Do Angels have Free Agency?

This post is based off of a recent conversation that I had with a friend. I thought about asking as the opening question, "Do angels have free will?" But I know that some people would assert, with some merit, that no one except God truly has free will as no one, except God, can truly will anything to happen. Knowing that answer fails to address the intent of the actual question, I decided to avoid any such controversial debate and distraction and substitute "agency" for "will." In other words, do angels have the ability to decide their own actions? Do they have the capacity for choice?

Before I give you my answer, I want to make one qualification, and then one clarification. First, although I believe my answer is based upon Scripture, I have had to use deduction and logic to arrive at a conclusion based upon inference from textual examples rather than direct statements of fact or reality. The Bible doesn't clearly state that angels do or do not have free agency. Second, when I speak here of angels, I am referring to the Judeo-Christian concept of heavenly beings. I clarify this point because there are multiple definitions of the word "angel" found within English dictionaries, including "messenger" or person of virtue. Also, there are a number of other religious concepts of angels found outside of the Biblical text and the Judeo-Christian tradition. Even within Judaism and Christianity there are different concepts, opinions, and understandings, especially when studying theology throughout the centuries. Without getting too distracted by these considerations, I will assume that my readers have an idea of what I mean by the term angel. By the way, I am planning to write a more detailed post in the future regarding angels, demons, and other beings, which will give greater insight into the nature of such entities. For now, I will state that for the purposes of this writing, an angel should be understood to mean a being of intelligence that is on a different order of creation than humanity; still a creation of, and therefore subject to, God almighty. There are numerous examples of angels in the Bible, some of whom even have names, such as Gabriel, Michael, and Lucifer.

Regarding the initial question, I have heard teaching both ways. So, many years ago, I reasoned through it. Herein, I will provide four passages from Scripture, and my short thoughts on them (quotes from the New King James Version). In so doing, I will provide my answer to the question posed. Then I will summarize at the end. I encourage you to read the text of the passages I reference on your own, in addition to reading my thoughts.

Ezekiel 28:12-19: This passage starts as a lamentation for the king of Tyre but quickly and obviously becomes something else, which I believe is about Satan. Normally, I prefer to interpret scripture at face value, but when there is a noticeably deeper meaning, I dig deeper. For example, the king of Tyre was not in Eden (verse 13), but Satan was. When you compare this to Isaiah 14, there is enough similarity to make it obvious to me that this passage is about Satan. Verse 12 indicates that he was "the seal of perfection," verse 14, "the anointed cherub who covers," and verse 15, "perfect in your ways... until iniquity was found." This indicates to me that, like Adam and Eve, Lucifer was created in perfection, without sin, and something happened that caused a change. Verse 13, by the way, describes his (the person being discussed in the passage) musical instruments. This could indicate that Lucifer (assuming my interpretation is correct), as a cherubim (anointed cherub), could have been responsible for the worship around the throne of God.

Isaiah 14:12-17: This passage is directed towards Lucifer by name. Verse 12 states that he is "fallen from heaven." Verses 13 and 14 detail his pride and desire for self-glorification. So Ezekiel (the previous passage) indicates that Lucifer was perfect when he was created, and possibly in charge of the angelic worship at God's throne, but somehow fell when iniquity manifested itself in him. Isaiah indicates that he became prideful and sought to exalt himself equal to or above God. So rather than continuing in service of glorifying God, he chose to attempt self-glorification. The former being his created purpose, the latter being his choice, made of his own volition. At least that's how I interpret it. I do not believe that God created him as evil, or else he (Lucifer) would not have been described as perfect. I also believe that there is plenty of scriptural support to indicate that God does not create evil things, nor is He responsible for evil thoughts or actions. Evil comes about when His creation willfully rebels; be it angels (which I view as the 2nd order of sentience), or humans (the 3rd order, with God being the 1st).

Jude (a very short book; no chapters) verse 6: This passage mentions (almost as in passing, as if it is assumed that the intended audience would already have a knowledge of such) "angels who did not keep their proper domain (or estate, or place)" being kept in chains until judgment day. God is sovereign and can do as He purposes, but why judge unless wrong has been committed? How can judgment be just if the perpetrator literally had no choice? I'm not talking about circumstances, but actual choice. Also, these angels were in one domain and left it for another. I also see this as indicative of choice; unless they were acting upon orders, but then, God would not judge them for following His orders. If following the orders of another (Satan), then again their decision involved choice to disobey God, as they (angels) were created to serve God, not Satan.

Revelation 12 (the entire chapter is wonderful, but give special attention to verses 4 and 9): In verse 4, the "dragon" (obvious imagery, symbolic of another; Satan is referred to throughout scripture as a dragon) "drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth." This sentence to me is a clear telling of the story of one-third of the angels falling with Lucifer. In case someone were to take issue with my interpretation, I would just look to verse 9, which clears things up; the dragon is identified as "the Devil and Satan" and "his angels were cast out with him." I think it is pretty clear that Satan and some other angels are cast out of one domain, or state, and are fallen to another.

If angels don't have free agency, how did Satan rebel, and lead one-third of the Angels to rebel with him? As a result of this reasoning, I have rejected the teaching against free agency and support the teaching in favor of free agency. That is rather simple, but the essence of my position. Part of the problem with the teaching that angels don't have free agency is that I know of nowhere in the Bible that indicates such. Therefore, somewhere in history, someone came up with that idea, taught it, and it stuck. However, there are numerous passages in the Bible that, to me, indicate otherwise, therefore, I align with the alternative.

Angels might not be created in the image of God, as humans are, but I do believe that they have the capacity of choice. However, I do not believe that they have an inherent sin nature (depravity) as humans are born with (inherited from the rebellion of our ancestors, Adam and Eve), because I do not believe angels are born as we are, but were directly created by God all at once (just my understanding; scripture doesn't really give much information on the creation of the angelic host). So the angels that chose rebellion did it with full understanding of the potential consequences, unlike Adam and Eve, who were tempted by Satan, and their descendants, who are all born with a proclivity to sin and rebel. This is also one reason why I believe God made provision for human salvation (through the sacrifice of Christ) but not for angel salvation (never mentioned anywhere in scripture).

Thanks for reading. Grace and peace to you.

Knowledge shall be Increased

The modern age, especially our present time (the information era), is unique with the ability of people to travel all over the planet, within 24 hours, at a moment's notice. It is also unique with the accumulation and availability of massive quantities of information (and misinformation). Check out this prophecy from Daniel 12:4 regarding the "time of the end" (written about 2500 years ago):

"Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." (KJV)

That is such a simple and accurate description of our world today!

The first part of this verse is also very enlightening in its apparent indication that much of Daniel's prophecies won't be understood until the "time of the end."

High-Church and many traditional mainline denominations often criticize the Premillennial view of eschatology, stating that it is relatively new in the history of theology. I disagree on point, and believe that it was the actual view of the first-century Church, but that is hard to prove based upon the scarcity of extra-Biblical theological writings from that time. But it is true that the majority of Christendom, including Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism, Lutheranism, and many Reformed denominations, hold a differing view. It is clear that those, primarily evangelicals, who hold the Premillennial view are in the minority. But this does not surprise me at all. As Daniel 12:4 seems to indicate, the understanding of eschatological prophecy (at least Daniel's writings, which are so critical to establishing an overall understanding) were to be "shut up" and "sealed" until "the time of the end."

If the early Church, including that of the first-century, held to what is now known as the Premillennial view, there are many reasons why theological traditions may have drifted away over the centuries. I won't get into those reasons here, but perhaps in a future blog entry.

World History

Creating an accurate timeline of world history can be challenging at best because calendars change and records are incomplete. Even charting a timeline of human history using the Bible as a reference can be a challenge because we aren't always told people's ages when certain events occur. And when dates are referenced it can be difficult sometimes to reconcile with other texts due to calendar differences between societies and even changes in calendar systems within societies (for example, many calendars in the ancient world changed from 360-day years to 365-day years at some point, with leap days thrown in every four years, and in some cases leap months thrown in for some that retained the 360-day model).

However, honest Bible researchers and students can get a general idea of timelines from the information contained in the text. It is interesting to observe that, using solely the text of the Bible as a reference, about 6000 years have elapsed since the time of Adam and Eve until now. Here's the breakdown:

-Approx. 4000 BC/BCE: Adam & Eve
---About 2000 years elapse
-Approx. 2000 BC/BCE: Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob
---About 2000 years elapse
-Approx. 4/3 BC/BCE - 32 AD/CE: Jesus
---About 2000 years elapse
-Approx. now: Present time

So between Adam and the Hebrew Patriarchs was a time span of about 2000 years. From the time of the Hebrew Patriarchs until Jesus was about 2000 years. Since the time of Jesus until now has been about 2000 years. That's about 2000 years that God has used the Church as His instrument to reach the world, about 2000 years that He used the Nation of Israel as His instrument to reach the world, and about 2000 years that He used other methods. That's also about 6000 years total.

For the aspiring Biblical scholar, the number seven is a number that is recognized as significant in its use throughout the Bible. It is often referred to as the number of completion, Biblically speaking. If that use remains consistent, then 7000 total years could have some significance as well. And if we're about 6000 years into human history, Biblically speaking, and if there is to be a literal 1000-year reign of Christ upon earth before the final judgement and the new heavens and new earth are unveiled, as the "Premillennial" position asserts, then there could be some very interesting things happening in the near future.

Again, it is nearly impossible to be precise with timelines like this. The dates and years I've mentioned are only approximations. But they can give us a general outline and picture of about where we are in Biblical history, as well as a general concept of what might be around the corner, with certain interpretive and eschatological assumptions. However, I am convinced that God is very precise with His timing, and He knows exactly when things happened in the past (from the linear perspective of the time continuum we operate within in our present state) as well as the future (same qualification). He knows exactly when He will bring His prophecies to fulfillment, even if we don't know the exact "day or hour" (Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:32). But we are given signs to watch for, and told to be aware of the times, to know that the fulfillments of His plans are approaching.

Exciting times are ahead. Do you know your place in His plan? Do you want to? His Word is easily available in the western world, and I believe we will be held accountable for doing our due diligence to inform ourselves. Don't know where to start? Ask someone who does. You probably know someone you can ask, and might be thinking of them right now. Or ask me. I'll be happy to answer your questions or point you in the right direction.

Grace and peace.