archangel
Definition
Archangel (from Greek archaggelos, “chief/high angel”) is the designation for angelic beings of the highest rank. The word appears twice in the New Testament: in 1Thess. 4:16 (“voice of the archangel”) and in Jude 9 (“Michael the archangel”). In the canonical biblical text only Michael is explicitly designated as archangel; Gabriel and Raphael receive this title in deuterocanonical and extra-canonical texts. In this corpus Cees Noordzij and George Warnock treat the archangel primarily through the figure of Michael as the guardian of God’s redemptive-historical plan.
Uses per Author
Cees Noordzij
Noordzij treats Michael the archangel through Jude 9: the archangel who contended with the devil over the body of Moses. This is for Noordzij evidence of the continuous angelic guardianship of God’s salvational-historical figures, connected to the manchild motif:
“Michael the archangel contended with the devil about the body of Moses (Jude 9). This struggle shows the permanent involvement of heavenly powers in God’s plan for His sons. Moses appears later on the mount of transfiguration (Matt. 17:3) — the preservation of his body is not unrelated to his eschatological role.”
(Moses and the Way to Sonship, Chapter 8)
Noordzij also sees the archangel as the heavenly representative who in Rev. 12 resists Satan’s attack on the woman: the great dragon that stands before the birthing woman is resisted by Michael.
George Warnock
Warnock places Michael at the center of the cosmic battle at the birth of the manchild (Rev. 12:7-9). The archangel is not merely a heavenly figure but the commander of the heavenly army in the eschatological conflict:
“Michael and his angels fought against the dragon (Rev. 12:7). This is the ultimate heavenly battle — the battle for the completion of God’s plan. Michael was also the one who resisted Satan in God’s name when he attacked Joshua the high priest (Zech. 3:1-2).”
(Who Are You?, Chapter 6)
Warnock connects the archangel with the heavenly armies that accompany salvation history: the stars that fought at Megiddo (Judg. 5:20) and the angel who struck 185,000 Assyrians (2Kgs. 19:35) are for him manifestations of the heavenly hosts over which Michael is commander. At Christ’s return the heavenly armies accompany him (Rev. 19:14).