Jewish Views On Angels

JEWISH VIEWS ON ANGELS
The Jews had a very high regard for angels. They considered that if a message was given by an angel, it carried a much greater weight than if it had been spoken by a mere man. The Jewish writings taught that angels served as mediators between God and men. This was correct as far as it went, but they also taught that angels were involved in God's decision making processes. They thought that God always consulted His angels before making up His mind on what course of action He was going to take. They pointed to Genesis 1:26 as a proof text for this belief.

Then God said, "Let US make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." (Genesis 1:26). This verse was interpreted by the Jewish rabbis to picture God talking to His angels, asking their advice concerning the creation of man. The Jews also believe that the angels were responsible for keeping the stars in place, for holding back the sea, for the control of the weather and for the keeping of time. They also believed there to be angels who served as prison wardens in hell and who tortured the people who were sent there. By the New Testament times, there is evidence in the apocryphal writings that the Jews had entertained all sorts of extra-biblical ideas regarding angels. Books such as Enoch and Tob_4:1-42 th Esdras speaks of specific angels such as Uriel, Raphael, Peniel, Metatron. The book of Enoch suggests that Enoch was elevated to the status of an angel when he walked with God. It is possibly the result of such influences that leads to Paul's cryptic warning in Colossians 2:18 against the worship of the angels.