Holy Michael and All Angels
Written by Suzanne Choi
Belmont Abbey Stained Glass
Today’s Feast Day is in honor of the holy angel Michael (and all angels!), but honestly, I don’t tend to think a whole lot about angels. Perhaps sadly, the first thing that comes to my mind when I contemplate angels is the book This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti, (which I think I read in high school and am now kind of embarrassed to admit, for some reason). Because angels are not often on my mind, I found it ironic that our pastoral assistant (Blake) assigned me to write today’s reflection. That said, I am also very grateful for this opportunity, because it has given me a chance to learn more about angels, by actually studying Scripture!
Before I share what I learned in my angel research, let me say that I think what may be the biggest pitfall to not having angels’ existence/ministry be an active part of my worldview is that I can also then tend to downplay or remain ignorant of the presence of their wicked counterparts -- demons. Because the fact of the matter is that these spiritual forces for good and evil both exist and work to shape our realities. In fact, I would argue that much of the wrong that happens -- around the globe, and in our own nation, and in our own hearts -- doesn’t even make sense, were it not for demonic influence! So I definitely need to keep the reality of demons in mind, and below are some reasons why I should likewise keep angels in mind as well!
Angelic beings play many roles and have many purposes and characteristics. In an attempt to begin to make a survey of them, I got out my trusty (and quite dusty) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible and looked up “Michael.” That search alone led to a lot of discoveries about both the Angel Michael and angels in general. There is much that is mysterious about what I have found so far in my studies, but here is some of what I conclude:
Michael is at or near the very top of the angel hierarchy. He is described to Daniel (in various Bible versions of Daniel 10:13) as
“one of the chief princes” (ESV and others)
“one of the chief angel-princes” (MSG)
“one of the archangels” (NLT)
“one of the most important angels” (NCV)
“one of the chief of the celestial princes” (AMP)
Michael seems to be specially charged with protecting the people of Israel. He is thus also described in Daniel 10:21 & 12:1 as:
“your prince” (ESV and others)
“the great angel-prince, champion of your people” (MSG)
“your spirit prince” (NLT)
“the angel ruling over your people” (NCV)
“the guardian of your nation” (AMP)
“the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people” (NKJV)
“the great prince who standeth for the children of thy people” (ASV)
“the archangel who stands guard over your nation” (NLT)
“the great prince who has charge of your people” (ESV)
Michael partners with fellow angels in their battle against evil spirits. This happens on both an individual angel-helping-out-an-angel level (Daniel 10: 13 & 21) and as Michael commands his entire angelic army (Revelation 12:7-9). In Daniel’s case, Michael gave such assistance in order to free up another angel to minister to Daniel in a vision, thereby offering him love, understanding, peace, strength, courage, and insight into the future (Daniel 10-12). In Revelation, on the other hand, Michael’s leadership had/has literally cosmic implications.
Michael often fights directly against Satan himself. He is described as “disputing” and “contending with the devil” in Jude 9, and in Revelation 12: 7-10, he is described as defeating (along with his angelic army) the rebellious angel army led by “the great dragon…that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world…” This is especially important to realize because it shows how much lower Satan is than God. Let me be clear: God and Satan are not binary peers. Michael and Satan might be on the same level. But God is high above all.
Michael has been around a long, long time. He was active during the time of Moses (1500-1300 BC), according to Jude. And he was active during the time of Daniel (600-400 BC). And in Revelation, he appears to be active throughout an unknown timeframe, extending possibly far into the past (like, pre-Creation?) or far into the future, or even occurring outside linear timetables.
Michael has big roles to play both in extratemporal heaven and in the time-bound and space-bound history of planet earth. As intimated above, not only is Michael described as leading God’s angelic army into a decisive victory against the Devil and his minions when “war arose in heaven” (Rev. 12:7), but it is said regarding the end times on earth, “At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people.” Michael will then be involved in the deliverance, resurrection, judgment, and ushering into eternal life of all of humanity (Daniel 12:1-3).
Michael is humble. Jude poignantly points out that when Michael was in conflict with Satan, “he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you.’” Michael definitely has a clear sense of who he is and who he is not. He might be one of the highest (or even the highest) and most powerful of the angelic beings in the universe, but he is not the Lord. He recognizes that his own rebuke is puny and impotent compared to the rebuke of God Almighty. I found this fascinating, especially since a common phrase we might hear from people who are frequently engaged in spiritual warfare is “We rebuke you, Satan.” Maybe we should not so presume. Perhaps rather, we should follow the lead of Michael and direct a much more formidable and effective pronouncement against Satan, “The Lord rebuke you!”
For this article, I was originally going to go on and do a survey of all the times that angels are mentioned in the Bible, but the words angel, angel’s, angels, and angels’, it turns out, are mentioned hundreds of times in the Bible, and a summary of that seems way beyond the scope of this reflection. I am no angelologist. However, if any of you would like to do your own further study, please contact me, and I will be glad to send you a copy or picture of the concordance pages full of references.
In conclusion, I have to admit, I may not agree with everything Frank Peretti writes, but I think he may have done some real homework before writing This Present Darkness. One thing is certain: I want to become more aware of the ethereal domain and the battles playing out there when I consider both the circumstances that surround me and the happenings within my own heart/mind/soul. I have decided that if I don’t get to know more about angels in the here and now, not only am I going to be ignorant of relevant spiritual realities in this life, but I’m going to have a lot of catching up to do in the next one!
Collect for Holy Michael and All Angels (BCP 2019, p. 632)
Everlasting God, you have ordained and constituted in a wonderful order the ministries of angels and mortals: Mercifully grant that, as your holy angels always serve and worship you in heaven, so by your appointment they may help and defend us here on earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Questions for Reflection
It is probably possible to think too much about angels and demons. Is this your tendency, or is your issue, like mine, that you think of them too little?
As you read about the Archangel Michael, how does he inspire you in his devotion to and reverence for God?
Are there ways that you think that spiritual warfare may be a viable explanation for some things that are happening in your life? How can you cooperate with and receive the ministry of spiritual forces of good? How can you more fully invite God to rebuke Satan and his influence in your life?
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