Whatever you say
@praise_yeshua.
“The Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road, with a sword drawn in his hand. He bowed and prostrated himself on his face.” Numbers 22:31 (The Complete Jewish Bible
https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9950#v31; bold emphasis mine)
Here, again, is a Christian rendering of this verse:
“Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the path with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam knelt low and bowed in worship on his face.” Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The reason why this Angel is worshiped is because, unlike the rest, he is no mere creature but is rather a divine Person who is essentially one with God, a point brought out by the following passage:
“Behold, I am sending an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared. Beware of him and obey him; do not rebel against him, for he will not forgive your transgression, for My Name is within him. For if you hearken to his voice and do all that I say, I will hate your enemies and oppress your adversaries. For My angel will go before you, and bring you to the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hivvites, and the Jebusites, and I will destroy them.” Exodus 23:20-23 (The Complete Jewish Bible
https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9884#v20; bold emphasis mine)
God warned the Israelites from rebelling against this Angel, whose voice they needed to heed, since he embodies God’s very own name, i.e., God’s nature, characteristics, authority, and therefore has the power to do what only God can do, namely, forgive or punish sins.
Hence, by bearing the name of God this Angel isn’t a spirt creature who merely represents God as his Agent. Rather, this particular Messenger possesses the very essence of God and is therefore truly and fully divine.
Suffice it to say, the worship of this Angel troubled the rabbis who scurried to figure out why God permitted this specific divine Being to receive such reverence:
ומכל מקום העולה מזו הפרשה הוא כי השיג משה מבוקשו, וכי היות ישראל עם קשה ערף סבה להיות תועלת לישראל שיסתלק השם יתב’ מהם וימסרו להנהגת מלאך כל זמן שלא יהיו בטוחים לסליחת הש”י. אבל כל זמן שיהיו להם דברים ידועים לרצות בהם הש”י. קושיים יהיה להם סבה שתהיה תועלתם יותר בהנהגת השם יתב’ אותם מצד כי המלאך לא יוכל לסלוח לעונם והוא אומר השמר מפניו ושמע בקולו וגו’, ואח”כ אמר כי שמי בקרבו והוא שב לראש המקרא. כי יש בפסוק זה שתי צוואות ושני טעמים. ושיעורו כך, ושיעורו כך השמר מפניו ושמע בקולו אל תמר בו כי שמי בקרבו. אל תמר בו כי לא ישא לפשעכם. אבל צריך באור למה הוצרך לתת טעם השמר מפניו ושמע בקולו מצד היות השי”ת בקרבו. כי ידוע שהמלאך לא יבא כי אם מצד השם יתברך לא מצד עצמו:
Whatever the case, what emerges from this parshah is that Moses attained what he sought and that the Jews’ being a stiff-necked people is a reason for its being beneficial to them that the Blessed One depart from them and they be consigned to the governance of an angel — so long as they are not assured of the Blessed One’s forgiveness. But so long as they possessed specific means of reconciling Him, their stiff-neckedness would be a reason for the Blessed One’s governance being more beneficial to them in that the angel cannot forgive their transgressions [sic]. This is the intent of (Ibid 23:20) “Take heed of him and hearken to his word.” And afterwards (Ibid 21) it is stated “for my Name is within him,” which relates to the beginning of the verse. For this verse contains two commands and two reasons; that is, “Take heed of him and hearken to his word. Do not disobey him, for my Name is within him; do not disobey him, for he will not forgive your sins.” But explanation is required as to why the Blessed One’s name being within him must be given as a reason for heeding him and hearkening to his word. For it is well known that an angel comes only through the agency of the Blessed One and not of his own accord.
אבל נראה מפשט הכתוב שיצוה אותנו שננהיג כבוד עם זה המלאך יותר ממה שנעשה למלאך אחר. מצד היות שמו של הקב”ה בקרבו ראוי שננהג עמו בקרוב מאד כמו שננהג עם השם יתב’, וכבר דרשו רז”ל ואמרו זה מטטרון ששמו כשם רבו כמו שאמר בפרק אחד דיני ממונות (סנהדרין דף לח) אמר ליה ההוא מינא לרב אדא כתיב ואל משה אמר עלה אל ה’ עלה אלי מבעי ליה כו’ אלא זהו מטטרון ששמו כשם רבו דכתיב כי שמי בקרבו, ובין שנבין כונתם בזה המאמר או שלא נבין אין ספק כי יש להם לרז”ל הבדל גדול בין זה המלאך למלאכים אחרים עד שלא נקרא בשם המיוחד שם ד’ אותיות אלא הוא. ולזה צונו השי”ת שננהג עם זה המלאך כמו שננהג עמו:
It would seem from the plain meaning of the verse, however, that we are commanded to be more deferential of this angel than of another, that because the Name of the Holy One Blessed be He is within him, we should accord him great honor, AS WE DO WITH the Blessed One Himself. And our sages of blessed memory have already expounded that the angel in question here is Metatron, whose name is as that of his Master’s, viz. (Sanhedrin 38b): “A certain heretic said to R. Adda: ‘It is written (Exodus 24:1): “And to Moses He said: ‘Come up to the L-rd.'” It should be written “Come up to Me!”‘ R. Adda answered: ‘The reference is to Metatron, whose name is the same as his Master’s.'” Whether or not we understand the exact intent of our sages here, there is no question that they see a great difference between this angel and others, ONLY THIS ONE being accorded the four-letter name of the L-rd. It is for this reason that the Holy One commanded us to deport ourselves with this angel AS WE DO WITH Him.
ובזה מסתלק תימה גדול. והוא שמצינו יהושע שהשתחוה למלאך כמ”ש הכתוב (יהושע ג) ויאמר וגו’ שר צבא ה’ עתה באתי ויפול וגו’. והוא מן התימה איך היה מותר זה ליהושע שהרי כתיב אשר בשמים ממעל לרבות מלאכי השרת. ואין ספק שכמו שאסור לזבוח ולקטר בלתי לה’ לבדו כן אסור להשתחוות כמו ששנינו בפרק ד”מ (סנהדרין ס) אחד המזבח ואחד המקטר ואחד המנסך ואחד המשתחוה. ואיני מוצא בכל מקום מי שהשתחוה למלאך אלא בלעם שלא היה מכללנו שכתוב בו ויקוד וישתחו לאפיו. אבל יעקב ראה המלאך ולא השתחוה לו כי לא היה מותר בכך. וא”כ איך הורשה יהושע להשתחוות למלאך הנראה אליו:
And this resolves a great problem — Joshua’s bowinG-down to an angel, viz. (Joshua 5:14): “And he [the angel] answered: ‘No, but I am captain of the host of the L-rd. I have come now.’ And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and he bowed down to him…” This is, indeed, great cause for wonder. How was this permitted to Joshua when it is written (Exodus 20:4): “…that are in the heavens above […do not bow down to them”], concerning which our sages of blessed memory say (Mechilta, Yithro 6): “This includes the ministering angels.” And there is no question that just as it is forbidden to sacrifice and to bring offerings to any but the L-rd Himself, so is bowinG-down similarly forbidden, as stated by our sages of blessed memory (Sanhedrin 60b): “…both he who sacrifices, he who offers incense, he who pours a libation, and he who bows down…” And I find no reference to anyone bowinG-down to an angel except Balaam (who was not one of us), of whom it is written (Numbers 22:31): “…and he bowed down and prostrated himself.” But Jacob saw an angel and did not bow down to him, and David conducted himself likewise (viz. I Chronicles 21). And so we find with Daniel. He saw an angel and accorded him great honor, saying (Daniel 10:17): “How can the servant of my lord speak with this [i.e., you,], my lord?” — but he did not bow down to him, this not being permitted. How, then, was Joshua permitted to bow down to the angel that appeared to him?
אבל התשובה בזה כי אותו המלאך הנראה ליהושע הוא המלאך שהובטחו בכאן באמרו הנה אנכי שולח מלאך וגו’. אלא שמרע”ה בטל זה כל ימי חייו שלא יהיו מונהגים כי אם ע”י הש”י לבדו. לפיכך אחרי מות מרע”ה נראה זה המלאך עצמו אל יהושע. וכך אמר בתנחומא אני הוא שבאתי בימי משה רבך ודחה אותי ולא רצה שאלך עמו. ואמר עוד בטל שלא ימסרו להם שר כל ימי מרע”ה. וכיון שמת משה חזר אותו השר למקומו שכן יהושע ראה אותו שנאמר ויהי בהיות יהושע ביריחו וגו’. ויאמר לא כי אני שר צבא ה’ עתה באתי. לכך נאמר הנה אנכרי שולח מלאך לפניך. ומפני שידע יהושע שזה המלאך שנאמר עליו כי שמי בקרבו ראה שהוא מן הראוי להשתחוות לו כמשתחוה אל הש”י ועשה כן. וזהו טעם מה שכתוב בפרשה זו לא תשתחוה לאלהיהם ולא תעבדם. שאין לו ענין כאן כי כבר הזהיר בע”א בעשרת הדברות. אבל טעמו של דבר, כי מפני שאמר על זה המלאך ששלח לישראל שנקבל אותו ושנתנהג בו קרוב למה שנתנהג עם השי”ת כאמרו השמר מפניו ושמע בקולו וגו’ עמו שפירשתי. עד שמזה למד יהושע שהיה מותר וראוי להשתחוות אליו. חזר והזהיר לא תשתחוה לאלהיהם וגו’. כאומר אע”פ שהרשיתיך לכבד ולהשתחוות לפני זה המלאך. לא תרשה עצמך מזה להשתחוות לאלהי העמים שהם עובדים גם כן למלאכים או לצבא השמים. כי זה בלבד הותר מצד ששמי בקרבו:
The answer, however, is that the angel which appeared to Joshua was the very angel spoken of here, viz. (Exodus 23:20): “Behold, I am sending an angel before you…” But Moses had forestalled the advent of this angel all the days of his life so that they be governed only by the Blessed One Himself. Therefore, after the death of Moses, it is this very angel that appeared to Joshua. And so it is written in Tanchuma (Mishpatim 18): “I am the one who came in the days of Moses, your master, but he rejected me and did not want me to go with him.” And he added that no plenipotentiary was to be assigned them all the days of Moses. And when Moses died, that plenipotentiary reassumed his role and was seen by Joshua, as it is written (Joshua 5:13-14): “And it was, when Joshua was in Jericho … and he [the angel] answered: ‘No, but I am captain of the host of the L-rd. I have come now…” This is foreshadowed in “Behold, I am sending an angel before you.” And because Joshua knew this to be the angel of whom it was said “for my Name is within him,” he saw it fitting to bow down to him as he would before the L-rd, and he did so. And this is the reason for its being written in this parshah (Exodus 23:24): “Do not bow down to their gods and do not serve them,” which is, ostensibly, out of place here, this exhortation already having appeared in the Ten Commandments. The reason for its appearance here, however, is that since this angel being sent to the Jews was to be accepted and accorded honor approaching that accorded the Blessed One Himself — it being written “Take heed of him,” implying that it was permitted and fitting to bow down to him — because of this there is repeated the exhortation “Do not bow down to their gods…” That is, though I have permitted you to defer and to bow down to this angel, do not take this as a license to bow down to the gods of the peoples (who also serve angels or the heavenly host). This angel ALONE may be bowed down to, for my Name is within him. (Derashot HaRan 4
https://www.sefaria.org/Derashot_HaRan.4.24?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en; bold and capital emphasis mine)
I highlight the key reason given by this rabbinic source for why this Angel can be worshiped:
“This angel ALONE may be bowed down to, FOR my Name is within him.”
A truly remarkable heavenly Messenger to say the least!
FURTHER READING
The Divine Name and Glory of Yahweh – More Biblical Evidence for the Deity of God’s unique Angel/Son
God spoke through his Son only “in these last days”, thus he could not have been the Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament
Bart D. Ehrman Proves Muhammad is a false prophet Pt. 2a
SHABIR ALLY VS. ALAN STORKEY DEBATE RESPONSE
Psalm 110:1 – Another Clear Testimony to Christ’s Deity Pt. 2
I AM What I AM’: A Bible Commentary: [Part 1], [Part 2], [Appendix]
Rebuttal of their ‘I AM WHAT I AM’ Response: [Part 2]
J.
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