Angels—Who They Are

THE monarch of a mighty empire cannot believe his eyes. Three men
sentenced to a fiery destruction are rescued from the jaws of death! Who has
saved them? The king himself says to the three so delivered: “Blessed be
[your God], who sent his angel and rescued his servants that trusted in him.”
(Daniel 3:28) This Babylonian ruler of over two millenniums ago was an
eyewitness to an angelic deliverance. Millions of people in the past believed in
angels. Many today not only believe that angels exist but also feel that their
own lives in some way are affected by angels. Who are the angels, and what is
their origin?
According to the Bible, angels are spirits, just as God himself is a Spirit.
(Psalm 104:4; John 4:24) The angelic family is large, numbering into the
millions. (Revelation 5:11) And all of them are “mighty in power.” (Psalm
103:20) Though angels are like humans in that they have personality and are
given free will, they did not begin their lives as humans. In fact, God created
angels long before mankind’s appearance—even before the creation of planet
Earth. When God “founded the earth,” says the Bible, “the morning stars
[angels] joyfully cried out together, and all the sons of God began shouting in
applause.” (Job 38:4, 7) Since the angels are God’s creation, they are called
the sons of God.
For what purpose did God create angels? What role, if any, have angels
played in human history? Do they affect our life today? Since they are free
moral agents, have any of the angels followed the course of Satan the Devil
and made themselves God’s enemies? The Bible provides truthful answers to
these questions.

Angels—How They Affect Us

DESCRIBING the vision he had involving God’s angelic family, the

prophet Daniel wrote: “There were a thousand thousands [angels] that kept
ministering to [God], and ten thousand times ten thousand that kept standing
right before him.” (Daniel 7:10) This verse reveals God’s purpose in creating
angels. They are to minister to him and stand ready to carry out his
instructions.
God uses angels to perform certain functions in connection with humans.
We will consider how he uses them to strengthen and protect his people, to
deliver messages to humans, and to execute his judgment upon the wicked.
 Angels Strengthen and Protect
Ever since spirit creatures witnessed the creation of the earth and the first
humans, they have shown keen interest in mankind. Speaking as wisdom
personified, Jesus Christ, in his prehuman existence, said: “The things I was
fond of were with the sons of men.” (Proverbs 8:31) And the Bible informs us
that “angels are desiring to peer” into facts about Christ and the future that
have been revealed to God’s prophets.—1 Peter 1:11, 12.
With the passing of time, the angels observed that the majority of the
human family were not serving their loving Creator. How this must have
saddened the faithful angels! On the other hand, whenever one sinner repents
and turns to Jehovah, “joy arises among the angels.” (Luke 15:10) Angels
have deep concern for the welfare of those who serve God, and Jehovah has
repeatedly used them to strengthen and protect his faithful servants on earth.
(Hebrews 1:14) Consider some examples.
Two angels helped righteous Lot and his daughters to survive the
destruction of the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by escorting them
out of that area. (Genesis 19:1, 15-26) Centuries later, even though the prophet
Daniel was thrown into a lions’ pit, he was not harmed. Why? “My own God
sent his angel and shut the mouth of the lions,” he declared. (Daniel 6:22)
Angels supported Jesus at the start of his earthly ministry. (Mark 1:13) And
shortly before Jesus’ death, an angel appeared to him and “strengthened him.”
(Luke 22:43) What a blessing that angelic support must have been for Jesus at
those crucial times in his life! An angel also freed the apostle Peter from
prison.—Acts 12:6-11.
Do angels protect us today? If we worship Jehovah according to his Word,
we are assured that his powerful, invisible angels provide us with protection.
The Bible promises: “The angel of Jehovah is camping all around those
fearing him, and he rescues them.”—Psalm 34:7.
However, we must recognize that angels are primarily in the service of
God, not that of humans. (Psalm 103:20, 21) They respond to God’s direction,
not to man’s summonses or requests. Hence, the one to call upon for help is
Jehovah God, not the angels. (Matthew 26:53) Of course, since we do not see
the angels, we cannot determine to what extent God uses them in helping
people with various matters. But we know that Jehovah does “show his
strength in behalf of those whose heart is complete toward him.” (2 Chronicles
16:9; Psalm 91:11) And we have the assurance that “no matter what it is that
we ask according to his will, he [God] hears us.”—1 John 5:14.
 The Scriptures also tell us that our prayers and worship should be directed
to God alone. (Exodus 20:3-5; Psalm 5:1, 2; Matthew 6:9) Faithful angels
encourage us to do that. For example, when the apostle John tried to worship
an angel, that spirit creature rebuked him, saying: “Be careful! Do not do
that! . . . Worship God.”—Revelation 19:10.
Angels Deliver God’s Messages
The word “angel” means “messenger,” and that is another way angels serve
God—as his messengers to humans. For instance, “the angel Gabriel was sent
forth from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth.” Why? To inform a
young woman named Mary that although she was a virgin, she would
conceive in her womb and give birth to a son to be named Jesus. (Luke 1:26-
31) An angel was also sent to shepherds in the fields to inform them that
“Christ the Lord” had been born. (Luke 2:8-11) Similarly, angels delivered
messages from God to Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and others of Bible record.—
Genesis 18:1-5, 10; Exodus 3:1, 2; Luke 22:39-43.
How do angels serve as God’s messengers today? Consider the work Jesus
foretold that his followers would do before the end of this system of things.
He said: “This good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited
earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come.” (Matthew
24:3, 14) Annually, Jehovah’s Witnesses spend over a billion hours preaching
the good news of God’s Kingdom. But did you know that angels are also
involved in this work? The apostle John referred to a vision he had, saying: “I
saw another angel . . . , and he had everlasting good news to declare as glad
tidings to those who dwell on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and
tongue and people.” (Revelation 14:6, 7) This scripture highlights the
foremost work of angels in behalf of humans today.
Jehovah’s Witnesses see evidence of angelic direction as they carry out
their door-to-door preaching work. They often contact individuals who were
just praying for someone to help them understand God’s purposes. As a result
of angelic guidance and the Witnesses’ own initiative, each year hundreds of
thousands come to know Jehovah. May you benefit from this lifesaving work
done under angelic direction.
Angels Execute God’s Judgment
Though they are not authorized to judge humans, angels are not mere
bystanders. (John 5:22; Hebrews 12:22, 23) Serving as executioners, they
carried out God’s judgments in times past. For example, God used angels in
his fight against the ancient Egyptians, who were holding the Israelites in
bondage. (Psalm 78:49) And it was in one night that “the angel of Jehovah”
struck down a hundred and eighty-five thousand soldiers in the camp of an
enemy of God’s people.—2 Kings 19:35.
In the future too, angels will execute God’s adverse judgment. Jesus will
come “with his powerful angels in a flaming fire, as he brings vengeance upon
those who do not know God and those who do not obey the good news.”
(2 Thessalonians 1:7, 8) That destruction, though, is to be brought upon only
those who do not respond to the message now being preached earth wide with
the angels’ backing. Those who search for God and comply with Scriptural
teachings will not be harmed.—Zephaniah 2:3.
How grateful we can be for the faithful angels, who always carry out God’s
instructions! Jehovah uses them to assist and protect his loyal servants on
earth. This is particularly comforting to us because there are dangerous spirit
creatures called demons who want to harm us.
Demons—Who Are They?
During the 15 centuries following Satan’s deception of Eve in Eden, God’s
family of angels observed that Satan the Devil succeeded in turning aside from
God all humans except a few faithful ones, such as Abel, Enoch, and Noah.
(Genesis 3:1-7; Hebrews 11:4, 5, 7) Some of the angels also yielded to Satan.
The Bible refers to them as the spirits who were disobedient “in Noah’s days.”
(1 Peter 3:19, 20) How did their disobedience become evident?
In Noah’s time an unspecified number of rebellious angels left their place in
God’s heavenly family, came down to the earth, and materialized fleshly
bodies. Why? They had developed a desire to have sexual relations with
women. This led to their fathering offspring called Nephilim, who became
violent giants. Moreover, “the badness of man was abundant in the earth and
every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only bad all the time.”
However, Jehovah God did not allow this corruption of mankind to go on. He
brought a global Flood, which swept away all wicked humans along with the
Nephilim. The only humans preserved alive were God’s faithful servants.—
Genesis 6:1-7, 17; 7:23.
The rebellious angels escaped destruction at the time of the Flood. They
abandoned their fleshly bodies and returned to the spirit realm as spirit
creatures. Thereafter, they are referred to as demons. They put themselves on
the side of Satan the Devil, who is called “the ruler of the demons.” (Matthew
12:24-27) Like their ruler, demons crave the worship of humans.
Demons are dangerous, but we need not dread them. Their power is limited.
When the disobedient angels returned to heaven, they were not allowed back
into God’s family of faithful angels. Instead, they were cut off from any
spiritual enlightenment from God, with only a dark outlook for the future.
Indeed, they were confined in a condition of spiritual darkness known as
Tartarus. (2 Peter 2:4) Jehovah restrained them with “eternal bonds,” so that
they are in spiritual darkness. Furthermore, they are now unable to materialize
human bodies.—Jude 6.
What Should You Do?
Do demons still exert influence over humans? Yes, they do so by resorting
to “machinations,” or “crafty acts,” such as those used by their ruler, Satan the
Devil. (Ephesians 6:11, 12, footnote) By applying the counsel of God’s Word,
however, we can stand firm against the demons. Moreover, those who love
God come under the protection of powerful angels.
How vital that you learn God’s requirements set out in the Scriptures and
act upon what you learn! You can learn more about Bible teachings by
contacting Jehovah’s Witnesses in your area or by writing to the publishers of
this magazine. Jehovah’s Witnesses will be happy to study the Bible with you
free of charge and at a time that is convenient for you.
[Footnote]
In the Bible, angels are represented as adult males. Their appearance to
humans was always as males.
[Box on page 6]
ANGELS—HOW THEY ARE ORGANIZED
Jehovah has his vast angelic family organized as follows:
The angel foremost in power and authority is Michael the archangel, or Jesus
Christ. (1 Thessalonians 4:16; Jude 9) Seraphs, cherubs, and other angels are
under him.
Seraphs occupy a very high position in God’s arrangement. They serve as
attendants at God’s throne. Their assignment includes declaring God’s
holiness and keeping his people spiritually clean.—Isaiah 6:1-3, 6, 7.
Cherubs are associated with God’s throne and uphold Jehovah’s majesty.—
Psalm 80:1; 99:1; Ezekiel 10:1, 2.
Other angels are agents of Jehovah, and they carry out the divine will.
[Picture on page 4]
Angels escorted Lot and his daughters to safety
[Picture on page 5]
When the apostle John tried to worship the angel, he was told: “Do not do
that!”
[Picture on page 6]
Angels execute God’s judgment
[Picture on page 7]
Are you benefiting from the preaching work done under angelic direction?