-
- “Hagar and the Angel in the Desert” by James Tissot, 1896-1900. The first mention of an angel in the Bible was as a comforter/provider to Hagar and her son Ishmael. “The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur” (Genesis 16:7).
-
- Archangel Michael statue at St. Michael’s Church, Hamburg, Germany. The church is one of Hamburg’s five Lutheran main churches. This large bronze statue, standing above the portal of the church, shows the archangel conquering the devil. In the book of Revelation, Michael leads God’s armies against Satan’s forces. “And war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back” (Revelation 12:7).
-
- “Archangel Gabriel Annunciate” by Fra Angelico, 1431-1433. “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David” (Luke 1:26-27).
-
- “Jacob wrestling with the Angel” by Jacob Epstein, Tate Britain, London. “Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak” (Genesis 32:24).
-
- Angels rolling away the stone from the sepulcher, William Blake, 1805. “And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it” (Matthew 28:2).
-
- Trinity icon, Andrei Rublev, 15th century, Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. In some traditions the three travelers represent the Trinity. In many western traditions the travelers welcomed by Abraham and Sarah were three angels. “He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground” (Genesis 18:2).
Mentioned over 200 times in the Bible, angels have a variety of attributes. At times an angel appears to be a human with unusual features. Daniel saw an angel with arms and legs resembling polished metal and precious stones. The angel who rolled away the stone from the tomb was a dazzling light. The Angel Gabriel came to Mary in the form of a man to tell her that she was to become the mother of the Messiah. The following images represent how artists have depicted these spiritual beings as found in the Bible.
