Greeting cards and gift shop figurines featuring angels as cute

babies sporting wingsmay be a popular way of depicting them, but the

Bible presents an entirely different image of angels. In the Bible, angels appear as
powerfully strong adults who often startle the humans they visit. Bible verses
such as Daniel 10:10-12 and Luke 2:9-11 show angels exhorting people to not be
afraid of them. The Bible contains some fascinating information about angels.
Here are highlights of what the Bible says about angels -- God's heavenly
creatures who sometimes help us here on Earth.

Serving God by Serving Us

God created an abundance of immortal beings called angels (which is Greek for
"messengers") to act as intermediaries between himself and humans because of
the gap between his perfect holiness and our shortcomings. 1 Timothy 6:16
reveals that humans can't see God directly. But Hebrews 1:14 declares that God
sends angels to help people who will one day live with him in heaven.

Some Faithful, Some Fallen

While many angels remain faithful to God and work to bring about good, some
angels joined a fallen angel called Lucifer (now known as Satan) when he rebelled
against God, so they now work for evil purposes. The faithful and fallen angels
often fight their battle on earth, with good angels trying to help people and evil
angels trying to tempt people to sin. So 1 John 4:1 urges: “… do not believe every
spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God …”.

Angelic Appearances

What do angels look like when they visit people? Angels sometimes appear in
heavenly form, like the angel who Matthew 28:2-4 describes sitting on the stone
of Jesus Christ's tomb after his resurrection with a dazzling white appearance
reminiscent of lightning.

But angels sometimes assume human appearances when they visit Earth, so
Hebrews 13:2 cautions: "Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so
doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it."

At other times, angels are invisible, as Colossians 1:16 reveals: "For in him all
things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether
thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through
him and for him."

The Protestant Bible specifically mentions only two angels by name: Michael,
who fights a war against Satan in heaven and Gabriel, who tells the Virgin
Mary that she'll become Jesus Christ's mother. However, the Bible also describes
different types of angels, such as cherubim and seraphim. The Catholic Bible
mentions a third angel by name: Raphael.

Many Jobs

The Bible describes many different types of jobs that angels do, from worshiping
God in heaven to answering people's prayers on Earth. Angels on assignment
from God help people in a variety of ways, from giving guidance to meeting
physical needs.

Mighty, Yet Not Almighty

God has given angels power that humans don't possess, such as knowledge about
everything on earth, the ability to see the future, and the power to perform work
with great strength.

As powerful as they are, however, angels aren't all-knowing or all-powerful like

God. Psalm 72:18 declares that only God has the power to work miracles.

Angels are simply messengers; those who are faithful rely on their God-given
powers to fulfill God's will. While angels' powerful work may inspire awe, the
Bible says that people should worship God rather than his angels. Revelation
22:8-9 records how the apostle John began to worship the angel who gave him a
vision, but the angel said that he was just one of God's servants and instructed
John to worship God instead.