Is the Angel of Jehovah the Most High God?

The Angel of the LORD is a figure in the Old Testament who comes and interacts with the Prophets on behalf of the Father. Commonly identified with the second person of the Trinity, we can clearly see this figure is purely a representative of Jah.

Agency

“There the angel of the LORD (מַלְאַךְ יְהָוָה — Malak Yahuah) appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up.” — Exodus 3:2

The first thing we need to look at is the concept of Agency, derived from the Jewish ‘shaliach’ principle. The shaliach principle, rooted in Jewish law (halakha), establishes that an authorised agent or messenger is considered legally equivalent to the person who sent them, meaning the messenger can: be addressed as the one who sent them, speak as the one who sent them, and act as the sender.

One example of this in Jewish history is found in 2 Kings:

“Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out loudly in the language of the Jews, saying: ‘Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. This is what the king says, “Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he is not able to rescue you out of my hand. And do not let Hezekiah cause you to trust in Jehovah by saying: “Jehovah will surely rescue us, and this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” Do not listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: “Make peace with me and surrender, and each of you will eat from his own vine and from his own fig tree and will drink the water of his own cistern.”’” — 2 Kings 18:29–33

In this passage, Rabshakeh, acting as the authorized envoy of the king of Assyria, publicly delivers the king’s message in the first person to undermine Hezekiah’s leadership and weaken Judah’s trust in Jehovah before the impending siege.

Trinitarians may argue that this is very clearly a messenger as he announces “This is what the King says,” and while it is true that this Angel speaks as God sometimes unprompted, this Angel does indeed copy this pattern of agency in the book of Zechariah:

“The angel of Jehovah then declared to Joshua: ‘This is what Jehovah of armies says, “If you will walk in my ways and carry out your responsibilities before me, then you will serve as a judge in my house and take care of my courtyards; and I will give you free access among these who are standing here.”’” — Zechariah 3:6,7

The Angel of Jah Cannot Be Jehovah

The Bible clearly shows that the Angel of the LORD is not all-knowing, and has knowledge revealed to him by the Father:

“So the angel of Jehovah said: ‘O Jehovah of armies, how long will you withhold your mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with whom you have been indignant these 70 years?’ Jehovah answered the angel who was speaking with me, with kind and comforting words. Then the angel who was speaking with me told me: ‘Call out, “This is what Jehovah of armies says: “I am zealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great zeal.”’” — Zechariah 1:12–14

In this passage, set following the return of the Jewish exiles from Babylon, the Angel asks the Father (Jehovah) how long he will withhold his mercy from those who had been exiled. After this, the angel is said to have received a comforting response from the Father — indicating he received knowledge from Jah — and then relays this message to the people. This would be odd if he already knew the answer to his own question.

Finally, not only do we see the Angel of Jehovah lacking knowledge that the first person of the Trinity has, but this angel in Judges 13 also rejects worship:

καὶ εἶπεν Μανωε πρὸς τὸν ἄγγελον κυρίου βιασώμεθα δή σε καὶ ποιήσομεν ἐνώπιόν σου ἔριφον αἰγῶν καὶ εἶπεν ὁ ἄγγελος κυρίου πρὸς Μανωε ἐὰν βιάσῃς με οὐ φάγομαι τῶν ἄρτων σου καὶ ἐὰν ποιήσῃς ὁλοκαύτωμα κυρίῳ ἀνοίσεις αὐτό ὅτι οὐκ ἔγνω Μανωε ὅτι ἄγγελος κυρίου ἐστίν

“And Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, ‘I beg you, please let us detain you, and we will prepare a young goat for you.’ But the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, ‘If you detain me, I will not eat your food; but if you offer a burnt offering, you must offer it to the Lord.’ For Manoah did not know that he was an angel of the Lord” — Judges 13:15,16 LXX

In the biblical tradition, there is a crucial distinction between general honour and the specific kind of worship reserved only for God. Sacrifices fall into the category of latreía, which is the high cultic service that belongs to God alone. While someone might bow down (proskyneō) to a king or a messenger as a sign of deep respect, offering a sacrifice is a completely different level of devotion.

This plays out clearly in Judges 13 when Manoah encounters the Angel of the Lord. Manoah wants to prepare a young goat — a sacrificial act — but the Angel immediately redirects him. He tells Manoah that if he is going to prepare a burnt offering, he must offer it to Jehovah, not to him. By redirecting the sacrifice away from himself and toward Jehovah, the Angel is explicitly rejecting latreía. He is making it clear that while he may be a divine messenger, he is not the recipient of sacrificial worship, ensuring that the highest form of cultic service stays directed exactly where it belongs.

Written by Reductio — community contributor