Angel in Light

In his vision of heaven and the Ancient of Days, Daniel noted that – “Millions of angels ministered to him and a hundred million stood to attend to him” (Daniel 7: 9 - NLT). This is corroborated by John who saw and heard – “The singing of thousands and millions of angels around the throne” (Revelation 5: 11 – NLT). The population of the United Kingdom is only 60.5 million, so the number of angels in heaven, serving God, vastly outnumber the citizens of our country. In fact, given that “millions minister” and “one hundred million attend”, the total number of angels must even exceed the population of the United States at just under 300 million. And these are by no means all of the angels that exist!

Perhaps the clearest description we have of a powerful angel (almost certainly Gabriel) is recorded by Daniel who wrote – “I saw a man dressed in lined clothing, with a belt of pure gold around his waist. His body was like a dazzling gem. From his face came flashes like lightening, and his eyes were like flaming torches. His arm and his feet shone like polished bronze, and his voice was like the roaring of a vast multitude of people”. (Daniel 10: 6 – NLT). No wonder Daniel’s strength left him and he fainted!

Interestingly the men with Daniel on this occasion did not see the angel but were so terrified they fled and hid – indicating that the angels’ very presence could be felt even although he could not be seen. Perhaps on such occasions it is not so much a matter of the appearance or materialisation of an angel but rather the fact that one is brought in the realm of the spirit – thus seeing things that are, in one sense, there all the time!