A COMPARISON OF BIBLICAL ANGELOPHANIES WITH THAT OF NON-CANONICAL

LITERATURES

PHILIP PANG

INTRODUCTION
Interests in recent studies on angelology focus primarily on relationship between
angel traditions and development of Christian Christology. Werner proposed that the primitive
Christology of the early church was based upon the transformation of the Jesus into an angelic
being due to his resurrection and exaltation.1 In his book, Two Powers in Heaven, Segal sees
Christianity as a form of sectarian movement developed from the “two power” heresy belief
originated from the rabbinic Judaism, which believes that the power in heaven was shared
between God and another created being. Jesus was frequently identified as some human figures
in heaven or some angelic mediators by the early Christians.2 Charlesworth demonstrates from
seven pseudepigraphal texts that it is the Jewish concept which portrays the righteous humans as
angels.3 This stimulates scholarly interest in the transformation of righteous individual with a
special relationship with God into angel. Around the same time, Rowland draws attention to the
similarity between the descriptions of angels and the risen Christ.4 Fossum identifies the
traditions of the Angel of the Lord and the tradition of the Name of God as the tie of the mediator
with a human hero ascended to heaven.5 With regard to the study of Angelology at Qumran,
Newsome published a critical edition on the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice (4Q400-405) and
Davidson compared the angel tradition of Qumran with 1 Enoch.6 Since 1990's to the present
time, scholarly interest has returned to angelomorphic Christology, the identification of Jesus
Christ with the form or function of an angel.7

In a recent monograph, Sullivan points out that, "One aspect of the investigation that
has received only modest attention thus far is the sometimes complex relationship between
human and angels."8 He slightly changes the focus from angelomorphic Christology to the angel
human interaction and to the human ability to identify angels. Sullivan approaches his topic from
a theological perspective and argues for a clear distinction between human and angel, even when
the human is portrayed in angelomorphic terms.9

1
 Along the same line of angel human interaction, this paper investigates the largely
neglected literary aspects of angel human interaction, as opposed to the prevailing theological
aspects. Angelophanies are found in both the Hebrew Scripture and the New Testament with
identifiable features and patterns that allow one to classify it as a specific genre. The objective of
this paper is to identify such features in the biblical narratives and compare them with the non-
canonical writings.

There are two major sections to this study. The first section surveys the biblical
angelophany accounts and identifies any generic framework and specific features. Due to the
amount of angelic materials involved in the literatures of the late Second Temple and early
Christian Period, a thorough survey of all angelophanies is beyond the scope of this paper.
Rather, a selected representative angelophanic accounts are presented in light of the biblical
features identified in the first section. The common and unique features are studied for each
individual instance.

Features of Biblical Angelophanies

There are three modes of angelophany in both the Hebrew Bible and the New
Testament. The most frequent and common encounter is the actual physical human angel contact
where the angel is seen in a physical form when the human party is in his full conscious state.
The other modes are Angelophanies in dreams or visions. Angels appeared to Jacob (Gen 28:11-
22; 31:10-13) and Joseph (Matt 1:18-25; 2:13-15; 19-23) in dreams. The visionary appearances
of angels to Daniel, Zechariah and John in Revelation belong to the apocalyptic genre with
eschatological content. Only selective instances from these books are discussed in this paper.

Angelophany Defined
Since there is no equivalent in either Hebrew or Greek for the English word “angel,”
readers are confronted with the issue of making distinction between the human and the divine
messenger. The Hebrew noun ְ‫מַל ְאך‬10 (messenger) basically refers to the means by which a
message is sent.11 The corresponding Greek term ἄγγελος is defined as “one who brings a
message.”12 Both terms can refer to either human or divine messenger. This problem is further
complicated by the designation ‫( מַל ְאך ְ י ְהו ָה‬angel of Yahweh) in the OT, which is sometimes
used interchangeably with Yahweh himself. The nomen rectum in Hebrew construct cannot take
the definite article with a proper name since it is intrinsically definite. Generally, the construct
relation carries over the definiteness from the genitive to the construct but there are exceptions

10
This noun belongs to the maqtal noun with mem prefix and a–vowel which generally corresponds to
an instrumental noun with the expectation of a derived root of ‫לאך‬, which was not attested in Hebrew but widely
attested in Ugaritic meaning “to send.”
11

12
determined by the context.13 Since the LXX and the NT use the identical term ἄγγελος κυρίου
(angel of the Lord) without the definite article14 and it is highly probable that the referent of these
terms in both the OT and NT is the same.15

With regard to the issue whether the same messenger is being sent or not in both the
OT and NT, linguistic ground is inadequate to solve the problem. Based upon the intertextual
interpretation of the parallel passage of 2 Chr 32:21, which takes the “angel of Yahweh” in 2 Kgs
19:35 as simply “an angel;” “angel of Yahweh” is synonymous to “angel.”16 In 1 Kgs 19:5-7, the
divine messenger was introduced as “angel” in v.5 but subsequently referred to as “angel of
Yahweh” in v.7. In addition, Meier points out that, “there is no onomastic evidence from within
the Bible to determine if -> Yahweh, like other deities in the ancient Near East, prefers
dispatching a particular supernatural being on missions.”17 The difficulty in this view lies in the
apparently identification of “angel of Yahweh” with Yahweh himself.18 This leads some to
conclude that the term refers to the pre-incarnate Christ.19 In light of the fact that it is not
uncommon for a messenger in the ancient Near East to speak in the first person on behalf of his
master20 and the switch between the first and third person (e.g. Deut 29:2-6), the first person
speeches of angel of Yahweh on behalf of Yahweh is expected. Walkte states well that, “In the
ancient Near East the royal messenger was treated as a surrogate of the king… So also the Lord’s
messenger is treated as God and yet as distinct from God, as God’s angel.”21 With this
understanding, the appearance of “angel of the Lord” in both the OT and NT are taken as
angelophany in this paper.22

13

14
The definite article never appears in its first occurrence for this term in the NT. However, there are a
few exceptional cases in the LXX (Num 22:23; 2 Sam 24:16). The lack of definite article is no warrant for
indefiniteness though the majority view takes the NT term as indefinite. Wallace argues that it should be translated
as definite.
15

16
Another instance is found in 2 Sam 24:16-17 (“angel”) and 1 Chr 21:15 (“angel of Yahweh”).
17

18
In Gen 16:7-13, the narrator identifies Yahweh as the one who was speaking with Hagar (v. 13); in
Judg 6:11-23 and Zech 3:1-2, Yahweh and “angel of Yahweh” seems to be used interchangeably; and in Exod 3:2-
4:17, “angel of Yahweh” appeared to Moses but subsequent dialogue only makes references to Yahweh. This
problem is further complicated when variant readings and parallels from Philo, Josephus and Targums are
considered. Please refer to a detail listing in
19
This position has been thoroughly refuted by
20

21

The term “angel of the Lord” is treated indiscriminately with other term such as “angel,” “holy
22

angel,” “angel of God,” “man of God,” and “son of God,” when the context clearly refers to non-human divine
messenger.
 Setting of Angelophany
The setting for biblical angelophanies can be classified into a few major categories.
An angel is sent as a result of a divine response to what God has seen or heard. It can also be a
divine intervention to prevent certain things from happening or to provide deliverance. A specific
timing is sometimes involved in these interventions. An angel sometimes appears in the midst of
religious activities such as praying or fasting. For cases where the purpose of angelophany is the
proclamation of a birth, blessing, judgment or prophetic message, the setting is often omitted
because it does not play a significant role with regard to the angelophany.

A Divine Response to What has been Heard or Seen

Angelophanies as a result of divine response seems to be a special feature in the
earlier accounts. Abraham was invited to intercede for Sodom and Gomorrah because the outcry
of their sins is great and Yahweh had gone down and had seen it (Gen 18:20-21). Two angels
were sent to deliver Lot because God had heard the cry and decided to destroy the place (Gen
19:13). When Hagar had given up hope for survival, she “lifted up her voice and wept” (Gen
21:16b).23 But interestingly, God responded to Ishmael’s cry, “God heard the lad crying, and the
angel of God called to Hagar from heaven…for God has heard the voice of the lad.” (Gen
21:17). The reason given for the appearance in Jacob’s dream is that, “for I have seen all that
Laben has been doing to you” (Gen 31:12b). Similarly, the angel of Yahweh appeared to Moses
in the burning bush because “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt,
and have given heed to their cry” (Exod 3:7). Moses was commissioned to be the agent of
deliverance. Similarly, Gideon was commissioned to deliver Israel through the angel of Yahweh
in respond to their crying out to Yahweh (Judg 6:6). When Elijah ran for his life from the hand of
Jezebel and requested for his death, an angel of Yahweh was sent to nourish his physical needs (1
Kgs 19:1-8). The only NT account of angelophany as a result of heeding a prayer is Cornelius
where an angel said to him, “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God.”
(Acts 10:4b).

Intervention
Balaam was intervened by an angel of the Lord on his way to curse Israel (Num
22:21-35). The setting for the angel appearing to David is that God had intervened and stopped
the angel from carrying out the judgment (2 Sam 24:16-17; 1 Chr 21:15). An angel was sent to
Elijah to provide him a message to intervene Ahaziah’s attempt to inquire Baal-zebub (2 Kgs
1:3). Later the angel appeared again to intervene Elijah from again call fire upon the servants of
Ahaziah (2 Kgs 1:15).

In NT, all three angelophanies of Joseph in the form of dreams are intervention in
nature. Joseph’s plan to divorce Mary was intervened (Matt 1:18-25) and both his trips to Egypt
and return are divine intervention to preserve baby Jesus (Matt 2:13-15; 19-23). Philip’s ministry
in Samaria was redirected by an angel to go on the desert road to evangelize the Ethiopian

23
All Scripture quotations are taken from the NASB unless otherwise stated.
eunuch (Acts 8:26). Peter was released from jail by an angel the night before Herod planned to
kill him (Acts 12:1-11). In many cases, the timing for the angelophany seems to be critical.

During Religious Activities

Angelophany in the midst of religious activities seems to be a late feature which first
occurs in Daniel while he was praying, “while I was still praying, the man Gabriel whom I had
seen previously in a vision was approaching me in my state of extreme weariness, around the
time of the evening offering” (Dan 9:21). Though an angel appeared during Daniel’s prayer, it is
not for the answering of a specific need but revelatory in nature. Similarly, an angel appeared to
him when he was mourning and fasting (10:2-4). An angel appeared to minister to Jesus after his
fasting for 40 days and during his fervent prayer at Gethsemane (Matt 4:11; Luke 22:43).
Zechariah was on duty in the holy place burning incense (Luke 1:8-20) and Cornelius was
“praying to God continually” (Acts 10:2) when he saw an angel in a vision.

Angel Appearances
Other than merely in an audible voice (Gen 21:17; 22:11), there are two common
forms of appearances. Angelophany is usually in human form or with luminous appearance. In
Gen 18:2, the angels appeared as “three men” and subsequently when two of them visited Sodom
they were being taken as ordinary men by both Lot and the people. In Num 22:23 and 1 Chr
21:15, the angel was portrayed as standing with a sword in his hand, presumably as a human.
The only detailed description of an angelic appearance in the OT is Dan 10:5-6, where the
luminous feature is stated as, “there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was girded
with a belt of pure gold of Uphaz. is body also was like beryl, his face had the appearance of
lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze,
and the sound of his words like the sound of a tumult.”

The luminous descriptions are found predominantly in the NT as “glory shinning”

(Luke 2:9), “like lightening in dazzling while clothing” (Matt 28:3; Luke 24:4) and as “a light
shone in the prison” (Acts 12:7).

Human Reaction or Response to Angelophany

The typical human response to angelophany is that of fear. This often resulted in
falling face down on the ground. This feature is usually present unless the divine identity is not
known from the beginning. The typical hospitality of offering meals is generally found in the
earlier accounts when one is unaware of the divine identity.

The bowing down to the ground before their guests of both Abraham and Lot is best
taken as acts of awe and humility (Gen 18:2; 19:1).24 The offering of food and foot washing are

24
The use of ‫( אֲדֹנ ָי‬LORD) instead of ‫( אֲדֹנ ִי‬polite address of ‘lord’) in Gen 18:3 in contrast to Lot’s
address ‫( אֲדֹנ ַי‬my lords, 19:2) before and as 19:18) ‫ )אֲדֹנ ָי‬after the deliverance suggests that Abraham might have
realized the divine identity at the beginning. HALOT, s. v. “adon.”
hospitality deeds. Likewise, Gideon and Manoah offered food to the angel but the food was no
longer being eaten. It was consumed by fire upon contact with the staff of the angel in Gideon’s
case (Judg 6:21). In Manoah’s case, the food offering was replaced by a request for a burnt
offering (Judg 13:16). In both cases, the angel departed after the offering was consumed by fire.

When they saw the angel with sword, David and the leaders threw themselves down
with their faces on the ground, and Ornan and his four sons hid themselves out of fear (1 Chron
21:16-20). Daniel was terrified and fell on the ground when Gabriel approached him (Dan 8:17).
In the second time, even though the men round Daniel did not see the vision; they hid themselves
out of fear (10:7). This time a new element was introduced; Daniel had no strength left in him
and fell into a trance with his face on the ground (10:8-10).

Human response to angelophanies in the NT is predominately fear driven. The

hospitality factor is absent even in cases where the angel was taken as human. Zechariah was
visibly shaken seized by fear (Luke 1:12) and Mary was troubled by the Gabriel’s greeting (Luke
1:26-28). The shepherds were terrified when they saw the shinning glory (Luke 2:9). The women
at the empty tomb were terrified and bowed their faces on the ground when the angels appeared
to them in dazzling clothing (Luke 24:5). Likewise, Cornelius was frightened when he saw the
angel in his vision (Acts 10:4). Even in Paul’s reported speech of the angel he met, we find the
assurance of not to fear (Acts 27:23). In response to the fear generated, the typical angelic
consolation is to tell the people not to fear (Dan 10:12; Matt 28:5; Luke 1:13, 30; 2:10).

The Human Angel Interaction

Angel Announcement Speeches

The angel announcement speech is closely related to the purpose of the angelic visit.
They are usually birth, promise or blessing, judgment or prophetic in nature. There are four
biblical angelic announcement speeches for the birth of Isaac, Samson, John the Baptist and
Jesus. In all cases, the woman was unable to bear a child for various reasons. There seems to be
an expansion from the first account which contains only the birth announcement to the inclusion
of naming and prophecy in later accounts as shown in the table below.

Speech Element Gen 18:10 Judg 13:3-5
(Abraham) (Manoah’s
wife)
Blessing X X
Greeting with “fear not” X X
Birth Announcement √ √
Instruction for raising the child X √
Prophecy about the child X √
Luke 1:13-17 Luke 1:30-33
(Zechariah) (Mary)
X √
√ √
√ √
√ X
√ √
Name given to child X X √ √

As seen from the above table, birth announcements are often associated with
prophecy and sometimes also with blessings. There are two other angelic blessing promise
speeches, which contain the basic elements such as divine oath and angelic self-identification in
addition to the blessing or promise. In Gen 22:16, the reason for blessing is also given. Gen
28:15 includes the divine accompany and journey protection.

Contrary to promises and blessings, angel announcements also contain judgment and
warning. The warning speech to Balaam contains a challenge of behavior questioning his
treatment to his donkey, a warning that he could have been killed, and an instruction to speak
only the words given to him (Num 22:32-33). The earliest angel judgment speech regarding
Sodom and Gomorrah only contains the judgment content (destruction) and the reason (sin) (Gen
19:12-13). Subsequent judgment speech (Judg 2:1-3) concerns the entire nation and contains the
description of Yahweh’s covenant faithfulness (vv. 1a-2b), disobedience (v. 2b) in addition to the
judgment (v. 3). The judgment speech to Nebuchadnezzar in Dan 4:13-16 is a figurative
description of judgment using the metaphor of a decapitated tree. The absence of the covenant
and disobedient elements is best explained by the fact that Nebuchadnezzar is a gentile king.25

The Angel-Human Speech-Act

In many angelophanies, a literary pattern of interleaving angel speech/instruction and
human action/response is used. This is shown in the table below.

Character Angel Speech / Response Human Action / Response

Involved

Lot (Gen A son-in-law, and your sons, and your went out and spoke to his sons-in-law
19:12-16) daughters …bring them out of the
place

Up, take your wife and your two But he hesitated

daughters who are here

Escape for your life! Do not look But Lot said to them, “Oh no, my
behind you, and do not stay anywhere lords!...
in the valley; escape to the mountains,
or you will be swept away. But his wife, from behind him, looked
back,

Hagar (Gen Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him by Then God opened her eyes and she saw
21:18-19) the hand a well of water; and she went and filled

25
The Aramaic ‫( עִירִין‬messenger or watcher) in Dan 4:13 is taken as a reference to angel in light of the
in parallel description of the “holy one” and that he descended from heaven. The OG uses ἄγγελος.
 the skin with water and gave the lad a
drink

Abraham Do not stretch out your hand against Abraham went and took the ram and
(Gen 22:12- the lad, and do nothing to him offered him up for a burnt offering in
13) the place of his son

Jacob (Gen Now leave this land immediately and So Jacob immediately put his children
31:12-17) return to your native land. and his wives on the camels

Balaam Go with the men, but you shall speak So Balaam went along with the leaders
(Num 22:35) only the word which I tell you of Balak

Gideon (Judg Take the meat and the unleavened And he did so
6:20) bread and…

Elijah (1 Kgs Arise, eat So he ate and drank and lay down
19:5, 7; 2 again
Kgs 1:3-4,
15) Arise, eat, because the journey is too So he arose and ate and drank,
great for you
Arise, go up to meet the messengers of Then Elijah departed
the king of Samaria
Go down with him… So he got up and went down30 with
him…

Joseph (Matt do not be afraid to take Mary as your he did what the angel of the Lord told
1:18; 2:13- wife him. He took his wife
14; 19-21)
Get up, take the child and his mother Then he got up, took the child and his
and flee to Egypt, mother at night, and went to Egypt

Get up, take the child and his mother, So he got up and took the child and his
and go to the land of Israel mother and returned to the land of
Israel

Shepherds you will find a baby wrapped in strips So they hurried off and located Mary
(Luke 2:8) of cloth and lying in a manger and Joseph, and found the baby lying
in a manger
Women at the Then go quickly and tell his So they left the tomb quickly, …and
empty tomb disciples… ran to tell his disciples
(Matt 28:7-8)

Mark 16:7-8
But go, tell his disciples, even Peter Then they went out and ran from the
tomb
Luke 24:4
Remember how he told you, while he Then they remembered his words,
was still in Galilee…

Disciples Go and stand in the temple courts and When they heard this, they entered the
(Acts 5:20- proclaim… temple courts at daybreak and began
21) teaching

Philip (Acts Get up and go south on the road that So he got up and went
8:26) goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza

Cornelius Now send men to Joppa and Cornelius called two of his personal
(Acts 10:5-7) summon… servants… he sent them to Joppa

Peter (Acts Get up quickly And the chains fell off Peter’s wrists
12:7-9)
Fasten your belt and put on your Peter did so
sandals.

Put on your cloak and follow me Peter went out and followed him

In many angelic announcement speeches for various purposes, the human party is
essentially passive and the angelophany merely contains a angelic monologue. But for the
majority of angelophanic narratives, angel-human interaction is often involved. In these
instances, there seems to be a speech-act pattern as shown from the above table. The angelic
speech is mostly instructional in nature and the human response is often obedience to the
authoritative angelic command. In these angelophanic narratives, sometimes there is a concern
for the fulfillment of angelic speech, as if it was a divine speech.

Angel Identity
The only biblical angelophany account when the angel name was requested is by
Manoah (Judg 13:17). The request was refused because of its incomprehensible nature. The only
angel name given for biblical angelophany is Gabriel, who appeared to Daniel (Dan 9:21),
Zechariah and Mary (Luke 1:19, 26).26 And the only time an angel revealed his own identity is
Gabriel’s response to Zechariah’s disbelieve (Luke 1:19). In earlier angelophanies, the angel
frequently spoke in the first person as Yahweh himself. Perhaps as a messenger of Yahweh,
credential lies not on the messenger but on the one who sent him. It seems that biblical
angelophanies are not too concerned with the identity of the angel.

Miracles, Signs and Disbelieve

Miracles and signs are often the key features for angelophanies. Other than for the
purpose of announcement, miracles or signs are common during angelophany. Miracles in earlier
accounts are often related to visual sight. The angels struck the people of Sodom blind (Gen
19:11) and God opened Hagar’s eyes to see a well (Gen 21:19). Abraham “raised his eyes and
looked” (Gen 22:13) and saw a ram behind him. The Lord opened the eyes of Balaam to allow
him to see the angel (Num 22:31) and Moses saw the angel of the Lord in the burning bush
(Exod 3:2).

Other angelophanic miracles are related to deliverance. The Israelites are delivered by
the miraculous move of the angel of the Lord from before them to after them to separate them
from the pursuing Egyptians (Exod 14:19). The angel delivered the disciples by opening their
prison doors (Acts 5:19). The chains of Peter fell off as the angel asked him to get up (Acts
12:27).

Signs are given upon request or when there is disbelief. Gideon asked for a sign and
the consumption of food was given as a sign (Judg 6:17). As a sign of his disbelieve, Zechariah
was made unable to speak until the fulfillment of the prophetic birth announcement (Luke 1:18-
20)

Post-Angelophany Effects

Post Angelophanic Awareness, Name Changing, Altar, Sacrificial Offering or Vow

The typical post-Angelophany response is a sudden awareness followed by the
naming of a place. After the angel of the Lord stopped Abraham from killing Isaac, he named the
place “the Lord will provide” (Gen 22:14). Jacob realized that he had the divine encounter after
he woke up from his dream and set up a pillar and named the place Bethel with a vow to tithe
(Gen 28:18-22). Even in the brief account of Jacob’s encounter with the angel of the Lord, he
named the place Mahanaim (Gen 32:1-2). Again, after he wrestled with the angel, he named the
place “Paniel” (Gen 32:30).27 The story of Jacob seems to be particularly interested in giving new
names. The name Jacob was also changed to Israel by the angel (Gen 32:28).

26
Archangel Michael was mentioned in Dan 10:13,21; 12:1; Jude 1:9; Rev 12:7, yet none of these is
angelophany.
27
The “man” in v. 24 is taken to be an angel as identified in Hos 12:4.
 Gideon built an altar and named it, “the Lord is peace” after he realized the divine
identity of the angel of the Lord (Judg 6:22-24). Israel named the place Bochim after they
received the angelic judgment speech (Judg 2:5). Manoah realized the divine identity of the
angel of the Lord and thought he would die because he had seen God. Unlike Gideon, he did not
give the place a new name (Judg 13:22). In the NT, Peter had a similar sudden awareness
experience. After the angel left, he thought it was a vision only; then he realized that it was real
(Acts 12:11). Earlier angelophanies are often equated to theophanies and sometimes associated
with the fear of dying due to the encounter with God. As seen in the NT, such fear of death is
absent, probably due to a better understanding of angels.

Description of Promise Fulfillment

The fulfillment of the prophetic elements in an angelic announcement is often given
at the end. The actual destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by brimstone and fire was mentioned
at the end as it was predicted earlier. Lot’s wife was turned into a pillar of salt in fulfillment of
the angel’s warning against looking back (Gen 19:24-26). In NT, Matthew seems to have a
special interest in claiming the angelophanic events as fulfillment to OT promises (Matt 1:23;
2:15, 23).

Features of Extrabiblical Angelophanies and Comparison to Biblical Accounts

Extrabiblical angelophanies fall into two major categories. The first category is a
parallel description to the biblical accounts. Many such instances are found in Philo, Josephus,
Talmud, or the Apocrypha. The second category is the unique accounts and not found in
Scripture. Due to the limited scope of this paper, only the second category is considered. Parallel
accounts do not provide new data to our analysis and therefore is of limited value to this study.
Angelophanies are not found in the non-canonical Qumran manuscripts and the Mishnah. Even
for angelophanies in the second category, only more significant examples with primary
importance are selected. They are mostly taken from the Pseudepigrapha and the Old and New
Testament Apocryphal books. Again, this is due to the limited scope in this paper.

Raphael in Tobit
The story of Tobit28 is one of the earliest detailed accounts of human angel interaction.
This is one of the two lengthy stories of human angel interaction in the Apocrypha.29 Almost the
entire book is devoted to how Raphael assisted Tobias, son of Tobit, in accomplishing his
mission to retrieve money for his father. The story begins with two unrelated death wishes of
Sarah and Tobit, both suffered innocently. Sarah married seven times and all her bridegrooms

28
The discovery of one Hebrew and 4 Aramaic copies in Qumran informs us that Tobit is either
originally composed in Hebrew or Aramaic. Though its historical setting is 7th century, geographical and historical
errors makes its early dating difficult. Most dates it between 3rd to 2nd century B.C.E.
29
The other story is in 2 Esdras (or 4 Ezra), which is apocalyptic and is beyond the scope of this paper.
As in typical apocalyptic content, Uriel was an interpreter to the visions seen by Ezra.
were killed by the demon Asmodeus before the consummation of their marriage. Tobit was
righteous yet blinded by the sparrow droppings on his eyes. Raphael was sent as a response to
their prayers. As a companion to Tobias and on their way to retrieve some money for Tobit,
Raphael instructed Tobias to marry Sarah and how he could drive away the demon. After they
accomplished their mission and returned to Tobit, Raphael instructed Tobias to heal Tobit.

Raphael appeared as a “young man” to Tobias identifying himself as his relative (Tob
5:10). Raphael took the human form and concealed his identity until the very end. The narrator,
however, provided his name at the very beginning (5:4). When Raphael revealed his angelic
identity, the human response is the typical falling face down with fear (12:16). Raphael also
responded in the typical manner assuring them not to be afraid, “do not be afraid, peace be with
you. Bless God forevermore” (12:17). 30 Both the post-angelophanic realization and fear for death
are missing here. Food consumption of angels only appears in early biblical accounts and there is
no explicit prohibition for angels to consume human food. Raphael’s claim that he did not really
consume any human food reflects the common belief in angel not being able to take human food.
(12:19). Miracles in the story are all related to the fish. The fish was caught by following the
exact instruction of Raphael and the heart, liver and gall turned out to have a special effect of
driving away the demon and healing (6:1-9).

Two Angels Delivered the Jews (3 Macc 6:16-29)

Two angels were sent to deliver the Jews as a response to the pious prayer of the
famous and aged priest Eleazar, The Jews were in danger of being extinguished by the elephants
and army of Ptolemy. Angels are sent for the deliverance of the entire nation because of the
prayer of an individual. 3 Macc 6:18 describes the angelic appearance as, “two glorious angels of
fearful aspect descended, visible to all but the Jews.” The luminous description is absent but the
fearful aspect is present. The purpose of this angelophany is to deliver the Jews yet the angels are
visible only to their enemies. Selective visibility of an angel is found in the story of Balaam
(Num 22:31), who was later allowed to see the angel. In Dan 10:7, selective visibility was given
only to Daniel and not to the men beside him. The post-angelophany response is dramatic.The
anger of the gentile king was turned into pity and tears resulted in turning his hostility into
compassion (3 Macc 6:22-29).

Angels on Horseback Saved the Temple Treasury (4 Macc 4:1-14)

Apollonius’ attempt to seize the private fund in the temple treasury with the king’s
authority presents a threat to the Jews to a large scale. The angelic appearance was described as,
“While the priests together with women and children were imploring God in the temple to shield
the holy place that was being treated so contemptuously, and while Apollonius was going up with
his armed forces to seize the money, angels on horseback with lightning flashing from their
weapons appeared from heaven, instilling in them great fear and trembling. Then Apollonius fell
down half dead in the temple area that was open to all, stretched out his hands towards heaven,

30
Quotations from Apocrypha is taken from the NRSV.
and with tears begged the Hebrews to pray for him and propitiate the wrath of the heavenly
army” (4 Macc 4:9-11).

There seems to be some similarities in these two Maccabees accounts. Angelophany

occurs as an immediate answer to the earnest prayer and the Jews were delivered at the critical
moment. Angels descends visibly from heaven and resulted in the conversion of the enemy.

Michael in Testament of Abraham

The Testament of Abraham31 is the story about how God sent his archangel Michael to
inform Abraham about his death so that he may arrange for his disposition and possessions.
Death announcement by angel is not found in Scripture.32 The book begins with a heavenly
setting where God commissioned Michael for the task (T. Ab. 1). This resembles the introduction
of Job but no biblical account presents the heavenly setting before an angelophany. There are
altogether seven heavenly scenes interleaving with the earthy scenes in the entire book. After
Michael experienced the extreme hospitality and righteousness of Abraham, he was not able to
make the death announcement and return to God ascending back to heaven (4:4-11). The third
heavenly scene is the return of Michael after Abraham refused to go with him even after his
interpretation of Isaac’s dream regarding Abraham’s death (8:1-8). In the fourth heavenly scene,
when Abraham made the request to see the inhabited world, Michael returned to heaven and
again requested for further instruction (9:7-8). The fifth and sixth heavenly scenes are Abraham’s
witness of the heavenly Adam and Abel. Adam fell from his throne (11:1-12) and Abel exercised
judgment and recompense on the people (12:1-18). 33 The final heavenly scene is the final return
of Michael and the commission of Death to deal with Abraham’s refusal to comply (15:11-16).
The heaven-earth transition is frequently stated. In the first heavenly return, Michael excused
himself as if he needed to urinate (4:4). In a later account, he immediately became invisible
(8:1).

Michael appeared to Abraham “in the manner of a handsome soldier” (2:2) and was
greeted by Abraham as, “honored soldier, bright as the sun and the most handsome, more than all
the sons of men” (2:4). As typical in angelophanies, Michael concealed his true identity and
presented himself as the messenger of a king from a great city. Abraham was presented as
completely unaware of Michael’s angelic identity, yet he addressed him with luminous
description. Michael’s identity was recognized by Isaac immediately through his face, “Isaac saw

31
There are two recensions to this book, a longer and a short recension. The longer recension is used
here. Sanders dates this between the 1st and 2nd century C.E., originally written in Greek. Subsequent quotations
from the Pseudepigrapha are taken from .
32
There are a few death related angelophanies in the NT Apocryphal books. A death announcement is
found in Discourse of St. John the Divine 3, where Gabriel announced that Mary would leave the world and come to
the heavenly place of her son. And in Paradosis Pilati 10, before Pilate was beheaded, an angel appeared in respond
to the penitence prayer of Pilate and announced a blessing for him. After the execution, the angel of the Lord
received his head. In Acts John 76, an angel appeared to prevent Callimachus from raping the dead body of Drusiana
by covering her with a cloak and with rays of light falling from his face to her.
33
These two heavenly scenes are typical apocalyptic type where Michael serves as the interpreter of the
heavenly vision.
the face of the angel” (3:5). But Sarah recognized his identity by his speech, “when Sarah heard
the Commander-in-chief’s distinction of speech, she immediately realized that the speaker was
an angel of the Lord” (6:1). This led Abraham to a sudden realization and recalled the feet of
Michael resembled those he washed previously (6:6). Their immediate response in kneeling
down differs from the biblical post-angelophanic response. Even though both Abraham and
Sarah already knew Michael’s angelic identity, he revealed his name when he interpreted Isaac’s
dream (7:11). Subsequently, when Michael appeared to Abraham again, “he fell upon his face on
the ground as one dead” (9:1), the typical human response in biblical angelophany.

Instead of the typical offering of food, Abraham offered a horse ride to his guest. The
prohibition of Michael to ride on any four-footed animals is unique and no reason is offered for
such restriction (2:11). Michael raised his concern regarding God’s command to eat whatever
given to him saying, “Lord, all the heavenly spirits are incorporeal, and they neither eat nor
drink… How shall I escape his notice while I am sitting at one table with him?” (4:9). God
resolved his problem by replying to him saying, “I shall upon you an all-devouring spirit, and,
from your hands and through your mouth, it will consume everything which is on the table”
(4:10).

Much attention is given to the hospitality of Abraham for it is the base for the story
development. No reason was given for why Abraham was moved by Michael and wept for him.
But Michael was affected by their passion and cried with them (3:9-11). Throughout the story,
Michael was portrayed as strongly passionate with human emotions. This is in contrast to the
lack of emotional aspects in biblical angelophanies.

The first miracle is a tree crying out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God who is
summoning him to those who love him” (3:3). Abraham pretended not to have heard the voice
from the tree. When the tears of Michael fell on the vessels, they became precious stone.
Abraham observed both miracles but kept them to himself (3:12). The nature of these miracles
are quite different from that of the biblical account, they are not related to deliverance or
answering prayers. It seems that they are there to emphasize the supernatural nature of angel.

The Heavenly Man in Joseph and Aseneth

The angelophany in Joseph and Aseneth34 tells the story of a heavenly man35 assuring
Aseneth of her repentance. He appeared after her prayer of confession. Joseph refused to kiss
Aseneth, his bride to be and a daughter of an Egyptian priest. Out of his conviction he stated that,
“It is not fitting for a man who worships God… to kiss a strange woman who will bless with her
mouth dead and dumb idols and eat from their table bread of strangulation and drink from their
libation a cup of insidiousness and anoint herself with ointment of destruction” (Jos. Asen. 8:5).

34
Burchard estimates the date of this book between the 1st century B.C.E. and 2nd century C.E. It is
likely to have been composed in Greek, with the possibility of earlier oral tradition.
35
Even though the term ἄγγελος is not present in the text, there is a general consensus to take him as
an angel. First, he originates as a star from heaven and self identified as a “commander of the whole host of the Most
High” JA 14:8. Second, he was described with luminous features not just on the head but also on his hands and feet.
Third, Aseneth responded in falling on her face back on the ashes.
This resulted in the conversion of Aseneth with two soliloquies and a prayer of confession. The
purpose of this angelophany was to accept her repentance and announce her marriage to Joseph.

The initial angelic appearance was described as, “close to the morning star, the
heaven was torn apart and great and unutterable light appeared… And a man came to her from
heaven” (14:3). Later a more detailed description is provided, “a man in every respect similar to
Joseph, by the robe and the crown and the royal staff, except that his face was like lightning, and
his eyes like sunshine, and the hairs of his head like a flame of fire of a burning torch, and hands
and feet like iron shining forth from a fire, and sparks shot forth from his hands and feet” (14:9-
11). In addition to the luminous features, there are also royal elements. The heavenly man
assuring Aseneth not to be afraid is typical. In addition, he offered a helping hand to allow
Aseneth to stand on her feet again.

Regarding the human response, Aseneth fell on the ground immediately after the
elaborated description of the heavenly man. Later she fell again with great fear and trembling
(14:10-11). After the marriage announcement, instead of fear, Aseneth responded with great joy
and fell on the ground still once more (15:11-12). With regard to the angelic command to put off
the black tunic and dress in new linen robe, there seems to be an elaborated speech-act pattern
for the multiple instructions are reported in subsequent actions,

And the man said to her, 'Proceed unhindered into your second chamber and put off
your black tunic of mourning, and the sackcloth put off your waist, and shake off
those ashes from your head, and wash your face and your hands with living water,
and dress in a new linen robe untouched and distinguished and gird your waist with
the new twin girdle of your virginity… And Aseneth hurried and went into her second
chamber where the chests containing her ornaments were, and opened her coffer, and
took a new linen robe, distinguished (and as yet) untouched, and undressed the black
tunic of mourning and put off the sackcloth from her waist, and dressed in her
distinguished untouched linen robe, and girded herself with the twin girdle of her
virginity, one girdle around her waist, and another girdle upon her breast And she
shook off the ashes from her head, and washed her hands and her face with living
water. (14:12-15).

The marriage announcement speech was presented as a response to Aseneth’s prayer

expressing her repentance and passion towards Joseph. In addition to the typical prayer being
heard, it also has an observation of well behavior, “Behold, I have seen the humiliation and the
affliction of the seven days of your want (of food). Behold, from your tears and these ashes,
plenty of mud has formed before your face” (15:3). The actual marriage announcement was
relatively brief, “I have given you today to Joseph for a bride, and he himself will be your
bridegroom for ever (and) ever” (15:7). This was followed by a name change to poliς
kataφυgής (City of Refuge) with a elaborated speech explaining the change.36 Jacob's name
was also changed by an angel but there is no extensive follow up speech (Gen 32:28).

36
The name change here may signify her proselyte conversion.
 There is a twofold identity request. The initial request, "Who are you?" (14:8), seems
to be satisfactory when only the angelic title was given. After the marriage announcement
speech, Aseneth again requested for the name of the angel. The reason was essentially the same
as Manoah (Judg 13:18; Jos. Asen. 15:12). The responses in both cases are similar only that the
heavenly man is more elaborate that, "And all names written in the book of the Most High are
unspeakable, and man is not allowed to pronounce nor hear them in this world, because those
names are exceedingly great and wonderful and laudable" (Jos. Asen. 15:12).

With regard to hospitality, Aseneth offered bread and wine but honeycomb was
requested instead. There was no consumption of human food. Instead, we find explicit statement
about standard angel food, "all angels of God eat of it (honeycomb) and all the chosen of God
and all the sons of the Most High, because this is a comb of life, and everyone who eats of it will
not die for ever (and) ever" (16:14).

All the miracles in the story are related to the honeycomb. The first one is the
instruction to bring a honeycomb that is miraculously provided in her storeroom (16:10). The
second miracle is the restoration of the eaten comb to its original shape through the stretching out
his right hand (16:16).37 He preformed a sign of making his finger became like blood when he
stretched out his right hand again (16:17). Next, he performed another miracle by commanding
the bees to move from their cells to encircle Aseneth from head to feet (16:18-19). After the bees
made a similar comb on her mouth and lips, he commanded them to go away. Those bees who
wanted to injure Aseneth died but was miraculously resurrected and sent to the fruit bearing trees
(16:19-23). No explanation was given to the details of these miracles, except they were for the
authentication of the prophetic words spoken by the heavenly man (17:1-3). Unlike biblical
signs which were given upon request or to settle disbelieve, miracles by the heavenly man were
given primarily for authentication.

Midwife Salome Healed by an Angel

Salome, one of the midwives of Mary refused to believe the virgin birth unless she
tests her with her fingers. After the test and her finger dried up with pain; but after her penitent
prayer, an angel appeared in response to her prayer and instructed her to touch the baby to be
healed and to keep the marvel to herself (Prot. Jas. 20; Ps.-Mt. 13). The angel appeared in
response to prayer and performed the healing through a verbal instruction (speech-act).

Conclusions
With regard to setting, angelophanies in extrabiblical accounts are primarily a result
of a heard prayer. The content of the prayer is often a confession or a request for deliverance.
The deliverance is sometimes extended from the biblical account of individual interest to a
nation wide need to fight against a certain enemy. In biblical accounts, only the human setting is

37
There seems to be an association of miracle and sign with the stretching out his right hand, which
occurs five times (16:12, 15, 17 (2x); 17:3).
given; but in extrabiblical literature, the heavenly setting is also given as a backdrop prior to the
angelophany. In addition, the heavenly scene sometimes interleaves with the earthly scene.

The luminous feature is the standard description for angelic appearance in both
biblical and extrabiblical accounts. It is sometimes absent when there is a deliberate cover up of
identity. In the extrabiblical account, this feature is more elaborate with the addition of royal
features. The standard human response is always falling face down with great fear. The angelic
comfort is always not to be fear. The speech-act pattern is also found in the extrabiblical account
but it seems to be more elaborated. The angelic speech type is expanded to include death and
marriage announcements.

In the majority of angelophanies in the extrabiblical texts, the names of the angels are
usually given by the narrator. There seems to be an increased interest in angel names. Joseph and
Aseneth is an exception where the name request was refused by giving a similar but elaborated
reason as in the case of Manoah.

The miracles involved seem to be more majestic in nature and often clustered
together, as in the case of the honeycomb of the heavenly man. Often, the reasons behind the
miracles are neither stated nor obvious. The best explanation seems to be the demonstration of
the supernatural angelic abilities. With regard to food consumption, there seems to be a
development within the biblical accounts. Angels consumes human food in earlier accounts but
so for later accounts. In extrabiblical accounts, it was stated explicitly that angels are not allowed
to consume human food. At times, the authors are at pain to explain why the angel appeared to
have consumed human food. These extrabiblical angelophanic accounts seem to follow a rather
late tradition. Interestingly, the designated angel food is honeycomb.

The overall angelophanies in extrabiblical accounts are of greater length than biblical
accounts. The above comparison seems to suggest that extrabiblical angelophanies are
embellished based upon the basic elements of biblical accounts.