Christian angelology In Christianity, angels are the agents of God. Various works of Christian theology have devised hierarchies of angelic beings. The most influential Christian angelic hierarchy was put forward around the turn of the 6th century AD by Pseudo-Di ...

, thrones ( grc, θρόνος, pl. θρόνοι; la, thronus, pl. ''throni'') are a class of

angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

s. This is based on an interpretation of . According to 1 Peter 3:21–22,

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...

had gone to Heaven and "angels and authorities and powers" had been made subject to him.

Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (or Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite) was a Greek author, Christian theologian and Neoplatonic philosopher of the late 5th to early 6th century, who wrote a set of works known as the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'' or ...

in his work

De Coelesti Hierarchia ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' ( grc-gre, Περὶ τῆς Οὐρανίας Ἱεραρχίας, "On the Celestial Hierarchy") is a Pseudo-Dionysian work on angelology, written in Greek and dated to ca. AD the 5th century; it exerted great influen ...

includes the thrones as the third highest of nine levels of angels.

Christian angelology

According to Matthew Bunson, the corresponding order of angels in

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

is called the ''abalim'' or ''arelim''/''

erelim Erelim (, ''ʾErʾellīm''; sing. אֶרְאֵל, ''ʾErʾēl''; “valiant ones”), is a class of angel whose existence is derived from a verse in the book of Isaiah regarding the impending invasion of Jerusalem by Sennacherib during the reign of ...

'',Bunson, Matthew. ''Angels A to Z''. New York:Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1996. . but this opinion is far from universal. The Hebrew word ''erelim'' is usually not translated "thrones", but rather "valiant ones", "heroes", or "warriors". The function ascribed to ''erelim'' in and in

Jewish folklore Jewish folklore are legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales, stories, tall tales, and customs that are the traditions of Judaism. Folktales are characterized by the presence of unusual personages, by the sudd ...

Louis Ginzberg: Legends of the Jews 5:23, n. 64; 5:417, n. 117 is not consistent with the lore surrounding the thrones. Thrones are sometimes equated with

ophanim The ophanim (Hebrew: ''ʿōp̄annīm'', "wheels"; singular: ''ʿōp̄ān'', “Ofan”), alternatively spelled ''auphanim'' or ''ofanim'', and also called ''galgalim'' (Hebrew: ''galgallīm'', "spheres", "wheels", "whirlwinds"; singular: ''gal ...

since the

throne of God The Throne of God is the reigning centre of God in the Abrahamic religions: primarily Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The throne is said by various holy books to reside beyond the Seventh Heaven which is called ''Araboth'' ( ''‘ărāḇōṯ' ...

is usually depicted as being moved by wheels, as in the vision of (Old Testament).

Rosemary Ellen Guiley Rosemary Ellen Guiley (July 8, 1950 - July 18, 2019) was an American writer on topics related to spirituality, the occult, and the paranormal. She was also a radio show host, a certified hypnotist, a board director of the "National Museum of M ...

(1996: p. 37) states that: Ophanim Ophannin Throne wheel of eyes ezekiel (with flame)

Notes

References

* Bunson, Matthew. ''Angels A to Z''. New York:Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1996. * Gulley, Rosemary Ellen (1996). ''Encyclopedia of Angels''.

External links

{{Angels in Abrahamic religions Angels in Christianity Classes of angels