Stand ready at command.—Milton.
Having treated of the celestial Hierarchy in general, we have now to consider those angels who in artistic representations have assumed an individual form and character. These belong to the order of Archangels, placed by Dionysius in the third Hierarchy: they take rank between the Princedoms and the Angels, and partake of the nature of both, being, like the Princedoms, Powers; and, like the Angels, Ministers and Messengers.
Frequent allusion is made in Scripture to the seven Angels who stand in the presence of God. (Rev. viii. 2, xv. 1, xvi. 1, &c.; Tobit xxii. 15.) This was in accordance with the popular creed of the Jews, who not only acknowledged the supremacy of the Seven Spirits, but assigned to them distinct vocations and distinct appellations, each terminating with the syllable El, which signifies God. Thus we have—
I. Michael (i.e. who is like unto God), captain-general of the host of heaven, and protector of the Hebrew nation.
II. Gabriel (i.e. God is my strength), guardian of the celestial treasury, and preceptor of the patriarch Joseph.
III. Raphael (i.e. the Medicine of God), the conductor of Tobit; thence the chief guardian angel.
IV. Uriel (i.e. the Light of God), who taught Esdras. He was also regent of the sun.
V. Chamuel (i.e. one who sees God?), who wrestled with Jacob, and who appeared to Christ at Gethsemane. (But, according to other authorities, this was the angel Gabriel.)
VI. Jophiel (i.e. the Beauty of God), who was the preceptor of the sons of Noah, and is the protector of all those who, with an humble heart, seek after truth, and the enemy of those who pursue vain knowledge. Thus Jophiel was naturally considered as the guardian of the tree of knowledge and the same who drove Adam and Eve from Paradise.
VII. Zadkiel (i.e. the Righteousness of God), who stayed the hand of Abraham when about to sacrifice his son. (But, according to other authorities, this was the archangel Michael.)