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Monday, February 24, 2014

The ANGEL Of JEHOVAH Is Pre-Incarnate CHRIST Himself



Judges 2:1-23 NIV






The ANGEL of The Lord at Bokim








1The ANGEL of The Lord Went Up from Gilgal to Bokim and Said,


“I Brought you Up out of Egypt and Led you into the land I Swore To Give to your ancestors. I Said, ‘I Will Never Break My Covenant wWth you, 2 and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.’ Yet you have disobeyed ME. Why have you done this? 3 And I Have Also Said, ‘I Will Not Drive them Out before you; they will become traps for you, and their gods will become snares to you.’ ”


4When The ANGEL of The Lord Had Spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud, 5and they called that place Bokim.a There they offered sacrifices to The Lord.





Disobedience and Defeat



6After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to their own inheritance. 7The people served The Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the Great Things The Lord Had Done For Israel.


8Joshua son of Nun, the servant of The Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. 9And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heresb in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.


10After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither The Lord nor What HE Had Done For Israel. 11Then the Israelites did evil in the Eyes of The Lord and served the Baals. 12They forsook The Lord, The GOD of their ancestors, Who Had Brought them Out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They aroused The Lord’s Anger 13because they forsook Him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 14In His Anger Against Israel The Lord Gave them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. HE Sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. 15Whenever Israel went out to fight, The Hand of The Lord Was Against them to defeat them, Just As HE Had Sworn to them. They were in great distress.


16Then The Lord Raised Up judges,c who saved them out of the hands of these raiders. 17Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to The Lord’s Commands. 18Whenever The Lord Raised Up a judge for them, HE Was With the judge and Saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; For The Lord Relented because of their groaning under those who oppressed and afflicted them. 19But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their ancestors, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.


20Therefore The Lord Was Very Angry With Israel and Said, “Because this nation has violated the Covenant I Ordained for their ancestors and has not listened to ME, 21I Will No Longer Drive Out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. 22I Will Use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the Way of The Lord and walk in it as their ancestors did.” 23The Lord Had Allowed those nations to remain; HE Did Not Drive them Out at once by Giving them into the hands of Joshua.







The ANGEL of JEHOVAH (not ‘an angel’)



The phrase is used to designate The ANGEL of GOD's Presence. See Genesis 12:7.   In all cases where "The ANGEL of JEHOVAH" Delivers a message, HE Does it as if GOD Himself Were Speaking, without the intervening words "Thus Says The Lord," which are used in the case of prophets. (Compare Judges 6:8; Joshua 24:2.)


In the Hebrew Bible the term "מַלְאָךְ יהוה" (malak YHWH), Hebrew for "Messenger of YAHWEH", in the King James Version "ANGEL of The Lord", occurs 65 times and always in the singular. In English translation it is usually accompanied with the definite article.


Appearances of the "ANGEL of The Lord" are often presented as theophanies: in Genesis 31:11–13, The ANGEL of GOD Says, "I AM The GOD of Beth-el"; in Exodus 3:2–6,  The ANGEL of The Lord Who Appeared to Moses in the flame of fire says, "I AM The GOD of your father"; compare Genesis 22:11Judges 6:11–22. At times The ANGEL of The Lord Speaks in such a way as to assume authority over previous promises (see Genesis 16:11 and 21:17).


The following are examples of use of the term "The ANGEL of The Lord":

  • Genesis 16:7–14. The ANGEL of The Lord Appears to Hagar. The ANGEL Speaks as GOD in the first person, and in verse 13 Hagar identifies the visitor as GOD.
  • Exodus 3:2–4. The ANGEL of The Lord Appears to Moses in a flame in verse 2, and GOD Speaks to Moses from the flame in verse 4.
  • Numbers 22:22–38. The ANGEL of The Lord Meets the prophet Balaam on the road. In verse 38, Balaam identifies The ANGEL Who Spoke to him as delivering The WORD of GOD.
  • Judges 6:11–23. The ANGEL of The Lord Appears to Gideon, and in verse 22 Gideon fears for his life because he was in the Presence of GOD.
  • Judges 13:3–22. The ANGEL of The Lord Appears to Manoah and his wife. In verse 16, differentiates Himself from GOD. ("And The ANGEL of The Lord Said to Manoah, “if you will offer a burnt offering, you must offer it to The Lord.")


The ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament known as the Septuagint (known as LXX) translates the phrase as ἄγγελος Κυρίουaggelos Kyriou, "ANGEL of The Lord", a phrase used also in the New Testament. The Hellenistic Jewish philosopher Philo identified The ANGEL of The Lord (in the singular) with The Logos.


The term "ANGEL of GOD" occurs 12 times (2 of which are plural). The following are examples:

  • Judges 13:9. The ANGEL of GOD Approached the wife of Manoah after The Lord Heard Manoah.


The following are examples of GOD "sending An ANGEL":


  • Exodus 23:20-21. The LORD Says HE Will Send An ANGEL before the Israelites, and warns them to obey The ANGEL's Voice, and that The ANGEL "Will Not Pardon transgressions" because “The LORD's Name Is In Him".
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  • Exodus 33:2. God Says HE Will Send An ANGEL before the Israelites, and that GOD Will Drive Out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
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  • Numbers 20:16. The LORD Sent An ANGEL and brought the people of Israel forth from Egypt.
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  • 1 Chronicles 21:15. GOD Sent An ANGEL To Destroy Jerusalem, but then repented and told The ANGEL To Stay His Hand.
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  • 2 Chronicles 32:21. The LORD Sent An ANGEL, Which Cut Off all the mighty men of valor and the leaders and captains in the camp of the king of Assyria.


Somewhat similar expressions are "the Redeeming ANGEL", המלאך הגאלhamalak haggoel (Genesis 48:16); "The ANGEL of His (The Lord's) Presence", מלאך פניוmalak panaiv (Isaiah 63:9); "The ANGEL of the Covenant", מלאך הבריתmalakh habrit (Malachi 3:1); and in the Septuagint "ANGEL (or Messenger) of Great Counsel", μεγάλης βουλῆς ἄγγελοςmegalēs boulēs angelos (Isaiah 9:6).


On the expression "The ANGEL of His Presence", see ANGEL of The Presence.
In the view of the Alexandrian Jewish philosopher Philo, The "ANGEL of YAHWEH" That Appeared to the patriarchs was The Divine Logos.




I firmly believe that The ANGEL (=Messenger) of JEHOVAH Was none other than The Pre-incarnate CHRIST, The Eternal SON of GOD Who Was With The FATHER all eternity.




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