Η ταυτότητα του αγγέλου στα εδ. Ζαχαρίας 3:2 & Ιούδας 9 /The identity of the angelat Zechariah 3:2 & Jude 9

Στέργιος Σάκκος,
Υπόμνημα εις την Επιστολήν του Ιούδα,
Θεσσαλονίκη 1970,
σ. 121.

Alan Segal:Jesus Christ, God's principal angel who carries the Tetragrammaton /Ιησούς Χριστός, ο πρωταρχικός άγγελος του Θεού που φέρει το Τετραγράμματο

Many "two powers" themes have come together. Jesus is raised from the dead and enthroned as Christ far above the status of any man or angel. He is sovereign in this age and the age to come, a claim explicitly reserved for God according to rabbinic tradition. Furthermore, Christ has been exalted beyond any title that can be named, implying that he has been awarded the secret name of God.

The process of transferring divine names and titles to Jesus is especially characteristic of the Revelation of John where the identification of the Christ with the tetragrammaton is even more obvious. For instance, Rev. 22:12-13:

Behold I am coming soon bringing my recompense to repay every one for what he has done. I am the alpha and the omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.

We have seen that such titles from Isaiah and Deuteronomy are particularly important in the rabbinic polemic. These traditions present some plausible targets for the rabbis' attack. The same can be said of the Christ's victorious coming in Rev. 19.

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! He who sat upon it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire and on his head are many diadems; and he has a name inscribed which no one knows but himself. He is clad in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is the Word of God. And the armies of heaven arrayed in fine linen white and pure, followed him on white horses. From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tred the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name inscribed, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Many different images are jumbled together in this description. Divine warrior imagery is prominent but the divine warrior has been identified with the messiah (Ps. 2) and Jesus, based on the "son of man" tradition in Daniel. Furthermore, many divine titles are applied to the figure: "true and faithful," "King of Kings," "Lord of Lords" are all divine attributions in Judaism. Lastly and more importantly, he has appropriated the ineffable name, which is identical with "Word of God" (v. 13). On this basis, it seems safe to consider that many Christians identified the Christ with God's principal angel, who carried the divine name, because of his resurrection.

* Alan F. Segal,
Two powers in heaven: early rabbinic reports about Christianity and Gnosticism
[Δύο δυνάμεις στον ουρανό: πρωτοραβινικές αναφορές σχετικά με τον Χριστιανισμό και τον Γνωστικισμό],
Brill, pp./σσ. 212, 213.

Adam Clarke on Michael the Archangel /Ο Adam Clarke περί Μιχαήλ του Αρχαγγέλου

«Μιχαήλ ο Αρχάγγελος [...] Ο Ραββί Ιούδας Χακοδές λέει: "Όποτε αναφέρεται ότι εμφανίζεται ο Μιχαήλ, η δόξα της Θεϊκής Μεγαλειότητας εννοείται πάντα". [...] Φαίνεται σαν να θεωρούσαν τον Μιχαήλ κατά κάποιον τρόπο όπως εκείνοι που θεωρούν για τον Χριστό ότι κατέχει την αιώνια Υιότητα της Θεϊκής φύσης Του. [...] Η λέξη αρχάγγελος δεν εμφανίζεται ποτέ στον πληθυντικό αριθμό στις Άγιες Γραφές. Μπορεί να υπάρχει, ορθά, μόνο ένας αρχάγγελος· ένας αρχηγός ή κεφαλή όλου του αγγελικού στρατεύματος. [...] Η λέξη Μιχαήλ, αποτελείται προφανώς από τα στοιχεία "ποιος" "όμοιος" "Θεός"· εκείνος που είναι όμοιος με τον Θεό: συνεπώς πολλοί κατανοούν ότι στην Αποκάλυψη αυτό το πρόσωπο είναι ο Κύριος Ιησούς. [...] Η επιτίμηση που αναφέρει ο Ιούδας δεν αφορά στη θυσία του Ισαάκ ούτε στην ψυχή του Μωυσή· αλλά στο σώμα του Μωυσή: αλλά δεν γνωρίζουμε το γιατί και το διότι. Κάποιοι θεωρούν ότι ο διάβολος επιθυμούσε να δείξει στους Ισραηλίτες πού ήταν θαμμένος ο Μωυσής· γνωρίζοντας ότι τότε θα λάτρευαν το σώμα του· και ότι ο Μιχαήλ στάλθηκε για να αντισταθεί σε αυτή την ανακάλυψη. [...] Ο Μιχαήλ αναφέρεται ως ένας εκ των αρχηγών αγγέλων που φρόντιζαν τους Ισραηλίτες ως έθνος· θα μπορούσε συνεπώς να είναι ο άγγελος του Κυρίου, ενώπιον του οποίου στεκόταν ο Ιησούς ο Αρχιερέας, όπως αναφέρει το Ζαχ 3:1, με τον Σατανά στο δεξί χέρι του να του αντιστέκεται· δηλαδή, στο σχέδιό του για την αποκατάσταση  της ιουδαϊκής εκκλησίας και του ιουδαϊκού κράτους, το οποίο αποκαλείται από τον Ιούδα το "σώμα του Μωυσή", όπως ακριβώς η χριστιανική εκκλησία αποκαλείται από τον Παύλο το "σώμα του Χριστού"».

* Adam Clarke,
The New Testament of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (1831),
Vol./Τόμ. 2 p./σ. 974.
[English/Aγγλικά, PDF, HTML]

The Apocalypse of Sedrach (150-500 C.E.) by S. Agourides (transl. & introd.): Identification of Christ with the archangel Michael / Η Αποκάλυψη Σεδράχ (150-500 Κ.Χ.) υπό Σ. Αγουρίδη (μετάφρ. & εισαγ.): Ταύτιση του Χριστού με τον αρχάγγελο Μιχαήλ:

Τοῦ ἁγίου καὶ μακαρίου Σεδρὰχ λόγος περὶ ἀγάπης καὶ περὶ μετανοίας καὶ ὀρθοδόξων Χριστιανῶν καὶ περὶ δευτέρας παρουσίας τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. Δέσποτα εὐλόγησον. [...]

Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ· Ὕπαγε, λαβὲ τὴν ψυχὴν τοῦ ἠγαπημένου μου Σεδρὰχ, καὶ ἀποθοῦ αὐτὴν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ. [...]

Λέγει αὐτὸν ὁ Χριστός· Παῦσον, Σεδράχ· ἕως πότε δακρύζεις καὶ στενάζεις; ὁ παράδεισός σοι ἠνοίγη καὶ ἀποθανὼν ζήσεις. [...]

Καὶ λέγει Σεδρὰχ πρὸς τὸν ἀρχάγγελον Μιχαήλ· Ἐπάκουσόν μου, πρόστατα δυνατὲ, καὶ βοήθει μοι καὶ πρεσβεύσαι ἵνα ἐλεήσῃ ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον.

Although there is general agreement that the Apocalypse of Sedrach dates, in its final redacted form, to the Byzantine period, the probability that the apocalypse is shaped out of much earlier material is accepted by most scholars. It is the opinion of M. R. James and A.-M. Denis that the Apocalypse of Sedrach received its final form around the tenth or eleventh century A.D., but that the author drew upon materials which extended back to an earlier age. M. E. Stone and J. H. Charlesworth have argued that the materials so used must have dated from the early centuries of the present era.

Much of the doctrinal content of Sedrach is atypical of medieval Christianity and many other elements of the Apocalypse are more Jewish than Christian. Where "Christ" is briefly mentioned, the term seems to be a substitute for the name of the Jewish archangel Michael. While no precise dates can be given, it appears that the Apocalypse was originally composed between A.D. 150 and 500, and that it was joined together with the sermon on love and received its final form shortly after A.D. 1000.

The Apocalypse of Sedrach appears to be from a Jewish original for the following reasons:

First, the role of Sedrach as explorer of the divine will and mediator for divine compassion does not fit the Christian tradition of either the earlier or later period. In popular Christian tradition this role is attributed to Mary, the mother of God. For example, in the Apocalypse of Mary, she travels through hell, sees the torments of the sinners, and tearfully pleads with her son for them. As a result he grants them a respite of fifty days in Paradise between Easter and Pentacost.

Second, the final period of twenty days' repentance agreed to by the Lord at Sedrach's pleading seems to be in conflict with much of later Church discipline. Most of the serious sins in the later Church require several years of repentance.

Third, Christian elements such as the incarnation or the cross are conspicuously absent. Christ plays practically no role at all. He is sent for Sedrach's soul; but this motif probably originates with the role of Michael, who appears elsewhere in the text. The Christian redactor here has substituted the figure of Christ for the figure of Michael.

* The Old Testament pseudepigrapha
(James Charlesworth ed.),
Vol./Τόμ. 1, pp./σσ. 658-660.