Christian angelology In Christianity, angels are the messengers of God. affirms that "all f them areministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation". In the Bible attributes the guardianship of men to the angels. In Jesus w ...

, thrones (, pl. θρόνοι; , pl. ''throni'') are a class of

angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

s. This is based on an interpretation of . According to 1 Peter 3:21–22,

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

had gone to Heaven and "angels and authorities and powers" had been made subject to him.

Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (or Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite) was a Greek author, Christian theologian and Neoplatonic philosopher of the late 5th to early 6th century, who wrote a set of works known as the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'' ...

in his work

De Coelesti Hierarchia ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' (, "On the Celestial Hierarchy") is a Pseudo-Dionysian work on angelology, written in Greek and dated to ca. AD the 5th century; it exerted great influence on scholasticism and treats at great length the hierarchie ...

includes the thrones as the third highest of nine levels of angels. According to the

Second Book of Enoch The Second Book of Enoch (abbreviated as 2 Enoch and also known as Slavonic Enoch, Slavic Enoch, or the Secrets of Enoch) is a pseudepigraphic text in the apocalyptic genre. It describes the ascent of the patriarch Enoch, ancestor of Noah, throu ...

, thrones are seen by

Enoch Enoch ( ; ''Henṓkh'') is a biblical figure and Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch prior to Noah's flood, and the son of Jared (biblical figure), Jared and father of Methuselah. He was of the Antediluvian period in the Hebrew Bible. The text of t ...

in the Seventh Heaven.

Christian angelology

According to Matthew Bunson, the corresponding order of angels in

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

is called the '' abalim'' or ''

erelim Erelim (, ''ʾErʾellīm''; sing. אֶרְאֵל, ''ʾErʾēl''; "valiant ones"), is a class of angel whose existence is derived from a verse in the book of Isaiah regarding the impending invasion of Jerusalem by Sennacherib during the reign of Ki ...

'',Bunson, Matthew. ''Angels A to Z''. New York: Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1996. . but this opinion is far from universal. The Hebrew word ''erelim'' is usually not translated "thrones", but rather "valiant ones", "heroes", or "warriors". The function ascribed to ''erelim'' in and in

Jewish folklore Jewish folklore are legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales, stories, tall tales, and customs that are the traditions of Judaism. Folktales are characterized by the presence of unusual personages, by the sudde ...

Louis Ginzberg: Legends of the Jews 5:23, n. 64; 5:417, n. 117. is not consistent with the lore surrounding the thrones. Thrones are sometimes equated with

ophanim The ophanim ( , ; singular: ), alternatively spelled auphanim or ofanim, and also called galgalim ( , ; singular: ), refer to the wheels seen in Ezekiel's vision of the chariot (Hebrew ) in . One of the Dead Sea Scrolls (4Q405) construes them ...

since the

throne of God The throne of God is the reigning centre of God in the Abrahamic religions: primarily Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The throne is said by various holy books to reside beyond the Seventh Heaven which is called ''Araboth'' ( ''‘ărāḇōṯ ...

is usually depicted as being moved by wheels, as in the vision of (Old Testament).

Rosemary Ellen Guiley Rosemary Ellen Guiley (July 8, 1950 - July 18, 2019) was an American writer on topics related to spirituality, the occult, and the paranormal. She was also a radio show host, a certified hypnotist, a board director of the "National Museum of My ...

(1996: p. 37) states that:

Notes

References

* Bunson, Matthew. ''Angels A to Z''. New York: Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1996. . * Gulley, Rosemary Ellen (1996). ''Encyclopedia of Angels''. .

External links

{{Angels in Abrahamic religions Angels in Christianity Classes of angels

Christian angelology

See also

Notes

References

External links