Commander of the Lord’s Army

Also known as: Commander of the Army of the Lord, Captain of the Lord’s Host, Captain of the Lord’s Army, Prince of the Lord’s Host, The Archistrategos before Jericho

The heavenly figure with a drawn sword who appears to Joshua near Jericho and declares Himself “commander of the army of the LORD” (Joshua 5:13–15). Scripture gives no name; Orthodox tradition reads Him either as a high-ranking angelic warrior — often associated with the Archangel Michael — or, because Joshua bows and is told to remove his sandals on holy ground, as a theophany of the pre-incarnate Word.