What Do Angels Do?
As ministering spirits, angels carry out the commands of God pertaining to the heirs of salvation. This involves warning, guiding, protecting, comforting, providing, and delivering the children of God according to His perfect
will (Psalm 34:7; also see Psalm 91:11).
How did angels attend to the needs of people in the Bible?
- An angel provided water for Hagar and her son in the desert (Genesis 16:7-11, 21:17).
- Angels rescued Lot and his family from wicked Sodom (Genesis 19:1).
- Angels appeared in Jacob’s dream of a ladder reaching to heaven (Genesis 28:12).
- The Angel of God guided the nation of Israel (Exodus 14:19, 23:20; Judges 2:1-4). Israel also ate the food of angels — manna from heaven (Psalm 78:25)!
- The Old Testament Law was given to men by angels (Galatians 3:19).
- An angel instructed Manoah and his wife on rearing their son, Samson (Judges 13:3-21).
- An angel brought food and water to Elijah and encouraged him (I Kings 19:5-7; II Kings 1:3, 15).
- God’s angel shut the mouths of lions to protect Daniel (Daniel 6:22).
- Isaiah saw angels when he encountered God (Isaiah 6:2-6).
- The angel Gabriel appeared to Zacharias about the birth of his son John (Luke 1:11-19).
- Gabriel also appeared to Mary about the birth of Jesus (Luke 1:26-38).
- Joseph received guidance and warnings from an angel in his dreams (Matthew 1:20, 24, 2:13, 19).
- Angels proclaimed Christ’s birth to the shepherds (Luke 2:9-15).
- Angels stirred the waters at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:4).
- An angel appeared to Mary Magdalene and the other women at the tomb (Matthew 28:2, 5).
- An angel released the apostles from prison (Acts 5:19).
- An angel directed Philip to the path of the Ethiopian eunuch so he could lead him to Christ (Acts 8:26).
- An angel released Peter from prison (Acts 12:7-11).
- An angel assured Paul that no lives would be lost in the shipwreck (Acts 27:23).
- An angel was involved in bringing a revelatory vision to John (Revelation 1:1, 22:8-9).
It is intriguing to read biblical accounts of angelic interaction with humans, and it is especially interesting to note how people responded. Were they afraid? Terrified? Did they even know it was an angel who was speaking to them? Regardless, whether angels appeared in dreams, visions, or in human form, the result was miraculous protection and provision.
Here begs a question that many of us ask at one time or another: When tragedies happen, where are angels? And, where is God when the wickedness of man causes
innocent people to die? The answer is that we cannot see all the warfare that goes on in the spiritual realm. There are, in fact, angels unseen even in such painful times, bringing assurance, protection, comfort, and guidance to certain ones as directed by the wisdom and sovereignty of God. We can trust our faithful Creator to make all things right in the end.