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(BtL) Angels

Angel can be a confusing term. The term angel is from the Greek word angelos, meaning messenger. The Hebrew word for the same is mal'ak. As the Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible puts it.

The translation of malʾāk by ‘angel’ in English Bibles obscures the ancient Israelite perception of the divine realm. Where English ‘angel’ is the undifferentiating term for all of God’s supernatural assistants, malʾāk originally could be applied only to those assistants whom God dispatched on missions as messengers.

The Hebrew term mal'ak in ancient Near Eastern understanding was a job description, not a kind of being. The Bible uses the work for humans and elohim alike. A great example of both uses close together can be found in Genesis 32.

32 And Jacob went on his way, and angels of God met him. 2 And when he saw them, Jacob said, “This is the camp of God!” And he called the name of that place Mahanaim. 
3 Then Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother, to the land of Seir, the territory of Edom. 4 And he instructed them, saying, “Thus you must say to my lord, to Esau, ‘Thus says your servant Jacob, I have dwelled as an alien with Laban, and I have remained there until now. 5 And I have acquired cattle, male donkeys, flocks, and male and female slaves, and I have sent to tell my lord, to find favor in your eyes.’ ” 6 And the messengers returned to Jacob and said, “We came to your brother, to Esau, and he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”
-Gen. 32:1-6 LEB (emphasis mine)

The same word is being used here, mal'ak, but the English translators chose to use angels for the spiritual beings and messengers for the human beings. This is in part to avoid misunderstanding due to our modern use of the word angel to describe a form of being instead of the function being performed by that being.

In the New Testament writings, the Greek word, angelos, is generally used more broadly of spiritual beings in service to Yahweh, but is also still used on occasion of human messengers, even ones that are not sent directly by Yahweh himself.

In Allies of Majesty: I have had to wrestle with this dynamic. I want to avoid confusion if possible, but I also want to accurately reflect the ancient beliefs over modern ideologies. I chosen to use the word elohim for spiritual beings at large because it is more broadly used in biblical writings to refer to residents of the spirit realm. I use the term angel sparingly, often using it more as an adjective, angelic. Technically, the characters do most often function as angels even if their message is not audibly declared to humans, their involvement in an affair delivers the message to the unholy elohim that the eye of the Most High is on the present situation. I do call one of the Orders by the name Messengers, which conveys the meaning of their general role without adding additional confusion to the game's lore. The general duties of the Messenger Order is the most directly accurate to what would be called an angel in the Hebrew Bible.

Other Contributing Works:
  • The Unseen Realm, Michael S. Heiser, 2015
  • Angels, Michael S. Heiser, 2018
  • Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, Angel (mal'ak), Angel II (angelos), 1999
  • The Bible Project podcast, Tim Mackie, multiple episodes
  • The Naked Bible podcast, Michael S. Heiser, multiple episodes
  • The Lord of Spirits podcast, Fr. Stephen De Young & Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick, multiple episodes
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