Michael the mighty warrior, the Chief angel of the Lord, the deliverer of the faithful; the guardian
prince of Israel, the angel of repentance, the angel of the element of fire. Archangel
of the Covenant, he who overthrows mountains, the chief ruling prince of the 4th heaven.
His mystery name is Sabbathiel, the angel of the east and of the east wind, it is he who leads
souls into eternal light. The Golden legend calls him the angel of the planet mercury, Barrett's
Magus calls him the lord of Sundays, and the ancient Persians call him Beshter, the sustainer.
He is the conqueror of Dubbiel, for it was he who defeated dubbiel the guardian angel of Persia.
Michael originated from the Chaldeans , who at that time, worshiped him as a god.
He was then passed into both Jewish and Arabian lore, where he became one of the most important
angels thenceforth. He is an angel of multiple ranks and duties, the chief of the archangels,
and of the Virtues, and among the 4 seraphim who guard the throne of the most high,
unceasingly praising his name. In early Muslim lore it is said that the cherubim
were formed from the tears Michael shed over the sins of the faithful. They say his wings
were the color of green emerald, and had a million faces and mouths and as many tongues.
in the legends of the Jews, he is said to be the angel of insomnia, for it was he who was
sent by God to cause the sleeplessness of the king Ahasuerus who, on the advice of the wicked Haman,
had decreed the annihilation of all the Jews in the kingdom. In the story of the Egyptians
and the Israelites, when the fierce Abezithibod, guardian angel of the Egyptians led the Egyptian
army and their pharaoh to pursue the Israelites, it was Michael the guardian angel of Israel
who led the children of Israel safely across the red sea. The two guardians came face to face,
and a great battle ensued between them on that very spot at the red sea, unseen by the eyes of
mortals, it was a battle which would determine the fate of the two tribes. Michael eventually
bested Abezithibod, throwing him and the Egyptian hosts into the red sea, and trapping Abezithibod
under a magical pillar in the deepest part of the sea. And so, the Israelites were saved.
In Persian lore and in the Talmud, there is a similar story of a battle between
Dubbiel the guardian angel of Ancient Persia, and Michael, the guardian of Israel. Once upon a time,
after Jerusalem had known peace, the children of Israel began to seek more freedom,
freedom to explore other ways. And so they turned to idolatry and rebelled against god.
Meanwhile in heaven, Alongside a few other guardian angels of nations, Dubbiel accused
the Israelites of their sins before the throne of God, showing him how they had renounced him
and turned to worshiping other gods. And In anger, God used the Babylonians as judgement against the
Israelites, inspiring King Nebuchadenezzar II to lay siege and capture Jerusalem and Israel.
He turned his back on the children of Israel, leaving them at the mercy of the Babylonians.
Michael and Gabriel felt great pity at the wanton destruction and killing of the Israelites,even
though he was the guardian of Israel, Michael could do nothing, for it was the will of the
supreme god, and going against it would mean going against the supreme. It was Gabriel, who acted
out pity, trying to convince the Babylonians to drive the Israelites from Babylon
rather than kill them, an action which was quickly opposed by Dubbiel who engaged Gabriel in a duel,
emerging victorious. Following his loss, Gabriel was put into temporary disgrace,
and temporarily dismissed from his duties and positions, duties and positions which were then
assumed by Dubbiel for the time being. But as soon as Dubbiel came into office,
he began to abuse the authority which had been given to him, for he started aiding the Persian
people at the expense of every other nation. This corrupted all other guardian angels of Nations,
except Michael, for each one began helping their own people at the expense of other nations.
Seeing that the heavens had been turned into a place of madness and power tussle,
Michael sought to bring an end to this madness. He would thwart the plans of Dubbiel,
and defeat him in battle, throwing him out of the heavens and putting an end to the chaos. And
Gabrilel would be reinstated into his former positions,
for Dubbiel had proved terribly unfit for such a role, abusing the great power which came with it.
Michael's battle prowess and general dexterity were never in doubt, it was he who overthrew
Lucifer the Morningstar when he rebelled, a feat which earned him the title "Slayer of
the dragon," as well as all former heavenly positions which the great Lucifer once had.
In canonical writings, in the standard texts of the Jews,
Michael is said to be the greatest of all the angels. In non canonical writings however, there
is one angel said whose battle prowess is said to be greater than Michael's. Who was this angel?