Angel of the Lord

The Angel of the Lord, also called the Angel of Yahweh, the Burning Bush and the Pillar of Fire is an enigmatic and recurring figure in the texts of the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament. 
Such an entity appears several times to famous biblical figures such as Abraham, Jacob and Moses, referring to itself as Yahweh or the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or just as the Almighty God.
However, because Yahweh appears as a physical being, It is in a sense God in human form, leading many to believe that the Angel of the Lord is Jesus Christ Himself in his preexistence. Furthermore, there are passages where Yahweh and His Angel are separate, although everything implies that they are the same entity. 
Which only reinforces that perhaps there are two Yahweh acting in the plot of the Bible's narrative, one being invisible and spiritual and the other being physical and speaking face to face with his prophets.
==Base Information==
===Hagar===
The Angel of the Lord first appears in the book of Genesis, after the wife of the Patriarch Abraham, Sarah, expels her maidservant Hagar into the desert because she is pregnant. 
Hagar in fear ends up stopping at a well, where the Angel of the Lord appeared to her asking the woman where she came from and where she was going, and advised her to return home and promised her that she would have so many offspring that she would not be able to tell and her son's name would be Ishmael. Hagar in reply said, "thou art the God who sees me."
===Abraham===
Later, the Angel of the Lord reappears, this time to Abraham, and accompanied by two other Angels of unknown identity. The Angel appeared to Abraham telling him that he would have a son after one year. 
In addition, the Angel also mentioned that he had heard the outcry coming from the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and that he would destroy the cities if there were not at least fifty righteous people among that multitude of sinners. 
However, after Abraham's insistence, the number was lowered to just ten people. Unfortunately, there weren't even ten good people in those cities, which resulted in their destruction at the hands of God.
===Jacob===
The other time the Angel appeared to Abraham was to Jacob during the time he was at Bethel, where Jacob had a dream of a ladder going from earth to heaven, where angels descended and ascended by it. At the top of that ladder, the Lord was talking to him. Later, the Angel of the Lord appeared again to Jacob saying "I am the God of Bethel" and told the Patriarch to return to his homeland. 
Later, Jacob meets the Angel of the Lord in the desert and fights him, ending up with the Angel blessing him, and when Jacob returned from the desert, Jacob said, "I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."
===Moses===
The greatest and perhaps greatest apparition of the Angel of the Lord was to Moses, in the book of Exodus, when He appeared to the Prophet through a Burning Bush and revealed to Moses the holy name of God, the "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh", which he translated it would be something like "I Am That I Am" or "I Will Be Who I Will Be". 
It is believed that the Pillar of Fire that appeared to the people of Israel in the desert is the same entity that manifested itself in the Burning Bush, the Divine Presence of God, that is, the Angel of the Lord. 
We are later shown the Angel of the Lord and Yahweh as distinct beings, with Yahweh mentioning that His name is in His Angel. Something that for many would be like blasphemy, since the name of God could not belong to anyone other than God. However, it is asserted by the Creator Himself that the Angel of the Lord has His Name, indicating that the Angel is more than just an angel.
===Other apparitions===
Apparitions of the Angel of the Lord are found throughout the Hebrew Bible, as in the book of Judges, where the Angel of the Lord appeared to Samson's parents and delivers the message that they will have a son who will not have his hair cut because he is a son consecrated to God. In this apparition, the Angel of the Lord is described as a man of majestic appearance, who did not tell him where he came from or what his name was. 
In the book of Zechariah, the Angel of the Lord once again appears and rebukes a Ha-Satan in the name of God, Yahweh, saying "The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan". In the book of Joshua we can also observe at the moment when Joshua worships the Angel of the Lord, the Angel accepts the worship (see Joshua 5:14), which something for the angels is not acceptable, because only God should be worshipped (see Apocalypse 22:9).
==Speculations==
Because the Angel of the Lord often refers to himself as Yahweh, God Almighty, God of Bethel, and other biblical figures also refer to him as God, many believe that the Angel of the Lord is Yahweh Himself. 
Furthermore, because the Angel is, in general, a theophonic physical manifestation of God the Father, many believe that he is actually Jesus Christ himself in his preexistence, something that sometimes seems to be reinforced even by Jesus.
However, there is also the hypothesis that the Angel of the Lord is the Archangel Gabriel, since Gabriel is the angel of the messages, serving as God's intercessor with humanity, in addition to having already been called the Angel of the Lord in the Christian Bible in the new testament. However, as Gabriel is just an angel, he would not accept the worship of another human being, which makes it more difficult to assert that the Messenger is the Angel of the Lord.
==Description==
===Appearance===
The Angel of the Lord appears in different forms in the Old Testament. For example, when he appeared to Moses, the Angel of the Lord appeared as a Burning Bush, whose fire did not burn the bush. 
When he appeared to Isaiah, the Angel of the Lord appeared as a man seated on a throne of glory surrounded by angels, the Seraphim. During the period he led the people of Israel through the desert, the Angel of the Lord manifested himself as a pillar of fire. 
As for Job, the Angel of the Lord appeared like a great whirlwind with a voice of thunder.
===Personality===
The Angel of the Lord is a very enigmatic figure, having little demonstration of his emotions, serving only as a messenger and intercessor between God and humanity. However, he proved to be a merciful one, as when Abraham urged him to consider only ten people enough for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah not to be destroyed, he accepted, though unfortunately there weren't even ten kind people in those cities.
The Angel of the Lord also showed to be wise and serious in the times he appeared, besides showing to know the future. If the Angel of the Lord is indeed God (the Father or the Son), then the Angel of the Lord is the greatest and the true source of light, love, grace and justice. The source of all that is holy, pure and divine. However, just like God, the Angel of the Lord also possesses divine wrath, as when he took the life of the firstborn in Egypt due to Pharaoh's refusal to deliver the children of Israel from Egypt.
==Heroic acts==
*It appeared to Hagar in his moment of greatest despair and fear and comforted and blessed her that she would have a great many descendants.
*It blessed Jacob when he was in danger of being killed by his brother, Esau.
*Freed the people of Israel from Egypt.
*Guided Israel through the desert and protected them for 40 years.
==Quotes==
==Gallery==
===Images===
920342898-98908.jpeg|The burning bush, one of the most famous manifestations of God, where the Angel of the Lord manifested like a holy flame in a bush, without burning it. It was in this Bush that the Angel of the Lord revealed the divine and personal Name of the God of Israel, the eternal Yahweh.
The Pillar of Fire.jpg|The Pillar of Fire is believed to be a manifestation of the Angel of the Lord, a sacred flame that destroyed Israel's enemies and illuminated their paths...
EVM36NuU8AEmd72.png|During the day it was a pillar of sand and by night it was a pillar of fire, warming the children of Israel as it led them through the desert.
Jacob Wrestles with the Angel.jpg|Jacob battles with the Angel of the Lord in search of his blessing, with the battle ending with the Angel of Yahweh blessing him and giving him a new name; Israel, because as a prince he striven with God.
4389347897340987344.jpg|Isaiah saw a man full of glory and power seated on a Throne surrounded by Seraphim, considering that God is incorporeal, it is likely that the glorious entity that the prophet saw was the Angel of the Lord representing Yahweh...
3490438-098-0349898.jpg|Which leads many to believe there are two Yahweh, one manifests as the invisible, unspeakable and ineffable spiritual God, while the other manifests as God in human form, who can converse face to face with people. Which implies that possibly the Angel of the Lord is Jesus Christ, God in human form, the Emmanuel, God with us.
===Videos===
Angel of the Lord
Is the Angel of Yahweh also Yahweh?
==Trivia==
*Because the Jews respect the name of God, Yahweh, they replaced the name Yahweh with Adonai, which means The Lord or Lord of Lords. This was also used in the Angel of the Lord, its true title being the Angel of Yahweh.
*Some believe that the Angel of the Lord could be the Seraph Metatron. However, Metatron is not canonical in the Hebrew and Christian Bible. While others believe the angel facing Jacob in the wilderness is the angel Sammael, another non-canonical Bible angel.
*The hypothesis that it is a manifestation of God in human form is very similar to Hinduism's concept of Avatar.
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