Yahoel (, reconstructed , reconstructed or ; also spelled ''Jahoel'', ''Jehoel,'' etc. in English and ''Yaoel'' in French) is the name of an angel appearing in the

Old Church Slavonic Old Church Slavonic or Old Slavonic ( ) is the first Slavic languages, Slavic literary language and the oldest extant written Slavonic language attested in literary sources. It belongs to the South Slavic languages, South Slavic subgroup of the ...

manuscripts of the Apocalypse of Abraham, a

pseudepigraphical A pseudepigraph (also anglicized as "pseudepigraphon") is a falsely attributed work, a text whose claimed author is not the true author, or a work whose real author attributed it to a figure of the past. The name of the author to whom the wor ...

work dating from after the

siege of Jerusalem (70) The siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE was the decisive event of the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), a major rebellion against Roman rule in the province of Judaea. Led by Titus, Roman forces besieged the Jewish capital, which had beco ...

. The name is thought to be a compound of the

Tetragrammaton The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliteration, transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from ...

and ''ʔēl'', the Hebrew word for 'God'.Alexander Kulik (2004) ''Retroverting Slavonic Pseudepigrapha: Toward the Original of the Apocalypse of Abraham'', p. 55–56 fn. He is an associate of

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

(Apoc. Abr.10:17) charged to restrain

Leviathan Leviathan ( ; ; ) is a sea serpent demon noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, and the pseudepigraphical Book of Enoch. Leviathan is of ...

and destroy idolaters (10:10–14). Another later pseudepigraphical rabbinical work ascribed to Ishmael ben Elisha, Hebrew

3 Enoch The Third Book of Enoch (), also known as The Book of the Palaces, The Book of Rabbi Ishmael the High Priest and The Elevation of Metatron, and abbreviated as 3 Enoch) is a Jewish apocrypha, Jewish apocryphal book. Authorship Modern scholars desc ...

48d, gives Yahoel as one of the 70 names of

Metatron Metatron (Mishnaic Hebrew: ''Meṭāṭrōn''), or Matatron (), is an angel in Judaism, Gnosticism, and Islam. Metatron is mentioned three times in the Talmud, in a few brief passages in the Aggadah, the Targum, and in mystical kabbalah, Kabba ...

, which makes sense in light of the character and role of Yahoel in the Apocalypse of Abraham. Bernard Barc ed. ''Colloque international sur les textes de Nag Hammadi: Québec, 22–25 août 1978'' In the 13th century,

kabbalistic Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal (). Jewi ...

'' Berith Menucha'' of Abraham Merimon of Granada Yahoel is the angel of fire. Several popular dictionaries of angels, such as Gustav Davidson's ''A dictionary of angels: including the fallen angels'' (1967) repeat the claim that Jehoel was (in unidentified Jewish texts) the chief angel of the

Seraphim A seraph ( ; pl.: ) is a Angelic being, celestial or heavenly being originating in Ancient Judaism. The term plays a role in subsequent Judaism, Islam and Christianity. Tradition places seraphim in the highest rank in Christian angelology and ...

. No source for this claim is forthcoming. In the

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

Avvakum Avvakum Petrov (; 20 November 1620/1621 – 14 April 1682; also spelled Awakum) was a Russian Old Believer and protopope of the Kazan Cathedral on Red Square who led the opposition to Patriarch Nikon's reforms of the Russian Orthodox Church. H ...

, the angel’s name was corrupted in the passage ''иди Иоаль тьзе посредьства имени'' («go, Yahoel, (God’s) namesake by your name»), so the angel’s name became ''Альтезъ'' (Altez).

References

Individual angels Michael (archangel) Jewish mysticism Angels in Judaism {{Judaism-stub

See also

References