The Holy Archangels

The Old Testament contains named angels only rarely: Michael and Gabriel appear in Daniel, and Raphael in Tobit (deuterocanonical Scripture in Orthodox usage). During the Second Temple period Jewish writings increasingly developed angelic hierarchies, named angels, and heavenly-court imagery; these traditions form part of the historical background for New Testament angelology, though not all the later angelic names carry the same authority as Scripture.

Early Christianity inherited the Jewish angelic language but interpreted it through Christ. The New Testament consistently presents angels as servants of God, not independent divine beings, and St. Paul’s language about thrones, dominions, principalities, and powers emphasizes that all invisible beings are created through Christ and subject to Him.

St. Dionysius the Areopagite places the Archangels in the lowest triad, together with the Principalities and Angels, treating them as a rank especially involved in the transmission of divine messages to the human world.

St. Basil the Great speaks of the angels as part of the invisible creation, citing the Pauline language of thrones, dominions, principalities, and powers to show that God created both visible and invisible realities.

St. Gregory the Theologian speaks of the angels as rational heavenly beings who worship God and serve His will, without systematizing the nine ranks in the Dionysian manner.

St. John Chrysostom emphasizes that angels and archangels are subordinate to Christ, warning against any angel-veneration that would obscure Christ’s supremacy.

St. John of Damascus teaches that the angels are incorporeal, rational beings created by God — a theology that undergirds the Orthodox distinction between angelic nature, angelic ministry, and divine worship.

The principal Orthodox feast connected with the archangels is the Synaxis of the Archangel Michael and the Other Bodiless Powers on November 8, which commemorates Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Selaphiel, Jegudiel, Barachiel, and sometimes Jeremiel, together with all the heavenly hosts.

The Menaion for November 8 contains hymns honoring the archangels and bodiless powers collectively, and the Horologion frequently names angels and archangels in the daily prayers.

The Divine Liturgy joins earthly worship to the worship of the heavenly hosts, especially in the Cherubic Hymn and in the anaphoral references to the angels, archangels, cherubim, and seraphim.

The archangels are usually depicted as winged, youthful figures, often vested as heavenly warriors, messengers, or court attendants. Michael commonly carries a sword, spear, or staff and may be shown as commander of the heavenly hosts; Gabriel often bears a staff or lily-like rod in Annunciation icons; and Raphael may be shown with Tobias, a fish, or healing imagery, in traditions shaped by Tobit.

Byzantine, Greek, Russian, Serbian, Romanian, Antiochian, and modern Orthodox icons generally follow these patterns. Icons of the Synaxis often show Christ enthroned or Emmanuel in a mandorla, surrounded by Michael, Gabriel, and the other archangels, with cherubim and seraphim nearby.

The archangels have had a major influence on Orthodox theology, liturgy, iconography, hymnography, and church architecture. Icons of Michael and Gabriel are often placed on the deacon doors of the iconostasis; Gabriel is central to Annunciation iconography, and Michael is prominent in icons of the Synaxis, the Last Judgment, and spiritual warfare.

The archangels also shaped monastic and devotional literature as examples of obedience, vigilance, and service to God.

• Jude 1:9 — Michael is called “the archangel” — the only passage directly naming him so.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:16 — The Lord descends “with the voice of an archangel” — one of the two explicit New Testament uses of the word.
• Daniel 8:15–26; 9:20–27 — Gabriel interprets Daniel’s visions and explains the prophecy of the seventy weeks.
• Daniel 10:13, 21; 12:1 — Michael, “one of the chief princes” and “the great prince” who stands for God’s people — the Old Testament background for his archangelic role.
• Tobit 5–12 (Deuterocanonical) — Raphael guides Tobias, heals Tobit, and reveals his identity.
• Tobit 12:15 (Deuterocanonical) — Raphael is “one of the seven holy angels” who stand before God — a key source for the tradition of the seven archangels.
• Luke 1:11–20 — Gabriel announces the birth of John the Forerunner to Zechariah.
• Luke 1:26–38 — Gabriel announces the Incarnation to the Theotokos — the central New Testament appearance of Gabriel.
• Matthew 1:20–24; 2:13, 19–20 — An angel guides Joseph in dreams concerning Christ’s infancy.
• Matthew 28:2–7 — An angel at the tomb announces Christ’s Resurrection.
• Revelation 8:2 — The seven angels who stand before God — associated with the wider tradition of the seven archangels.
• Revelation 12:7–9 — Michael and his angels fight the dragon — Michael as leader in the heavenly conflict.

Orthodox tradition commonly numbers seven or eight archangels. Three are named in Scripture: MICHAEL (“Who is like God?”), the commander of the heavenly hosts, defender against evil, and protector of God’s people (Daniel; Jude 1:9; Revelation 12); GABRIEL (“God is my strength”), the messenger of divine announcements, above all the Annunciation (Daniel; Luke 1); and RAPHAEL (“God heals”), the companion and healer of Tobit’s household (Tobit 5–12).

Four more are received from Orthodox liturgical and later tradition: URIEL (“Fire of God,” associated with divine light and wisdom), SELAPHIEL (the angel of prayer), JEGUDIEL (who encourages those who labor for God), and BARACHIEL (the bestower of God’s blessings). An eighth, JEREMIEL (or Jerahmeel), associated with the raising up of hope, is sometimes added. These four-to-five names are not drawn from universally received canonical Scripture but from the Church’s liturgical inheritance, and an Orthodox account distinguishes them accordingly.