The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1880-12-01
For the Central Presbyterian.
The Ministry of Angels in the
Giving of the Law.

of the pastor or other minister, is published at
the request of several of those who heard it..
The SD verse of this 7th chapter OF
Acts is the close of Stephens defence be-
fore the Sanhedrim-"W Who have received
the law by the disposition of angels, and
have not kept it. Arraigned before the
highest Jewish court on the charge OF
speaking blasphemous words against
Moses and against God, and especially
against the temple and the customs of
Moses, he makes defence which is wor-
thy to take rank with the most splendid
specimens of ancient eloquence. 1t is en-
tirely drawn from Old Testament history.
He shows that Jewish history was series
of changes, and that his accusers were
mistaken in supposing their institutions
were permanent. He proves that the
outward organisation of the Jewish
Church had undergone repeated changes
under Abraham, Joseph, Moses, and
David-that their system was intended
to be temporary-that the Israelites of
every age had been unfaithful to their
trust-that they had sold Joseph, repu-
dated Moses, apostatised at Mount Sinai,
prosecuted the prophets worshipped Mo-
loch and the stars, and that their reiec-
ton of Jesus as the Messiah, was in full
keeping with all their history. Then in
a terrible invective, he sums up the proofs
of the unfaithfulness which he had pre-
sented in detail, with brief description
of the men whom he addressed and the
nation they represented. eye stiffnecked
and uncircumcised in heart and ears, We
do always resist the Holy Ghost; as your
fathers did, so do ye" Stephen con-
cludes his address, which bears more the
character of an arraignment of his ac-
cusers than defence of himself, by tell
ing the members of the Sanhedrim that
the law which they had received by the
disposition of angels, they had not kept
This verse manltestly refers to the agency
or ministry of angels in the giving of the
law, but yet Christian scholars are not
entirely agreed as to its Interpretation.
All concur that Stephen meant to charge
that the Jews as nation and as the re-
cipients and depository of Gods revela-
ton to man, had betrayed their high trust
and proved themselves unworthy of the
greatest honor ever conferred upon a
people; but the commentators widely
differ as to the meaning of the phrase
here used, disposition of angels" What
ever may be its specific meaning, it is
very certain that the reference here to
the agency of angels was intended to az
gravate the charge which Stephen had
brought against the Jewish nation. It is
clearly intimated that the means by or
through which the law was received, ex-
allied and ennobled it, and thereby made
the offence Of the nation greater in not
keeping it. Another unquestionable fact
IS that the ennobling circumstance to
which he refers, was the agency of an
gels. The only open question is, in what
that agency consisted or how were angels
concerned In the delivery of the law?
Amongst the Jews there was a pre-
vailing belief that there was an active
angelic ministry in the great transactions
OF Sinai. Such tradition had been de-
hVered from age to age, and as fact was
not questioned by any one of Stephen s
Judges. They believed that the law not
on y issued from the throne of the eter-
ma, but that Jehovah to give grandeur
and emphasis to it, for once held his high
court on earth, and marshalling on Sanai
the hosts OF heaven, committed to them
as the main part of their ministry. its
execution. Stephen seizes upon this be-
lief and uses 1T as fact to magnify the
guilt of his accusers; SO that there would
be this justification for the reference.
even if there were no express scriptural
authority for the agency Of angels in the
delivery Of the law
Before considering that direct ques-
ton, [ desire to say something about an
gelc service as the same is recorded in
Scripture. Angels are there represented
as race of spiritual beings, of nature
exalted above that of man, though iDfin-
itely removed from that of God, whose
office it is to do Him service both in
heaven and on earth There are many
passages in which the expression. "the
angel Of the Lord, or angel of Jeho-
yah, is used for the manifestation of
GOD, himself; as when the angel of the
Lord appeared unto Moses in a flame of
ire out Of the bush and said, "I am the
God Of thy Father, the God Of Abraham.
the God Of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. .
Moses then Intercepted the angel as to
his name and what he should tell the
children Of Israel it was. The angel re-
Piled, " l am that I am, and said to
Moses that he should say ct am" had
sent him with the message. Christian
scholars generally agree that the angel
mentioned IN Az, - Al q