Biblical Concept: Angels
and Election
(All
underlines and parentheses are mine)
1)
Angels were created by and for God.
NAS
Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or
rulers or authorities-- all things have been created by Him and for Him.
NAS
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being by
Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
NAS
Ezekiel 28:14 "You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I
placed you there. You were on the holy
NAS
Psalm 148:1 Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; Praise Him in
the heights! 2 Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him, all His hosts! 3
Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all stars of light! 4 Praise Him, highest
heavens, And the waters that are above the heavens! 5 Let them praise the name
of the LORD, For He commanded and they were created.
NAS Psalm 103:20 Bless
the LORD, you His angels, mighty
in strength, who perform His word, obeying the voice of His word!
NAS Hebrews 1:6 And when
He again brings the first-born into the world, He says, "AND LET ALL
THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM."
NAS Hebrews 12:22 But
you have come to
2)
Some angels sinned against the God Who created them.
NAS Job 4:18 'He puts no
trust even in His servants; and against His angels He charges error.
NAS 2 Peter 2:4 For if
God did not spare angels when
they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of
darkness, reserved for judgment;
NAS Jude 1:6 And angels who did not keep their own
domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal
bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day.
NAS Colossians 2:18 Let
no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and
the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he
has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind,
See Biblical Concept: Angelic Rebellion,
point one.
3)
After some angels sinned, a heavenly spiritual identification was made between
sinless and sinful angels.
3a)
Sinless angels and their identification:
NAS Daniel 4:13 'I was
looking in the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed, and behold, an angelic watcher, a holy one,
descended from heaven.
NAS Matthew 13:41
"The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and
they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit
lawlessness,
NAS Matthew 16:27
"For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His
angels; and WILL THEN RECOMPENSE EVERY MAN
ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.
NAS Matthew 24:31
"And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL
GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the
other.
NAS Mark 8:38 "For
whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His
Father with the holy angels."
NAS Luke 9:26 "For
whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed
when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy
angels.
NAS 1 Timothy 5:21 I
solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of His chosen
angels, to maintain these principles without
bias, doing nothing in a spirit of partiality. (“Chosen” is the word evklekto,j,,, sometimes translated elect.)
NAS Revelation 12:7 And
there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging
war with the dragon. And the dragon and his angels waged war,
NAS Revelation 14:10 he
also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full
strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and
brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in
the presence of the Lamb.
3b)
Sinful angels and their identification:
NAS Matthew 25:41
"Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed
ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;
NAS Revelation 12:7 And
there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. And the dragon and his angels waged war,
NAS Revelation 12:9 And
the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is
called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was
thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
NAS Romans 8:38 For I am
convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor
height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us
from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
NAS
2 Corinthians 11:14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
4)
Sinless and sinful angels continue to learn about sin:
NAS
Job 2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present
themselves before the LORD, and Satan
also came among them to present himself before the LORD. (See the
discussion between God and Satan in 1:6ff.)
NAS
James 2:19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.
NAS Luke 12:8 "And
I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man shall
confess him also before the angels of God;
NAS Luke 12:9 but he who
denies Me before men shall be denied before the angels of God.
NAS Luke 15:10 "In
the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
NAS Acts 7:53 you who
received the law as ordained by angels, and yet
did not keep it. "
NAS 1 Corinthians 4:9
For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to
death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men.
NAS 1 Corinthians 11:10
Therefore the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on
her head, because of the angels.
NAS Galatians 3:19 Why the
Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained
through angels by the agency of a mediator, until
the seed should come to whom the promise had been made.
NAS Ephesians 3:9 and to
bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has
been hidden in God, who created all things; 10 in order that the manifold
wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and
the authorities in the heavenly places.
NAS 1 Timothy 3:16 And
by common confession great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in
the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Beheld by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.
NAS Hebrews 1:4 having
become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent
name than they.
NAS Hebrews 2:2 For if
the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression
and disobedience received a just recompense,
NAS Hebrews 2:5 For He
did not subject to angels the
world to come, concerning which we are speaking.
NAS Hebrews 2:9 But we
do see Him who has been made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned
with glory and honor, that by the grace of God He might taste death for
everyone.
NAS Hebrews 2:14 Since
then the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of
the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power
of death, that is, the devil; 15 and might deliver those who through fear
of death were subject to slavery all their lives. 16 For assuredly He does
not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendant of Abraham. 17
Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, that He might
become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to
make propitiation for the sins of the people.
NAS 1 Peter 1:12 It was
revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these
things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the
gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven-- things into which angels long to look.
NAS 1 Peter 3:22 who is
at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had
been subjected to Him.
NAS Revelation 3:5 'He
who overcomes shall thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his
name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father, and before
His angels.
NAS Matthew 25:31
"But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit
on His glorious throne. (Note the end of Tribulation judgments in the following
context.)
5) The Fate of Sinful
Angels:
NAS Matthew 25:41
"Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed
ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and
his angels;
NAS 1 Corinthians 6:3 Do
you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, matters of this life?
6) Miscellaneous:
NAS Mark 12:25 "For
when they rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage,
but are like angels in heaven.
NAS Luke 20:36 for
neither can they die anymore, for they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.