flame, yet speaks as God himself - 'I am the God of thy father' - and Moses hides his face.

N1ow Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. 5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. 6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

Explore Related

Characters

The Angel of the Lord The Angel of the Lord appears repeatedly in the Old Testament as a divine messenger who speaks and actsโ€ฆ Moses Moses was a prophet chosen by God to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt during the Exodus. Throughโ€ฆ Hagar Hagar was the Egyptian maidservant of Sarah, wife of the patriarch Abraham. When Sarah remained childless,โ€ฆ Jacob Jacob, the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, played a pivotal role in the biblical narrative as one ofโ€ฆ Balaam Balaam was a pagan prophet from Mesopotamia hired by Balak, king of Moab, to curse the Israelites as theyโ€ฆ

Places

Mount Sinai Mount Sinai, also known as Horeb in some biblical passages, is the mountain in the Sinai Peninsula whereโ€ฆ

Did You Know?

1

The Angel of the LORD often speaks as God in the first person and accepts worship - unlike ordinary angels.

2

Many scholars see him as a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ (a 'Christophany').

3

He appeared to Hagar, Abraham, Moses at the bush, Balaam, Gideon, and Manoah.

4

When Manoah realized who he had seen, he feared he would die for seeing God.