- [Tim] So in the Bible reality is made up
of two overlapping realms: the Heavens and the Earth.
Our space and God's space.
- [Jon] And while life here on Earth may seem ordinary,
sometimes we can encounter Heaven
right here in our own realm.
- [Tim] Yes, this happens a number of times in the Bible.
And when it does, we often encounter a fascinating character,
the Angel of Yahweh, or in most translations of the Bible,
the Angel of the Lord.
- [Jon] Now, we've talked about angels.
They're spiritual messengers who perform missions for God.
- [Tim] But the Angel of the Lord is no mere angel.
- [Jon] How so?
- [Tim] Well, every time he appears he's described
in a way that's purposefully puzzling.
And it leaves you wondering
was that an angel sent by Yahweh
or was that Yahweh himself?
- [Jon] What do you mean?
- [Tim] Here's one of many examples. In the book of Genesis,
there's a story about Hagar,
Abraham and Sarah's runaway Egyptian slave.
And we read this, "The angel of Yahweh called to Hagar."
But then this angel speaks as if he is Yahweh, saying,
"I will give you many descendants."
And then Hagar responds and says,
"You are God who sees me."
- [Jon] So the Angel of Yahweh is Yahweh.
But that can't be.
In the Bible you can't see Yahweh or you'll die.
- [Tim] Yeah, so this story
and others like it are inviting us into a paradox
that Yahweh is above all, inaccessible to us.
But sometimes he reveals himself to us
in ways that we can see and understand.
And that's where this character shows up.
- [Jon] He's Yahweh made visible to us.
- [Tim] Yes, distinct from Yahweh and also Yahweh.
This is very similar to other biblical stories
about prophets who get a glimpse into God's space
like Isaiah, Ezekiel, or Daniel.
And what they see is a glorious human figure
on a throne who's called Yahweh.
- [Jon] So the one on the throne and the Angel of Yahweh,
this is the same person.
- [Tim] Exactly. Watch all this come together
in the famous story of Moses and the burning bush
where we read—
- [Jon] "The Angel of Yahweh appeared to Moses
in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush.
And when Yahweh saw that Moses stopped to look,
God called to him from the midst of the bush."
- [Tim] So this person in the bush is called
the Angel of Yahweh, then Yahweh, and then God.
And then later in the story, Moses learns that the figure
in the burning bush is the one leading Israel out of Egypt
in the pillar of fire and cloud.
And that's the one who later takes
up residence in the tabernacle.
- [Jon] The tabernacle ...
this is the throne room of God himself.
- [Tim] You got it.
The Angel of the Lord is the royal glory of Yahweh appearing
as a human.
Now keep all this in mind
as we start talking about Jesus.
In the opening of the Gospel of John,
we're told that from all eternity
Jesus was with God and was God.
- [Jon] Distinct from God and also God.
That's the same paradox we saw with the Angel of Yahweh.
- [Tim] Right, and then John says that God's word became human
and set up a tabernacle among us.
- [Jon] The temple presence of the invisible God.
- [Tim] Exactly. Now check this out.
There's a story about when Jesus took three of his followers
up to a mountain and his true identity was revealed.
He was transformed into a glorious human figure.
- [Jon] Okay, I see what's going on here.
So the Angel of the Lord was God appearing like a human
and Jesus is God now become a human.
- [Tim] Yes, and notice this,
in the New Testament no one ever uses
the phrase Angel of the Lord to describe Jesus.
- [Jon] Why not?
- [Tim] Well, they wanted to avoid the idea
that Jesus was merely an angel.
For them, Jesus was Yahweh God become human.
In order to fulfill his ultimate mission
to fully reunite Heaven and Earth once and for all.
- [Jon] You just watched a video on the Angel of the Lord.
- [Tim] Next up, we're gonna look at the Satan and demons,
the spiritual beings who resist God's plan
to reunite Heaven and Earth.
(gentle music)