Yesterday we learned that, while there are some 265 references to them in the Bible, angels are the least explored aspect of Biblical theology. This is unfortunate due to the fascinating nature of these beings. They share attributes with humanity (they were created with intelligence, emotion and will and some will be judged) and with God (they are spirit entities and therefore live eternally). There are various types of angels, suited for their roles, and the angelic guard follow a line of command like any good military. Today we look at the other roles and kinds of angels that exist.

Today we depict them as chubby babies with wings, but the cherubim are anything but childlike. Satan was a cherub, and that one simple fact should change your mind about this race of angels more than any other. They are first mentioned in Genesis 3 as guardians of the tree of life after Adam and Eve fled. Images of cherubim decorated the tabernacle (Exodus 26) standing 15 feet tall and will also be a part of the temple during the millennial reign of Christ (Ezekiel 41). The prophet Ezekiel describes them thusly:

As I watched, I noticed… what looked like four living beings. In their appearance they had human form, but each had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight, but the soles of their feet were like calves’ feet. They gleamed like polished bronze. They had human hands under their wings on their four sides. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, their wings touched each other; they did not turn as they moved, but went straight ahead. Their faces had this appearance: Each of the four had the face of a man, with the face of a lion on the right, the face of an ox on the left and also the face of an eagle… The living beings moved backward and forward as quickly as flashes of lightning.

This description comes from Ezekiel chapter one, where they pilot a chariot carrying a throne and upon that throne is a pre-incarnate Jesus. Their primary duty is not messenger but to guard – and guard they do, holy sites and even the King of kings. They are well suited to the task, having four faces, allowing them to see in all directions at once. From Revelation 6 we see they are in the throne room of God and we learn that they never rest. They are a fearsome lot.

By all appearances they are separate from the military line of angels. Whereas the archangel, princes and others have the appearance of men, the cherubs are quite different. They might compare to the Secret Service who guard the President of the United States and all his properties and family. Not only did they guard the garden of Eden, which was located on the Mountain of God, but they were responsible for throwing Satan out as well. They are powerful and largely invisible to the human eye.

In the Middle Ages an influential Jewish rabbi named Moses ben Mamon (known commonly as Maimonides). He taught there are ten classes of angels, and the cherubim belong to the ninth degree. He depicted them as the spiritual beings God empowers to control of the universe. The cherubs in the temple and adjacent to the Ark represent the operation of these spiritual forces. He also asserted that two cherubim adorned the lid of the Ark because had there been only one it might have been confused Elohim (Maimonides, Guide of the Perplexed, 3.45).