I pray that this post speaks to whomever it needs to, in the name of the LORD and SAVIOR Jesus Christ.

My aim with this post is to re-examine the Judaic belief that GOD cannot appear as a man (as if one can put restrictions on what GOD can or cannot do, as if the LORD declared in HIS Holy Word that HE cannot appear as a man — quite the opposite! One thing is for certain, as the LORD tells us, HE cannot lie).

I seek to examine this ‘person,’ the Angel of the LORD as presented to us in the Holy Bible, by using the Tanakh, of course, and only the Tanakh. I do, however, cast the Tanakh translations against a so-called Christian translation (NKJV) to provide a basis for where this post is going. All Bible verses listed are as they appear in the The Jewish Bible, the Tanakh, by the Jewish Publication Society (JPS); the links go to the NKJV translation.

I ask – If this ‘angel of the LORD’ speaks as GOD and people, as shown in the Tanakh, react to him as GOD, then isn’t it quite possible that the LORD was showing that yes, it is indeed possible for HIM to literally physically appear as a man and still remain divine? Since no man can see GOD’s face and live, isn’t it possible that HE makes a way for us to behold HIM visually without being overwhelmed with HIS glory, or having to die (seeing how sinful we are)?

• The Angel of the LORD: the heavenly messenger whose presence is evidence of GOD HIMSELF (Thomas-Nelson concordance)
  

The LORD recently revealed an area of HIS Holy Scriptures to me, leading me to question, again, the choice of translations and wording in the Jewish Tanakh.

In the so-called Christian translation of the Holy Bible, all throughout the Old Testament we read of the ‘Angel of the LORD’, while in the Tanakh we read of ‘an angel of the LORD.’ This is notable because the so-called Christian translation acknowledges the importance of this Angel of the LORD… HE is no ‘ordinary’ angel, if you will. While in the Tanakh, although HIS importance cannot be veiled due to what HE declares and does, the translators seem to refuse to acknowledge that this is not just ‘an angel’ but a very specific angel.

Just as the ‘Commander of the Army of the LORD’ (NKJV) or the ‘captain of the LORD’s host’ (Tanakh) is very much a specific angel, so is the Angel of the LORD. And we know these two are not like the other angels, like Michael or Gabriel, for example. For these two demand reverence, unlike the other angels — who never speak as GOD or demand reverence, as the Angel of the LORD does.

For example, the ‘captain of the LORD’s host,’ appears to Joshua during the time GOD used him to lead the people in capturing the land HE promised them.

Joshua 5:13-15Joshua 5:13-15
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? ¹⁴ And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? captain: or, prince ¹⁵ And the captain of the LORD'S host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.  

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13. Once, when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him, drawn sword in hand. Joshua went up to him and asked him, “Are you one of us or of our enemies?” 14. He replied, “No, I am captain of the LORD’s host. Now I have come!” Joshua threw himself face down to the ground and, prostrating himself, said to him, “What does my lord command his servant?” 15. The captain of the LORD’s host answered Joshua, “Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.

Now, which angel appearing to any of the people in the Bible tell those before him to remove their shoes because they are standing on holy ground? — Only one other such incident comes to mind.

Exodus 3:1-6Exodus 3:1-6
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
3 ¹ Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. ² And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. ³ And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. ⁴ And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. ⁵ And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. ⁶ Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.  

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1. Now Moses, tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, drove the flock into the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2. An angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire out of a bush. He gazed, and there was a bush all aflame, yet the bush was not consumed. 3. Moses said, “I must turn aside to look at this marvelous sight; why doesn’t the bush burn up?” 4. When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to look, God called to him out fo the bush: “Moses! Moses!” He answered, “Here I am.” 5. And He said, “Do not come closer. Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you stand is holy ground. 6. I am,” He said, “the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

So we have an angel of the LORD declaring that Joshua remove his shoes because he’s standing on holy ground. Do we read any other passages in the Holy Scriptures in which an angel tells a human to remove their shoes in his presence? Do humans kneel before angels? Do angels declare their dwelling to be holy ground? No, we do these things before GOD ALMIGHTY, yet the Tanakh would make it seem that Joshua is bowing in the holy presence of an angel… Why would Joshua worship an angel when the LORD explicitly states, “You shall have no other gods besides Me. You shall not make for yourself a sculptured image, or any likeness of what is in the heavens above, or on the earth below, or in the waters under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them. (Exodus 20:1-6Exodus 20:1-6
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
20 ¹ And God spake all these words, saying, ² I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. bondage: Heb. servants ³ Thou shalt have no other gods before me. ⁴ Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: ⁵ Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; ⁶ And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.  

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Joshua sees this ‘man’ who says he is the Captain of the LORD’s host face-to-face. Can man see GOD’s face and live?  The LORD GOD ALMIGHTY tells Moses after he pleads to behold HIS presence: “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim before you the name LORD, and the grace that I grant and the compassion that I show. But… you cannot see My face, for man may not see Me and live. (Exodus 33:17-23Exodus 33:17-23
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
17 And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. ¹⁸ And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. ¹⁹ And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. ²⁰ And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. ²¹ And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: ²² And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: ²³ And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.  

WP-Bible plugin)” If man cannot see GOD’s face and live, yet Joshua sees this man face-to-face while standing on holy ground … what are we to conclude?

Those of Judaism claim that GOD cannot appear in a manner similar to our physical appearance, that is, HE has no legs, feet, back, face, etc. despite how some passages in the Bible describe HIM. They say all of these descriptions are figurative. I say many of them are literal… for in WHOSE image was man made? And what image could it be if not physical? Are we divine beings? — Certainly not! Are we holy beings? — Certainly not!

Consider Exodus 24:9-12Exodus 24:9-12
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: ¹⁰ And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. ¹¹ And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink. ¹² And the LORD said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.  

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The Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel ascended (to the mountain); and they saw the God of Israel: under His feet there was the likeness of a pavement of sapphire, like the very sky for purity. Yet He did not raise His hand against the leaders of the Israelites; they beheld God, and they ate and drank.

Now, what are we suppose to say about the Israelites who saw GOD’s feet… which were apparently standing on something? Figurative feet? Moses and Aaron saw figurative feet? …Does the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY figuratively sit on HIS figurative throne?

GOD says no man can see HIM and live… yet Moses, Aaron and the chosen elders of Israel saw HIM and HE did not raise HIS hand against them. GOD does not lie, so HE must have shown HIMSELF to them in a physical manner they could understand.

In Judges 13 “an angel of the LORD,” as so translated in the Tanakh, appears to Samson’s parents. This angel announces to the barren woman that she would conceive and bear a son who will be a nazirite to GOD. The angel declares so and so to the woman and leaves. She runs and tells her husband, who prays to GOD to have the man reappear to instruct them on how to raise this child. GOD grants his request, and “the angel of God” appears to the woman again, and she runs off and gets her husband. The two return and the angel tells them again in what manner Samson is to be groomed and raised before the LORD.

Now, some curious things happen before the angel finally departs:

1. Manoah (Samson’s father) asks the angel to tarry and eat with them; the angel says “I shall not eat your food; and if you present a burnt offering, offer it to the LORD (v. 15-18).” (for Manoah did not know that he was an angel of the LORD)

2. Manoah asks the angel his name; the angel says to him, ” you must not ask for my name; it is unknowable!”

3. Manoah offers his sacrifice to the LORD. “As the flames leaped up from the altar toward the sky, the angel of the LORD ascended in the flames of the altar (v. 20).”

4. Manoah and his wife realize they have been visited by an “angel of the LORD” and Manaoh says, according to the Tanakh, “We shall surely die, for we have seen a divine being.” His wife says: “Had the LORD meant to take our lives, He would not have accepted a burnt offering and meal offering from us, nor let us see all these things… (v. 21-23)”

Reading this passage reminds me of a couple other passages, in which, of course this angel of the LORD appears. For example, how many people in the Holy Scriptures ask angels their names? Instead, we are informed of their names without asking, as in Daniel chapters 9-11, for example. But with this angel we must not know his name nor even ask it.

In Genesis 32:23-33Genesis 32:23-33
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
23 And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had. sent them: Heb. caused to pass ²⁴ And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. breaking...: Heb. ascending of the morning ²⁵ And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. ²⁶ And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. ²⁷ And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. ²⁸ And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. Israel: that is, A prince of God ²⁹ And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. ³⁰ And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. Peniel: that is, The face of God ³¹ And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. ³² Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.  

WP-Bible plugin, we read of Jacob wrestling “with a man until the break of dawn,” as described in the Tanakh. Jacob prevails over this angel (in a human form) and says he won’t release him unless he blesses him (since when do angels bless people?). The angel blesses him, giving him the new name Israel, “for you have striven with beings divine and human, and have prevailed (v.29).” In the notes, interestingly enough, the translators of the Tanakh mentions that “beings divine and human” can also mean “God and men.”

Jacob then asks the angel his name, to which the angel replies, “You must not ask my name!” When the angel leaves him, Jacob names the place Peniel, which the Tanakh notes literally means “face of God” … yet they put in the verse “Peniel, meaning, “I have seen a divine being face to face, yet my life has been preserved.”

How come Abraham wasn’t concerned about dying when he saw, sat with and ate with the angels (and the LORD) who visited him (Genesis 18)? How come King David wasn’t afraid of dying when he saw the angel whom the LORD had sent forth to strike Jerusalem (2 Samuel 14:172 Samuel 14:17
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
17 Then thine handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be comfortable: for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad: therefore the LORD thy God will be with thee. comfortable: Heb. for rest to discern: Heb. to hear  

WP-Bible plugin)? What’s so special about the angel in these passages mentioned above that makes men think they will die because they have seen him, or that they must remove their shoes because they walk in his presence? Yet Abraham and King David reacted quite differently (as did Lot) to the angels they saw…

Isn’t it possible that GOD ALMIGHTY can ‘clothe’ HIMSEFL in such a way that we humans can behold HIM in a safe and comfortable manner? Why would these men say they have seen the face of GOD if they believed they were speaking with and grappling with an ordinary “angel of the LORD?”

And what angel speaks in the first person declaring things of GOD? Doesn’t the messenger usually say “says the LORD?” Take Hagar, for example.

Genesis 16:7-16Genesis 16:7-16
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
7 And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur. ⁸ And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai. ⁹ And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands. ¹⁰ And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude. ¹¹ And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. Ishmael: that is, God shall hear ¹² And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren. ¹³ And she called the name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have I also here looked after him that seeth me? ¹⁴ Wherefore the well was called Beerlahairoi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. Beerlahairoi: that is, The well of him that liveth and seeth me ¹⁵ And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael. ¹⁶ And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.  

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7. An agel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the road to Shur, 8. and said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” And she said, “I am running away from my mistress Sarai.” 9. And the angel of the LORD said to her, “Go back to your mistress, and submit to her harsh treatment.” 10. And the angel of the LORD said to her, “I will greatly increase your offspring, and they shall be too many to count.”

“And the angel of the LORD said to her, “I will greatly increase your offspring..” … Does that sound familiar? It should — that’s exactly what the LORD our GOD promised father Abraham. How can an angel speak in the first person so as if he is not just speaking for GOD, but is speaking as GOD?

Immediately after the angel leaves, Hagar praises the LORD, saying “You Are El-roi,” by which she meant, says the Tanakh, “Have I not gone on seeing after He saw me!” There’s this interesting phrase that appears quite often in the footnotes of the Tanakh — “meaning of Hebrew uncertain.” This notates Hagar’s exclamation above. Is the meaning really so uncertain? Who is worried about dying because GOD has spoken with and seen them? …Isn’t it usually the other way around — men think they will die for having seen GOD (or in this case, for seeing GOD’s presence in the angel of the LORD)? Why would Hagar say, “Have I not gone on seeing after He saw me!” … I find it quite likely Hagar was astonished that she was still alive after seeing and speaking with GOD… who appeared to her as this “angel of the LORD.” This angel of the LORD spoke as GOD and not for GOD. He did not say ‘the LORD says.’ He said, “I will greatly increase your offspring.”

I would like to know where in the Holy Scriptures where it says GOD cannot appear as a man.