Heavenly Hosts

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HEAVENLY HOSTS [INCLUDING THE FALLEN ONES]

1. Angel ["messenger"]
a. Only Ruth, Nehemiah, Esther, the epistles of John, and James don't mention angels. Some examples of angels visiting humans are given in Genesis 18:1-8; 19:1-5; 32:24.
b. They are invisible unless God opens human eyes to see them.
c. They either appear as masculine humans or as creatures of fire [e.g. 2 King 2:11,12; 6:17; Hebrews 1:7]. The Bible does not say that angels are sexless, it always says that they are masculine in nature but cannot procreate. The only angel that we know by name is Gabriel ["man of God"] -- Daniel 8:15-16; 9:21; Luke 1:19-26. He is a messenger and the trumpeter of Last Judgment
d. The Bible says that there are 100 million angels are supported by 20,000 chariots [Psalm 68:17; Daniel 7:10; Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 5:11].
e. They always point us toward God either by their actions or words; we are not to worship or pray to angels [Revelation 19:10; 22:8,9].
f. People do not become angels when they die; angels are never mentioned to have wings or halos in the Biblical descriptions of them.
g. They are extremely powerful created beings that are invincible and immortal.
1. One angel killed 185,000 Assyrian warriors [2 Kings 19:35].
2. One angel easily moved a four ton rock [8 ft. diameter, 2 ft. thick] that sealed Christ's tomb [Matthew 28:2]. It was found in the field near the tomb and there were no marks on the ground to indicate that it had been rolled there. It was either carried or thrown.
3. The angels will carry out God's judgment and wrath on Earth in the last days [see Revelation].
h. Messengers of God and protectors of humans, especially of Israel.
i. Fallen angels:
1. One third of the angels followed Lucifer and were expelled from Heaven [Revelation 12:4, 7-9]. Since there are 100 million angels serving God and this accounts for 2/3 of them, 1/3 would be 50 million.
2. These fallen angels are now known as demons or devils.
3. A portion of the demons are imprisoned until Judgment Day due to mating and creating offspring with human women [Genesis 6:2; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6]. The Bible does not say how this took place [i.e. demonic possession of human bodies], just that it did. It should be noted that no where in Scripture does it say that angels are able to procreate but that the number of angels is constant since they were originally created.

2. Archangel
a. Michael ["who (is) like God"] -- Daniel 10:13-21; 12:1; Jude 9; Revelation 12:7 -- guardian and warrior; chief of the archangels; usually sent to fight Satan
b. Raphael [?] -- an archangel; * by Jewish tradition, not mentioned in the Bible
c. Samuel ["asked or heard of God"]--* by Jewish tradition, not mentioned in the Bible
d. Uriel ["God is light"] -- death angel; * by Jewish tradition, not mentioned in the Bible

3. Principalities
Note: no real description given other than being spiritual beings that serve God and are more powerful than angels and archangels.

4. Powers
Note: no real description given other than being spiritual beings that serve God and are more powerful than angels and archangels.

5. Virtues
Note: no real description given other than being spiritual beings that serve God and are more powerful than angels and archangels.

6. Dominations/Dominions
Note: no real description given other than being spiritual beings that serve God and are more powerful than angels and archangels.

7. Thrones
Note: no real description given other than being spiritual beings that serve God and are more powerful than angels and archangels.

8. Cherub Genesis 3:24; Exodus 25:18-20; 2 Chronicles 3:10-13; 10:8
a. Description
1. Have four faces, so they do not need to turn to change directions.
2. Have four wings with hands under each.
3. "Stood on feet", a phrase used for quadrupeds [e.g. horses, goats], hence have hoofed, animalistic legs.
b. Guardians and warriors.
c. Lucifer [Satan] is the only one named in the Bible.

9. Seraphim Isaiah 6:2-3, 6-8; Revelation 4:6-9
a. Description
1. Appear with 3 pairs of wings.
a. two to cover head, representing humility.
b. two to cover feet, representing reverence.
c. two to fly, representing busyness.
2. Look like a lion, a calf, a man, or an eagle – four faces.
3. Stands upright and never has to turn to move.
4. Body is full of eyes.
b. Praise God and hover around the throne of God saying, "Holy, holy, holy".